Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences最新文献

{"title":"An overview of neglected tropical diseases in Ethiopia","authors":"B. Erko, Y. Ye-ebiyo, A. Seyoum, H. Desta, A. Teklehaymanot","doi":"10.4314/EJBS.V6I2.45462","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4314/EJBS.V6I2.45462","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT: This review presents an overview of the neglected tropical diseases, the magnitude of the problem and the status of intervention in Ethiopia. Furthermore, the review attempts to identify gaps in information and the way forward. Thirteen poverty-promoting diseases have recently been designated as neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). These diseases include visceral leishmaniasis (VL), human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), Chagas disease, hookworm infection, ascariasis, trichuriasis, lymphatic filariasis, onchocerciasis, drancunculiasis, schistosomiasis, trachoma, leprosy (Hansen's disease), and Buruli ulcer. Except for Chaga's disease, all other officially designated NTDs occur in Ethiopia, with varying magnitude. Soiltransmitted helminthiasis (STHs) and schistosomiasis, the profiles of which have superficially been considered elsewhere, are the most prevalent and yet neglected diseases in Ethiopia. Leprosy, trachoma, onchocerciasis and dracunculiasis have drawn attention from the Ministry of Health and its partners, as well as their control is also on track. The Malaria and Other Vector-Borne Diseases Prevention and Control Team, in collaboration with other partners, has developed diagnosis and treatment guideline for VL to establish the control program. The distribution of Bancroftian filariasis is also being mapped to move towards institution of intervention. Human African trypanosomiasis (HAT) which used to be endemic in the southwestern parts of the country has not recently been reported from the same foci, perhaps due to dramatic ecological changes. Buruli ulcer is the other neglected tropical disease, only two cases of which have recently been reported in Ethiopia. Pediculosis, tungiasis and non-parasitic conditions such as podoconiosis and goiter are also presented as neglected diseases of public and socioeconomic importance in Ethiopi.","PeriodicalId":187522,"journal":{"name":"Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences","volume":"6 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2009-08-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"128946906","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"In vivo evaluation of Trichoderma and Gliocladium species against Botrytis Corm Rot/ Blight of Gladiolus","authors":"T. Alemu, I. Kapoor","doi":"10.4314/EJBS.V6I2.45461","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4314/EJBS.V6I2.45461","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT: In vivo experiments were conducted to determine the antagonistic effect, efficacy, and disease reduction capacity of nine Trichoderma species as biological control agents against the Botrytis corm rot ( Botrytis gladiolorum ) of gladiolus. The corm application of T richoderma species on gladiolus pathogen, B. gladiolorum isolate BG-4 was found to increase the number and weight of corms and cormels by percentages ranging from 0-305% and disease control by 55-90%. All parameters taken together, T. piluliferum and T. pseudokoningii were found to be the most effective biocontrol agents, whereas T. lignorum and T. hamatum were the least effective. Likewise, the inoculation of the three selected Trichoderma biocontrol agents on the two isolates (BG-1 and BG-4) of B. gladiolorum showed that the treated plants achieved 19-140 % increase in corm and cormel numbers and 54-89% in disease control. The biocontrol agents showed variations on the test isolates in that T. reesei was effective on isolate BG-4 (89%), whereas T. viride was effective on BG-1 isolate (70%). The T harzianum antagonist was found to be mildly active on both isolates. Generally, the data showed that the biocontrol agents showed diverse antagonism on the test isolates indicating for a need to screen different antagonists against different test pathogens for the successful control of B. gladiolorum isolates.","PeriodicalId":187522,"journal":{"name":"Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences","volume":"6 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2009-08-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"130590393","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Species composition, abundance and activity pattern of birds in Addis Ababa Abattoirs Enterprise area","authors":"H. Hibste, A. Bekele","doi":"10.4314/EJBS.V6I2.45458","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4314/EJBS.V6I2.45458","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT: Studies on species composition and abundance of birds in Addis Ababa Abattoirs Enterprise compound were carried out from March 2006 to February 2007. Point count method was employed to record the abundance of individual bird species. Twenty one species of birds, including the endemic Wattled Ibis, White-collared Pigeon and Thick-billed Raven were recorded. Of the total species, 12 (57.14%) were regular, 4 (19.05%) were resident and 5 (23.81%) were irregular. The species composition decreased during the wet season due to the departure of