Concentrations Of Sodium Azide Research Articles

Genetic Improvement for Yield and Its Components through Induced Chemical and Physical Mutagenesis in Peanut (Arachis Hypogaea L.)

The present study was conducted at private Farm at El-Sharqia Governorate, Egypt under supervision of Agronomy Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt. Four cultivars of peanut were used in this work namely NC9, Gregory, Bold, and Runner. This work aimed to study the induction of genetic variation in peanut using Sodium azide (NaN3; Mw=65.01) with two doses (1×10-3) and (3×10-3) and three doses of Gamma rays (10, 30 and 50kr) to induce mutagenesis. M1 and M2 seeds per dose for each genotype including the control were sown in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications in 2017 and 2018 summer seasons. Analysis of variance showed that there were significant differences between genotypes under sodium azide and gamma rays for most studied traits in M1 and M2 generations. Number of primary branches was significantly affected by sodium azide concentrations, however all genotypes gave low number of primary branches under 0.003M than other treatments in both generations. Gregory and NC9 cultivars under Gamma rays had the high number of branches/plant in M1 and M2 generation when treated with 0.001M compared with 0.003M. The average of plant height was affected by radiation mutagen and higher the effect of sodium azide mutagen in both generations. 100-seed weight was affected significantly by sodium azide mutagen more than those by radiation mutagen in both generations. Maximum values of seed yield/plant were recorded for the NC9 followed by Gregory in both generations. NC9 and Gregory had the maximum values of seed yield/plant, when they treated by 0.001m in both generations. Mean values of oil content were increased significantly with increasing concentration of gamma rays doses in M1 and M2 at 10kr, 30kr and 50kr, respectively compared with control. The Bold cultivar had the highest values 51.34% and 50.39% and runner cultivar with values 49.02 and 49.66, when they treated with 50 kr and 30kr in M1 generation. The Runner and NC9 gave the high values for yield and its components and oil content of most genetic parameters under different mutagens in M1 and M2 generations for the most studied traits. The results of heritability, showed moderate to high values for most characters under studied in different mutagens in M1 and M2 generations. Pod yield/plant under the effect of sodium azide appears high positive correlation coefficients with each of seed yield/plant (0.869 and 0.928) during two the generations and 100-seed weight (0.643) in M1 generation

Study of mutation induced by Sodium Azide in field pea (Pisum sativum L.)

The present study was conducted to determine the effect of Sodium Azide's sensitivity (0.1%, 0.3% and 0.5%) on three genotypes of field pea viz., Makhyatmubi, Makuchabi, and Rachna. In M1 generation, a dose-dependent decrease was observed for seed germination, seedling height and plant survival. The pollen fertility showed a negative dependence on Sodium Azide's dose as evident from proportionate decrease in fertility with the mutagen's increasing concentration in all the three varieties. The loweest pollen fertility was noted in a Makuchabi (83.76%) at 0.5% Sodium Azide. The four types of chlorophyll mutation (chlorina, xantha, albina, and viridis) were screened from the M2 population. Chlorina type of mutation was induced with the highest frequency at all the concentrations regardless of the variety studied. The greater concentration of Sodium Azide was observed to induce an extensive range of chlorophyll mutation in all the genotypes. However, the overall spectrum of chlorophyll mutation induced in field pea was in the following order; chlorina > viridis > xantha > albina. The magnitude of mutagenic effectiveness exposed a variety of response; it decreased with the increasing concentration of Sodium Azide on the varieties Makhyatmubi and Rachna, while on the other hand a rising trend of it was observed in the case of Makuchabi. Sodium Azide's efficiency for most of the treatment decreased with increase in the concentration in genotypes of Makhyatmubi and Rachna but for Makuchabi, it increased with the concentration in a decreasing trend.

