Toxicological evaluation of aqueous leaf extract of Spondias mombin using albino rat

Toxicological evaluation of aqueous leaf extract of Spondias mombin using albino rat was carried out. Twenty-five albino rats were grouped into five groups of five rats each. Group 1 served as the control, while groups 2-5 served as the test groups. The test groups were placed on different doses of the studied leaf extract after the lethal dose was determined. The studied extractconsists mainly of flavonoids, saponins, alkaloid, tannins and cyanogenic glycosides, which have considerable therapeutic values, and reduced body weight considerably in test rats against the control. Levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and alkaline phosphatase (ALP)in test rats reduced significantly (p<0.05) when compared to the control. However, the observed histopathological changes associated with the kidney and liver of test rats against those of the control may suggest that the toxicity of the extract could be dose dependent. This study has shown the toxicological evaluation of aqueous leaf extract of S. mombin using albino rat

Evaluation of Bitter Kola Leaf Extract as an Anticorrosion Additive for Mild Steel in 1.2 M H2SO4 Electrolyte

Plant-based material, namely bitter kola leaf, as an additive for surface modification of mild steel in H2SO4 solution was thoroughly scrutinized using  electrochemical, theoretical and optimization techniques. The functional groups, of the biomolecules of the bitter kola leaf extract, were examined using  Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR) and gas chromatography-mass spectrophotometry (GC-MS). For clarification purpose, scanning electron  microscopy (SEM) was used to inspect the texture of the degraded and inhibited steel after 21 h of immersion. For the response surface methodology  (RSM), central composite design of Design-Expert Software was used to optimize the inhibition efficiency as a function of acid concentration, inhibitor  concentration, temperature and time. The optimum inhibition efficiency of 93 % was obtained at 0.9 g L–1 bitter kola leaf. The mutual correlation between  the considered variables and expected response was adequately interpreted by a quadratic model. The fitness of the model was justified by the  following standards which include P-value (<0.0001), adjusted R2 (0.9843), R2 (0.991), adequate precision (43.14) and coefficient of variation (2.59). Bitter  kola leaf extract behaved as a mixed-type inhibitor and adequately satisfied Langmuir adsorption isotherm. Furthermore, the theoretical modelling  revealed the most active molecule of bitter kola leaf responsible for the overall inhibition. The experimental and theoretical results are in agreement that   bitter kola leaf extract is a viable corrosion inhibitor of mild steel in H2SO4 solution

Effects of Rational-Emotive Hospice Care Therapy on Problematic Assumptions, Death Anxiety, and Psychological Distress in a Sample of Cancer Patients and Their Family Caregivers in Nigeria

This study was a preliminary investigation that aimed to examine the effects of rational emotive hospice care therapy (REHCT) on problematic assumptions, death anxiety, and psychological distress in a sample of cancer patients and their family caregivers in Nigeria. The study adopted a pre-posttest randomized control group design. Participants were community-dwelling cancer patients (n = 32) and their family caregivers (n = 52). The treatment process consisted of 10 weeks of full intervention and 4 weeks of follow-up meetings that marked the end of intervention. The study used repeated-measures analysis of variance for data analysis. The findings revealed significant effects of a REHCT intervention program on problematic assumptions, death anxiety, and psychological distress reduction among the cancer patients and their family caregivers at the end of the intervention. The improvements were also maintained at follow-up meetings in the treatment group compared with the control group who received the usual care and conventional counseling. The researchers have been able to show that REHCT intervention is more effective than a control therapy for cancer patients’ care, education, and counseling in the Nigerian context