The present study mainly focuses on the ethno-botanical importance of Pteridophytes which are widely used by the local people of Marunthuvazhmalai hills, southern Western Ghats. As many as 25 taxa of pteridophytes along with the botanical name, family name, habit, part used, and their ethno-botanical uses (if available) are provided. They comprise terrestrial, epiphytic, litho-phytic and hydophytic forms.

The present investigation was conducted to evaluate antimicrobial and analgesic activities of ethanol extract from Solanum torvum (Family: Solanaceae) aerial parts. The bioactive compounds such as glycoside, tannins, sterols, saponins, flavonoids, carbohydrates and proteins are detected in ethanol extract shown promising antibacterial activity against gram positive bacteria viz. B. subtilis and S. aureus. Analgesic activity was evaluated against both thermal and chemical induced stimuli, which were evidenced from acetic acid induced writhing, tail immersion and formalin induced paw licking test. The assessment of peripheral analgesic effect of the ethanol extracts exhibited a significant percentage inhibition in the writhings which were induced by acetic acid in mice. Similarly test drug significantly increased the latency period in the tail immersion test and the formalin study showed that both the aphasic and tonic pain was blocked by the extract. The overall analgesic effect of ethanol extract (200 and 400 mg/kg body weight, p.o.) was lower than the standard drugs aspirin. The presence of flavonoid compounds in ethanol extract of Solanum torvum aerial parts may be responsible for the analgesic effect

Dengue and chikungunya are two mosquito-borne viral ailments transmitted by the same species of mosquito, Aedes aegypti and these ailments are of great public health concern in country like India. Thus, the present study was aimed to check the influence of antagonistic crustaceans on population of Aedes mosquitoes. Based on our laboratory experiments, the best ratio of antagonistic crustaceans (Cyclopoid copepod, Mesocyclops aspericornis and cladoceran, Daphnia magna) was chosen against Aedes aegypti larvae to test the influence of these crustaceans under simulated conditions. During the study it was observed that overall time taken for the larvae to convert into adult was 14.82±2.65 ranging from 14.0-21.0 days i.e. 4 days longer than the control sets. L1 larval stage was more prone to mortality i.e. 42.35±0.69 than other larval stages. Total adult emergence was significantly reduced i.e. 52.30±1.57 (31.65±0.69 males and 20.65±0.88 females). Significant reduction in body size of both male and female was observed i.e. 3.79±0.16 mm (control 4.44±0.07 mm) and female size significantly reduced to 4.17±0.15 mm when compared with control sets i.e. 5.48±0.08 mm. Life span of males was reduced from 15.35±1.20 to 9.33±0.33 days and in case of females longevity was reduced from 22.00±1.15 to 11.67±0.66 days.

The present investigation was carried out to determine and compare the nutritional values of some selected edible mushrooms collected in Ekiti State, Nigeria such as Pleurotus sajor-caju, Termitomyces robustus, Lentinus squarosullus, Termitomyces microcarpous, Termitomyces clypeatus, Lentinus tuber-regium and Polyporus sp. Proximate composition, mineral composition as well as vitamins A and C contents of the mushrooms were determined using standard methods. Results revealed significant differences in the nutritional composition of the mushrooms though some had similar compositions. The overall nutritional composition of the mushrooms was quite good suggesting that they have potentials to address the nutrient deficiency prevalent in the state, particularly among the low income earners. The values (%) ranged from 6.61-9.75 for moisture content, 1.07-3.89 for fat, 1.61-10.60 for total ash content, 1.61-10.81 for crude fibre, 8.67-37.31 for protein and 49.90- 75.35 for carbohydrates. The mineral composition (mg/100g) ranged between 24.96- 126.66 (Na), 478.30-789.64 (K), 33.06-153.43 (Mg), 38.17-440.20 (Ca), 1.23- 14.03 (Mn), 12.84-151.14 (Fe), 3.58-14.55 (Zn) and 0.92-4.03 (Cu). Vitamin A content (mg/g) was very low ranging from 0.01-0.12 while vitamin C content ranged from 94.22-326.51. The present study contributes to the elaboration of the nutritional database of commonly consumed mushrooms in Ekiti State, Nigeria.