Production and characterisation of a novel actinobacterial DyP-type peroxidase and its application in coupling of phenolic monomers

The extracellular peroxidase from Streptomyces albidoflavus BSII#1 was purified to near homogeneity using sequential steps of acid and acetone precipitation, followed by ultrafiltration. The purified peroxidase was characterised and tested for the ability to catalyse coupling reactions between selected phenolic monomer pairs. A 46-fold purification of the peroxidase was achieved, and it was shown to be a 46 kDa haem peroxidase. Unlike other actinobacteria-derived peroxidases, it was only inhibited (27 % inhibition) by relatively high concentrations of sodium azide (5 mM) and was capable of oxidising eleven (2,4-dichlorophenol, 2,6-dimethoxyphenol, 4-tert-butylcatechol, ABTS, caffeic acid, catechol, guaiacol, l-DOPA, o-aminophenol, phenol, pyrogallol) of the seventeen substrates tested. The peroxidase remained stable at temperatures of up to 80 °C for 60 min and retained >50 % activity after 24 h between pH 5.0–9.0, but was most sensitive to incubation with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2; 0.01 mM), l-cysteine (0.02 mM) and ascorbate (0.05 mM) for one hour. It was significantly inhibited by all organic solvents tested (p ≤ 0.05). The Km and Vmax values of the partially purified peroxidase with the substrate 2,4-DCP were 0.95 mM and 0.12 mmol min−1, respectively. The dyes reactive blue 4, reactive black 5, and Azure B, were all decolourised to a certain extent: approximately 30 % decolourisation was observed after 24 h (1 μM dye). The peroxidase successfully catalysed coupling reactions between several phenolic monomer pairs including catechin-caffeic acid, catechin-catechol, catechin-guaiacol and guaiacol-syringaldazine under the non-optimised conditions used in this study. Genome sequencing confirmed the identity of strain BSII#1 as a S. albidoflavus strain. In addition, the genome sequence revealed the presence of one peroxidase gene that includes the twin arginine translocation signal sequence of extracellular proteins. Functional studies confirmed that the peroxidase produced by S. albidoflavus BSII#1 is part of the dye-decolourising peroxidase (DyP-type) family.

Mutagenic effects of sodium azide on the survival and morphological characters of tomato varieties

Sodium Azide (SA)-induced mutagenic variability was studied on four tomato varieties namely Roma vf, Roma savannah, Tropimech and Tima. The SA concentrations used were 0.1%, 0.3%, 0.5% and 0.7%, with 0.0% as control to determine the percentage emergence and growth parameters of the tomato varieties. The plant seeds were pretreated with the various concentrations of the mutagen before planting. The seedlings were raised in the nursery and transplanted after 30 days of planting into the field in polythene bags filled with 70g of a mixture of soil and farm yard manure. The experiment was carried out in randomised complete block design with three replicates. Increase in SA concentration caused a remarkable decrease in the percentage emergence and all other growth parameters evaluated. The effect of the interaction between variety and SA concentration revealed that the interaction was not significantly different from the control at P≤0.05 on the number of leaves, number of branches and leaf length, but the difference was significant for plant height. Formation of two stems was observed at 0.3% Sodium Azide for Roma vf. variety. The 0.1% and 0.3% concentrations of Sodium Azide seem to be promising treatments under the experimental conditions and thus could be used to induce variations for tomato crop improvement. Tima and Roma savannah performed better and were resistant to the mutagen than other varieties, hence they can be recommended as good varieties for further breeding purposes; also Sodium Azide could be a good mutagen for the improvement of tomato plants.
 Keywords: Tomato, growth characters, mutagenic, Sodium Azide, morphological variability.

Genetic improvement of a neglected and underutilised oilseed crop: sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) through mutation breeding

Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) also known as Queen of oilseeds is being cultivated worldwide for its oil content for nutritional and medicinal value. Low productivity is one of the major constraints of sesame cultivation. Systematic efforts are made using induced mutagenesis to increase its productivity and realize earliness and alteration in genetic architecture. Sodium Azide was used as a chemical mutagen in the present study. Nine sesame varieties viz., TMV 3, TMV 4, TMV 5, TMV 6, TMV (Sv) 7, CO 1, VRI 1, VRI(Sv) 2 and Paiyur 1 released from Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, India were subjected to mutation at three different concentrations of Sodium Azide viz., 5 mM, 10 mM and 15 mM. An extra early mutant that matured on 70 DAS was identified in M4 generation of TMV 5 at 15 mM. This mutant (TVS 1401) was forwarded to subsequent generations with confirmed earliness. After confirming the superior performance of the mutant TVS 1401 for yield attributes in station trials, it was evaluated in MLT for two seasons. During Rabi 2017 MLT, it recorded 521 kg/ha of seed yield with the duration of 72 days. During Kharif 2018, it recorded 683 kg/ha of seed yield which was 21.96% higher yield than the popular check TMV 7 and matured 16 days earlier. This extra early mutant has white seed coat colour with 1000 seed weight of 3.22 g. Dissection of fatty acid profile of this mutant also confirmed its superiority. Distinctness of TVS1401 in molecular level was also established through RAPD markers viz., OPC03550 and OPA04550.

Instability of urinary excreted methyl-2-acetamido-2-deoxy-1-seleno-β-d-galactopyranoside (selenosugar 1), the main elimination product of human selenium metabolism, and measures for its stabilization

BackgroundThe urinary excreted selenium species selenosugar 1 (SeSug1) plays a key role for monitoring of supplemental selenium exposure, e.g. by occupational exposure. In order to reproduce its contents in the long term, the integrity of SeSug1 in the urine is essential. Studies on the stability of SeSug1 in urine samples stored at −20 °C have shown that degradation of SeSug 1 occurs, requiring adequate countermeasures. MethodsHere, we explored the long-term stability of SeSug1 under usual storage conditions at −20 °C. For this purpose, the simultaneous determination of selenosugar 1 and methylselenic acid (MeSeA) was used to explore the stabilizing of the SeSug1 content by applying sodium azide (NaN3) as a bactericide or/and 5 M ammonium acetate buffer for pH control. ResultsIn untreated urine, conversion of SeSug1 to MeSeA was evident within days. Differences in urine matrices clearly showed different impact, which could be attributed to different buffer strengths by the urine itself. For durability, various concentrations of sodium azide were first applied, followed by pH buffering. A combination of 0.1% NaN3 and pH of 5.5 kept the SeSug1 content stable for over 3 months. ConclusionThe formation of MeSeA as degradation product of SeSug1 could be confirmed. Based on the proportions, an oxidation-based decomposition pathway was proposed. The investigations revealed that the complex interaction of pH buffering and bactericidal activity must be taken into account in order to stabilize SeSug1 in the urine. The main effect was the addition of NaN3. However, the alkaline nature of NaN3 required a sufficient buffering of the urinary matrix at a pH of 5.5.

Effect of chemical mutagens on growth of Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L. Moench)

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effects of mutagens i.e. Ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS) and Sodium azide (SA) on the morphological growth of Okra. Seeds of two Okra varieties Subzpari and Pahuja were first pre-soaked in distilled water and then treated with 0.0 (Control), 0.1, 0.2 and 0.3% Sodium azide (SA) and Ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS) separately. The results showed that the germination rate was significantly decreased with increased lethality (%) and mutation frequency (%) in M1 of both varieties with increasing concentrations of EMS and SA against control. The results showed that different concentrations of EMS and SA affected morphological attributes of both okra varieties as the increase of mutagen concentration showed variable results in M1 generation compared with control, but M2 generation showed useful improvement in various traits. Such as the M2 generation of Subs pari from 0.1% SA treatment showed a decrease in flowering time while an increase in the number of fruits per plant, fruit size, seeds yield (g) per plant and 100 seeds weight. Keywords: Ethyl methane sulfonate; Growth; Induced mutagenesis; Okra; Sodium azide http://dx.doi.org/10.19045/bspab.2020.90116

Effects of different concentrations of sodium azide and chloramphenicol on the preservation of raw milk samples

