Journal of BioScience and Biotechnology (JBB)
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p-ISSN: 1314-6238 / e-ISSN: 1314-6246
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Item Study on biological and environmental factors for azoospermia(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2016-05-05) Dzhoglov, Spas; Ivanova, EvgeniyaThe absence of sperm in the seminal fluid is known as azoospermia. This medical condition is in a direct association with male's infertility. A complete medical history, physical examination, tests of selected hormones and tests for male fertility (including sperm analysis) are used for the diagnosis of azoospermia. The number of 1314 men, with fertility problems, at age between 20 and 67 years, were included in this investigation. The data obtained in the study showed that azoospermia occurred in 5.25% of the group studied. The Klinefelter syndrome was cytogenetically diagnosed in 2.9% of the male individuals. There was found that 44.3% of males with azoospermia have been smokers, 7.1% of them – addicted to drugs, 17.1% have taken different medicaments, 4.35% – have had radiation therapy, 4.35% have had a diagnosis "varicocele". The volume of the ejaculate was less than 2 ml in 37.68% of the men and more than 7 ml in 2.89% of them.Item Atmospheric pollution assessment with mosses in Western Rhodopes, Bulgaria(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2016-05-05) Gecheva, Gana; Gribacheva, Nikolina; Yurukova, Lilyana; Stefanova, Violeta; Kmetov, Veselin; Frontasieva, Marina; Popgeorgiev, GeorgiThe moss analysis technique was applied to monitor 10 heavy metals and toxic elements deposition. Our study was the first attempt to assess spatial patterns in a border mountain region (area 8732 km2) with a low population density and high proportion of protected territories. The obtained results did not correlate to the results from areas with low air pollution and could be linked to the impact of old and open mines.Item Ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants of Mirab-Badwacho district, Ethiopia(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2016-05-05) Temam, Tamru; Dillo, AsalfewEthnobotanical investigation on medicinal plants was conducted in Mirab-Badawacho District of Ethiopia. Sixty traditional healers participated in the study. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews, guided field walks and key informant interviews. Voucher specimens of the medicinal plants were collected during guided field walks. Ethnobotanical techniques such as informant consensus factor (ICF) and preference ranking were used to analyse the data. A total of 57 medicinal plants belonging to 40 families were recorded. The most commonly used plant families include Euphorbiaceae, Solanaceae, Asteraceae, Cucurbitaceae, Lamiaceae, Rosaceae and Brassicaceae. Medicinal plants were mostly collected from the wild habitats. Herbs accounted for the lion's share of the medicinal plants. The medicinal plants of the study site were used to treat 31 ailments. About 42% of the plants were used to treat stomach ache, diarrhea and intestinal worms. Leaves (41%) and roots (20.3%) were the most frequently used medicinal plant parts. Flowers were least used plant parts for medicinal purpose. Routes of administration of the traditional remedies were mouth, skin, nose and eye. The study area has considerable diversity of medicinal plants. However, expansion of agricultural land, over grazing and deforestation are major threats to the medicinal plants. Hence, proper conservation measures need to be practiced for sustainability of the medicinal plants.Item Evaluation of the phenotypic variation in a caper (Capparis spinosa L.) population growing in south of Tehran using multivariate analysis(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2016-05-05) Bina, Fatemeh; Bostani, AbdolamirThe aim of this study was to investigate the phenotypic variation among 100 caper (Capparis spinose L.) plants growing naturally in south of Tehran. Plant samples were taken randomly from three different regions of southern Tehran. The number of 29 phenotypic traits were studied on selected plants. Data were subsequently subjected to multivariate analysis. Results showed that fruit yield was significantly correlated with the number of fruits per plant, fruit weight, fruit length, fruit diameter, plant canopy, the number of thorns in every 50 cm of stem, thorn length and the number of flowers per plant (NFP). Also, there was a negative correlation between fruit length and the