https://journalbji.com/index.php/BJI <p><strong>Biotechnology Journal International (ISSN: 2456-7051)</strong> publishes original research papers, review articles and short communications on all areas of Biotechnology including cell biology, genetics, microbiology, immunology, molecular biology, biochemistry, embryology, immunogenetics, cell and tissue culture, molecular ecology, genetic engineering and biological engineering, bioremediation and biodegradation, bioinformatics, biotechnology regulations, pharmacogenomics, gene therapy, plant, animal, microbial and environmental biotechnology. By not excluding papers based on novelty, this journal facilitates the research and wishes to publish papers as long as they are technically correct and scientifically motivated. The journal also encourages the submission of useful reports of negative results. This is a quality controlled, OPEN peer-reviewed, open-access INTERNATIONAL journal.</p> SCIENCEDOMAIN international en-US Biotechnology Journal International 2456-7051 https://journalbji.com/index.php/BJI/article/view/667 <p>Concerns about the effect of activities that need the use of alternative fuels, as well as a growth in demand for clean energy, have made biofuels research more well-known, and so began the search for oilseed plants that can be used to make biodiesel. Present research was carried out the aloe vera oil is used as a biodiesel in diesel engine. Because aloe vera oil having higher calorific value compare to other sources. Potassium hydroxide catalyst was used for transesterification process, which has lesser cost and more availability. And also, in this work conducted diesel engine experiments using four different biodiesel blends (B20, B40, B60, B100) and diesel fuel. Additionally, to reduce the emission nano particles (TiO₂) was blended with optimal biodiesel blend (B20). The performance and emission characteristics were conducted with different biodiesel blends. In this blends, B20+ TiO₂blend gives good performance and reduction in emissions compared to other biodiesel blends.</p> R. Jaya Madhuri J. Venkatesu Naik Vandana Roa Copyright (c) 2023 Madhuri et al.; This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. 2023-01-30 2023-01-30 27 1 1 7 10.9734/bji/2023/v27i1667 https://journalbji.com/index.php/BJI/article/view/668 <p>The greatest challenge of man today is to deal with metal pollution problems because unlike organic compounds which are decomposed naturally, heavy metals tend to persist on the aquatic environment, hence get accumulated at different sensitive sites. Given the growth in environmental awareness, emphasis is given on this exploration of environment friendly ways for decontamination procedures. Attention has been drawn to bioremediation which is a good alternative to conventional remediation technologies. The preference for it is based on the fact that it is of low cost, and generates non-toxic by products. Microorganisms have acquired a variety of mechanisms to adapt themselves to the toxicity of heavy metals. The results obtained from the bioremediation of cadmium, chromium and copper in both the water samples and sediment samples using <em>Alternaria sp</em>, <em>Aspergillus sp</em> and <em>Fusarum sp</em>, show that there is a significant decrease in the quantities of cadmium, chromium and copper in both the water samples and sediment samples upon treatments with the selected microorganisms. The result of the bioremediation of chromium shows a significant decrease in the amount of chromium in the sample from the mean value of 0.423 for pre-remediation treatment to 0.08 for post remediation treatment. There was also a reasonable decrease in the amount of copper metal in the water sample from 0.193 to 0.092. The post bioremediation of cadmium in sediment sample shows a significant decrease in the amount of cadmium from 0.2430 to 0.1880, tending towards the value of the control. The bioremediation of the heavy metals significantly reduced the amount of the heavy metals present in the polluted environment. Hence, it can be said that under suitable environmental and biochemical conditions, microorganisms can be used in the remediation of the heavy metals present in a heavy metal polluted environment.</p> Okonkwo Vincent Onyeka Chinedu Nwuke Copyright (c) 2023 Onyeka and Nwuke; This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. 2023-01-30 2023-01-30 27 1 8 24 10.9734/bji/2023/v27i1668 https://journalbji.com/index.php/BJI/article/view/670 <p>Effects of aqueous seed extracts of <em>Sphenostylis stenocarpa </em>on the reproductive indices of male rats were investigated. A total of 104 adult rats were used for the experiment, and were divided into 4 groups (group A – D) and replicated in triplicate. Group A served as the normal control, while groups B, C and D received three graded doses (800mg/kg, 1200mg/kg and 1600mg/kg) of the extracts, respectively, by oral intubation. The gonad characteristics, sperm parameters and hormonal analyses of the male rats were determined using standard procedures. These were ascertained prior to the commencement of treatment, and on weekly basis. Data were analyzed statistically using <em>SPSS</em> and <em>R</em> software at 95% confidence interval. An overall dose and time dependent showed significant differences in the mean weekly gonad characteristics of the male rats in the treatment groups when compared with the control. There was a significant reduction (<em>p</em> &lt; 0.05) in the body weights of the male rats, but a significant increase (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05) in the testes weights, gonad somatic index, sperm count and sperm motility in the rats. The gonadal hormone testosterone, responded to the plant extracts, while follicle-stimulating and luteinizing hormones were largely undetected. There were significant increases in the testosterone levels of all the treated rats. Conclusively, aqueous seed extracts of <em>Sphenostylis stenocarpa</em> seems to possess ability to enhance reproductive health in male rats.</p> E. F. Ogbuke D. E. Oboho N. D. Ekpo E. O. Mbong A. U. Nelson I. J. Udo N. I. Etukudo V. C. Ejere Copyright (c) 2023 Ogbuke et al.; This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. 2023-03-10 2023-03-10 27 1 25 34 10.9734/bji/2023/v27i1670