Effect of Thermal Treatment on Chemical, Biological and Mechanical Properties of African Whitewood (Triplochiton scleroxylon K. SCHUM)

The thermal modification of wood is a potential alternative method for improving wood properties. This paper evaluates the effect of thermal treatment on the chemical, biological and mechanical properties of African Whitewood (Triplochiton scleroxylon K. Schum) by subjecting the wood to three temperature (200, 170, 140 ℃) at three different time (3, 6, 12 h). Fourier Transformed infrared (FT-IR) spectrometer was used to ascertain the effect of heat treatment on the chemical constituent of the wood while mechanical properties were determined by Modulus of Elasticity (MOE) and Modulus of Rupture (MOR). Durability of heat-treated wood against subterranean termites using field test was also investigated.  FTIR results provided information on the chemical constituents after heat treatment revealing the cellulose and hemicelluloses of Triplochiton scleroxylon wood samples. The decreasing intensity of hydroxyl groups stretching at 3341 cm-1 indicated that heat-treated samples have lost some of their hydroxyl groups. The results showed that the MOR of heated-treated wood at 200 ℃ was significantly higher than the untreated samples. There was also a 26% increase in the MOE of the 170 ℃ heat-treated wood relative to untreated samples. Wood samples thermally treated at 170 ℃ and 200 ℃ as well as untreated wood samples were strongly degraded in term of weight loss (WL) by termite though the degree of degradation varied based on temperature and time in which the wood was modified. However, heat-treated wood at 140 ℃ gave the lowest WL of 20.41% compared to other treated and untreated wood samples. Therefore, strength properties and termites’ resistance of African whitewood also known as Obeche wood in Nigeria could be improved when thermally modified at 170 ℃ and 140 ℃ respectively

Bioinformatics, Computational Informatics, and Modeling Approaches to the Design of mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine Candidates.

This article is devoted to applying bioinformatics and immunoinformatics approaches for the development of a multi-epitope mRNA vaccine against the spike glycoproteins of circulating SARS-CoV-2 variants in selected African countries. The study’s relevance is dictated by the fact that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) began its global threat at the end of 2019 and since then has had a devastating impact on the whole world. Measures to reduce threats from the pandemic include social restrictions, restrictions on international travel, and vaccine development. In most cases, vaccine development depends on the spike glycoprotein, which serves as a medium for its entry into host cells. Although several variants of SARS-CoV-2 have emerged from mutations crossing continental boundaries, about 6000 delta variants have been reported along the coast of more than 20 countries in Africa, with South Africa accounting for the highest percentage. This also applies to the omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in South Africa. The authors suggest that bioinformatics and immunoinformatics approaches be used to develop a multi-epitope mRNA vaccine against the spike glycoproteins of circulating SARS-CoV-2 variants in selected African countries. Various immunoinformatics tools have been used to predict T- and B-lymphocyte epitopes. The epitopes were further subjected to multiple evaluations to select epitopes that could elicit a sustained immunological response. The candidate vaccine consisted of seven epitopes, a highly immunogenic adjuvant, an MHC I-targeting domain (MITD), a signal peptide, and linkers. The molecular weight (MW) was predicted to be 223.1 kDa, well above the acceptable threshold of 110 kDa on an excellent vaccine candidate. In addition, the results showed that the candidate vaccine was antigenic, non-allergenic, non-toxic, thermostable, and hydrophilic. The vaccine candidate has good population coverage, with the highest range in East Africa (80.44%) followed by South Africa (77.23%). West Africa and North Africa have 76.65% and 76.13%, respectively, while Central Africa (75.64%) has minimal coverage. Among seven epitopes, no mutations were observed in 100 randomly selected SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoproteins in the study area. Evaluation of the secondary structure of the vaccine constructs revealed a stabilized structure showing 36.44% alpha-helices, 20.45% drawn filaments, and 33.38% random helices. Molecular docking of the TLR4 vaccine showed that the simulated vaccine has a high binding affinity for TLR-4, reflecting its ability to stimulate the innate and adaptive immune response

Diversity and Abundance of Insects Species in Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria

Insects are unique in their own way and contributes all types of services to the ecosystem. In order to develop effective global insectsrsquo conservation strategies there is the need to target species at local or regional scales. The current study was therefore designed for the very first time to document the diversity and abundance of insects in Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria. Five sites reflecting different levels of disturbances and different land use covers were selected within Makurdi metropolis: Hudco Quarters North Bank (HQN), Benue State University Zoological Garden (BZG), Gyado Villa (GYV), High Level (HLV) and Akpehe (APH). Insects were collected from the months of October to November 2017. Three methods of insect collection were used Pitfall method, Sweep net method and Hand Picking. Diversity indices were measured at each site using Simpsonrsquos, Shannon, Menhinickrsquos and Margalefrsquos indices, while similarity between sites and trapping methods was assessed using Sorensenrsquos similarity index. There was no significant difference in the diversity of insect species between sites (F (4, 50) =0.000375, Pgt0.05), However, GYV had the highest diversity index and Species Richness (d) but lowest dominance Index, while, APH had lowest species richness and highest dominance. When the indices were converted to Shannon Effective number of species (ENS) to show the true diversity, GYV had the highest value for ENS while BZG had a lowest value. This is an indication of dominance because where there is a high degree of dominance the ENS value will be less than the species richness. The Order Odonata was the most dominant and it occurred at BZG than all the other sites. Sorensenrsquos similarity index between sites was from 89% to 100%, an indication that all insects can occur at all sites. There was a significant difference between the trapping methods (F (2, 17) = 6.7965, Plt0.05) with the sweep net having the highest average catch. However the similarity between trapping methods was approximately 67% between sweep net and pitfall while it was 53% between hand collection and sweep netting. This difference in the trapping method possibly accounted for the high numbers of winged insects in the collection. The ENS of the area was 7, this is low, but also an indication that more effort should be channeled into insect monitoring and conservation

Correction: Oluwagbemi et al. Bioinformatics, Computational Informatics, and Modeling Approaches to the Design of mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine Candidates. <i>Computation</i> 2022, <i>10</i>, 117

The following information was missing in the original manuscript [...

Correction: Oluwagbemi et al. Bioinformatics, Computational Informatics, and Modeling Approaches to the Design of mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine Candidates. Computation 2022, 10, 117

The following information was missing in the original manuscript [...