migratory birds. But, the abundance of birds during the wet season was greater than during the dry season. The most abundant species were hooded and African white-backed vultures. The activity time was from 06: 00 - 18:00 h during the dry season. The fresh dumping site was intensively disturbed by human activities, affecting the normal feeding behaviour of birds.","PeriodicalId":187522,"journal":{"name":"Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences","volume":"127 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2009-08-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"133635207","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Antibacterial Activity and Acute Toxicity Study of Acacia nilotica","authors":"M. Guta, K. Urga, A. Assefa, Hirut Lemma, G. Addis, N. Gemeda, Kidist Yirsaw, K. Mudi, D. Melaku","doi":"10.4314/EJBS.V6I1.39039","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4314/EJBS.V6I1.39039","url":null,"abstract":"Methanol crude extract and chloroform, ethyl acetate, n-butanol and aqueous fractions of the methanolic extract of fruits and stem bark of Acacia nilotica (L.) Willd. ex Del. (Fabaceae) were screened for antibacterial activity of diarrhoea-causing bacterial species (Escherichia coli, Shigella dysenteriae and Salmonella typhi) in Ethiopia using standard agar dilution method. Oral acute toxicity studies were also carried out on mice with the ethyl acetate fruit fraction of A. nilotica . Compared with standard antibiotic (chloramphenicol and tetracycline) extracts and fractions, A. nilotica had low activity (P A. nilotica . showed lower activity (P Keywords : Acacia nilotica ; Antibacterial activity; Crude extract; Traditional medicine. Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences Vol. 6 (1) 2007: pp. 4349","PeriodicalId":187522,"journal":{"name":"Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences","volume":"28 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2009-03-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"130869758","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Survival of Esherichia coli 0157:H7, Staphylococcus aureus, Shigella flexneri and Salmonella spp . in Borde and Shamita: Traditional Ethiopian Fermented Beverages","authors":"G. Tadesse, E. Ephraim, M. Ashenafi","doi":"10.4314/EJBS.V6I1.39037","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4314/EJBS.V6I1.39037","url":null,"abstract":"The survival or inhibition of foodborne pathogens in different fermented products are well documented. This prompted the study to evaluate survival of Esherichia coli O157:H7, Staphylococcus aureus, Shigella flexneri and Salmonella spp. in two Ethiopian traditional fermented low-alcohol beverages, Shamita and Borde. The pH of ready-to-consume Shamita and Borde was 4.0 and 3.8, respectively. Samples were separately inoculated with 103 cfu/ml of the test strains for Borde and 106 cfu/ml for Shamita and these were maintained at 32oC. In Shamita, Staphylococcus aureus, Shigella flexneri, and Salmonella survived until 24 h, but were not detectable at 48 h. Esherichia coli O157:H7 could survive until 48 h but was undetectable at 72 h. In Borde, Staphylococcus aureus, and Shigella flexneri survived only until 16 h, whereas Salmonella was eliminated within 12 hours. Esherichia coli O157:H7 survived longer in Borde and was eliminated only at 24 h. The presence of the test strains in the fermented products resulted in decrease of pH by an average of 0.35 units within 48 hours in Shamita and 0.16 units within 24 hours in Borde. The fermented products are low-alcohol beverages and are consumed in large amounts as meal replacements. As they are supposed to be consumed within a few hours after production and pathogens can survive in the product for over 10 hours, contamination of the products with pathogens should be avoided. Keywords : E. coli O157:H7; Salmonella; Shigella flexneri; Staphylococcus aureus; Traditional fermented beverages. Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences Vol. 6 (1) 2007: pp. 1-10","PeriodicalId":187522,"journal":{"name":"Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences","volume":"46 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2009-03-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"120949679","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Genetic Diversity of Rhizobia in Ethiopian Soils: Their Potential to Enhance Biological Nitrogen Fixation (BNF) and Soil Fertility for Sustainable Agriculture","authors":"E. Wolde-meskel","doi":"10.4314/EJBS.V6I1.39042","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4314/EJBS.V6I1.39042","url":null,"abstract":"Nitrogen is one of the most limiting nutrients to plant growth. It has to be fixed in the form of NH4 through chemical (fertilizer production) and biological (bacterial) processes (BNF) in the soil. The endosymbiotic associations of root nodule bacteria (rhizobia) with leguminous plants fix 200-500kg N ha-1 yr-1. Consequently, the legumes are integrated into different agro-ecosystems for plant production and soil protection. In view of the ever-increasing demand for food and feed for the burgeoning population in the country, the search for cheaper ways of enhancing soil fertility is very important. To that end, many research activities have been undertaken for the last 20 years to realize the full potential of the legume-rhizobia