Browsing by Author "Oppong, Emmanuel"

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    Pharmacotoxicological Assessment of Alchornea Cordifolia Leaf Extract
    (2008-08-18) Oppong, Emmanuel
    There are several reports on the biological actions of Aichomea cordifolia (Schumach. & Thonn.) MQII.Arg (Euphorbiaceae) but little knowledge on the potential toxicity of the plant The constituents of the alcoholic leaf extract of Aichomea cordifolia were verified and the total leaf extract was tested on rats and mice for possible toxicity. The effect of Aichomea cordifolia was also studied on the guinea pig ileum. The presence of tannins, terpenoids, flavonoids, anthracene glycosides and saponins was confirmed but alkaloids and phytosterols were not detected in the ' extract. The crude extract (0.5 mg/ml - 4 mg/mi) caused a concentration-dependent inhibition of acetylcholine and histamine-induced contractions on the isolated guinea- pig ileum. The antagonism appeared competitive as there was a rightward shift of the concentration-response curves with no significant depression of the maximum response. Daily administration of the crude extract (250 - 2000 mg/kg) for two weeks did not cause any significant changes in haematological parameters in both rats and mice. However, there was a dose-dependent increase (P< 0.05) in the number of neutrophils in rats. Lymphocyte numbers in treated rats decreased. There were no significant changes in the relative organ weights of treated rats or mice compared to control. Hepatic function, renal function and total proteins were not affected by the treatment. Histopathologicai examination of the liver and kidney did not show changes in organ architecture at 250mg/kg and 500mg/kg. However, early signs of liver injury were observed in rats treated with 1000mg/kg and 2000mg/kg. This observation was not accompanied by loss of hepatic function as observed in the pentobarbitone sleeping time experiment. The study has shown that the alcoholic extract of Aichomea cordifolia is relatively non toxic in both rats and mice, but the liver damage observed calls for caution in the use of Aichomea cordifolia for long periods especially at high doses. The inhibitory effects of Aichomea cordifolia on acetylcholine and histamine-induced contractions of the isolated guinea pig ileum may partly explain the usefulness of Aichomea cordiflia in the management of gastrointestinal disorders. ā€ƒ
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    The use of microbe plus to improve phosphorus availability from rock phosphate under oil palm (Elaesis guineensis, Jacq.) nursery
    (November, 2015) Oppong, Emmanuel
    Although there are several options open to process Rock Phosphate (RP) into a form that is more plant available, the options for small-holder farmers are limited. Practical alternative methods and technologies of rock phosphates have to be developed for the farm level. The use of Microbe plus to improve RP solubility under oil palm nursery was evaluated at Oil Palm Research Institute (OPRI) of Ghana, Kade ā€“ Kusi, in the Eastern Region from May 2013 to May 2014. The study consisted of 16 treatments replicated 3 times in a 4 by 4 factorial experiment arranged in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD). The factors tested were: P fertilizers (Po ; Triple superphosphate, TSP; Senegal rock phosphate, SRP; Togo rock phosphate, TRP) and Microbe plus rates (0, 50, 100, 150 %). Data collected included number of fronds/palm, butt, height, LA, LAI, dry matter, frond nutrient contents, soil pH and soil available P. The results showed that the P fertilizers and Microbe plus rates applied alone or their interactions had no significant (p>0.05) effect on frond numbers/palm, butt, height, LA, and LAI. Frond nutrient contents, dry matter produced and soil parameters on the other hand, were significantly different from each other (p<0.05). The highest pH of 5.1 and available P of 180.36 mg kg -1 was observed at 10 months after transplanting (MAT) following the application of TSP. The use of MP100 showed pH of 5.2 and available P of 142.55 mg kg -1 at 10 MAT. The combined applications of TSP + MP150 produced the highest dry weight (285.50 g) and available P (180.90 mg/kg) (which represented 42 and 285 % increase respectively over the control). Also, TSP + MP100 treatment recorded 47 % increase in dry weight over the control at 10 MAT. Soil pH produced by the combined applications was also within the critical range (4 ā€“ 6.5) for oil palms, except for TRP and MP 50 and MP 100 which was below the critical range. Besides, the combined application of Microbe plus with TSP or SRP proved to be better option in terms of vegetative growth than the TRP. In all, the xiii combined use of MP 100 and P fertilizers gave the highest vegetative and soil parameters measured. Economically, the most cost effective nutrient input was the use of TSP alone whiles the least cost effective options were MP150 with TSP or SRP or TRP. The correlation matrix also showed a strong positive correlation (r = 0.873) between seedling height and butt; a weak positive correlation (r = 0.325) between soil available P and LAI, as well as, LA and LAI. (r = 0.528). Soil available P and biomass P correlated positively (r = 0.339), whereas, available P and biomass N correlated negatively (r = -0.543).