The presence of Eriophorum angustifolium in mine tailings of pyrite maintains a neutral pH, despite weathering, thus lowering the release of toxic elements into acid mine drainage water. We investigated if the presence of slightly elevated levels of free toxic elements triggers the plant rhizosphere to change the pH towards neutral by increasing organic acid content. Plants were treated with a ...

Oil content, fatty acid composition and the distribution of vitamin-E-active compounds of selected Turkish seeds that are typically by-products of the food processing industries (linseed, apricot, pear, fennel, peanut, apple, cotton, quince and chufa), were determined. The oil content of the samples ranged from 16.9 to 53.4 g/100 g. The dominating fatty acids were oleic acid (apricot seed oil, ...

Cydonia oblonga Miller (quince) is regarded as a potent libido invigorator in Tib-e-Nabvi and Unani System of Medicine. This study was carried out to evaluate the aphrodisiac activity of the hydroalcoholic extract of the fruits of Cydonia oblonga Miller (quince) in Wistar rats. The extract was administered orally by gavage in the dose of 500 mg/kg and 800 mg/kg body weight per day as a single d...

High density planting systems are a prerequisite to economise the use of land and labour costs of orchards. Dwarfing rootstocks controlling the vigour of the scion cultivars form the basis for such orchards (Wertheim and Webster, 2005). In the Netherlands, rootstock research is limited to and focussed on testing rootstocks selected abroad. For the Dutch pear growers the main selection criteria ...

INTRODUCTION A number of plant species, that have only rarely been cultivated in the past, are now being investigated for possible domestication in northern Europe. Species within the Rosaceous genus Chaenomeles (also referred to as the common name of these species) have received increased attention because of their high yield of fruits, which are rich in juice, aroma, and dietary fiber, and be...

It has been hypothesised that several microbial processes contribute to mucilage formation and transformation. However, to date, none of these mechanisms have been consistently tested using different types of mucilage. We investigated the biochemical composition and the microbial activities occurring in 9 different types of mucilage aggregates (macroflocs, stringers, cobwebs, ribbons, stringers...

In the present era, polymers from natural sources become a better alternate for delivery of various kinds of drugs. The compliance and use of polymers obtained from natural origin are increasing day by day in the pharmaceutical industries due to a fewer side effects. Mucilages obtained from natural sources are a better alternative for designing and development of mucoadhesive drug delivery syst...

Mucilage extracted from Anacardium occidentale were subjected to toxicity studies for its safety and preformulation studies for its suitability as a gelling agent. The present study was undertaken with an objective to find out the gelling potentials of a natural gum obtained from plant Anacardium occidentale. The gum was extracted by using water as solvent and precipitated using acetone as non-...