This study focused on the analysis of birth weight (BW), weaning weight (WW), weaning age (WA) and average daily gain (ADG) between birth and weaning of 950 Borgou cattle using data over five years from the Okpara Breeding Farm. The BW, WW, and ADG of animals including 513 males calves and 437 females calves were determined based on the variation factors. A general linear model (GLM) was used to determine the effects of the factors of variation: sex, season of birth, calving number, year of birth, and birth park. The weaning age of animals was also considered as a factor in order to determine its influence on WW and ADG. The results showed that the average weaning age of Borgou cattle was 392.49 ± 71.51 days. The weaning age had an effect on weaning weight and ADG of the animals. The BW and WW ranged from 16.11 ± 0.20 kg to 22.28 ± 0.20 kg and from 107.80 ± 2.50 kg to 125.46 ± 1.17 kg, respectively. As for the ADG, it varied between 212.06 ± 7.56 kg and 330.78 ± 6.47 kg. The sex, birth season, calving number, and park influenced birth weight, the weaning weight, and the average daily gain. The year influenced the weaning weight and the ADG (p<0.001) but had no effect on birth weight (p>0.001). Male calves showed higher weaning weights and daily weight gains than female calves (p<0.05). Animals born during the transition period between the rainy season and the dry season were heavier (p<0.05). Animals from 6th calving number had the best birth weights, the best weaning weights and the best ADGs (p<0.05).

Himachal Pradesh is lying between 30.22' to 33.12' North latitudes and 75.47' to 79.04’ East longitudes. The area of the state is 55,673 km2 with almost mountainous elevations ranging from 350-6500 m above the mean sea level. Shimla is surrounded by Mandi and Kullu in the north, Kinnaur in the east, Uttarakhand in the southeast, Solan to the southwest and Sirmaur in the south. It is the third most populous district of Himachal Pradesh, after Kangra and Mandi. In the present study 24 climber species belonging to 12 families and 19 genera have been reported. Cucurbitaceae and Ranunculaceae with 4 species, Apocynaceae with 3 species, Convolvulaceae with 2 species, Dioscoreaceae and Menispermaceae with 2 species and other families with one species.

The quality of food products from cassava are affected by processing methods and varieties of cassava used which may later affect consumers demand. In this work, fresh cassava roots of different local varieties (Odongbo, IITA funfun, Olekanga, and Oko iyawo) were processed into gari and pupuru. The two products were analyzed for proximate composition, mineral content, chemical and functional properties while the reconstituted meals from them were evaluated for sensory properties. The highest value of 2.13% crude protein was obtained for gari samples (Oko iyawo variety) while the least value was 1.80% (odongbo variety). For pupuru, the highest value was 1.70% (Oko iyawo variety) while the least was 1.52% (IITA variety). The cyanide content of gari samples from Oko iyawo had the highest value of 4.08 mgHCN/kg while Olekanga had the least value of 1.20 mgHCN/kg. For pupuru, Odongbo had the highest cyanide content of 3.31mgHCN/kg and IITA had the least value of 2.63mgHCN/kg. The mineral content showed that gari produced from IITA cassava varieties had the highest values in terms of iron, Copper and Zinc for all the cassava varieties likewise for that of pupuru except for magnesium where pupuru produced from oko iyawo cassava variety had the highest value. Gari samples produced from Oko iyawo cassava variety were scored highest in all the sensory parameters tested that makes the gari the most accepted whereas that of IITA cassava variety had lowest scored. Also, pupuru produced from Oko iyawo was scored highest in terms of taste and IITA cassava variety had lowest scored in terms of aroma, flavor, overall acceptability and appearance. This shows that gari and pupuru produced from IITA cassava variety were the least accepted.

