Annual Research & Review in Biology

The present study was carried out to characterize leachate from waste dumping site and its impact on surrounding surface water quality at Rajbandh in Khulna. For this purpose, surface water samples (10) and leachate samples (5) were taken from the site during two season the monsoon season and post monsoon respectively. The samples were taken during the daytime from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m because at midday the temperature rises and the physico-chemical parameters of the water are modified. Some physico-chemical parameters such as pH, Electrical conductivity (EC), Total dissolved Solids (TDS), Dissolve Oxygen (DO), Chloride (Cl^-), Magnesium (Mg²⁺), Calcium (Ca²⁺), Sodium (Na+), Potassium (K⁺), Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD₅), Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), Iron (Fe²⁺), Phosphate (PO₄^3-), Sulfate (SO₄^2-), Nitrate (NO₃^2-) were analyzed in the laboratory in accordance with standard laboratory procedure. As well as some heavy metals such as Cadmium, Chromium, Lead, Manganese, Iron and Zinc were also analyzed in the laboratory. It is observed that, the physicochemical characteristics of surface water and leachate samples vary among the parameters in two seasons throughout the study period. The concentration of TDS and EC were found to be high in leachate compare to surface water samples that might be caused due to the existence of high-level various anions and soluble salts with other inorganic components. In monsoon the TDS values ranged from 3227 ± 2357 for leachate and 737 ± 498 for surface water samples whereas in post-monsoon the variation followed by 4640 ± 1790 and 803 ± 232 for surface water and leachate respectively. In case of EC for leachate it varied from 3630 ± 1397 and 4900 ± 1734 for monsoon and post-monsoon seasons correspondingly but varied from 1473 ± 498 in monsoon and 1627 ± 473 in post-monsoon for surface water samples. The high concentration of BOD (3.91 ± 1.54 in monsoon and 6.25 ± 3.27 in post- monsoon) and COD (117.80 ± 58.31 in monsoon and 229.39 ± 166.55 in post-monsoon) value were found in surface water samples compared to leachate samples. In case of Cr for leachate it varied from 0.081 ± 0.029 and 0.070 ± 0.026 for monsoon and post-monsoon seasons correspondingly. As well as the concentration of Cd (0.023± 0.006 in monsoon and 0.087±0.068 in post monsoon) and Pb (0.35±0.109 in monsoon and 0.025±0.013 in post monsoon) varied greatly during both season. The concentration of heavy metals such as Pb, Zn, Cr and Mn in surface water samples was also greater than 0.001mg/l. Further for leachate COD was very strongly correlated with TDS and cadmium. Magnesium was significantly correlated with potassium. For surface water sample TDS was significantly correlated with EC and pH. Chloride was significantly correlated with Cd and pb was correlated with calcium. This study recommended that the authority should take proper steps for the management of waste as well as give emphasis on the leachate collection.

Aim: Improper personal hygiene can facilitate the transmission of the pathogenic microorganisms found in environment and on people’s hands via food to humans. The present study was undertaken to investigate the microbiological quality of different street food and determining the antibiotic susceptibility of the isolated microorganisms.

Study Design: Collection of food samples for isolation of Pathogenic Microorganisms, to identify them by using Biochemical test, molecular test (16sr RNA typing), Antibiotic susceptibility was done by using different antibiotics against the isolates.

Place and Duration of Study: Food samples were collected from street vendors of Sainkpuri area, work was done from December 2020 to April 2021 at Microbiology Department, St. Francis College for Women, Hyderabad.

Methodology: Five samples of street food were collected in sterilized bottles, tested for the presence of microorganisms by following standard microbiological method used for isolation of microorganisms. The organisms were identified by carrying out various biochemical test according to Bergey’s Manual of Systematic Bacteriology. The Molecular characterization was done based on 16sr RNA typing. Determining the sensitivity of the isolates against different Antibiotics by employing Kirby Bauer technique.

Results: The organisms isolated from Manchuria and Ragada samples: Lactobacillus delbrueckii; Lactobacillus casei, Klebsiella pneumonia, Enterococcus faecalis and Vibrio spp respectively; Samosa and bonda: Staphylococcus aureus, Lactobacillus delbrueckii and Pantoea dispersa; Pani puri water: Staphylococcus aureus and Providencia vermicola. Antibiotic susceptibility tests showed that most of the isolated microorganisms were sensitive to Ciproflaxin.

Conclusion: Hence the quality of street food is found to be low due to following factor: lack hygiene conditions in the food preparation, ingredients may also affect quality of the food, and presence of air borne microorganisms in the surrounding areas of service points.

Background and Objective: Crustaceans play a considerable role in the ecological process of aquatic ecosystems, acting at different trophic levels as herbivores, detritivores, predators and prey and constitute an important source of animal protein for humans and livestock. This study investigated the diversity of shrimp from the left bank of the Malebo Pool in the Congo River.

Study Area: Five sampling campaigns were organized from July 2020 to August 2021 in six sites (Ngamanzo 1, Ngamanzo 2, Kinkole 1, Kinkole 2, Kinsuka 1 and Kinsuka 2) in the Malebo Pool, the terminal part of the middle Congo River.

