Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta
NG
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First line defence antioxidants-superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPX): Their fundamental role in the entire antioxidant defence grid
The body encloses a complex antioxidant defence grid that relies on endogenous enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants. These molecules collectively act against free radicals to resist their damaging effects to vital biomolecules and ultimately body tissues. Based on their response to general free radical invasion, they can be categorized into first, second, third and even fourth line defense antioxidants. The role and effectiveness of the first line defense antioxidants which basically include superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPX) is important and indispensable in the entire defense strategy of antioxidants, especially in reference to super oxide anion radical (*O2) which is perpetually generated in normal body metabolism, particularly through the mitochondrial energy production pathway (MEPP). A lot has been published concerning antioxidants and their significance in preventing oxidative stress and the attendant cellular damage, howbeit with paucity of awareness on the fundamental role of SOD, CAT and GPX. The present review tends to articulate important information on SOD, CAT and GPX as first line defense antioxidant enzymes.
Rumen microbial community composition varies with diet and host, but a core microbiome is found across a wide geographical range
Ruminant livestock are important sources of human food and global greenhouse gas emissions. Feed degradation and methane formation by ruminants rely on metabolic interactions between rumen microbes and affect ruminant productivity. Rumen and camelid foregut microbial community composition was determined in 742 samples from 32 animal species and 35 countries, to estimate if this was influenced by diet, host species, or geography. Similar bacteria and archaea dominated in nearly all samples, while protozoal communities were more variable. The dominant bacteria are poorly characterised, but the methanogenic archaea are better known and highly conserved across the world. This universality and limited diversity could make it possible to mitigate methane emissions by developing strategies that target the few dominant methanogens. Differences in microbial community compositions were predominantly attributable to diet, with the host being less influential. There were few strong co-occurrence patterns between microbes, suggesting that major metabolic interactions are non-selective rather than specific.
Diet, size and reproductive biology of the silver catfish, Chrysichthys nigrodigitatus (Siluformes: Bagridae) in the Cross River, Nigeria
The silver catfish, Chrysichthys nigrodigitatus (Lacépède: 1803) is a highly valued food-fish included among the dominant commercial catches exploited in major rivers of Africa. To provide useful biological data for management, samples were collected monthly between January (2005) and December (2007) in three zones: I: Upper Cross River (grassland), II: Middle Cross River (mixed forest and grassland), and III: Lower Cross River (rainforest)] along 200 km length of the Cross River, Nigeria. Data from 1 248 specimens were processed using: allometric coefficient (b), gonado-somatic index, Fulton's condition factor and diversity indices. Male dominance was observed in all populations; C. nigrodigitatus reached maturity at 11.5 cm (male) and 16.7cm (female) total length. Gonado-somatic index was higher for females with a peak in the early rains. The breeding period was between April and August with mean fecundity ranging between 4522 +/- 1924 eggs and 20321 +/- 5543 eggs. This was directly related to total length and weight by the regression models: F = 2365.88 + 560.22 log L and F = 5025.81 +56.34 log W respectively. Exponential equations for length-weight relationships were Wt = -1.997 Lt(2.206) (Zone I), W = -2.831 Lt(3.040) (Zone II) and Wt = -2.245 Lt(2.995) (Zone III). The mean allometric coefficient (b) showed significant departure from cubic value (negative allometry) for Zone I while Zones II and III showed no difference, indicating isometry. Dominant items in the diet were fish and fish parts constituting 21.6% with Food Richness and Gut Repletion Index of 18 and 100% respectively, in all zones. Diet Breadth of 0.802 (Zone 1), 0.922 (Zone II) and 0.910 (Zone III) indicate a high trophic flexibility that enables switching from one diet to another according to availability. Mean condition factor for males varied from 0.718 +/- 0.117 minimum in Zone I to 0.996 +/- 0.062 maximum in Zone III. Forest inland wetlands (Zone II and III) of Cross River provided better condition for C. nigrodigitatus.
Electronic structure and magnetism of the triple-layered ruthenate <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:msub><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">Sr</mml:mi><mml:mn>4</mml:mn></mml:msub><mml:msub><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">Ru</mml:mi><mml:mn>3</mml:mn></mml:msub><mml:msub><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">O</mml:mi><mml:mn>10</mml:mn></mml:msub></mml:math>
We report electronic band structure calculations for ${\mathrm{Sr}}_{4}{\mathrm{Ru}}_{3}{\mathrm{O}}_{10}$ which display both ferromagnetic and metamagnetic behavior. The density functional calculations find the ground state to be ferromagnetic in agreement with experiment and we show that the resulting spin polarization has dramatic consequences for the electronic properties. The minority-spin bands are mainly empty and disperse steeply upward at the Fermi energy, whereas the majority-spin bands are full or nearly fully occupied and form narrow bands near the Fermi energy, which could be the electronic origin of the metamagnetism. Inclusion of a Hubbard interaction $U$ applied to the Ru $4d$ states has major effects on the narrow bands, which reveal the role of Coulomb interactions and correlated many-body physics. The results are in qualitative agreement with recent angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) experiments and show the need for a combined theoretical study and experimental ARPES investigation with better energy resolution to reveal the nature of the narrow bands close to the Fermi level, which is critical for understanding the exotic magnetic properties observed in this material.