Morphological Identification of Malaria Vectors within Anopheles Species in Parts of Kano State, Nigeria

This study was carried out between May and October, 2010 to morphologically identify Anopheles species in parts of Kano State. A total of 2374 Anopheles were collected and identified. 1782 (75.07%) were collected from Nassarawa Local Government Area while 592 (24.93%) were collected from Tarauni Local Government Area. Using Anopheles characters of Gilles and Coetzee (1987) under zeiss light microscope, 587 (24.75%) were Anopheles funestus, 1535 (64. 65%) were gambiae s.l. and 252 (10.60%) were An. maculipalpis. Nasssarawa Local Government had the higher of Anopheles identified. Anopheles gambiae s.l. ranked the highest among other species. Further molecular identification of sub-species complex of An. gambiae s.l and An. funestus is strongly recommended in the area.Keywords: Identification, malaria, vectors, anopheles, species

The essence of fertilization: oocyte meets sperm

The problem of reduced fertility in high yielding dairy cattle is a very complicated one, and the relationship between various measures of fertility and level of milk production remains controversial. In this brief review the essence of the problem is considered: what is the oocyte's and the sperm's contribution, and what is the importance of the resulting embryo in the declining fertility of the Holstein Friesian cow

Childhood masturbation simulating epileptic seizures: A report of two cases and review of the literature

Background: Childhood masturbation (self-gratification) may mimic epileptic seizures, and is regarded as one of paroxysmal non-epileptic disorders in children, which incorporate several potential diagnoses. It is characterized by self-stimulation of the genitalia, associated with unusualpostures and movements which could be mistaken for seizures. If not recognized, childhood masturbation could pose diagnostic difficulties,unnecessary investigative spending and considerable parental anxiety.Aim: To highlight two cases of childhood female masturbation simulating epileptic seizuresDesign: Descriptive report of clinical presentation of two cases of child masturbation mimicking seizuresConclusion: There is need for high index of suspicion in order to diagnosecases of childhood masturbation which may be confused with epileptic seizures. Home video recording of the events is very helpful in making timely diagnosis; so that unnecessary investigations and treatment is avoided.Key words: childhood masturbation, non-epileptic disorder, seizure mimic

Effect of sodium chloride concentration on the functional properties of selectec Legume flours

Providing safe, nutritious, and wholesome food for poor and undernourished populations has been a major challenge for developing countries. This has led to the necessity of assembling complete food composition tables, yielding information about the traditional foods and on the functional properties of the plant foods that are consumed regularly in the developing countries. Sodium Chloride (NaCl) is the common salt used at household and industry levels to improve palatability of processed foods. Therefore, the main aim of the present study was to investigate the influence of different concentrations of NaCl on the functional properties of selected legume flours. The effect of increasing concentration of NaCl on the protein solubility, emulsifying and foaming properties of white bean, pigeon pea, cowpea and hyacinth bean were studied. The results revealed that the protein solubility of pigeon pea, cowpea and white bean flours significantly increased by increasing salt concentration and reached a maximum at 0.4 M NaCl (for pigeon pea and cowpea flours) and 0.6 M for white bean flour and then gradually decreased at higher salt concentration. The protein solubility profile of hyacinth bean fluctuated with the salt concentration, with the highest solubility at 0.6 M NaCl and lowest solubility at 0.4M NaCl. With the exception of white bean, the maximum emulsifying activity of all selected legume flours was found at 0.4 M NaCl whereas that of white bean was found at 0.2 M NaCl. Generally, with increasing salt concentration, the emulsifying activity slightly decreased for the legume flours, except for cowpea which fluctuated. Addition of NaCl significantly decreased the emulsion stability and foaming capacity of the four of selected legume with the maximum improvement being observed at 0.2 M NaCl, and then decreasing gradually at higher salt concentration. Significant improvement of foaming stability was observed when salt concentration increased. Based on the results of the present study the selected legume flour demonstrated good functional properties following the addition of NaCl, which makes these legume flours potential ingredients for application in salt containing foods.Keywords: functional properties, Legumes, Protein solubilityAfrican Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development, Volume 12 No.

Higher Fertilizer Inputs Increase Fitness Traits of Brown Planthopper in Rice.

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is the primary staple food source for more than half of the world's population. In many developing countries, increased use of fertilizers is a response to increase demand for rice. In this study, we investigated the effects of three principal fertilizer components (nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium) on the development of potted rice plants and their effects on fitness traits of the brown planthopper (BPH) [Nilaparvata lugens (Stål) (Homoptera: Delphacidae)], which is a major pest of rice in Bangladesh and elsewhere. Compared to low fertilizer inputs, high fertilizer treatments induced plant growth but also favored BPH development. The BPH had higher survival, developed faster, and the intrinsic rate of natural increase (r m ) was higher on well-fertilized than under-fertilized plants. Among the fertilizer inputs, nitrogen had the strongest effect on the fitness traits of BPH. Furthermore, both the "Plant vigor hypothesis" and the "Plant stress hypothesis" were supported by the results, the former hypothesis more so than the latter. These hypotheses suggest that the most suitable/attractive hosts for insect herbivores are the most vigorous plants. Our findings emphasized that an exclusive focus on yield increases through only enhanced crop fertilization may have unforeseen, indirect, effects on crop susceptibility to pests, such as BPH