Methods: Shrimp samples were collected using dip nets and creels during the experimental fisheries. Physical parameters were measured monthly in situ at six sites. Chemical parameters were assessed using an ultraviolet atomic spectrophotometer. Systematic identification of shrimp was done using appropriate systematic identification keys. The structure of the shrimp populations was studied using several ecological indices.

Results: A total of 1422 shrimp specimens were sampled. These individuals belonged to three different species (Caridina africana Macrobrachium dux and Macrobrachium sollaudii), two genera (Caridina and Macrobrachium) and two families (Atyidae and Palaemonidae). Shanon and Weaver's diversity index values ranged from 0 to 1.3 indicating that the shrimp fauna is not diverse in Malebo Pool. These species are better represented at Ngamanzo 1, Ngamanzo 2 and Kinkole 2. Redundancy analysis (RDA) showed that environmental variables such as dissolved oxygen level, conductivity, water temperature, transparency, water flow velocity, plant debris, aquatic plants and canopy strongly influence taxonomic diversity across sites.

Conclusion: The results obtained showed that the shrimp fauna is rich and diversified in the studied part of the Malebo Pool in the Congo River and, these organisms are essential in maintaining the ecological balance in this aquatic ecosystem.

The main objective of this study is to investigate the patterns of genetic diversity and phylogenetic relationships within populations of Detarium microcarpum (Fabaceae) relative to different spatial conditions. Seventy-eight (78) accessions of D. microcarpum belonging to six populations (Phytogeographic districts) were sampled. In order to have very good quality DNA for molecular analysis, an optimization of the DNA isolation protocol was made. The molecular analysis of the accessions was carried out using 7 chloroplast microsatellite markers. The polymorphism rate (P) is 85.71% and the Polymorphism Information Content (PIC) was in the range of 0.43 (Ntcp_9) to 0.73 (Ccmp_2) with an average of 0.59. Allelic richness (A) ranged from 1.41 to 2.85 with an average of 2.04. The observed heterozygosity (Ho) ranged from 0.23 to 0.60 with an average of 0.39. The expected heterozygosity (He) ranged from 0.43 to 0.60 with a mean of 0.50. Wright's fixation index (F_IS) ranged from -0.17 to 0.47. The effective allele (Ae) is between 1.77 and 2.53 with an average of 2.02. Wright differentiation index (F_ST) was 0.024. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the N_ST value was significantly higher than the G_ST value (N_ST = 0.452; G_ST = 0.190; p <0.05). A relatively low h_d haplotype diversity is obtained (H_d = 0.320). AMOVA analysis showed that 17.35% of the variation existed within populations but 45.80% among populations within the species. Neighbor-Joining phylogenetic tree of D. microcarpum revealed three non-distinct clusters haplotypes showing the existence of gene flow between populations of the species. Our findings of genetic structure and gene flow of D. microcarpum populations based on different spatial conditions is caused by evolutionary forces such as scattering and pollination.

Paraquat (1,1-dimethyl-4-4-bipiridinium dichloride (PQ) is a non-selective contact herbicide that is a major source of free radicals and generates superoxide anion, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) which causes severe oxidative damage. Vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin that plays a role using its biological characteristic as a suitable antioxidant in cells’ defense against oxygen deprivation and increasing tissue protection from oxidative stress. Vitamin E is a free-radical scavenger renowned for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. The purpose of the study was to determine the short-term therapeutic effect of a vitamin E and C combination treatment on paraquat-induced male albino rats. For the study, 200 male albino rats were used. The rats were divided into four major categories namely A, B, C, and D with 50 rats each. The "A" group received no paraquat, but the "B," "C," and "D" groups received 0.02g, 0.04g, and 0.06g of paraquat respectively every two weeks for three months. These groups were subsequently subgrouped into two with 25 rats per subgroup. The "A" group was divided into two "A₀" and "A_VE"; “B” was subgrouped into “B₀” and B_VEC”; “C” was subgrouped into “C₀” and “C_VEC” and “D” was subgrouped into “D₀” and “D_VEC”. A₀, B₀, C₀ and D₀ were subgroups without Vit E and C combined treatment while A_VEC, B_VEC, C_VEC and D_VEC were subgroups with combined treatment with 500mg of vitamin E and 2000mg/l of C medicated water every week for two months. Blood was drawn for the analysis of hematogical parameters (Hemoglobin concentration [Hb], Packed Cell volume [PCV], Total White blood cell count [T-WBC], Neutrophils and Lymphocytes). There was a significant variation in the hematological parameters among the "A₀", "B₀", "C₀", and "D₀" at p-value<0.05. There was also significant variation in the hematological parameters between the "A_VEC", "B_VEC", "C_VEC", and "D_VEC", p-value < 0.05. Consequently, it was also observed that there were significant variations in intra-group comparisons of Hb and PCV, p-value<0.05, whereas other markers were not statistically different. This study found that combining vitamin E and C has a therapeutic effect on ‘blood anemia indicators’ but not the immunity of male albino rats after one month of weekly treatment. As a result, a weekly treatment with Vit E and C combination therapy can alleviate PQ toxicity by ameliorating anemia but not affecting the immune system of male albino rats.