ABSTRACT: The preservation of milk samples for microbiological analyses by the Brazilian Network of Milk Quality Control Laboratories requires the addition of preservatives to maintain the microbiota from the time of sample collection to the moment of analysis. The number of microorganisms can change as a result of the active ingredients and concentration of the preservative, as well as due to interactions between the preservatives, incubation time, and packaging temperature. The objective of this research was to evaluate the conservation potential of different concentrations of sodium azide and chloramphenicol on the analytical shelf life of milk samples. Two farms were selected, one with a low bacterial count and one with a high bacterial count. The milk was dispensed into sterile vials and tested after the addition of the usual concentrations of sodium azide and chloramphenicol, doubled concentrations, tripled concentrations, and as a control, without preservatives. The samples were incubated at 3 ± 1 °C, 6 ± 1 °C, and 9 ± 1 °C for 14 days and analyzed daily for their bacterial count by flow cytometry. The tripled preservative concentrations improved conservation, increasing the timespan of the analytical viability of the samples without altering the results.

Effect of sodium azide on agro-morphological traits of four varieties of Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus)

Mutation induction and detection of desired mutants represents an accelerated means of reaching the desired superior Variety. In this work seeds of Kenaf varieties NG, HIB18, HIB24 and HIB42 collected from National Centre for Genetic Resources and Biotechnology (NAGRAB) Ibadan, Nigeria were subjected to mutagenesis using sodium azide at concentrations of 0.2%, 0.4%, and 0.6%. These treated seeds were planted in polythene bags in row of Four by Four columns in a completely Randomized Design (CRD) with three replications of each treatments. Data on germination percentage, plant height (cm), leaf number, fresh weight and dry weight were taken. Germination was found to be significantly higher in the control and decreased gradually with increasing mutagen concentration for all the four varieties. Among the treatments, NG at 0.6% SA showed better germination compared to other varieties of the same concentration. This indicated differential intervarietal response to the same dose of sodium azide under the same environmental condition. Analyses of data showed significant differences in all the varieties of Hibiscus cannabinus L. treated with sodium azide compared to control. Results indicate sodium azide improved yield performance of Kenaf. Also, negative effect of sodium azide was observed in plants height in variety NG. These finding suggests that plants Varieties would respond differently to mutagenic treatments of specific dosage or concentration. Since 0.6%SA appears to have negative effects on germination and seedling performance of the Varieties planted it is advisable to use lower concentration of sodium azide.

Evaluation of Chrysanthemum morifolium cv. Maghi plants after sodium azide treatment

The present study was carried out during two successive seasons 2015/2016 and 2016/2017 to study the genetic variability of some growth and flowering traits of Chrysanthemum morifolium cv. Maghi plants caused by Sodium Azide (SA) treatments. Shoot apical cuttings were dipped in the SA solution, at 0.0, 0.12 and 0.18% for two different soaking times (6 and 12h). The cutting survivability was immensely hampered (P˃0.05) due to the SA concentrations and the time of the treatment.In both seasons, there were remarkable variations in the range of all investigated traits due to the SA treatments such as plant height, number of branches and flower heads/plant, Flower head diameters and their fresh and dry weight. However, number of days till full blooming showed the lowest variation. All SA-treated plants had higher PCV and GCV than the control ones for all investigated traits except days to full bloom and flower head fresh weights. Moreover, The PCV was always higher than GCV for all the characters. Almost all traits had higher heritability. However, there were huge differences in heritability values between the control and SA-treated plants. Presence of narrow gap between phenotypic coefficient of variation and genotypic coefficient of variation for many the characters under the study suggested that expression of these traits studied showed low environmental influence, which provide ample scope for selection of superior and desired mutants.

Assessment of Genetic Divergence in Mutant Lines of Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.)