symbiosis in crop production and agro forestry systems. Although the pioneer research works were focused on the agronomic relationship of resident rhizobia with food legumes, recent studies encompassed rhizobial diversity and effectiveness on different pulse crops and other woody shrub and tree legumes. Some of the polyphasic studies on the rhizobia from Southern Ethiopia revealed that Ethiopian soils harbour diverse groups of rhizobia that are very distinct (more than 80%) from the hitherto known taxa of the Family Rhizobiaceae. This suggests that the country has enormous rhizobial resources for more phylogenetic studies and for the selection of elite strains to enhance effective Rhizobium-legume symbiosis in its agro ecosystems. In this review, the challenges and prospects associated with the exploitation of BNF in the country, in general, and the potential to develop and promote broad-host range inoculants to small-scale farmers, in particular, will be discussed. Keywords : Genetic diversity; Indigenous rhizobia; Legume-Rhizobium symbiosis; Nitrogen fixation Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences Vol. 6 (1) 2007: pp.77-95","PeriodicalId":187522,"journal":{"name":"Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences","volume":"99 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2009-03-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"129315629","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Mating Test and In Vitro Production of Perithecia by the Coffee Wilt Pathogen , Gibberella xylarioides ( Fusarium xylarioides )","authors":"G. Adugna, H. Hindorf, U. Steiner, H. Dehne","doi":"10.4314/EJBS.V6I1.39041","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4314/EJBS.V6I1.39041","url":null,"abstract":"Gibberella xylarioides Heim & Saccas, the teleomorphic state of Fusarium xylarioides Steyaert, is a fungal pathogen causing a vascular wilt disease of coffee known as tracheomycosis. Coffee wilt disease has been one of the endemic diseases of Arabica coffee (Coffea arabica) with increasing outbreaks and prevalence in Ethiopia. In the present study, in vitro production of fertile perithecia was assessed by crossing eight randomly selected monoconidial isolates of G. xylarioides (F. xylarioides) collected from C. arabica, including few strains from C. canephora and C. excelsa. Five media types and two temperature levels were compared for inducing the sexual structures in the fungus. In vivo development of perithecia on coffee trees in the field and on inoculated young seedlings in the greenhouse was also examined. More than 30% of the crosses formed perithecia in vitro including those pairings of isolates recovered from the different Coffea spp. Isolate Gx1 (BBA 71975) showed high intra- and inter-fertility with most of the strains indicating that this isolate was most probably ‘female fertile' mating type. This interfertility was successfully achieved only on carrot agar and V-8 juice medium at 20oC and 12-hr photoperiod 10 – 12 wks after plating. The fungus often produced abundant perithecia containing enormous ascospores in the barks of dead coffee trees in the field and in the artificially infected young seedlings. The in vitro and in vivo perithecial developments were most likely favoured by cool and moist (wet) conditions. Abundant production of ascospores in the field is an integral part of survival and dispersal mechanisms along with genetic exchange system. The in vitro formation of fertile perithecia enables to study inheritance of traits such as pathogenicity (virulence) and gene flow and genetic diversity in populations of G. xylarioides. Keywords : Coffee wilt disease; Coffea arabica; Ethiopia; Gibberella xylarioides; Mating test; Perithecia Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences Vol. 6 (1) 2007: pp. 63-75","PeriodicalId":187522,"journal":{"name":"Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences","volume":"33 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2009-03-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"121608564","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Floristic Diversity and Composition of Sheko Forest, Southwest Ethiopia","authors":"Feyera Senbeta, T. Woldemariam, S. Demissew, M. Denich","doi":"10.4314/EJBS.V6I1.39038","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4314/EJBS.V6I1.39038","url":null,"abstract":"This study presents an analysis of floristic composition, diversity and structure of Sheko forest, southwest Ethiopia. Quadrats of 20 m x 20 m were laid down along line transects in Sheko forest to collect vegetation data. A total of 374 plant species, representing 256 genera and 91 families were recorded. The mean species richness was 45 species per 400 m2, and the highest number of species recorded per plot was 74. The forest had the Shannon diversity index of 2.83 and evenness of 0.54. The family Orchidaceae (28) had the highest number of species followed by Rubiaceae (26), Euphorbiaceae (19), Moraceae (18) and Acanthaceae (16). A total of 24,321 individuals of woody plants (16,433 individuals per ha) were counted in the sampled plots. Twenty plant species alone constituted more than 80% of the absolute density of the forest, of which three species had importance values of greater than 20%. The population distribution patterns of six economically important timber tree species reveals