ABSTRACT
Aim: Physicochemical assessment of the surface water sourced from River Ebenyi and its tributaries in Eha-Amufu and environs, Isu-Uzo Local Government Area of Enugu State of Nigeria. Place and Duration: Eha-Amufu and environs, Isu-Uzo Local Government Area of Enugu State of Nigeria. May to July, 2017. Study Design: Experimental design. Methodology: Water samples were spatially collected along the river and stream channels in Eha-Amufu and the adjoining Ihenyi, Amaede, Mgbuji, Umuhu, Agamede and Odobudo villages. Parameters analysed include pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), biological oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), Total hardness (TH), Lead (Pb), Copper (Cu), Cadmium (Cd), Chromium (Cr), Zinc (Zn), Nitrate, Phosphate, Chloride, and Sulphate. Results: The concentrations of Cd (0.02-0.05 mg/l) and Pb (0.37-0.77 mg/l) exceeded the maximum limit of the range of values considered as safe by the World Health Organisation (WHO). Conductivity (37.14 – 63.30 µs/cm), Total dissolved solids (TDS) (10.80 – 30.80 mg/l), Total suspended solids (TSS) (10.60 – 21.20 mg/l) and Total solid (TS) (20.60-41.00 mg/l) were within the lower limit of the permissible range of values. Chromium (0.26 ± 0.00 mg/l) exceeded the maximum permissible limit at Agamede village. Sulphate was statistical significantly higher (χ2 = 25.697, p < 0.001) relative to the spatial concentrations of nitrate (4.28 – 11.18 mg/l), sulphate (13.68 – 25.23 mg/l), phosphate (0.00 – 0.28 mg/l) and chloride (9.11 – 15.50 mg/l) in the area. Conclusions: The baseline results obtained from this study with regards to Cd, Cr and Pb demands that effective health education programme should be organised to emphasize on the effect of anthropogenic activities that releases pollutants. However, long term sampling covering all the months of the year is needed in order to confirm the reproducibility of our results.
ABSTRACT
Aim: Evaluation of the anti-obesity potentials of Sphenostylis stenocarpa ethanolic seed extract in albino rats. Study Design: Experimental design. Place and Duration of the Study: Department of Zoology and Environmental Biology, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria, from October to December, 2017. Methodology: The rats were assigned into 6 groups (A- F) of 12 rats per group replicated three times. Obesity was induced in rats of groups B to F, by daily feeding with high fat diet for 5 weeks. Only rats with an abdominal circumference (AC) of 20 cm, thoracic circumference (TC) of 17 cm and body mass index (BMI) of 0.68 g/cm2 and above respectively were considered obese and used for the study. The extract obtained by standard methods was screened phytochemically. Whereas the rats in the normal control (group A) received normal growers mash diet and distilled water, the obese negative control (group B) received the high fat diet and distilled water only, while the positive control (group C) received high fat diet, distilled water and 60 mg/kg b.wt of Orlistat. Graded doses of 200, 400 and 600 mg/kg b.wt of the extract were administered to groups D, E and F respectively. Results: Evidently, 400 mg/kg of Sphenostylis stenocarpa treatment proved to be the most effective dose in all parameters assayed. The treatments proved to be more effective when compared with the negative control than as compared with the positive control. Conclusion: The ethanolic seed extract of Sphenostylis stenocarpa proved to possess some anti-obesity potentiality which evidently seems to be most effective with longer duration of treatment.