The potential presence of naturally occurring antimicrobials in petals of flowers of Hibiscus sabdariffa L., (Malvaceae) was investigated against isolated eye pathogens. Owing to the usage of these flowers in common folklore medicine, the extracts of petals were screened for antibacterial activity against pathogenic microbes isolated from the eyes of eye infected persons. Bioactive compounds were extracted by cold extraction method, wherein Methanol, ethyl acetate and dichloromethane were used as solvents. The antibacterial activity of the extracts was assessed by agar well diffusion method. The study revealed that the extracts possessed antibacterial activity in a dose dependent manner. Among the tested flower extracts of Hibiscus sabdariffa, DCM extract showed better activity on most of the ocular pathogens tested. Hence the DCM extracts of petals of the flowers of Hibiscus sabdariffa can be used to discover antibacterial agent for developing new pharmaceuticals to treat eye infections.

Legumes provide good source of protein, complex carbohydrate, dietary fibre, essential vitamins and minerals and are used as food and feed purposes. In most of the developing countries, animal protein is expensive and as an alternative, legumes are consumed majorly as a source of protein. They further complement proteins from other plant sources, such as, cereal grains where they contribute essential amino acids to the diets in different parts of the world. Aside the nutritional content, they also possess nonnutrients components otherwise known as the bioactive compounds, which include inhibitors of proteases and amylases, lectins, saponins, phytic acid and phenolic compounds. Out of all these bioactive compounds, phenolic compounds are of great importance because, apart from contributing to the seed colour and sensory characteristics of the seed, they also provide several biological properties with proposed health-related benefits. Phenolic compounds are natural bioactive compounds found in legumes used for combating free radicals and reducing the oxidative damage responsible by chronic diseases.

The ferment of cassava is prepared according to various methods by the producers of Attiéké, according to the ethnic group. During the investigation, five main methods of preparation of the cassava ferment, used for the production of Attiéké, were identified. The method of preparation of the ferment from the raw cassava, begin with the cutting roughly or small cylindrical pieces of the not peeled cassava tubers, before the fermentation by all of the producers of Attiéké of the ethnic group Abouré (9.4 %). The fermentation time is of 3 days for the whole boiled and braised peeled cassava, of 2 days for the cassava cut in pieces boiled and of 4 days for the braised not peeled and raw cassava. The packing material is constitutes in the majority of the cases (51.1 %) of bag of polypropylene (collectively called bag of rice or salt). The fishing net and the bag of jute are particularly also used for the ethnic groups Adjoukrou and Abouré. However, the plastic bag is used to create the waterproofness of the packing material and the envelope of the bark of the palm tree to favor the colonization of the cassava by germs fermentatives for the ethnic group Attié. Only the ferment of cut boiled cassava in certain cases, does not undergo cleaning before its use in the process of preparation of Attiéké.

The study is conducted in the city of Sanlıurfa as a descriptive study, and the aim of the study is to determine the smoking exposure and affecting factors in pregnant women. Sample size is calculated as 256; the estimated smoking cessation rate is 4.4%, the error limit is 2.5% and confidence interval is 95.0%. In the study, it was reported that 9.8% of pregnant women smoke and the average amount of cigarettes smoked per day during pregnancy is 5.3 ± 4.4. For the pregnant women; the mean duration of smoking before pregnancy is 4.6 ± 3.8 years and the average amount of cigarettes smoked per day is 8.9 ± 7.0. Of the women; 41.8% are exposed to secondhand tobacco smoke at home, since their husbands smoke; 55.1% are exposed to secondhand tobacco smoke at home due to their relatives; and 27.3% are exposed to secondhand tobacco smoke at work. In univariate analyzes, the smoking exposure is found to be higher in the Turkish speaking families than in the Kurdish and Arabic speaking families and in the families in which the husbands earn money than in which husbands don't earn money (p <0.05). Although the rate of pregnant women who smoke is lower than the total value of Turkey; the rate of passive exposure to tobacco smoke is higher. In the light of these results, it is suggested that antenatal care health personnel should provide counseling services regarding harms and passive smoking should be provided to pregnant women, their spouses and their family members and that these informing, counseling and prevention activities for smoking should be performed and generalized throughout Turkey.