The rhizome of Atractylodes ovata De Candolle is rich in essential oils, which are usually removed by processing. In this study, anti-oxidative abilities of essential oils and aqueous extracts of A. ovata rhizome were explored, and the influence of processing on the anti-oxidative abilities was examined. Essential oils and aqueous extracts of A. ovata were extracted by boiling water and steam d...

Cowpea is major source of dietary protein in tropical region of the world and damage caused by Callosobruchus maculatus impact negatively on its economic and nutritional values. In Nigeria today, the use of synthetic insecticides has been the major means of protecting stored grains from insect pest infestation. The drawback associated with the use of insecticides has necessitated the search for...

Inbreeding depression is well documented in insects but the degree to which inbreeding depression varies among populations within species, and among traits within populations, is poorly studied in insects other than Drosophila. Inbreeding depression was examined in two long-term laboratory colonies of the seed beetle, Callosobruchus maculatus (Fabricius), which are used frequently as models for...

Cultivated Elionurus muticus (Spreng.) Kunth (Gramineae) plant parts were steam distilled for essential oil and evaluated in-vitro for antifungal activity against Candida albicans, C. krusei and Cryptococcus neoformans using agar broth dilution and disc diffusion methods and the activity compared with commercial citral and Cymbopogon citratus DC (Stapf) (lemongrass) oils by measuring the growth...

Cowpea, Vigna unguiculata [L.] Walp. is a widely planted nutritious grain legume [1]. It is cultivated in many West African countries including Nigeria. Cowpea is a source of dietary protein, vitamins and mineral salts. It has been consumed by human since the earliest practice of Agriculture in developing countries of Africa, Asia, and Latin America [2]. The pulse beetle, Callosobruchus maculat...

Achillea santolina, Nepeta cataria and Salvia bucharica are mainly known to possess antispasmodic use in traditional medicine. The essential oils from these plants were screened for their possible pharmacological activity with possible mode of action explored. Volatile oil was extracted by steam distillation using standard procedure given in British Pharmacopoeia 2001. For pharmacological activ...

We have confirmed here that the seeds of the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris, L.) do not support development of the bruchid Callosobruchus maculatus (F.), a pest of cowpea [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp] seeds. Analysis of the testa (seed coat) of the bean suggested that neither thickness nor the levels of compounds such as tannic acid, tannins, or HCN are important for the resistance. On the oth...