Journal Of Agrobiotechnology (Journal of UniSZA - Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin)
Not a member yet
260 research outputs found
Sort by
Diversity and abundance of insects in the recreational forest of Bukit Keluang, Besut, Terengganu.
Get PDFBukit Keluang is one of the famous natural recreational sites in Besut, Terengganu due to their beautiful sandy beaches and beautiful landscapes. Bukit Keluang recreational forest consist coastal and lowland dipterocarp forest. The studies on the biodiversity are never been reported at this area and thus, we aimed to investigate the diversity and abundance of insects in the coastal and inland forest of Bukit Keluang recreational forest. We built two plots which are Plot A in the coastal area and Plot B in the inland forest at Bukit Keluang. For each plot, three types of insect traps were used; yellow pan traps, pitfall traps, and Malaise traps. The traps were left for seven days and all insect samples collected were brought to the laboratory for sorting, enumerating and identifying up to order level. A total of 455 individuals of insects consisted of 10 orders (i.e. Hymenoptera, Diptera, Lepidoptera, Coleoptera, Collembola, Homoptera, Orthoptera, Dermaptera, Blattodea and Isoptera) were successfully collected from the forest of Bukit Keluang. Among them, Hymenoptera order dominated the number of individuals collected at 67.25% followed by Diptera (11.21%) whilst Collembola and Dermaptera were the least abundance order collected at 0.22%, respectively. The coastal forest recorded a total of 271 individuals (nine orders) while inland forest recorded 184 individuals (eight orders). No significant difference (p>0.05) of insect abundance was recorded between both plots. However, the Shannon-Weiner Diversity Index (H’) showed that the diversity of insects in the inland forest was slightly higher (H’=1.52) than the coastal forest (H’=0.86). We conclude that the insects’ diversity in Bukit Keluang is relatively higher in inland forest but lower in coastal forest. As no other insect survey has been conducted in this study area in the past, this study delivers a basic evidence and dataset of diversity and abundance for insect which may beneficial for further conservation research at Bukit Keluang in the future
Effects of Nitrogen Sources in Phytase Production on Bacterial Strains Isolated from Malaysia’s Hot Spring
Get PDFEfficient strategies for phytase production gained increasing importance as more applications require high amounts of phytase for the market. Four phytase-producing bacterial strains isolated from Malaysia’s hot springs were used in this study to determine the effect of nitrogen sources on phytase production. All of the strains were screened out by applying halozone method which shows all of the strains were definitely positive phytase producer. Phytase Screening Medium (PSM) with soybean extract as substrate was used as a cultivation medium. Optimised condition with 1.0 % (w/v) of glucose (as carbon source), pH 5.5 and 37°C temperature was applied. Yeast extract and peptone were used to identify optimum nitrogen source in maximum phytase production. Quantitative analysis observed were optical density, colony forming unit, pH values and phytase activity to identify the effect of nitrogen source in phytase production. The finding was bacterial strain L3 as the best producer in producing maximum phytase (0.2162 U/mL) with optimised condition using yeast extract as nitrogen source. Findings in this study proved that yeast extract act as the optimum nitrogen source which contribute to maximum phytase production as supported by previous studies. This study can provide an efficient strategy to produce maximum phytase as few studies stated that phytase is an application tool in functional food production that consists of myo-inositol phosphates that is believed to have important pharmacological effects
Treated Cow Milk Quality Analysis in High-Temperature Short Time (HTST) Thermal Treatment using F-Value and Methylene Blue Reduction Test (MBRT)
Get PDFThis study was conducted to evaluate raw and pasteurized cow milk regarding physical properties, microbiological quality, and lethality value ofMycobacterium Paratuberculosis(MAP)at different temperature and time combinations of the pasteurization process.Cow milk samples were pasteurized at high-temperature (70°C, 75°C, and 81°C) and short-time (15s and 25s) high temperature and short time (HTST) combinations. Raw and pasteurized (HTST) cow milk was analyzed, while commercial cow milk that undergo proses (HTST) was used as control. High-temperature short time (HTST) pasteurization showed a significant effect on the colour of raw and pasteurized cow milk (p<0.05) at every temperature. In addition, cow milk also indicated an increase in lightness and yellowness after HTST pasteurization.The microbiological quality of raw, pasteurized, and commercial cow milk is evaluated using the Methylene Blue Reduction (MBRT) test, a common, rapid, simple, and inexpensive method for microbiological quality evaluation.The MBRT on raw milk samples revealed that it was of poor quality. On the other hand, all pasteurized samples were good quality, and the commercial sample was excellent.Based on the evaluated F-values, the most suitable temperature and time combinationsin this study was 70°C and 25s
Nutritional Assessment of Setaria sphacelata and Cleome gynandra as Potential for Ruminant Feed
