Sub-Acute Hepatoxicity of Aqueous Leaf Extract of Eucalyptus camaldulensis in Rats

Sub–acute toxicity study of the aqueous leaf extract of Eucalyptus camaldulensis was carried out on albino rats. Doses of 250mg, 500mg, 750mg and 1000mg per kilogram body weight of the extract were administered orally for 21 days. The activities of Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT), Aspartate Aminotransferase (AST), Alkaline Phosphatase (ALP) and the concentrations of total protein, and unconjugated bilirubin in the serum of the experimental rats were determined. The results obtained showed no significant difference (P>0.05) when compared to the control rats that were not administered the extract in all the parameters determined. The results indicated that, aqueous leaf extract of Eucalyptus camaldulensis may not have any toxicological effect at the administered doses.Keyword: Eucalyptus camaldulensis, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, unconjugated bilirubin

Effect of Moringa oleifera marinade on microbial stability of smoke-dried African Catfish (Clarias gariepinus)

The study examined the antimicrobial effect of Moringa oleifera marinade on smoke-dried catfish stored at ambient temperature (37±20C) for two months. The experimental treatments are the control, 1%, 2% and 3% (w/v) Moringa oleifera Marinade (MOM) and 5% Brine (w/v) solutions. Seventy-five fishes of average weight of 260±8g were gutted, washed and randomly assigned to the treatments. Thereafter, the fishes were soaked in the treatments for 2 hours and later hot smoked for 12hours. After smoking, the fishes were stored in netted boxes and placed on laboratory shelves for two months. Microbial counts were conducted at 7-day interval while biochemical tests were conducted on the 8th week. Seven bacterial species namely; Staphylococcus sp, Bacillus sp, Klebsiella sp, Corynebacterium sp, Pseudomonas sp, Escherichia coli and streptococcus sp and six fungal species namely; Penicillium italicum, Cladosporium sp, Neurospora crassa, Candida sp, Aspergillus niger and Saccharomyces cerevisiae were observed in the study. There was a general increase in microbial load as storage progressed. However, the increment was pronounced in the control and brine treated fish samples. In all levels of MOM and 5% Brine, there was decrease in the bacterial and fungal counts as compared with the control samples. 3% MOM exhibited the highest antibacterial potency while 5% Brine exhibited the highest antifungal potency. Moringa oleifera marinade could be use to protect stored smoke-dried catfish from microbial spoilage thus limiting economic loss and possible heath risk to consumers.Key words: Moringa, marinade, bacteria, fungi, catfish, smoke-drie

Two decades of neuroscience publication trends in Africa.

Neuroscience research in Africa remains sparse. Devising new policies to boost Africa's neuroscience landscape is imperative, but these must be based on accurate data on research outputs which is largely lacking. Such data must reflect the heterogeneity of research environments across the continent's 54 countries. Here, we analyse neuroscience publications affiliated with African institutions between 1996 and 2017. Of 12,326 PubMed indexed publications, 5,219 show clear evidence that the work was performed in Africa and led by African-based researchers - on average ~5 per country and year. From here, we extract information on journals and citations, funding, international coauthorships and techniques used. For reference, we also extract the same metrics from 220 randomly selected publications each from the UK, USA, Australia, Japan and Brazil. Our dataset provides insights into the current state of African neuroscience research in a global context

Awareness of warning signs among suburban Nigerians at high risk for stroke is poor: A cross-sectional study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Although stroke is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in Nigeria, there is no information on awareness of its warning signs. This study was designed to assess awareness of stroke warning signs in Nigerians at increased risk.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A hospital-based cross-sectional study conducted at Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital, in southern Nigeria. Patients with a diagnosis of hypertension, diabetes or both were interviewed for the warning signs of stroke in the outpatient clinic by trained interviewers. The main outcome measure was ability to identify at least one stroke warning sign.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>There were 225 respondents with a mean age of 58.0 ± 11.7 years. Only 39.6% could identify at least one stroke warning sign while the commonest sign identified was sudden unilateral limb weakness (24.4%). On multivariate logistic regression analysis, male sex (β = 0.26, 95% CI = 0.14–0.39, p < 0.001) and 11 or more years of education (β = 0.16, 95% CI = 0.03–0.29, p = 0.02) emerged the independent predictors of ability to identify at least one warning sign.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Awareness of stroke warning signs is poor among Nigerians at increased risk for the disease. Efforts should be made to improve on the level of awareness through aggressive health education.</p