Introduction: Mutation breeding is the process of exposing seeds to chemicals or radiation in order to generate mutants with desirable traits. Aim: This study is aimed at assessing the genetic variability among mutant lines of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) generated from a variety of tomato (Roma VF) using two different chemo-mutagens. Materials and Method: The collected seeds were exposed to different concentrations of Sodium azide and Colchicine with varied period of exposure. The seeds were planted and selected 49 positive mutant lines were assessed for morphological genetic variability and yield. 18 mutant lines that produced fruits were tagged and selected. The fruits of the selected mutants were harvested and the seeds (M2 seeds) were subsequently planted for divergence analysis. Ten quantitative characters and twenty qualitative characters were scored using IPGRI standard tomato descriptor. The potted experiment was laid out in the Green House, using Randomized Block Design (RBD) with three replications. Result: The results of this study revealed a high genetic divergence among the mutant lines in both quantitative and qualitative characters. There was significant LSD (0.05) for Germination percentage (7.66), Plant height at maturity (7.05) and Number of leaves at maturity (4.56). The yield (fresh fruit weight) varied significantly, ranging from 10.00g for LeMT29 to 319.70g for LeMT7 respectively. Fruit and plant qualitative characters equally exhibit variation. Conclusion: These observations suggest the existence of genetic variability among the different mutant tomato lines. Further selection and field trials is recommended to identify suitable and desirable lines for possible variety release. To Keywords: Mutant, Tomato, Colchicine, Sodium azide, genetic variability.

Changes in the Profiling of Fatty Acids of Glycine max L. (Soybean) Callus after Mutagen Treatments

THE AIM of present study was to produce healthy friable calli from soybean cultivar Giza 111 and studying the effect of sodium azide (SA) and ethidium bromide (EtBr) mutagens on its fatty acids (FAs) profile. Seeds were surface sterilized with clorox and ethanol, then cultured on solid Murashige and Skoog medium (MS) to produce 14-days-old in vitro plantlets. Callus induction from hypocotyl (H), cotyledon (C), epicotyl (E) and leaf (L) explants were tested using different combinations of 2,4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acids (2,4-D) and N6-benzyladenine (BA). M4 (MS+ 0.5mg/L BA) medium was found to be the supreme medium for callus proliferation. Both H-and E-explants were the best explants for this proliferation. Growth dynamics of H- and E-calli was established. The best harvesting time for both calli was the 4th week. H-calli were the most rapidly growing one. The concentrations 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5mM of each mutagen with two soaking times (½ and 1hr) were used for the treatment of H-calli. After mutagenic treatment, treated-H-calli were cultured on callus induction media. A month later, FAs profiling of mutated and control H-calli were performed using gas liquid chromatography (GLC). The Fw pattern of SA and EtBr-treated-H-calli were similar to the control one but with lower values. Saturated (SFAs) and unsaturated-fatty acids (UFAs) contents were raised up by increasing the concentrations of SA and time of incubation. In EtBr-treated-H-calli, marked elevations of SFAs over UFAs were recorded exhibiting a switch in their balance by increasing concentrations and soaking times.

Stress response due to sodium azide treatment inside Nigella sativa L. plant and its effect on antioxidative property

Abstract Nigella sativa is a potent medicinal plant having remarkable antioxidant property. More than hundred phytochemicals known for this plant, thymoquinone is one of the major active and strong antioxidative phyto-constituent found in it. Thymoquinone being a cyclicdione, reacts with sodium azide to synthesize its analogs α-azido ketones that are versatile with wide variety of reactions. The stress produced due to sodium azide, modulates the antioxidant system (antioxidative property) of the plant. The present study was aimed to observe the effect of sodium azide on antioxidative property and thymoquinone content within Nigella sativa plant. The results revealed the effect of sodium azide with strong positive correlation between percent yield and percent composition of thymoquinone in Ajmer Nigella 1(AN1) and UP Nigella 1 (UP1) in a concentration dependent manner. Minimum percent yield and percent composition of thymoquinone (analyzed by RP-HPLC) were observed (0.823 ± 0.035% for AN1 and 0.530 ± 0.020% for UP1) and (0.022 ± 0.002% for AN1 and 0.012 ± 0.002% for UP1), respectively at 100 μM concentration of sodium azide used. However, a strong negative correlation was observed with the decrease in thymoquinone content, with the increase in antioxidant property (−0.9369 and −0.9526) for AN1 and UP1, respectively. The findings clearly indicate the effect of sodium azide on thymoquinone content and their antioxidant property. The elevated antioxidant property might be due to the elicitation in production of other antioxidants or by the formation of analogs of thymoquinone that are more powerful antioxidants. Therefore, further research is also needed to further explore the interaction of sodium azide with thymoquinone that produce more potent antioxidant analogs and thus may be useful in various therapeutic applications.

