This research produced wine from unripe plantain fruits using spontaneous fermentation method. The period of production was five days. The purpose of this study was to isolate and identify microorganisms associated with unripe plantain fruits, determine the physicochemical parameters of the fermenting medium. Microbial count, foaming density, alcohol content, enzymes assay, sensory analysis, physicochemical properties, mineral content, antioxidants properties, and antinutrient content of the sample were investigated every 24 h for 5 days. A total of seven bacteria and four fungi consisting of yeasts and moulds were isolated during the study. The microbial loads of bacteria and fungi of the unfermented plantain fruits were 8.0 × 106 ± 0.01 cfu/mL and 14.2 × 104 ± 0.01 sfu/mL respectively. The temperature (ºC), pH and titratable acidity (%) ranged from 25.55-32.50, 4.51-5.50 and 0.99-3.50 respectively. The sample was observed to be colourless all through the fermentation periods. Turbidity of the samples increased during fermentation from 43.50 to 111.00. The data obtained from this work has shown the importance of unripe plantain micro-flora in the production of “Agadagidi”. It is also concluded that consortium of microorganisms inherent within the plantain fruits are involved in plantain fruits fermentation. This information can contribute to a better understanding of the “Agadagidi” production process for a consistent quality beverage.

This study investigated effects of fermentation and extrusion on the in vitro protein andstarch digestibility of unripe plantain and pigeon pea blends. The blended samples were set-up in three arrangements (A=100g unripe plantain; B= 70g unripe plantain: 30g pigeon pea; C= 50g unripe plantain: 50g pigeon pea) and divided into four batches (i.e. first batch = preconditioned and fermented; second batch = extruded; third batch = fermented and extruded; and fourth batch = unfermented/unextruded). Semi-solid state method of fermentation was deployed to ferment blended samples for 96 hours. The pH, temperature and total titratable acidity (TTA) of these samples were evaluated. Fifteen microorganisms comprising 9 bacteria, 2 yeasts and 4 molds were isolated and identified as; Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus cereus, Micrococcus luteus, Staphylococcus aureus, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus fermentum, Leuconostocmesenteroides, Lactobacillus mali, Streptococcus lactis, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Candida utilis, Aspergillusniger, Aspergillusfumigatus, Aspergilluscandidus, and Mucorhiemalis. There were notable variation in the values of pH and total titratable acidity (TTA) during fermentation. The processes of fermentation and extrusion significantly amplified the in vitro starch digestibility of the flour blends with fermented extruded samples (51.03±0.02 to 55.19±0.02mg/ml) unlike theraw flour blends (36.77±0.20 to 41.26±0.003mg/ml).The in vitro protein digestibility significantly increased with the extruded fermented samples (12.73±0.17 to 15.45±0.06mg/ml) and lowest forraw flour blends (4.57±0.29 to 5.98±0.37mg/ml). Hence, it can be concluded based from the available information from this study that fermentation and extrusion increase the in vitro starch digestibility and protein digestibility of unripe plantain and pigeon pea blends.

Degradation of crude oil by bacteria isolated from three plantations soil at Idanre, Nigeria were comparatively investigated. Soil samples collected by hand trowel at 5cm rhizosphere of Cocoa, Orange, and Teak plantations from Idanre, Ondo State. The crude oil – forcados blend was obtained from Warri, Delta State, Nigeria. Gram negative bacteria were isolated from rhizosphere soil sample using standard microbiological methods. Preparation of Biomass was done by centrifuging nutrient broth repeatedly to wash cells. Harvested cells were obtained for the degradation of crude oil. Harvested cells were inoculated with crude oil and then incubated in a shaker. Degradation of crude oil was monitored by using spectrophotometer to read the OD at 540 nm.  The bacteria isolated from rhizosphere of cocoa include: Citrobacter freundii, Yersinia pestis, Edwardsiella tarda,. Serratia marcescens. Rhizosphere of orange; Providencia stuatii while Enterobacter agglumerans, Moellerella wisconsis were isolated from rhizosphere of teak. The most effective hydrocarbon utilizing bacteria was Enterobacter agglumerans, which resulted in increase in population densities and reduction in hydrocarbon contents in the crude oil. Findings from this study shows the effectiveness of degrading hydrocarbon in liquid medium and further confirmed the potency of bacterial cells to degrade crude oil.

This research investigated effects of fermentation and extrusion on unripe plantain and pigeon pea blends. The samples were blended and prepared in three combinations (A=100g unripe plantain; B= 70g unripe plantain: 30g pigeon pea; C= 50g unripe plantain: 50g pigeon pea) and sectioned into four group (i.e. group 1 = preconditioned and fermented; group 2 = extruded; group three = fermented and extruded; and group 4 = unfermented/unextruded). Semi-solid state fermentation method was employed to ferment the blended samples for 96 hours. The physicochemical parameters (i.e pH, temperature and total titratable acidity) of these fermented samples were evaluated. The total microbial counts include; 9 bacteria, 2 yeasts and 4 molds were isolated and identified as; Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus cereus, Micrococcus luteus, Staphylococcus aureus, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus fermentum, Leuconostoc mesenteroides, Lactobacillus mali, Streptococcus lactis, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Candida utilis, Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus fumigatus, Aspergillus candidus, and Mucor hiemalis. There were significant variations in the values of pH and total titratable acidity (TTA) during fermentation. This was also same for the proximate contents of the fermented and extruded flour blends when contrasted with the raw flour blends. The fermented unextruded group 1 (11.73±0.01%) has the highest moisture contents and least in the raw sample B (6.34±0.00%). The raw flour blends protein content increased from 2.57±0.03 to 10.17±0.00% and from 2.58±0.02 to 16.27±0.01% in the fermented extruded blends. The carbohydrate content in the raw flour blends was highest (67.97±0.02 to 74.32±0.00%) and least in fermented unextruded samples (38.28±0.01 to 62.72±0.01%). The fat content was highest in the fermented unextruded blends (2.52±0.01 to 6.33±0.00%) and least in raw blends (1.33±0.02 to 2.01±0.02%). The sensory evaluation of the samples showed a good preference for fermented-extruded samples. Findings from this research have established that fermented and extruded unripe plantain and pigeon pea blend enhanced nutritional value of food.