three types of diameter class distribution pattern: inverted J-shaped, J-shaped and bell-shaped. Three plant communities were recognized using hierarchical cluster analysis: Baphia abyssinica-Argomuellera macrophylla, Coffea arabica-Mimusops kummel and Rungia grandis-Croton macrostachyus. A floristic comparison of Sheko forest with other related forests in Ethiopia revealed low floristic similarity. A high diversity associated with the complex and diverse landscape in Sheko forest emphasizes both the botanical uniqueness and conservation value of this remnant forest. Keywords : Biodiversity; Classification; Conservation; Environmental gradient; Ordination; Vegetation structure Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences Vol. 6 (1) 2007: pp. 11-42","PeriodicalId":187522,"journal":{"name":"Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences","volume":"216 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2009-03-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"114828157","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Contact Bioassay of an Endemic Plant to Ethiopia on Three Aphid Species","authors":"B. Mulatu","doi":"10.4314/EJBS.V6I1.39040","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4314/EJBS.V6I1.39040","url":null,"abstract":"Millettia ferruginea (Hochst.) Baker (Abaca: Papilionoideae) is endemic to Ethiopia and is a multipurpose tree which is known locally as birbira. Although it was confirmed effective particularly on the bean bruchids, Chalosobruchus chinensis L., its potential as a botanical for the control of insect pests has received little attention. Different workers had done extraction and characterization of the allelochemicals present in birbira. However, none looked into the possible usages of what they extracted such as insecticidal potency. In order to achieve applied meaning and significance, natural product chemistry must incorporate bioassays. Based on this, extracts from birbira with water or chloroform were assayed on three aphid species. Substance extracted both by water and chloroform caused significantly higher mortality on the three aphid species than the residue in chloroform and the untreated control. The LC50 amounts of water and chloroform extracts, for the respective aphid species, were verified under field conditions and similar toxicity was observed for the pea aphid and the brassica aphid whereas reduced mortality was noted for the barley aphid, which was apparently due to the leaf rolling habit of the aphid, which prevented contact between the aphids in the enrolled leaves and the extracts. Therefore, it can be concluded that birbira is an effective aphicide with contact activity and hence could be developed for practical use by small scale farmers. Keywords : Allelochemical; Birbira; Bioassay; Chloroform; Extracts; Residue; Water. Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences Vol. 6 (1) 2007: pp. 51-62","PeriodicalId":187522,"journal":{"name":"Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences","volume":"33 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2009-03-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"131121204","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Mycorrhizal Dependency and Response of Tomato ( Lycopersicon esculentum ) to Inoculation by Indigenous Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi as Influenced by Available Soil Phosphorus Levels","authors":"T. Chanie, F. Assefa","doi":"10.4314/EJBS.V5I2.39033","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4314/EJBS.V5I2.39033","url":null,"abstract":"A pot experiment was conducted on tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) to evaluate the responses of tomato to inoculation of mycorrhiza (AMF) under different levels of soil phosphorus (P) concentrations in a greenhouse study. The results showed different responses on dry matter yield, shoot phosphorus concentration, mycorrhizal colonization and mycorrhizal dependency of the tomato plant. No evidence of AM fungal colonization was noted in the uninoculated soil. L. esculentum responded positively to AM fungus inoculation except at the two levels of soil P concentration (0.32 ppm and 0.92 ppm). Shoot dry matter, stem diameter and P concentration of the plant increased significantly in response to inoculation at the lowest three levels of soil P concentration (0.02, 0.04 and 0.12 ppm) as compared to the negative controls. The best response in all parameters was observed at the soil P concentration levels of 0.02 and 0.04 ppm. Levels of P concentration greater than 0.12 ppm suppressed AM fungi colonization. Soil P concentration levels of 0.32 and 0.92 ppm caused negative mycorrhizal dependencies (MD). The P level 0.32 ppm was found to be the cut-off value for positive response to inoculation of AM fungi in most of the tested parameters. Keywords : Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF); Lycopersicon esculentum; Mycorrhizal colonization; Mycorrhizal dependency; P concentration levels. Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences Vol. 5 (2) 2006: pp. 147-159","PeriodicalId":187522,"journal":{"name":"Ethiopian Journal of Biological Sciences","volume":"62 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2008-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"130332741","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}