Mutagenic effects of Sodium azide (NaN<sub>3</sub>) on morphological characteristics on two varieties of tomato (<i>Solanum lycopersicum</i> Mill)

The Impact of Sodium Azide on the Germination and Growth of Two Varieties of Tomato was investigated with the aim of inducing variability that could be exploited in the improvement of some quality traits in tomato plants. The seeds of two varieties of Tomato (Roma and UC82B) were treated with three different concentrations of Sodium Azide (0.1mM, 1.0 mM, 2.0 mM and 0.0 mM as control). The result obtained revealed a highly significant differences (P≤0.01) in the effects of Sodium Azide on seedlings heights, Height at maturity, fruit weight, pericarp thickness, number of leaves and pH(Potential of Hydrogen) Significant improvement (P≤0.05) was also recorded in fruit diameter, while no significance difference was found on Root dry weight. The result revealed that Sodium Azide improve important quality traits in tomato. However, the response of variety UC82B to Sodium Azide was higher. More so, significant differences were observed between the seasons except in the number of leaves, fruit number, pericarp thickness and fruit diameter. It was concluded that 0.1 mM of Sodium Azide improve some quality traits of tomato that could be utilized in the improvement of tomato.Key Words: Sodium Azide, Tomato, Mutation, Varieties, Morphology, UC82B, Roma.

Mitotic Studies and Genotoxic Assessment of Edible Nigerian Aroids to Selected Oilfield Chemicals

The genotoxic potentials of two water-based oilfield chemicals on edible aroids were investigated. Five accessions of Colocasia eculenta and three accessions of Xanthosoma maffafa were exposed to graded concentrations of sodium azide and potassium chromate; while the accessions without any chemical additive were used as controls. Results revealed that the peak periods of cell division were recorded between 12:00 noon to 4:00 pm in both the treated and control accessions. Metaphase cells increased after prophase cells and continued mostly between 10.00 am and 4.00 pm. Variations observed with the treatments included: shifts of metaphase peaks, high percentages of prophase cells, high intensity of cytoplasmic staining and induction of micronuclei among others. Sodium azide was observed to be a stronger genotoxic substance than potassium chromate. Accession NCe 001 had the highest survival rate while NCe 002 recorded the least rate of survival. Statistical evidence revealed that the difference in various mitotic stages and time of harvest between different accessions and treatments was significant at both 5% and 1%. The study provides useful information that would be used to promote cytogenetic researches as well as the exploitation and improvement of this neglected and underexploited economic plant.

Kinetics, mechanism, and identification of photodegradation products of phenazine-1-carboxylic acid

ABSTRACTPhenazine-1-carboxylic acid (PCA) is a broad-spectrum antibiotic against many plant pathogens, produced by Pseudomonas and other species. The biosynthesis and regulation of PCA has been well documented, but there is no report about its photochemical properties. Herein, the photodegradation of PCA was carried out in an aqueous solution under the irradiation of visible light to investigate the kinetics, mechanism, and identification of photodegradation products of PCA. Results revealed that photodegradation of PCA accorded well with first-order reaction kinetics. The measured half-life of PCA was 2.2 days at pH 5.0 and increased to 37.6 days at pH 6.8 when exposed to visible light. When oxygen was removed from its solution, the half-life of PCA was doubled. Different units of superoxide dismutase (SOD) enzyme (i.e. 0, 300, and 3000 units) and varying concentrations of sodium azide (i.e. 0 mg, 5 mg, 10 mg, and 20 mg) were used to decipher the mechanism for PCA photodegradation. Hydroxyl PCA and hydroxy phenazine were tentatively identified as the degradation products of PCA photodegradation process by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The obtained degradation products were further characterized and confirmed by HPLC-mass spectrometry and LC-MS/MS-based analytical approaches. In conclusion, the degradation of PCA was found to be light dependent, which could be accelerated by hydrogen ion and oxidant in the solution. The results suggest that PCA was more stable when stored in a neutral or alkaline environment or in the dark. Therefore, it is important to modify the PCA structure or use a suitable dosage for its broad-spectrum applications.

