Rokeya Begum

Potential Human Health Risks of Tannery Waste-contaminated Poultry Feed

Background For over a decade, solid tannery waste has been converted into protein concentrate and used as a feed ingredient because of its cheap availability. However, as chromium sulfate is commonly used in the tanning process, the chromium (Cr) content of tanned skin-cut wastes (SCW) may enter the edible parts of poultry through feed. Therefore, there is a chance that Cr and other heavy metals may be present in the edible portion of poultry and consequently transfer to humans upon poultry consumption. Objectives In this study, skin-cut wastes (SCW)-based poultry feed and the edible parts of chicken fed with this feed were analyzed to understand the potential health risks of their use as poultry feed. Methods In the present study, the presence of heavy metal content in SCW, poultry feed, and edible portions of different kinds of chicken was determined using atomic absorption spectrophotometer methods and the associated health risk estimation was calculated by comparing the target hazard quotient (THQ) value and reference daily intake value. Results The results revealed the presence of Cr content ranging from 0.12-3.11 mg/kg and lead (Pb) content ranging from 8.06-22.0 mg/kg in SCW. In addition, Cr and Pb were present in the range of 0.27-0.98 mg/kg and 10.27-10.36 mg/kg, respectively, in poultry feed. However, no cadmium (Cd) was found in SCW, but the presence of Cd ranged from 0.03-0.05 mg/kg in feed. When contaminated poultry feed was fed to live poultry, the presence of Cr, Pb and Cd was observed in the edible portions (i. e. skin, liver, gizzard, and meat). Irrespective of the edible parts and chicken type, Cr values ranged from 0.1-2.440 mg/kg; Pb values ranged from 0.257-1.750 mg/kg; and Cd values ranged from below detection limit (BDL) to 0.037 mg/kg. Conclusions The estimated daily intake value, THQ, along with the aggregate hazard index value, indicated a potential risk to consumers through consumption of contaminated chicken. Therefore, the study results clearly demonstrate heavy metals accumulation in chicken due to feeding SCW-based feed. The contaminated chicken further transfers these heavy metals to humans through ingestion. Hence, there is a potential human health risk through consumption of contaminated chicken meat.

Secondary metabolites (Triterpenes) from Couroupita guianensis

SUMMARY The n-hexane and carbon tetrachloride soluble fractions of a methanolic extract of the stem barkof the Couroupita guianensis furnished three compounds, identified as β-amyrin (1), betulin-3β-caffeate (2) and lupeol-3β-caffeate (3). The structures of the isolated compounds were deduced byextensive spectroscopic analysis as well as by comparison with published values. Compounds 1-3were subjected to antioxidant screening through free radical scavenging activity by DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl), where compound 2 showed moderate antioxidant activity with IC 50 value 108.0 µg/ml.Key words: Couroupita guianensis; Lecythidaceae; β-amyrin; Betulin-3β-caffeate; Lupeol-3β-caffeate INTRODUCTION The plant Couroupita guianensis (English name- Cannonball tree, local names-Nagalingam, Shibalingam)belonging to the family of Lecythidaceae is anevergreen tree and it is planted in road sides ofdifferent districts of Bangladesh (Haque, 1986). Theplant of this genus is used for treating skin diseasesof livestock by the local Indian (Usher, 1984).Various parts of C. guianensis are known to exhibitantifungal activity (Khan et al., 2003). Previouschemical investigations of C. guianensis revealedthe occurrences of 6,12-dihydro-6,12-dioxoindolo-[2,1-b]quinazoline (tryptanthrin), indigo, indirubin,isatin (Bergman et al., 1985), couropitone, β-amyrin,β-amyrone, β-amyrin acetate, stigmasterol, ergosta-4,6,8(14),22-tetraen-3-one, β-sitosterol and its glycoside(Anjaneyulu, 1998; Dictionary of natural products,2001). This paper details the isolation and structureelucidation of three triterpenoids β-amyrin (1),betulin-3β-caffeate (2) and lupeol-3β-caffeate (3).Although β-amyrin has been previously documentedfrom C. guianensis, this is the first report ofoccurrence of betulin-3β-caffeate (2) and lupeol-3β-caffeate (3) from this plant.

