Quality of Life and Self-Reported Common Mental Disorders: An Analysis of Patterns and Relationship in Ibadan Metropolis, Nigeria

Quality of life (QoL) is a major measure of health and wellbeing. Studies that have examined the quality of life of urban residents from a geographical view in developing countries are still emerging. This present study examines the relationship between urban residents’ quality of life and its relationship with self-reported common mental disorders. The cross-sectional survey approach which entails data collection from 1200 respondents in Ibadan city, Nigeria. WHO-5 and SRQ-20 were adapted to obtain information on quality of life and self-reported common mental disorders respectively. Descriptive and inferential statistics were employed to establish associations and analysis were carried out at 0.05 significance- level. The spatial pattern of quality of life was found to be random although there are pockets of poor quality of life. Quality of life was found to be negatively related to self-reported common mental disorders (R = -0.396). The urban ecological conditions of the study area indicate poor quality of life and this may be responsible for the increasing risk of common mental disorder in the city. The study concludes that common mental disorders exist in the urban settings and its occurrence is closely related to poor quality of life

Retracted: Comparing Throughfall and Litterfall Nutrient Fluxes in a Rubber (Hevea brasiliensis willd. muell-arg) Plantation Agro-ecosystem at Ikenne, South-west Nigeria

This study compares nutrient fluxes (throughfall and litterfall) in a rubber (Hevea brasiliensis Willd. Muell-Arg) plantation agro-ecosystem at Ikenne, SW Nigeria. Throughfall samples were collected bi-weekly under the rubber canopies (40-, 15-, and 5-year-old) using throughfall funnel collectors with 10 replicates. Litterfall was collected on a monthly basis in the three rubber stands using twenty-four 0.25 m2 litter traps (eight replicates in each of the three rubber stands) positioned randomly to estimate total annual litter production (dry biomass) and its main fractions. Throughfall and litterfall samples were analyzed for total nitrogen, sodium, phosphorus, calcium, potassium and magnesium. The annual means of throughfall in the different stands were compared by solution type using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), followed by a post-hoc separation of means by the Scheffe-test (p < 0.05). The litterfall data were analyzed using one-way analysis of variance based on the representative of 12 months. The results revealed a clear pattern of increased levels of base cations and fluxes of throughfall compared to those occurring in precipitation. Fluxes of Ca2+ in throughfall are typically 1.5-2 times greater than those occurring in rainfall. Among the rubber stands, fluxes of K+ are also greater in throughfall, consistent with previous studies. The enrichment of elements in throughfall has been ascribed to the dissolution and washout of atmospheric materials deposited on the canopy. Comparison of total annual litterfall nutrient budgets show that the 15-year-old rubber stand was cycling more Mg2+, N, Na+, K+ , P, and Ca2+ in litterfall than the 40- and 5-year-old rubber stands

Radiation interception and its efficiency for dry matter production in three crop species in the transitional humid zone of Nigeria

This study was conducted in two years at the experimental fields of the International Institute of Tropical agriculture, Ibadan (7°30$'$ N, 3°54$'$ E) situated in the humid zone of Nigeria. The objective was to determine the biological productivity of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.), groundnut (Aranchis hypogea L.) and maize (Zea mays L.) in a transitional humid forest zone of Nigeria. Crop productivity was determined by calculating the Radiation Use Efficiency (RUE) from the slope of the relationship between cumulative dry matter and Intercepted Photosynthetic Active Radiation (IPAR). Linear relationships were observed between cumulative total dry weight and cumulative Photosynthetic Active Radiation (PAR) in all the crops. The mean radiation use efficiencies (RUE) obtained were 3.83 g$\cdot$MJ$^{-1}$ for maize, 2.37 g$\cdot$MJ$^{-1}$ for groundnut and 2.95 g$\cdot$MJ$^{-1}$ for cowpea. The maize crop was a better converter of intercepted PAR to dry matter than groundnut and cowpea.L'interception du rayonnement et son efficacité pour la production de matière sèche chez trois espèces culturales dans la zone humide de transition au Nigeria. Cette étude a été menée, deux années durant, dans les champs expérimentaux de l'Institut International d'Agriculture Tropicale d'Ibadan (7°30$'$ N, 3°54$'$ E) dans la zone humide du Nigéria. L'objectif était de déterminer la productivité biologique du niébé, de l'arachide et du maïs dans une zone de transition de la forêt humide du Nigéria. La productivité des cultures a été déterminée en calculant l'efficacité d'utilisation du rayonnement (EUR) à partir de la pente de la relation entre la matière sèche cumulative et le rayonnement photosynthétique actif intercepté (RPAI). Des relations linéaires ont été observées entre le poids total cumulatif de matière sèche et le rayonnement photosynthétique actif cumulatif chez toutes les cultures. Les moyennes d'efficacité d'utilisation du rayonnement (EUR) obtenues étaient de 3.83 g$\cdot$MJ$^{-1}$ pour le maïs, 2.37 g$\cdot$MJ$^{-1}$ pour l'arachide et 2.95 g$\cdot$MJ$^{-1}$ pour le niébé. Le maïs a été un meilleur convertisseur du rayonnement photosynthétique actif intercepté en matière sèche par rapport à l'arachide et au niébé