Sodium Azide Induced Mutation in Actinomycetes

Objectives: The study was done with an aim to determine the gain and loss of functions among the actinomycetes mutants induced by sodium azide.Methods: The study was carried out in the laboratory of the Sainik Awasiya Mahavidhayala, Bhaktapur, Nepal from 2016 December to 2017 March. A total of 30 soil samples were collected from Tokha, Bhaktapur area and Godawari area. Actinomycetes were isolated from the soil sample using pour plate technique on selective media; starch casein agar. The isolates were identified by using standard microbiological methods and each isolate was exposed to different concentration of sodium azide to generate mutants. The wild type and mutants were compared in morphology, biochemical reactions and antibiotic susceptibility to test organism to determine the gain and loss of functions.Results: Among 30 samples processed, 20(67%) actinomycetes were isolated, in which 6 (20%) were identified as the Streptomyces spp. A total of 28 mutants were isolated from 6 wild types by exposed at 10ppm, 20ppm, 40ppm, 50ppm, 100ppm concentration of sodium azide. Out of 28 mutants formed, only 10 mutants from sample showed same pigmentation as its wild type while other 18 mutants showed change in their pigmentation. In sugar utilization test, 8 different sugars for 28 mutants each, 56 cases showed Gain of Function (GOF), similarly 44 cases showed Loss of function (LOF). Antibiosis remained unaffected against Pseudomonas i.e. no GOF or LOF was seen. Only 2 cases of LOF against Staphylococcus aureus were seen while there were no cases of LOF in other pathogens. 3 cases of GOF against E. coli, 4 against S Typhi and 4 against S. aureus were observed.Conclusion: The potential of mutant actinomycetes has been realized, and hence opens exciting avenues in the field of biotechnology and biomedical research.

Improvement of Secondary Metabolites from Phyllanthus odontadenius against Malaria by Mutagenesis

Aims: Majority of deaths in children aged under 5 years are due to Plasmodium falciparum malaria. Malaria deaths in children decreased but malaria remains a major killer of children, taking the life of a child every 2 minutes. This study aims to investigate the increasing of the in vitro antiplasmodial activities by mutagenesis techniques using gamma-rays (Cs-137) or sodium azide (NaN3) as utagens. It will allow the importance of mutagenesis use as tools for improvement of secondary metabolites against malaria parasites using chemical or physical mutagens. Study Design: Laboratory experiment tests : identification of plant material, immersion of seeds in SA (sodium azide) solutions or irradiation by Gamma-rays (Cs-137) of P. odontadenius seeds for improvement of secondary metabolites against malaria parasites, in vitro culture of seeds followed by the in situ culturing of plantlets for obtaining material of study, phytochemical screening of Phyllanthus odontadenius aerial parts to determine the change of compounds in comparison to controls, in vitro antiplasmodial tests for the determination of SA concentrations or those of gammarays doses which killing 50% of malaria parasite populations (IC50). Place and Duration of Study: Department of Biotechnology and Molecular Biology, Department of Biochemistry: General Atomic Energy Commission, Regional Nuclear Studies Center of Kinshasa, P.O. Box. 868 Kinshasa XI, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). National Institute of Biomedical Research (NIBR) at Kinshasa/Gombe (DRC). Laboratory of UMR-MD3, Aix-Marseille University, Faculty of Pharmacy/Marseille, France. The experiments were conducted from Junuary - December 2010; August and December 2011 and during May and September 2012 until July 2014. Methodology: Aerial parts of plants M1 and M2 from Gamma-rays irradiation of P. odontadenius seeds or from immersion of P. odontadenius seeds in sodium azide solutions used as biological material for the in vitro antiplasmodial analysis. The in vitro antiplasmodial activities assays on clinical isolates of P. falciparum and on chloroquine-resistante P. falciparum strain K1 was determined using microscopic method, the isotopic micro-test method and using HRP2-based ELISA assay. Results: Gamma-rays (Cs-137) increased (multiplied) the in vitro antiplasmodial activities from 2.48 up to 7.6 in comparison to control. Thus, the in vitro antiplasmodial activities were improved or exceeded from 147.57% up to 660% than those of control plant. SA had increased (multiplied) the in vitro antiplasmodial activities from 1.24 up to 10.15 comparing to the control plants. The antiplasmodial activities in vitro were exceeded compared to the control plants from 24.43% up to 915%. Conclusion: Treatment of P. odontadenius seeds by Gamma-rays or by SA give plants high in vitro antiplasmodial activities. Values of in vitro antiplasmodial activities varried from 1.24 (147.57%) to 10.15 (915%). 125, 150 and 225 Gy of Gamma-rays (Cs-137) for physical mutagenesis and 10.15 and 17.5 M of SA solutions for the chemical mutagenesis could be used for improving in vitro antiplasmodial activities against P. falciparum (clinical isolates of P. falciparum or chloroquine-resistant P. falciparum strain K1). Thus, plants extracts from treated seeds have justified the usefulness of mutagens in plant breeding particularly in the increasing production of secondary metabolite against malaria parasite.