number of branches per each main stem. Stepwise multiple linear regression revealed that the number of main stems per plant, leaf width, petiole length, peduncle length and NFP were added to the model and hence had the greatest impact on fruit yield. Principle component analysis showed that the first two components accounted for 41.1% of the total variation. The first component was related to the fruit yield and its related traits, while the second component was related to the vegetative growth and showed competition between reproductive and vegetative functions. Cluster analysis of genotypes using Ward method and squared Euclidian distance criteria classified the samples into ten different groups. The results of this study suggested that crossing between samples 17 and 81 may produce useful recombinants.Item Evaluation of radiation use efficiency of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) cultivars as affected by plant density under Mashhad climatic conditions(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2016-05-05) Ghavidel, Raheleh Ahmadzadeh; Asadi, Ghorban Ali; Naseri, Mohammad Taghi; Yazdi, Pour; Ghorbani, Reza; Khorramdel, SururIn order to determine the effect of different plant densities in bean cultivars, an experiment was conducted as factorial layout based on a randomized complete block design with three replications at Agricultural Research Station, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, during growing season the 2014-2015. Factors included four bean cultivars (such as Akhtar, D-81083Line, Naz and Goli), and three plant densities (including 13.3, 20 and 40 plants.m-2). Study has addressed some indicators including leaf area index (LAI), amount of absorbed radiation, dry matter accumulation and radiation use efficiency (RUE) in bean cultivars at different plant densities. The trend of increasing dry matter accumulation in all cultivars entered to the linear growth phase on the 20th day after planting and reached to its maximum on the 70th day after planting. The highest dry matter was obtained in Goli (300.4 g.m-2) and Naz (285.1 g.m-2) cultivars which was 32 and 30% higher compared to Akhtar and 30 and 28% higher compared to D-81083 Line cultivar, respectively. The highest radiation use efficiency (2.2 g.MJ-1) was obtained in treatment at density of 40 plants.m-2 and was in Goli (2.01 g.MJ-1) and Naz (1.98 g.MJ-1) cultivars. With increasing plant density, maximum leaf area index in bean cultivars increased gradually to its highest level (40 plants.m-2) and due to plants ghosting, continued to decrease. This result can be used for modeling of leaf area. With increasing plant density due to increasing of leaf area index, the amount of absorbed radiation increased and therefore the time to reach maximum dry matter accumulation decreased and dry matter accumulation increased.Item Sensitivity of two garden pea genotypes to physical and chemical mutagens(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2016-05-05) Kalapchieva, Slavka; Tomlekova, NasyaA study on the sensitivity of two breeding lines of garden pea to mutagenic agents was carried out in the Maritsa Vegetable Crops Research Institute, Plovdiv. The purpose was to evaluate the sensitivity of the Pisum sativum L. genotypes to physical and chemical mutagens. In the experiment, the pea seeds were irradiated single or combined with 60Co gamma rays (40, 80, 100, 200 and 400 Gy) and Ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS) at concentrations of 0.1 and 0.2 %. Visible morphological changes of the stems and leaves were observed in plant of M1 generation, such as shorter stems, double petiole, clover-shaped leaves and a couple of tendrils. Single treatments with 100 Gy 60Co induced the highest mutation frequency M.F. = 7.69 for line 88-7, and М.F. = 2.11 for line 97-3, reported in M2 generation. Higher doses or combined gamma rays and EMS treatments induced more efficiently mutations. Line 88-7 was selected for further mutagenic treatment due to the higher sensitivity assessed.Item Effects of enzyme supplementation on replacing corn with barley in diet of broiler chicks(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2016-05-05) Sadeghi, Ghorbanali; Habibian, MahmoodTwo experiments were carried out to evaluate the effects of an enzyme complex (Agrozyme®, a cocktail of cellulolytic, amylolytic, and proteolytic enzymes) on barley energy content and its nutritive value for broiler chicks. In the first experiment, the effect of enzyme on barley energy content was determined using adult