Feature-by-Feature – Evaluating De Novo Sequence Assembly

The whole-genome sequence assembly (WGSA) problem is among one of the most studied problems in computational biology. Despite the availability of a plethora of tools (i.e., assemblers), all claiming to have solved the WGSA problem, little has been done to systematically compare their accuracy and power. Traditional methods rely on standard metrics and read simulation: while on the one hand, metrics like N50 and number of contigs focus only on size without proportionately emphasizing the information about the correctness of the assembly, comparisons performed on simulated dataset, on the other hand, can be highly biased by the non-realistic assumptions in the underlying read generator. Recently the Feature Response Curve (FRC) method was proposed to assess the overall assembly quality and correctness: FRC transparently captures the trade-offs between contigs' quality against their sizes. Nevertheless, the relationship among the different features and their relative importance remains unknown. In particular, FRC cannot account for the correlation among the different features. We analyzed the correlation among different features in order to better describe their relationships and their importance in gauging assembly quality and correctness. In particular, using multivariate techniques like principal and independent component analysis we were able to estimate the “excess-dimensionality” of the feature space. Moreover, principal component analysis allowed us to show how poorly the acclaimed N50 metric describes the assembly quality. Applying independent component analysis we identified a subset of features that better describe the assemblers performances. We demonstrated that by focusing on a reduced set of highly informative features we can use the FRC curve to better describe and compare the performances of different assemblers. Moreover, as a by-product of our analysis, we discovered how often evaluation based on simulated data, obtained with state of the art simulators, lead to not-so-realistic results

In-situ upgrading of Napier grass pyrolysis vapour over microporous and hierarchical mesoporous zeolites

This study presents in-situ upgrading of pyrolysis vapour derived from Napier grass over microporous and mesoporous ZSM-5 catalysts. It evaluates effect of process variables such catalyst–biomass ratio and catalyst type in a vertical fixed bed pyrolysis system at 600 °C, 50 °C/min under 5 L/min nitrogen flow. Increasing catalyst–biomass ratio during the catalytic process with microporous structure reduced production of organic phase bio-oil by approximately 7.0 wt%. Using mesoporous catalyst promoted nearly 4.0 wt% higher organic yield relative to microporous catalyst, which translate to only about 3.0 wt% reduction in organic phase compared to the yield of organic phase from non-catalytic process. GC–MS analysis of bio-oil organic phase revealed maximum degree of deoxygenation of about 36.9% with microporous catalyst compared to the mesoporous catalysts, which had between 39 and 43%. Mesoporous catalysts promoted production olefins and alkanes, normal phenol, monoaromatic hydrocarbons while microporous catalyst favoured the production of alkenes and polyaromatic hydrocarbons. There was no significant increase in the production of normal phenols over microporous catalyst due to its inability to transform the methoxyphenols and methoxy aromatics. This study demonstrated that upgrading of Napier grass pyrolysis vapour over mesoporous ZSM-5 produced bio-oil with improved physicochemical properties

Effect of a mixed reality-based intervention on arm, hand, and finger function on chronic stroke

[EN] Background: Virtual and mixed reality systems have been suggested to promote motor recovery after stroke. Basing on the existing evidence on motor learning, we have developed a portable and low-cost mixed reality tabletop system that transforms a conventional table in a virtual environment for upper limb rehabilitation. The system allows intensive and customized training of a wide range of arm, hand, and finger movements and enables interaction with tangible objects, while providing audiovisual feedback of the participants' performance in gamified tasks. This study evaluates the clinical effectiveness and the acceptance of an experimental intervention with the system in chronic stroke survivors. Methods: Thirty individuals with stroke were included in a reversal (A-B-A) study. Phase A consisted of 30 sessions of conventional physical therapy. Phase B consisted of 30 training sessions with the experimental system. Both interventions involved flexion and extension of the elbow, wrist, and fingers, and grasping of different objects. Sessions were 45-min long and were administered three to five days a week. The body structures (Modified Ashworth Scale), functions (Motricity Index, Fugl-Meyer Assessment Scale), activities (Manual Function Test, Wolf Motor Function Test, Box and Blocks Test, Nine Hole Peg Test), and participation (Motor Activity Log) were assessed before and after each phase. Acceptance of the system was also assessed after phase B (System Usability Scale, Intrinsic Motivation Inventory). Results: Significant improvement was detected after the intervention with the system in the activity, both in arm function measured by the Wolf Motor Function Test (p < 0.01) and finger dexterity measured by the Box and Blocks Test (p < 0.01) and the Nine Hole Peg Test (p < 0.01); and participation (p < 0.01), which was maintained to the end of the study. The experimental system was reported as highly usable, enjoyable, and motivating. Conclusions: Our results support the clinical effectiveness of mixed reality interventions that satisfy the motor learning principles for upper limb rehabilitation in chronic stroke survivors. This characteristic, together with the low cost of the system, its portability, and its acceptance could promote the integration of these systems in the clinical practice as an alternative to more expensive systems, such as robotic instruments.The authors wish to thank the staff and patients of the Servicio de Neurorrehabilitación y Daño Cerebral de los Hospitales NISA for their involvement in the study. The authors also wish to thank the staff of LabHuman for their support in this project, especially Francisco Toledo and José Roda for their assistance. 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Stoichiometry of Base Excision Repair Proteins Correlates with Increased Somatic CAG Instability in Striatum over Cerebellum in Huntington's Disease Transgenic Mice