Amaranthus viridis modulates anti-hyperglycemic pathways in hemi-diaphragm and improves glycogenesis liver function in rats

Amaranthus viridis is an ecumenical species in the botanical family of Amaranthaceae, which has been traditionally used to treat several skin diseases along with some antilipidemic activities. The present study was carried out to investigate the anti-hyperglycemic effect of 75% ethanolic extract of A. viridis in Neonatal streptozotocin (N-STZ) induced rats’ hemi-diaphragm, including screening for secondary plant metabolites. Qualitative phytochemical studies were done by various conventional methods for the possible secondary metabolites. For antidiabetic assay via hemi-diaphragm, Long-Evan rats were used in the study. Type 2 diabetes was induced by a single ip injection of streptozotocin to 48 h old pups (N-STZ) and after 3 months, rats were confirmed by an oral glucose tolerance test and further selected for the experiment. Studies to evaluate the glucose utilization capacity of A. viridis in isolated rat hemi-diaphragm were done. The data were analyzed by appropriate statistical analysis. In vitro glucose uptake by hemi-diaphragm study showed glucose uptake increased significantly in left diaphragm of type 2 diabetes mellitus with insulin alone treated and A. viridis alone treated group, where A. viridis alone treated group showed very highly significance (p=0.000). Treatment with both insulin and A. viridis increased the glucose uptake also very significantly (p=0.004). A. viridis extract acted more significantly compared to insulin in T2DM rats. In the normal rats at left hemi diaphragm, A. viridis extract also increased glucose uptake more significantly (p=0.009) compared to insulin (p=0.013). At the right diaphragm, glucose uptake increased in all treated groups compared to control group but not significantly. This plant may contain potential anti-hyperglycemic agents which possibly act through some extra pancreatic mechanism that include glucose uptake by diaphragm and increased glycogenesis by liver. Key words: Amaranthus viridis, antidiabetic, hemi-diaphragm, streptozotocin, glucose, Long-Evan rats.

16. GENETIC DIVERSITY OF SALINE COASTAL RICE (ORYZA SATIVA L.) LANDRACES OF BANGLADESH

Traditional rice landraces from coastal Bangladesh are adapted not only to soil salinity but also to excess magnesium, calcium and sulphate as well as zinc deficiency. They can also tolerate water inundation to a certain extent, because they may be subjected to tidal saline intrusion as well as water stagnation during the monsoon season. These landraces are diverse with respect to their morphology, saline stress response as well as yield components. Characterization of these landraces can suggest how they survive in adverse soils and indicate suitable target genes for transfer to modern rice varieties. Genetic variation of 31 landraces (LRs) collected from the saline coastal belt of Bangladesh, salt tolerant Pokkali, Nona Bokra and sensitive IR29 and BRRIdhan 29 were analyzed with 60 evenly distributed rice microsatellite DNA markers. A total of 196 reproducible polymorphic alleles were identified from the band loci. Computation of genetic similarity with this data, using Jaccards coefficient followed by UPGMA clustering, divided the landraces into 6 distinct groups. Three groups were composed of LRs only from the highly saline southwest. Two groups consisted of LRs from the mild to moderately saline mid-east and northeast coasts. The sixth group was heterogeneous, with LRs from the northeast, LRs from the southwest and Nona Bokra. Pokkali and Gunshi, a LR of the southwest, branched out individually. Morphological observations of plant type, such as tiller, leaf and flag leaf angle, height, as well as yield in non-saline soil indicated low variability among the different LRs. The measure of seedling Na and K concentration, Na/K ratios, affected leaf area as well as survival under salinity stress in hydroponics identified 6 LRs from the highly saline southwest as the most tolerant. UPGMA clustering using the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient suitable for the quantitative physiological data on seedling saline stress, grouped all 6 LRs with Pokkali. When the landrace DNAs were analyzed with DNA markers linked to the major QTL of Pokkali within a 5cM region of chromosome 1, no similarity was detected between any of the traditional cultivars and Pokkali. Primers homologous to the coding region and part of the upstream as well as downstream region of the SOD, LEA and SalT genes when used for amplification show polymorphic DNA bands. These analyses thus revealed that some of the salt tolerant landraces of the coastal region have unique polymorphic loci, quite distinct from the popular salt tolerance donor Pokkali as well as Nona Bokra. The similarity and distinction between the cultivars chosen for the study can be used as a valuable tool for further study of specific landraces and also suggest a proper choice of parents for mapping or breeding purposes.