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Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is one of the most economically attractive and widely consumed vegetables globally. Their high water content, perishability, transport and poor storage system predisposes them to spoilage by a broad spectrum of mycoflora resulting in huge postharvest losses. This study investigates antimycotic potential of alum on postharvest deterioration of tomato. Composite samples of deteriorating tomatoes were subjected to standard mycological analysis from which total fungal colony counts obtained ranged from 1.64x106-5.70x109 CFU/g, and the following species were identified; Aspergillus niger, A. flavus, Fusarium sp, Penicillium sp, Rhizopus stolonifer, Geotrichum candidium and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In vitro antimycotic activity of alum (1% (w/v) concentration) was determined on some of the isolates by agar well method (AWM) and diameter of inhibition zone (DIZ) measured using a metre rule. G. candidum had the highest DIZ (9.0mm (29.0%) followed by A. niger (8.0 mm (25.8%) and 7.0mm (⁓ 22.6%) for Fusarium and Penicillium species respectively. R. stolonifer showed no inhibition or zero. pH values increased from 4.35-4.52 whereas TTA values decreased from 0.13-0.07 within 2days of analysis. However, these results indicate that treatment of postharvest deteriorating tomatoes with alum prior to consumption would enhance food safety as some of these fungi are known to be spoilage, toxigenic or opportunistic pathogens. So, their presence raises concern on storability as well as public health risks associated with consumption of these fruits. Therefore, production of tomato requires an integrated and multidisciplinary research approach not only to reduce economic loss but also create consumers’ awareness on potential public health hazards of consuming relatively cheaper and pathogen contaminated deteriorating tomatoes.

Biodegradation of polypropylene by bacterial isolates from the organs of a fish, Liza grandisquamis harvested from Ohiakwu estuary in Rivers State, Nigeria.

Potassium aluminium sulphate (PAS) commonly referred to as 'potash alum (PA)', 'alum' or 'tawas' has recently drawn the attention of the scientific community as an efficient, safe and eco-friendly inorganic compound, commercially available and cost effective.It demonstrated a high propensity of antimicrobial activity in a variety of systems traditionally and scientifically. Several In vitro and In vivo studies report that alum individually or in synergism have antimicrobial properties against a broad spectrum of bacterial and fungal species and harnesses other activities beneficial to humans. This article has become crucial especially at a time when the world is bedevilled with antibiotic drug abuse resulting in antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Alum, however, has found applications in a wide spectrum of human activities such as pharmaceutical, cosmetic, food, textile and synthetic industries. This review presents an update of findings of this inorganic sulphate salt as an antimicrobial agent and miscellaneous applications.

Mortality and microbial diversity of raw, processed and storage of mangrove oysters at ambient temperature were investigated. The mortality rates of raw (shell-stock) oysters were determined during depuration in tap water (TW) and brackish water (BW) microcosms for 14days. Mortalities were observed on the 5th and 11th days and afterwards in TW and BW microcosms respectively. Thus, indicating the beneficial effects of depuration of mangrove oysters in BW than in TW microcosms. The microbial counts of raw, processed and storage of oyster meat samples were determined using standard microbiological methods. Aerobic plate counts (APCs) were 1.36×10 5 and 3.00x10 3 CFU/g for raw and processed oyster meats on day 0 (d0) respectively but increased markedly to 1.55x10 6 CFU/g in the processed meat sample during storage for 24h. Fungi counts were 3.6×10 2 and zero/no growth detected (NGD) CFU/g for raw and process oyster meats on d0 respectively but increased from 0-0.8×10 2 CFU/g in the processed meat samples at storage. Bacteria were more predominant in numbers and diversity than fungi. The most frequently isolated microflora from raw and processed and during the storage of oyster meat samples consists of Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Vibrio, Proteus, Staphylococcus others are Aspergillus, Penicillium and Fusarium. The most dominant genera during storage were Bacillus (20.8%) and Pseudomonas (16.7%); Aspergillus (52.3%) and Penicillium (45.4%). However, nondetectability of E. coli and Acinetobacter species following processing and storage underscores the criticality and importance of adequate processing prior to consumption of mangrove oysters as some of these organisms are not only potentially pathogenic but of public health significance. From this study, it is also advisable that oyster farmers should market their raw produce on/before 5days for the depurated, and 24h for the processed meat samples to avoid serious postharvest economic loses.