Leghorn cockerels. In the second experiment, the effects of the enzyme on performance, carcass characteristics, and nutrient digestibility of broilers fed diets containing 0, 50 and 100% replacement of diet corn with barley was investigated using 360 1-d-old chicks. Enzyme had no effect on barley energy content (first experiment). During 1 to 21 d period, chicks fed diet in which 100% of corn was replaced by barley had lower weight gain than those fed diet in which 50% of corn was replaced by barley. The high barley diet resulted in a significant increase in feed conversion ratio. During 21 to 35 d period, chicks fed the corn diets had lower weight gain than those fed barley containing diets. Enzyme had no effect on weight gain, but feed conversion ratio was improved by enzyme when chicks fed high barley diet. In the overall period, enzyme addition had no effect on performance. Carcass and abdominal fat weight was reduced, whereas the small intestine weight was increased when chicks fed diet in which 100% of corn was replaced by barley. Dietary treatments had no effect on dry matter, crude protein, and crude fat digestibilities.Item Antiviral activity of plant extract from Tanacetum vulgare against Cucumber Mosaic Virus and Potato Virus Y(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2016-05-05) Petrov, Nikolay; Stoyanova, Mariya; Valkova, MiroslavaCucumber mosaic virus (CMV) and Potato virus Y (PVY) have been described among the top five important viruses infecting vegetable species worldwide. They cause severe damages in fruits and cultivated plants. There is currently no available effective pesticide to control these viral diseases. Higher plants contain a wide spectrum of secondary metabolites such as phenolics, flavonoids, quinones, tannins, essential oils, alkaloids, saponins, sterols and others. Extracts prepared from different plants have been reported to have a variety of properties including antifungal, antiviral and antibacterial properties against pathogens. Tanacetum vulgare (Tansy) is native to Europe, Asia, and North Africa. It has many horticultural and pharmacological qualities. T. vulgare is principally used in traditional Asian and North African medicine as an antihelminthic, antispasmodic, stimulant to abdominal viscera, tonic, antidiabetic and diuretic, and it is antihypertensive. In our research we established antiviral effect of methanol extract from T. vulgare against CMV and PVY in tomato plants.Item Determination of degradability of germinated and heated soybean seeds and its proteins fractions(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2016-05-05) Alizadeh, Behruz; Salamatdust, Ramin; Paya, Hamid; Parsaeimehr, KhosroA study on the sensitivity of watermelon variety Bojura to mutagenic agents was carried out in 2013-2014. The goal was to establish effective doses for mutagenic treatment of dry seeds with 60Co gamma rays (80, 100, 200, 250, 350 and 450 Gy) and swollen seeds with water for 24 hours were treated with ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS) at a concentration of 2%. Dominant mutations were not observed in the M1 generation. Morphological changes in 14 of 1395 M2 plants were observed. Phenotypic variations changes were the colour of the seed coat, chlorophyll disorders of cotyledons, leaves, petals, and alterations of the location of the fruit set in the central stem. Visible changes of the morphological characteristics of the fruit were not observed. The doses induced certain morphological changes, however, higher doses or combined gamma rays 60Co and EMS treatments would induce mutations more efficiently. Subsequent experiments are required to obtain mutants with changes that affect flowers and fruits. The results are important for increasing mutation efficiency in watermelon breeding.Item Development of bioprocess for high density cultivation yield of the probiotic Bacillus coagulans and its spores(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2016-05-05) Pandey, Kavita R.; Vakil, Babu V.Bacillus coagulans is a spore forming lactic acid bacterium. Spore forming bacteria, have been extensively studied and commercialized as probiotics. Probiotics are produced by fermentation technology. There is a limitation to biomass produced by conventional modes of fermentation. With the great demand generated by range of probiotic products, biomass is becoming very valuable for several pharmaceutical, dairy and probiotic companies. Thus, there is a need to develop high cell density cultivation processes for enhanced biomass accumulation. The