Get PDFSetaria sphacelata is a high and most prevalent tropical grass, while Cleome gynandra is a tropical annual herb which commonly used as vegetables in Africa and Asia. Both plant samples were found to be high in nutritive value especially in protein and very appetizing in ruminants. The main objectives of the study were to measure and compare the nutritional composition of Setaria sphacelata and Cleome gynandra as a function of their nutritional value for ruminants. The two plant samples were collected near the Tembila area, Besut Terengganu. The samples were dried in a furnace below 60 - 70 ËšC and crushed prior to further analysis using proximate analysis. Proximate analysis was used to measure values for moisture, dry matter (DM), ash, crude protein (CP), crude fibre (CF), ether extract (EF) and nitrogen-free extract (NFE). The result of this analysis shows that Cleome gynandra had much higher crude protein (CP) (p < 0.05) at 36.86% and ether extract (EF) at 5.50%. Crude protein (CP) is one of the most essential nutrients that ruminants need. Therefore, this study found that Cleome gynandra contains a higher nutritional value in terms of crude protein (CP) than Setaria sphacelate, which can be used as a feed for ruminants
Effect of Carbon Sources on Different Strains of Phytase-Producing Bacteria Isolated from Malaysia’s Hot Spring
Get PDFAnimal feed from cereal grains and oilseed meals mainly containing phytic acid which has adverse effects on animal nutrition and its environment. Ruminants can easily digest the phytic acid as they have fungi and bacteria in their guts which can produce phytase to degrade the phytic acid. Meanwhile, phytic acid in non-ruminant animals is poorly digested due to the lack of sufficient phytase in their guts. Thus, the feed must be supplemented with inorganic phosphate to ensure it can absorb adequate nutrients. This study aimed to determine the effects of using different carbon sources to the growth of different strains of phytase producing bacteria based on optical density (OD), colony forming unit (CFU), and their phytase production. All four strains of potentially producing-phytase bacteria have been isolated from several hot springs in Malaysia. The bacteria were grown in modified Phytase Screening Medium (PSM) with glucose and lactose as a carbon source and under optimum culture conditions (pH 5.5, 37ËšC, 200 rpm) for 72 hours. For quantitative screening of phytase production, the bacterial cultures were harvested to obtain the supernatants that were used to measure the amount of inorganic phosphorus released by the bacterial strains. Among these carbon sources, glucose has shown consistency between their CFU counts and the observed ODs whereas lactose shown inconsistency. Meanwhile, the maximum phytase activity was recorded for all strains in the presence of glucose in which bacteria strain L3 (0.0404 U/mL), RT (0.0359 U/mL), B9 (0.0262 U/mL), and A (0.0263 U/mL). As for the overall, strain L3 (Labis, Johor) gave a promising rate of inorganic phosphate released with optimum phytase activity value of 0.0404 U/mL in presence of glucose and lactose. The optimisation of the fermentation medium can contribute to more economical production of industrial enzyme as phytase has the potential to produce feed additives for poultry feeding
Water Quality Assessment on Lake A at Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA) Besut Campus
Get PDFWater is an essential nutrient in the human body and it plays a vital role. Water is required to work in every system in the body, from cells and tissues to vital organs. About 70% of human-used freshwater goes to cultivation. The study aimed to assess water quality and identify the water category of Besut Campus Lake A. Water Quality Index (WQI) related to this study because it is standard used to classify the class of the water body. Water sampling was done at three sampling stations in two different locations and were sampled from February 2021 until March 2021. According to HACH and American Public Health Associations (APHA) methods, ten water quality parameters were analysed based on in situ and ex situ analysis. The values of pH, TDS, Temp, TSS and AN had been classified under Class I referred to National Water Quality Standard (NWQS). At the same time, DO and BOD were classified under Class II. And COD had been classified under Class III according to NWQS classification. Based on WQI, the water quality status in Campus Besut Lake was classified under Class II with a value of 85.742. It had been considered as Clean which is suitable for recreational activities and safe for body contact as well
Skeletal Deformities in Cultured Juvenile African Catfish Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822)
Get PDFSkeletal deformities in cultured fish are known worldwide and it had affected the survival, growth and appearance of the fish which contribute to production loss. Clarias gariepinus is known as number one farmed fish in Malaysia. C. gariepinus also effected in these deformities especially in cultured species. The objectives of this study are to identify the skeletal deformities that occur in juvenile stages and to compare the bone structure between the normal and deformed fish. A total of 50 juveniles’ fish were collected from Aquaculture Extension and Community Centre Machang, Kelantan. The juvenile was measured before undergo staining process. The fish were starved for one day then fixed in 70% ethanol for two weeks. The fish were then stained with alizarin red S for cartilage and Alcian blue for bone. The specimens were photographed in order to observe the deformities. The data showed only 13.0% juveniles have skeletal deformities, 10.9% with lordosis and 2.2% scoliosis. The cause of the deformities may be due to the heterogenous growth but other factors might also contribute to the problem. As the conclusion, the skeletal deformities observed in juvenile C. gariepinus were detected with the whole-mount staining method ranged from size 7.3 and 26.0 cm in total length. This study shows there is heterogenous growth rearing at low percentage even from skilled farm. Further study should concentrate on hidden factors that affected the deformity rate and mineralization of the juvenile fish
