Parasitic contamination of some fruits and vegetables from major markets in Ede Town, Osun State, south-west Nigeria

This study determined the prevalence of parasites on some common fruits and vegetables from major markets in Ede Town, Osun State, Nigeria. A total of two hundred and forty six (246) samples of fruits and vegetables were examined by sedimentation technique after washing using normal saline. The overall parasite prevalence was 37.4%. The highest rate of parasitic contamination (46.7%) was recorded in pineapples (Anana comosus) while oranges (Citrus sinensis) were the least contaminated (16.7%). For vegetables, African spinach (Spinacea oleracea) was the most contaminated (77.8%) while the least contaminated (2.2%) was celosia leaf (Celosia argentea). Ascaris lumbricoides was the most (21.7%) frequent parasitic contaminants on fruits and vegetables followed by Balantidium coli (19.6%) and then Hookworm (13.0%). Entamoeba histolytica and Strongyloides stercoralis had the same percentage of occurrence(12.0%) while Fasciolopsis buski (2.2%) was the least parasite found. The highest number of parasites was found in Timi Market with 46.2% fruits and 66.7% vegetables contaminated. Since eating raw fruits and vegetables is a potential source of transmission of intestinal parasites in the study area, it is important that consumers are educated on the need to always ensure proper washing of their fruits and vegetables. Keywords: Fruits; vegetables; parasitic contamination; Ascaris lumbricoides; Ede Markets

Spinach Plants Favor the Absorption of K+ over Na+ Regardless of Salinity, and May Benefit from Na+ When K+ is Deficient in the Soil

Two spinach (Spinacea oleracea L.) cultivars were evaluated for their response to deficient (0.25 mmolc L−1 or 0.25 K) and sufficient (5.0 mmolc L−1 or 5.0 K) potassium (K) levels combined with salinities of 5, 30, 60, 90, and 120 mmolc L−1 NaCl. Plants substituted K for Na proportionally with salinity within each K dose. Plants favored K+ over Na+, regardless of salinity, accumulating significantly less Na at 5.0 K than at 0.25 K. Salinity had no effect on N, P, and K shoot accumulation, suggesting that spinach plants can maintain NPK homeostasis even at low soil K. Ca and Mg decreased with salinity, but plants showed no deficiency. There was no Na+ to K+ or Cl− to NO3− competition, and shoot biomass decrease was attributed to excessive NaCl accumulation. Overall, ‘Raccoon’ and ‘Gazelle’ biomasses were similar regardless of K dose but ‘Raccoon’ outproduced ‘Gazelle’ at 5.0 K at the two highest salinity levels, indicating that ‘Raccoon’ may outperform ‘Gazelle’ at higher NaCl concentrations. At low K, Na may be required by ‘Raccoon’, but not ‘Gazelle’. This study suggested that spinach can be cultivated with recycled waters of moderate salinity, and less potassium than recommended, leading to savings on crop input and decreasing crop environmental footprint.

Contenido de oligoelementos y factores antinutricionales de hojas comestibles nativas de Mesoamérica

Los oligoelementos son importantes constituyentes nutricionales de las hierbas comestibles. Se colectaron 11 especies, nueve nativas (Amaranthus hybridus, Cnidoscolus chayamansa, Crotalaria longirostrata, Dysphania ambrosioides, Lycianthes synanthera, Sechium edule, Solanum americanum, S. nigrescens, S. wendlandii) y dos extranjeras (Moringa oleifera, Spinacea oleracea) en dos regiones de Guatemala. Se prepararon muestras de la hierba seca, cocida y de caldo de hierba fresca. Se cuantificaron por espectrofotometría de absorción atómica los macro (N, P, K) y oligoelementos (Ca, Mg, Na, Cu, Zn, Mn), taninos por espectrofotometría y oxalatos por permanganimetría. El contenido de oligoelementos es diverso, para Zn, la hierba control S. oleracea contienen buena cantidad (90-140 ppm); de las nativas D. ambrosioides (130-160 ppm) y A. hybridus (70-80 ppm) tienen la mayor cantidad. Respecto a Fe las hierbas control tienen buena composición (S. oleracea, 220-280 ppm y M. oleifera, 105-135 ppm); de las nativas A. hybridus (90-240 ppm), C. aconitifolius (75-185 ppm) y L. synanthera (75-140 ppm) tienen las mayores concentraciones. Se encontraron niveles elevados de oxalatos en S. oleracea (67.30 (5.51) mg/g), L. synanthera (56.30 (9.67) mg/g) y S. nigrescens (33.6 (5.48) mg/g); en las demás hierbas se encontraron niveles menores. Los niveles de taninos fueron bajos (0.1-0.8 mg/g) para todas las especies. Se demuestra que cuatro especies nativas tienen un buen contenido de oligoelementos y presentan valores menores de antinutricionales que los controles

Identification and characterization of lactic acid bacteria isolated from some medicinal and/or edible Philippine plants

Probiotics research on lactic acid bacteria (LAB) continues to be paramount in the development of nutraceutical or functional foods. In this study, 47 selected Philippine plants having nutritional (edible such as vegetables) and/or medicinal values (therapeutic), were collected, from which selected fruit and leaves were subjected to LAB enumeration. Among these, 46.7% plant leaves reported to have strong antimicrobial property resulted in non-isolation of LAB while edible plant leaves with less or no antimicrobial properties generally gave numerous LAB isolates. Isolates coming from ripened guava (Psidium guajava L.), lobo-lobohan or cape gooseberry (Physalis peruviana L.) fruit, parsley (Petroselinum crispum), pandan (Pandanus amaryllifolius), spinach (Spinacea oleracea), leek (Allium ampeloprasum var. porrum) and niyog-niyogan (Quisqualis indica L.) leaves were identified through partial 16S rRNA analysis and tested for probiotic properties. Overall, Streptococcus luteciae Lb17 from ripe gooseberry fruit exhibited the highest antimicrobial activities against Staphylococcus aureus BIOTECH 1526, Escherichia coli O157: H7 BIOTECH 10311 and Bacillus cereus BIOTECH 1509. On the other hand, Enterococcus hirae (H and S63) from stevia were susceptible to streptomycin at minimum inhibitory concentration or MIC of 128 ug/mL). Lactobacillus plantarum F39 and all the other strains tested, meanwhile, was susceptible to ampicillin at MIC of 2 ug/mL and 0.125 ug/mL. Results were lower or equal to the established cut off value indicating the absence of antibiotic resistance genes among the identified strains, except for Pediococcus (Par5 and NN39) which showed resistance against streptomycin. Further investigation is needed to rule out the possibility of transfer of antibiotic resistance to pathogens present in the gut. All isolates tested were able to survive at artificial gastric juice (pH 2), revived at the simulated intestinal fluid (pH 8), and exhibited minimal titratable acidity and diacetyl production. For genetic screening of plantaricin genes, F39 possesses both plantaricin EF and plantaricin J, while Lactobacillus fermentum F36 has plantaricin EF. Both isolates were subjected to DNA fingerprinting. Such findings on the local isolates’ probiotic properties suggest the possibility of incorporating them into different plant-based probiotic foods.