bioprocess development was carried out in 6.6 L bench top lab scale fermentor. Four different cultivation strategies were employed to develop a bioprocess for higher growth and sporulation efficiencies of probiotic B. coagulans. Batch fermentation of B. coagulans yielded 18 g L-1 biomass (as against 8.0 g L-1 productivity in shake flask) with 60% spore efficiency. Fed-batch cultivation was carried out for glucose, which yielded 25 g L-1 of biomass. C/N ratio was very crucial in achieving higher spore titres. Maximum biomass yield recorded was 30 g L-1, corresponding to 3.8 × 1011 cells mL-1 with 81% of cells in sporulated stage. The yield represents increment of 85 times the productivity and 158 times the spore titres relative to the highest reported values for high density cultivation of B. coagulans.Item Preliminary study of Endomycodiversity among three ethnomedicinal plants from family Meliaceae in Nigeria(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2016-05-05) Abubakar, Salisu; Ndana, Rebeccah WusaThe natives as well as the ethnic tribes inhabiting the study area of this research work value the plants as a source of medicine to cure some ailments. Many of the pharmaceutical compounds produced from medicinal plants are reportedly produced by their endophytic fungi. Hence, it is important to study endophytic fungi of ethnomedicinal plants and their biodiversity. Modified surface sterilization techniques using 3% surfactant and 70% sterilant were used to clean the explants before culturing. Various biochemical tests such as wet mount using methylene blue, Dalamau technique and urease test were employed for macro and microscopic endophytic fungal identification. Altogether 756 segments of which 26 segments each from leaves (young) and stem (twig) tissues of the respective plants were screened using modified surface sterilization techniques. Thirty one species of endophytic fungi was isolated. Based on taxonomical classification 26 belongs to Ascomycetes 2 Basidiomycetes and 5 species were recorded unidentified. The highest species richness as well as overall frequency of colonization was seen on stems of P. kotschi (20.7%) by Cladosporium species and Fusarium manilliforme from leaves (18%); Rhizoctonia species proved highest frequency of colonization on K. senegalensis stems (15.6%) followed by Cladosporium species on leaves (13.9%). Cryptococcus species showed the highest frequency of colonization on stems of A. indica (14.9%) while Cladosporium species showed the highest colonization on leaves (11%).Item Study on freshwater algal flora on the territory of the Bulgarka Nature Park(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2016-05-05) Stoyanov, Plamen; Mladenov, Rumen; Teneva, Ivanka; Belkinova, DetelinaThe study presents data on the diversity of freshwater algal flora on the territory of the Bulgarka Nature Park. One hundred ninety-four species, belonging to 11 divisions were identified. The conservation value of the identified species was assessed.Item Research on the daily activity of the stone marten (Martes foina erxl.) in anthropogenically influenced habitats in Bulgaria(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2017-07-11) Dudin, Georgi S.; Georgiev, Dilian G.The study was done on a kind of a small predator by digital photo cameras in three remote geographic areas. There have been 709 photos of stone marten (Martes foina), of which 518 in Sinite Kamani Nature Park, 118 in State Hunting Department "Chepino" and 75 in anthropogenically influenced habitats in the villages of Byga and Isperihovo. By analyzing the daily activity of the species is recorded night or twilight activity between 17 and 7:00 hours (morning, evening or night). In the time interval between 07-17 during the day, the activity of the type is not registered.Item Chloroplast genome assembly approaches from NGS data(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2017-07-11) Ivanova, Zdravka; Daskalova, Evelina; Minkov, Georgi; Baev, VesselinThe advent of Next Generation Sequencing platforms led to increase of research in whole genome assembly algorithms and software. Illumina Genome Analyzer produces a large amount of sequencing data, with a shorted read length, higher coverage and different errors in comparison to Sanger Sequencing. In response to this, several new assemblers were developed specifically for de novo assembly of next generation sequencing. This study compares software assembly packages named Edena, SPAdes, ABySS and analyzes results delivered by de novo assembly