Quality evaluation of mixed fruit juice produced from African bush mango, pineapple and orange

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Phytochemistry and Antioxidant Activity of Irvingiagabonensis (Bush mango) Seed Sample

Phytochemistry and antioxidant activity of Irvingiagabonensis (Bush mango) seed sample were evaluated. Dried milled seeds of I.gabonensis popularly known as “ogbono” passed through phytochemical screening, Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis and antioxidant studies. Tannins, saponins, flavonoids, alkaloids, steroids, and reducing sugars were among the phytochemicals found present after screening. About 20 constituents were revealed by the GC-MS analysis out of which 1,3-O-Benzylidine glyceryl-2-myristate had the highest molecular weight, 2-Undecanone had the highest peak area of 45.39% whereas 3-Dibenzofuranamine had the highest retention time. Some of these constituents could have one or two applications in medicinal, food or cosmetic industries. I.gabonensis seeds showed better antioxidant activity against the control at concentrations considered in this study. Some of these constituents as well could be behind the observed antioxidant activity. This study has evaluated the phytochemistry and antioxidant activity of I.gabonensis (Bush mango) seed sample.

Multiple Sequence Alignment Reveals Diversity among Eight African Bush Mango (Irvingia gabonensis Aubry-Lecomte ex O’Rorke) Cultivars

Multiple sequence analysis is one of the most widely used model in estimating similarity among genotypes. In a bid to access useful information for the utilization of bush mango genetic resources, nucleotide sequences of eight bush mango (Irvingia gabonensis) cultivars were sourced for and retrieved form NCBI data base, and evaluated for diversity and similarity using computational biology approach. The highest alignment score (26.18), depicting the highest similarity, was between two pairs of sequence combinations; BM07:BM58 and BM12:BM69 respectively, while the least score (19.43) was between BM01: BM13. The phylogenetic tree broadly divided the cultivars into four distinct groups; BM07, BM58 (cluster one), BM01 (cluster 2), BM15, BM13 and BM35 (cluster 3), and BM12, BM69 (cluster 4), while the sequences obtained from the analysis revealed only few fully conserved regions, with the single nucleotides A, and T, which were consistent throughout the evolution. Results obtained from this study indicate that the bush mango cultivars are divergent and can be useful genetic resources for bush mango improvement through breeding.

Fungal and Aflatoxin Contamination of Smoke Dried Catfish and African Bush Mango Seeds (Ogbono) Sold in Markets in Selected Processing Zones in Benue State, Nigeria

The aim of this research was to evaluate the fungal and aflatoxin content of smoke dried catfish and African bush mango seeds obtained from selected processing zones in Benue State, Nigeria. Thirty two smoke dried catfish samples and forty eight African bush mango seed samples were collected from different markets in Makurdi, Katsina-Ala, Ogbadibo, Kwande and Vandeikya. These were analyzed for fungal load, fungi species and aflatoxin contamination using standard microbiological methods and ELISA technique for aflatoxin determination. The results revealed the presence of Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus niger, Clasdosporium spp, Penicillium spp, Mucorspp and Fusarium spp isolated from both smoke dried catfish and African bush mango seeds; also Rhizopus spp and Saccharomyces spp from bush mango seeds. Fungal count of smoke dried catfish from Makurdi ranged from 3.28 to 4.61 logCFU/ml while that of Katsina-Ala ranged from 4.26 to 4.98 log CFU/ml. The fungal count of African bush mango seeds ranged from 3.62 to 3.94 log CFU/ml (Kwande), 3.61 to 4.93 log CFU/ml (Makurdi), 3.61 to 4.85 log CFU/ml (Ogbadibo) and 4.08 to 4.89 logCFU/ml (Vandeikya). The aflatoxin concentration in the smoke dried catfish samples ranged from 4.10 to 15.00 ppb for samples from Makurdi and 2.05 to 7.45 ppb for samples from Katsina-Ala, while that of African bush mango seeds ranged from 1.75 to 3.25 ppb (Kwande), 0.00 to 1.50 ppb (Makurdi), 1.08 to 8.10 ppb (Ogbadibo) and 0.00 to 1.65 ppb (Vandeikya). Both the smoke dried catfish and African bush mango seeds had aflatoxin levels below the maximum acceptable limit of 20ppb by National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control which can be considered safe, but hygienic measures must be maintained in handling such foods and better drying and preservation techniques applied in order to lower the incidence of fungi growth and aflatoxin contamination.