Induced-growth and yield responses to seasonal variation by sodium azide in tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.)

The mutagenic effect of various concentrations of sodium azide on some selected quality traits of three varieties of tomato was investigated with the aim of improving the quality and quantity of the traits of economic importance. The seeds of three tomato varieties namely: Roma, UC and a Local variety were treated with four different concentrations of sodium azide (0.1mM, 1.0 mM, 2.0 mM and 0.0 mM as control) via pre-soaking during both the wet and dry seasons. The results obtained revealed highly significant difference (P≤0.01) in the effects of various concentrations of sodium azide on the number of leaves, leaf area, number of fruits, fruit weight, pericarp thickness, number of seeds/fruit and pH of the fruit juices. Significant improvement (P≤0.05) was recorded on fruit diameter. More so, significant differences were found in the interactions of the varieties to the mutagenic treatments during the rainy season than the dry season. The interaction showed that all the mutants treated with 0.1mM concentration have the highest response in all the selected traits during rainy season except fruit diameter. Similarly, all the 1.0mM treated mutants showed highest response during rainy season except in leaf area where highest response was found in dry season. Similar result was found in 2.0 mM treated mutants. We therefore concluded that 0.1Mm sodium azide concentration improves important quality traits of tomato more especially variety UC as it responds significantly to sodium azide and that, the mutant tomato could be grown both during the rainy and dry seasons.Key Words: Concentrations, Mutation, Sodium Azide, Tomato

Mutagenic effect of sodium azide (NaN3) on M2 generation of Brassica napus L. (variety Dunkled)

The present study was aimed to investigate the effect of different doses (0.2%, 0.4%, 0.6% and 0.8%) of sodium azide (SA) on M2 generationof Brassica napus (variety Dunkled) on some qualitative, quantitative and biochemical parameters. The result showed that days to germination, days to flowering and days to siliqua maturation were delayed (9.4, 98 and 153 days respectively) in higher treatment as compared to control (5.4, 96 and 147 days respectively). Higher concentration of SA (0.8%) decreased germination percentage (88.56%), plant height (97.95 cm), stem diameter (3.49 cm), number of branches/plant (3.49), number of leaves/plant (10), number of siliqua/plant (64.68), number of seed/siliqua (20.09) and 1000 seeds weight (3.91g) as compared to control. An increase was noticed for siliqua length (5.42 cm) in higher concentration of SA (0.8%) as compared to control (5.24 cm). Proximate analysis showed a significant decrease in oil, oleic acid and glucosinolates contents percentage (42.6%, 54.9%, and 58.5 μmol/g respectively) in higher concentration of SA (0.8%) as compared to control (44.7%, 58.1% and 71.3 μmol/g respectively) while a significant increase was noticed in proteins, moisture, linoleic acid and erucic acid percentage (28.4%, 5.9%, 9% and 37.3% respectively) in higher concentration of SA (0.8%) as compared to control (26.8%, 5.5%, 8.4% and 35.2% respectively. Keywords: Sodium Azide (SA); Brassica napus; morphological and biochemical parameters http://dx.doi.org/10.19045/bspab.2017.60018