experiments. We show that assembly job of small genome can be completed in a short time on a 32 bit Linux OS with 4 GB RAM, indicating than de novo assembly can be executed and millions of very reads assembled on a desktop computer.Item Antiviral Activity of Sukomycin Against Potato Virus Y And Tomato Mosaic Virus(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2016-12-31) Petrov, Nikolay; Tishkov, Sava; Teneva, Atanaska; Dimitrova, Ivona; Bojilova, MilenaPotato virus Y (PVY) and Tomato mosaic virus (ToMV) are one of the most important plant viruses that strongly influence the quality and quantity of vegetable production and cause substantial losses to farmers. The most convetional and common method of pest and disease control is trough the use of pesticides. Unfortunately, most of them are synthetic compounds without antiviral activities and possess inherent toxicities that endanger the health of the farm operators, consumers and the environment. In order to carry out a control of viral infections in plants and to reduce the loss of production it is necessary the search for alternative and environmentally friendly methods for control. Sukomycin is a complex of substances with antimicrobial and antiviral activities produced from Streptomyces hygroscopicus isolated from soil. This natural complex reduces significantly symptoms and DAS-ELISA values of Potato virus Y and Tomato mosaic virus in tobacco plants.Item A review of Sphaeropsis sapinea occurrence on Pinus species in Bulgaria(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2017-07-11) Georgieva, Margarita; Hlebarska, SiannaSphaeropsis sapinea (Fr.) Dyko & Sutton causes shoot blight and canker disease throughout the world on conifers predisposed by stress. The disease is most important to Pinus species that are affected from the seedling stage in nurseries to mature trees in ornamental planting, forest plantations and natural stands. In Bulgaria, the first findings of the disease were noted in 1989 on Pinus nigra plantations in the North-eastern part of the country. Over the past few years, new emergency and severe damages have developed rapidly as a consequence of the prolonged drought periods during the last growing seasons. The high existence of S. sapinea outbreaks contributed considerably to the physiological weakness of pine trees that become more susceptible to attack by aggressive xylophages and other fungal pathogens. Disease occurrence and its pathogenicity are economically important affecting a number of pine trees from all ages. In Bulgaria, S. sapinea has been obtained on six pine species P. nigra, P. strobus, P. radiata, P. ponderosa, P. pinaster and P. halepensis. The aim of this review is to present the available knowledge on distribution, host specificity, biology, ecology, management of the disease, and to discuss its current prevalence and pathogenicity effect on pine species in Bulgaria.Item Molecular taxonomy study of representatives of the genus Gobius inhabiting coastal waters of Black Sea region(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2017-07-11) Tserkova, Feriha; Klisarova, Daniela; Denev, IliyaAccording to their origin the Black Sea gobies can be divided to Ponto-Caspian relicts and Mediterranean immigrants. The increase of species diversity in the Black Sea is a consequence of Mediterranean immigrants. The present study investigated the variability in Cytochrome b sequences isolated from two former Mediterranean immigrant species: Gobius niger and Zosterisessor ophiocephalus. The annotated at NCBI Cyt b sequences of the species were also used to extend the reach of the study. The analyses demonstrated that Black Sea inhabited by four haplotypes of G. niger. Four other haplotypes were found in sequences of Mediterranean black gobies. In the Black Sea haplotype, 6 is predominant and 83.5% of all G. niger representatives belong to it. Three other haplotypes (H_1; H_7 and H_8) were found to form isolated populations. The Tajima D-test indicated that in the Black Sea G. niger in a stage of expansion and significant evolutionary pressure according to data from Maximum Composite Likelihood model of Tamura-Nei, which can explain the accumulation of mutation and appearance of new haplotypes. Unlike G. niger, Z. ophiocephalus populations are shrinking according to Tajima D-test and only one haplotype is still surviving in isolated locations in the Black Sea. These data are in agreement with previous reports of other authors which alarmed that the grass goby is a critically endangered species close to extinction.Item