Exploring gender dynamics, economics and perceptions of the vulnerability of the bush mango value chain in three provinces of Gabon

This study conducted around three provinces of Gabon (Estuaire, Ngounié, and Nyanga) aims at exploring gender dynamics, economics, and vulnerability perceptions in the bush mango value chain by analyzing male-female roles and relationships. Interviews were randomly conducted with 174 actors as follows: 132 (Estuaire), 12 (Ngounié), and 30 (Nyanga) provinces using a semi-structured questionnaire and field observations. Women headed households dominate harvesting (21.8%), processing/trading (10.3%) and trading stages (55.2%) compared to men harvesting (7.5%), processing/trading (0.6%) and trading (4.6%). Women tend to generate relatively higher annual gross average income (1.4 million FCFA per annum), which is 1.7 times higher than that of men. Poor management of resources, the lack of harvesting norms, logging-driven deforestation, and slash-and-burn agriculture are among the perceived factors threatening the value chain. Targeted policy and actions on a gender perspective are suggested to reduce income inequality between men and women along the value chain. A long-term ecological study to monitor changes over forest resources use is crucial before carrying out any mitigating measures based on cultivation and domestication in the study areas.

Antibacterial, Antifungal and Anti-tubercular Activities of Chloroform Fraction of the Leaf Extract of Irvingia Gabonensis (African Bush Mango)

Background: The prevalence of anti-drug resistance by disease causing microorganisms has necessitated the search for alternative sources of drugs for the treatment of the ailments caused by these microorganisms. This study examines the biological properties of extracts from the leaves of Irvingia gabonensis (bush mango). Objective: The objective of this study is to determine the anti-microbial activity of chloroform fraction of the leaf extract and compare it with that of clinical reference. Methods: Antimicrobial activity of the chloroform fraction of the leaf extract of Irvingia gabonensis was evaluated against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Shigella dysenteriae, Salmonella typhi, Klebsiella pneumonia, Salmonella paratyphi, Candida albicans and Trichophyton rubrum by using the agar well diffusion method and Mycobacterium tuberculosis using agar proportion method on Lowenstein–Jensen medium. Preliminary phytochemical screening of the chloroform leaf fraction was done using qualitative standard methods. Results: This showed the presence of saponins, flavonoids, tannins, coumarin, phenol and alkaloids. Organisms were susceptible to chloroform fraction at different concentrations. The lowest MIC value obtained was 0.625mg/mL for S. aureus and S. typhi. While, five out of seven mycobacterial strains that were used, were susceptible. Conclusion: The antimicrobial activity is a result of the phytochemicals present in leaf. Therefore, we conclude that Irvingia gabonensis leaves can be used in the development of new pharmaceuticals research activities such as drug production.

Plants and mushrooms in the management of diabetes

The management of diabetes is crucial since that is the only option for this chronic non-communicable disease. The administration of medicinal drugs for the management of diabetes is critical. It is however important to note that some plants have components that confer anti-diabetic properties and may be of use especially in developing countries where there is limited access to healthcare. The aim of this review is to review studies that involved plants with anti-diabetic effects. Such plants as tea, mushroom, broccoli, garlic, moringa, ginseng, guava, onion, tiger nut, bush mango, okra, dates, bitter melon, dandelion, water melon, and pumpkins may reduce diabetes risks, or even lower blood sugar in diabetes patients (notably type 2 diabetes). Phytoremediation via plant foods should not be underestimated in the management of diabetes.