This has been in the following areas:
(a) SEED GERMINATION, SEEDLING DEVELOPMENT AND PLANT YIELDS: using amino acids, calcium chloride, ascorbic acid and indole-3-butyric acid, pre-sowing hardening treatments were found to accelerate seed germination, photosynthetic and respiratory rates, vegetative growth, cholorophll content, enzyme activities and yields of sorghum bicolor and Pennisetum americanum (papers 5.17 and 27). Similarly, spraying of indole-3-acetic acid, gibberellic acid and coconut milk (singly or in combinations) on Amaranthus, red pepper, garden egg, sorrel and okra had tremendous effects on vegetative growth, cholorophyll content, relative water content, vitamin content and yields (papers 16, 21, 29). In likewise manner, various nitrogen sources, inorganic fertilizers and defoliation greatly enhanced seedling growth and cation content of some tropical trees and weed (papers 19, 26 and 42). The significance of these findings is the enhancement of vegetative growth and yields of crop plants, vegetables and weed using hardening and hormonal treatments as well as organic and inorganic nitrogen sources.
(b) PROXIMATE ANALYSES OF NIGERIAN SEEDS AND MUSHROOMS – Seeds of Crotalaria naragutensis and Prosopis africana were established to be rich sources of protein, amino acids and total itrogen (papers 1 and 22). Nigerian mushrooms, namely Chrolorophyllum molybditis, Pleurotus tuber-regium, Tricholoma lobayensis, Cortnarius melliolens, Termitomyces robustus, Lentinus subnudus and Volvariella esculenta were established to be rich in protein, Vitamin C and mineral elements with preponderance of these nutrients in the mature stage (papers 2, 4, 6 and 10). These findings may help in lowering protein deficiency currently facing man and animals in Nigeria. Paper 45 studied L. subnudus for its contents of antinutrients and phytochemicals.
(c) TOXICOLOGICAL SCREENING OF NIGERIAN LEGUMES AND MUSHROOMS: Mushrooms and legumes are currently being used as food items, delicacies and novelty medicines, but the edibility of some of them is in doubt. The toxicologically analysed seven mushrooms had no amatoxins and phalotoxins and were non-lethal to experimental rats (papers 18 & 43). Similarly, the toxicologically screened legumes were observed to be non-lethal (paper 20). The non-toxic mushrooms and legumes are therefore established as edible and could as such be utilized as protein sources for human and animals. This might reduce the pressure on use of groundnut, cowpea, soyabean, fish, blood meal, egg, meat, etc. as protein sources.
(d) SECONDARY METABOLITES IN NIGERIAN MUSHROOMS AND UTILIZATION OF LOCAL CARBOHYDRATES FOR CULTURING OF FUNGI – These studies revealed the presence of alkaloids, saponins, flavonoids, tannins and anthraquinones in Nigeria mushrooms and the possible utilization of local carbohydrates (powdered grains or rice, sorghum, maize and millet) as substitutes to agar-agar and malt extract for the culturing of fungi (papers 9, 24 and 46). The presence of secondary metabolites in Nigerian mushrooms confirms their historical usage in ethno-medicine.
(e) INTRACELLULAR AND EXTRA-CELLULAR ENZYME ACTIVITIES OF NIGERIAN MUSHROOMS – Intracellular amylases, proteinase, lipase, catalase, glucose-6-phosphatase and polyphenoloxidase activities of P. tuber regium, T. lobayensis, T. robustus, L. subnudus, C. molybditis and C. melliolens increases significantly during sporophore development with greatest activities in the mature fruitbody stage (papers 3, 7 and 15). Intracellular enzyme activities in L. subnudus were found to be greater than extracellular enzyme activities (paper 30).
(f) NUTRITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR MYCELIA AND FRUITBODIES GROWTH – Soaking of substrate raw materials in 5% sugars, 0.05% vitamins, 50ppm organic acids, 0.001% phytohormones, 10% rice bran or sorghum resulted in optimum mycelial growth for L. subnudus and Pleurotus squarrosulus while fructose and peptone were the best utilizable carbon and nitrogen sources (papers 8, 13, 14 and 31). Similar results were observed with respect to Primordia formation and number of fruitbodies produced (papers 8 and 13). Agar media of local maize and sorghum at 90 and 100g/L supported equal mycelia growth as the imported malt extract agar (paper 14).
(g) SPAWN PRODUCTION – Spawns are mushroom seeds used in planting mushrooms and are of two types, grain mother and planting spawns, mixtures of sorghum grain (92%) + CaSO4 (8%) and rice straw (86%) + rice bran (10%) + CaSO4 (4%) were observed to produce the best grain mother and planting spawns for P. sajor-caju and L. subnudus (papers 23 and 31). For spawn production of Agaricus bisporus and Pleurotus ostreatus, barley and wheat straws were better than rice straw (paper 40).
(h) MUSHROOM CULTIVATION – Various cultivation methods for Pleurotus sajor-caju and Lentinus subnudus were established in papers 12, 23 and 28. For both mushrooms, the ideal cultivation substrates are unfermented compost of rice straws (86%) + rice bran (10%) + CaSO4 (4%) with biological efficiency of 40-50% being achieved and the cultivation cycle took about 60 days. Logs of Spondias mombin L. could also be utilized for L. subnudu’s frucitification. The significance of these findings is the possible cultivation of Nigerian mushrooms in homes, as mushrooms seem to be disappearing from their natural habitats as a result of agricultural activities and urbanization. Paper 38 shows that L.subnudus could be cultivated on wood logs with chemically treated logs yielding more fruit bodies.
(i) DORMANCY STUDIES – Papers 33 and 34, in which various promoters and inhibitors of germination in seeds of Parkia biglobosa were identified.
(j) PHYSIOLOGY OF SUBSTRATE COLONIZED BY MUSHROOM – Paper 35, which shows that some substrate nutrient decline, while some increase in quantities with sporocarp maturity.
(k) EFFECT OF COMPOSTING ON FRUCTIFICATION OF MUSHROOM – Paper 36 illustrates that composting has tremendous effect on mushroom fructification by causing significant increases in yield.
(l) Paper 44 gave an account of the spoilage fungi of sweet potato while paper 45 is an account of the extension activities of Biol. Sci. Dept.
REVIEW ESSAYS – Papers 37, 39 and 41 are review papers that summarise different ways by which L. subnudus could be cultivated and their economic/toxigenic importance.