The contribution of proteins with binding activity and specific metabolic pathways in tolerating abiotic stress by canola: An in silico study(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2017-07-11) Gharelo, Reza Shokri; Bandehagh, AliPlants indicate different degrees of sensitivity and of tolerance upon encountering stressful conditions. In molecular level, plants respond in complex manner to stressful conditions. Obviously, the tolerant plants recruit molecular mechanisms that enable them to trigger appropriate reactions. To investigate molecular mechanisms involved in the response of Canola to stress conditions, two cultivars of Canola including Sarigol (as a sensitive cultivar) and Hyola308 (as a tolerant cultivar) were in silico studied based on their identified proteins with significantly expression changes under abiotic stresses. The results indicated that in Hyola308, the genes/proteins that are mostly involved in the response to stress and with functions related to binding activity are overrepresented. In term of Sarigol, the number of the genes/proteins involved in response to stress were the low and the most of its induced genes/proteins were involvement in catalytic and antioxidant activities. Five metabolic pathways including protein processing in endoplasmic reticulum, carbon fixation in photosynthetic organisms, endocytosis, spliceosome, and fructose and mannose metabolism were uniquely observed in Hyola308, which could be in relation with the tolerance of Hyola308. These pathways could be supposed as key metabolic pathways in Canola under stress. Finally, the genes UGD2, TPI, and AT3G09440 are introduced as potential candidate to be regarded in genetic engineering of Canola due to their core central roles in PPI network.Item Investigation of post-fire natural regeneration in forest plantations of Pinus sylvestris and Larix decidua on the Northern slopes of Rila mountain(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2017-07-11) Molla, Ibrahim; Velizarova, EmiliyaWildfires alter both the vegetation and the soil properties, thus changing the conditions of their regeneration. Each year, forest fires impact significant areas within the lower forest zone, where the coniferous plantations, especially Scots pine plantations are deteriorated. The natural forest recovery processes in fire-affected areas are still insufficiently studied in Bulgaria. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the possibility of a natural post-fire regeneration of forest vegetation and the conditions, under which it was limited. The natural regeneration of coniferous plantations in the area of Dolna Banya (The Northern slopes of Rila Mt) with dominant tree species of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) (Object 1) and European larch (Larix decidua Mill.) (Object 2) was studied four years after fire and was found to depend on the slope aspect, the micro-relief and soil humidity. It was found that on the South-western slopes, the diversity of broadleaves tree species recovery (birch, oak, sallow, aspen) was higher in comparison with the coniferous (Scotch pine) ones. On the Eastern slope, the regeneration of coniferous prevailed over that of broadleaves. On the ridges, the regeneration was the lowest one, while on the foot of the slopes was higher.Item Enhancement of nutritive value of tea leaf waste by solid-state fermentation with Lentinus sajor–caju(Plovdiv University Press “Paisii Hilendarski”, 2017-07-11) Abdullah-Al-Mahin; Hossain, Shamim; Abdel-Rahman, Mohamed Ali; Hussain, Shakhawat; Islam, RezuanulNutritional value of tea leaf waste was improved significantly (p<0.05) by solid-state fermentation for 8 weeks with a white rot fungus, Pleurotus sajor-caju. The proximate analysis revealed that crude protein, ash, cellulose-lignin ratio and reducing sugar contents were increased by 2001.53, 117.62, 31.38, and 619.10%, respectively. In contrary, crude fiber, lipid, carbohydrate, lignin, cellulose and hemicelluloses contents were decreased by 40.70, 71.87, 47.65, 35.63, 15.26, and 61.03%, respectively. Ascorbic acid and carotenoid were also increased by 129.17 and 398.79%, respectively. At 7 weeks of fermentation, the crude tea leaf waste extract showed very high CMCase, avicelase, cellobiase and amylase activity, moderate pectinase and poor xylanase activity. Furthermore, In-vitro dry matter digestibility was increased by 50.35% at the end of fermentation. Therefore, it was concluded that P. sajor-caju efficiently degraded tea leaf waste and improved its nutritive value.