Hypoglycaemic and Hypolipidemic Effects of Black Brand of Lipton Tea (Camellia sinensis) on Normal Male Albino Rats

Recently, considerable attention has been focused on dietary supplements that possess hypoglycaemic and hypolipidemic properties in lieu of the synergistically synthesized drugs like statins and metiform which have been proven to have adverse effects. This present work was carried out to study the potential effects of Lipton tea aqueous extract (LTAE) on normal male albino rats. 36 six male Wistar rats weighing 115-150 g were assigned into four main groups; each group was divided into three subgroups, consisting of three replicates namely R1, R2 and R3 making a total of nine rats in each of the main groups. Group 1 served as the control and received only water, Group 2 received 200 mg/kg of LTAE, Group 3 received 400 mg/kg of the LTAE, while Group 4 received 800 mg/kg of LTAE. All treatment was given orally on daily basis for 28 consecutive days, but the parameters were assessed on weekly basis. The result revealed that, weight gain, fasting blood sugar and serum (total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL-c and VLDL-c) significantly (p < 0.05) decrease in all the treated groups while HDL-c significantly (p < 0.05) increased when compared to the control group. The Lipton tea aqueous extract induced both a dose-dependent and a time-dependent effect in the parameters measured, apart from the total cholesterol which did not show a dose-dependent effect. This led to an overall decrease in the antherogenic index and coronary risk index, suggesting that LTAE possesses hypoglycaemic and hypoglycaemic activities in normal male rats

Impact of Business Skill Acquisition on Business Performance of Business Education Graduates in Nigeria

The researchers investigated the impact of business skill acquisition on business performance of business education graduates in Nigeria. Analytical survey design was adopted for the study involving 200 business education graduates with at least, 5 years of cognate practical experience in business using purposive sampling technique. The research questions were answered using percentages and frequencies while the hypotheses were tested using Chi-square statistics. The finding revealed that Business Education Graduates in Nigeria acquire business skills and also, the business skills acquired influence their business performance positively. The findings further revealed that the differences in the expected and observed business skills acquired by the business education graduates and the expected and observed influence of the business skills acquired on their business performance are significant at 0.05 level of significance. Based on the findings of this study, it was concluded that business education graduates in Nigeria acquired relevant business skills such as management skills, business plan and project development skills, problem-solving skills, innovation and creativity skill, accounting and record keeping skills, customer loyalty and retention skills, among others. These skills have significant positive improvement on the skills expected of them. More so, the skills are evidently seen in the business performance of business education graduates as indicated by the results from the analyses and findings. Based on the findings, it was recommended that adequate empowerment for business expansion in area of material resources and legal support should be granted to business education graduates by the Federal, State and Local Government to encourage total diligent and full commitment in business establishment and growth.