Huntington's disease (HD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder caused by expansion of an unstable CAG repeat in the coding sequence of the Huntingtin (HTT) gene. Instability affects both germline and somatic cells. Somatic instability increases with age and is tissue-specific. In particular, the CAG repeat sequence in the striatum, the brain region that preferentially degenerates in HD, is highly unstable, whereas it is rather stable in the disease-spared cerebellum. The mechanisms underlying the age-dependence and tissue-specificity of somatic CAG instability remain obscure. Recent studies have suggested that DNA oxidation and OGG1, a glycosylase involved in the repair of 8-oxoguanine lesions, contribute to this process. We show that in HD mice oxidative DNA damage abnormally accumulates at CAG repeats in a length-dependent, but age- and tissue-independent manner, indicating that oxidative DNA damage alone is not sufficient to trigger somatic instability. Protein levels and activities of major base excision repair (BER) enzymes were compared between striatum and cerebellum of HD mice. Strikingly, 5′-flap endonuclease activity was much lower in the striatum than in the cerebellum of HD mice. Accordingly, Flap Endonuclease-1 (FEN1), the main enzyme responsible for 5′-flap endonuclease activity, and the BER cofactor HMGB1, both of which participate in long-patch BER (LP–BER), were also significantly lower in the striatum compared to the cerebellum. Finally, chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments revealed that POLβ was specifically enriched at CAG expansions in the striatum, but not in the cerebellum of HD mice. These in vivo data fit a model in which POLβ strand displacement activity during LP–BER promotes the formation of stable 5′-flap structures at CAG repeats representing pre-expanded intermediate structures, which are not efficiently removed when FEN1 activity is constitutively low. We propose that the stoichiometry of BER enzymes is one critical factor underlying the tissue selectivity of somatic CAG expansion

Low omega-6 vs. low omega-6 plus high omega-3 dietary intervention for Chronic Daily Headache: Protocol for a randomized clinical trial

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Targeted analgesic dietary interventions are a promising strategy for alleviating pain and improving quality of life in patients with persistent pain syndromes, such as chronic daily headache (CDH). High intakes of the omega-6 (n-6) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), linoleic acid (LA) and arachidonic acid (AA) may promote physical pain by increasing the abundance, and subsequent metabolism, of LA and AA in immune and nervous system tissues. Here we describe methodology for an ongoing randomized clinical trial comparing the metabolic and clinical effects of a low n-6, average n-3 PUFA diet, to the effects of a low n-6 plus high n-3 PUFA diet, in patients with CDH. Our primary aim is to determine if: A) both diets reduce n-6 PUFAs in plasma and erythrocyte lipid pools, compared to baseline; and B) the low n-6 plus high n-3 diet produces a greater decline in n-6 PUFAs, compared to the low n-6 diet alone. Secondary clinical outcomes include headache-specific quality-of-life, and headache frequency and intensity.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Adults meeting the International Classification of Headache Disorders criteria for CDH are included. After a 6-week baseline phase, participants are randomized to a low n-6 diet, or a low n-6 plus high n-3 diet, for 12 weeks. Foods meeting nutrient intake targets are provided for 2 meals and 2 snacks per day. A research dietitian provides intensive dietary counseling at 2-week intervals. Web-based intervention materials complement dietitian advice. Blood and clinical outcome data are collected every 4 weeks.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Subject recruitment and retention has been excellent; 35 of 40 randomized participants completed the 12-week intervention. Preliminary blinded analysis of composite data from the first 20 participants found significant reductions in erythrocyte n-6 LA, AA and %n-6 in HUFA, and increases in n-3 EPA, DHA and the omega-3 index, indicating adherence.</p> <p>Trial Registration</p> <p>ClinicalTrials.gov <a href="http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/(NCT01157208)">(NCT01157208)</a></p