Optimising rigour in focus group analysis : using content/thematic and form/structural approaches to understand British Somali's experiences of policing in London

There is evidence that focus groups are useful to explore issues with socially marginalised groups, notably when participants have shared particular experiences. Focus groups have the methodological potential to highlight group norms and processes, and to illuminate the social and cultural contexts in which individual agency takes place. However, an often cited concern about focus groups is researchers’ inadequate description of the analytical process which then affects the usefulness and credibility of the findings and rigour in analysis. In this article we address this concern and offer an analytical framework which takes account of the content (themes) and form (structure) of focus group data. Framed within an interpretivist paradigm, our analysis is driven by a theoretical interest in how race/ethnicity as social positions shape young British Somali men’s individual and shared experiences of policing in London

Triceps skin fold thickness as a measure of body fat in Nigerian adolescents

Background: Skin fold thickness (SFT) at selected areas offers a simple method of subcutaneous fat assessment and provides a good estimate of obesity and body fat distribution. The triceps SFT has been shown to be one of the best and most popular sites for SFT measurement in children.Objective: To assess the body fat of school adolescents and to comparethe performance of triceps SFT with Bioelectrical impedance method in the detection of overweight (OW) and obesity (OB) among the subjectsMethods: The study was cross sectional; involving secondary schoolstudents within Sokoto metropolis. Subjects were selected by a multistagerandom sampling method. Harpenden skin fold caliper (ASSIST Creative Resources Ltd, LL13 9UG, UK) and Tanita Body fat scale (model UM-030, Tanita, UK Ltd; 2004) were used respectively to measure the triceps SFTand body fat content (%) according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Results: The mean triceps SFT values were 8.9mm (±4.7) for malesand 12.9mm (±4.6) for the females (p<0.001). Mean % BF values were8.2 ± 4.1% for the males, and 20.0 ± 6.8% for the females (p<0.001).The triceps SFT gave a prevalence of overweight of 2.5%, while that of obesity was 0.8%. With the BIA method, 2.5% of the subjects wereclassified as overweight and 1.7% as obese.Conclusion: Triceps SFT remain a fair surrogate for the assessment ofadiposity, the component of overweight that leads to pathology.Key words: Skin fold thickness, bioelectrical impedance analysis, body fat, obesity, adolescent

Ever-increasing Caesarean section and its economic burden in Bangladesh

BACKGROUND: Cesarean Section (CS) delivery has been increasing rapidly worldwide and Bangladesh is no exception. In Bangladesh, the CS rate has increased from about 3% in 2000 to about 24% in 2014. This study examines trend in CS in Bangladesh over the last fifteen years and implications of this increasing CS rates on health care expenditures. METHODS: Birth data from Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS) for the years 2000–2014 have been used for the trend analysis and 2010 Bangladesh Maternal Mortality Survey (BMMS) data were used for estimating health care expenditure associated with CS. RESULTS: Although the share of institutional deliveries increased four times over the years 2000 to 2014, the CS deliveries increased eightfold. In 2000, only 33% of institutional deliveries were conducted through CS and the rate increased to 63% in 2014. Average medical care expenditure for a CS delivery in Bangladesh was about BDT 22,085 (USD 276) in 2010 while the cost of a normal delivery was BDT 3,565 (USD 45). Health care expenditure due to CS deliveries accounted for about 66.5% of total expenditure on all deliveries in Bangladesh in 2010. About 10.3% of Total Health Expenditure (THE) in 2010 was due to delivery costs, while CS costs contribute to 6.9% of THE and rapid increase in CS deliveries will mean that delivering babies will represent even a higher proportion of THE in the future despite declining crude birth rate. CONCLUSION: High CS delivery rate and the negative health outcomes associated with the procedure on mothers and child births incur huge economic burden on the families. This is creating inappropriate allocation of scarce resources in the poor economy like Bangladesh. Therefore it is important to control this unnecessary CS practices by the health providers by introducing litigation and special guidelines in the health policy

Low-temperature formation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in Titan’s atmosphere

The detection of benzene in Titan’s atmosphere led to the emergence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) as potential nucleation agents triggering the growth of Titan’s orange-brownish haze layers. However, the fundamental mechanisms leading to the formation of PAHs in Titan’s low-temperature atmosphere have remained elusive. We provide persuasive evidence through laboratory experiments and computations that prototype PAHs like anthracene and phenanthrene (C14H10) are synthesized via barrierless reactions involving naphthyl radicals (C10H7•) with vinylacetylene (CH2=CH–C≡CH) in low-temperature environments. These elementary reactions are rapid, have no entrance barriers, and synthesize anthracene and phenanthrene via van der Waals complexes and submerged barriers. This facile route to anthracene and phenanthrene—potential building blocks to complex PAHs and aerosols in Titan—signifies a critical shift in the perception that PAHs can only be formed under high-temperature conditions, providing a detailed understanding of the chemistry of Titan’s atmosphere by untangling elementary reactions on the most fundamental level