Production of High Quality Planting Materials Through Breeding for Four Important Herbal Species
Get PDFWith the growing interest in these species as a source of new pharmaceutical products and the increasing demand for herbal products in Malaysia, the demand for its raw materials is also increasing. Therefore, initiatives have been taken by Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM) to select and to produce high quality planting materials for future uses. To our knowledge, most of the raw materials used in producing herbal products and its development were being sourced from the wild, with little knowledge on the quality of the raw materials. In order to ensure the quality and sustainability of raw materials in the market, it is important to come out with suitable breeding strategy for the selected species. This paper highlights research by FRIM on collecting, screening, selecting and producing high quality planting materials for the four species based on their growth performance and bioactive compounds. Several research on the production of high quality planting materials for four important medicinal plants has been initiated by FRIM starting from the 11th Malaysian Plan until now. This paper discusses about four selected species namely Chromolaena odorata (kapal terbang), Andrographis paniculata (creat or green chiretta), Beackea frutescens (false ru) and Senna alata (candle bush). These species are found to have a significant benefit to the human’s health. C. odorata (kapal terbang) leaf extract are found to have relatively strong inhibition on platelet-activating factor (PAF) receptor binding in vitro, indicating an anti-inflammatory activity, which is favourable for wound healing. A major bioactive compound in A. paniculata, andrographolide has shown anticancer potential in various research. Whereas, B. frutescens has a potential to be used as anti-gout remedies. Research conducted by FRIM showed that active compound in the leaves and stems of B. frutescens extract are effective in inhibiting uric acid formation and promoting uric acid secretion. Whereas for S. alata, the highest content of major flavonoid glycoside compound, kaempferol-3-O-gentiobioside (K3G), has an anti-inflammatory effect detected in leaf extracts. Germplasm plots for the species were also established in FRIM for future breeding activities. The outputs derived from this study will support the herbal industries in getting quality raw materials in the future. By using high quality plants will also increase the value of pharmaceutical products in the market. It is anticipated that herbal industries and interested party will seek FRIM for high quality seeds and seedlings materials for the development of their products as well as for the establishment of commercial herbal plantation
The Factors Affecting the Consumer Buying Behaviour Towards Local Brand of Food Product in Selangor
Get PDFThe aim of this study is to determine the factors affecting the consumer buying behaviour toward food products in Selangor. Consumer behaviours comprise four factors: cultural, social, personal, and psychological factors. These factors influence consumer buying behaviour toward Malaysian local brands. Data were collected through online questionnaires using Google form. The sample of study consisted of 210 consumers in Selangor. In particular, principal components analysis (PCA) was employed in order to identify the factors that affect consumers on preferring locally produced food products. The findings of this study indicate that Halal logo was the first choice in terms of consumer’s perspective on the product attributes when buying food products followed by price. Size and quantity, and packaging are the third and fourth attributes considered by consumers when buying food products. Our result suggests that, by providing this consumer information to small scale or local sellers will encourage more consumers to purchase local food products
Population Abundance of Flies Collected in Different Traps in Small Ruminants in Ladang Pasir Akar, Besut, Terengganu
Get PDFFlies are common ectoparasites to livestock. Some species of flies are important to small ruminants because they can spread disease and cause disturbance to animals, thus lowering their productivity. Considering the impact of flies to the productivity of small ruminants, it is important to identify the species of flies that occur in an area for early control actions. The study was aimed to determine the species of flies in Diptera family that occur in Ladang UniSZA Pasir Akar and their population abundance. The flies were collected using three types of traps: Malaise trap, yellow pan trap and yellow sticky trap for three consecutive weeks. The traps were set up in three different locations in small ruminants rearing area in the farm. Nine Diptera families significant to livestock were identified: Calliphoridae, Ceratopogonidae, Culicidae, Muscidae, Psychodidae, Rhiniidae, Sarcophagidae, Simuliidae and Tabanidae. The family Sarcophagidae recorded the highest abundance in the farm (26.57%), while the lowest of flies count was from the family Tabanidae (0.82%). The most diverse family of Diptera was collected by Malaise trap and the lowest diversity was recorded from yellow pan trap. The results from this study had provided the first insight of the flies important to small ruminants occurred in this farm