Browsing by Author "Laker, Fortunate"

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    Aflatoxins in Uganda: An Encyclopedic Review of the Etiology, Epidemiology, Detection, Quantification, Exposure Assessment, Reduction, and Control
    (International Journal of Microbiology, 2020) Omara, Timothy; Nassazi, Winfred; Omute, Tom; Awath, Aburu; Laker, Fortunate; Kalukusu, Raymond; Musau, Bashir; Nakabuye, Brenda Victoria; Kagoya, Sarah; Otim, George; Adupa, Eddie
    Uganda is an agrarian country where farming employs more than 60% of the population. Aflatoxins remain a scourge in the country, unprecedentedly reducing the nutritional and economic value of agricultural foods. *is review was sought to synthetize the country’s major findings in relation to the mycotoxins’ etiology, epidemiology, detection, quantification, exposure assessment, control, and reduction in different matrices. Electronic results indicate that aflatoxins in Uganda are produced by Aspergillus flavus and A. parasiticus and have been reported in maize, sorghum, sesame, beans, sunflower, millet, peanuts, and cassava. *e causes and proliferation of aflatoxigenic contamination of Ugandan foods have been largely due to poor pre-, peri-, and postharvest activities, poor government legislation, lack of awareness, and low levels of education among farmers, entrepreneurs, and consumers on this plague. Little diet diversity has exacerbated the risk of exposure to aflatoxins in Uganda because most of the staple foods are aflatoxin-prone. On the detection and control, these are still marginal, though some devoted scholars have devised and validated a sensitive portable device for on-site aflatoxin detection in maize and shown that starter cultures used for making some cereal-based beverages have the potential to bind aflatoxins. More efforts should be geared towards awareness creation and vaccination against hepatitis B and hepatitis A to reduce the risk of development of liver cancer among the populace.
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    Utilization of Solid Waste as a Substrate for Production of Oil from Oleaginous Microorganisms
    (Journal of Lipids, 2018) Laker, Fortunate; Agaba, Arnold; Akatukunda, Andrew; Gazet, Robert; Barasa, Joshua; Nanyonga, Sarah; Wendiro, Deborah; Wacoo, Alex Paul
    The overwhelming demand of oil and fats to meet the ever increasing needs for biofuel, cosmetics production, and other industrial purposes has enhanced a number of innovations in this industry. One such innovation is the use of microorganisms as alternative sources of oil and fats. Organic solid waste that is causing a big challenge of disposal worldwide is biodegradable and can be utilized as substrate for alternative oil production.The study evaluated the potential of isolated yeast-like colonies to grow and accumulate oil by using organic solid waste as substrate. Of the 25 yeast-like colonies isolated fromthe soil samples collected fromthree different suburbs in Kampala district, Uganda, 20 were screened positive for accumulation of lipid but only 2 were oleaginous. The NHC isolate with the best oil accumulation potential of 48.8% was used in the central composite design (CCD) experiments. The CCD experimental results revealed a maximum oil yield of 61.5% from 1.25 g/L cell biomass at 10 g/L of solid waste and temperature of 25∘C. The study revealed that organic solid waste could be used as a substrate for microbial oil production.