Multiple filarial species microfilaraemia: a comparative study of areas with endemic and sporadic onchocerciasis

Background & objectives: The study was aimed at determining the pattern of co-occurrence of species ofmicrofilaraemia between onchocerciasis endemic and sporadic populations.Methods: From every consenting person of one year and above, 50 μl of day and night blood samples werecollected and processed respectively with Haemotoxylin and Giemsa as vital stains. Two skin snips (one eachfrom the waist and the shoulder) were also taken from these individuals and processed.Results: Results showed single species microfilaraemia (86.4 and 82.3%), double species microfilaraemia (12.2and 16.9%) and triple species microfilaraemia (1.4 and 0.7%) for endemic and sporadic populations respectively.All the species had single species microfilaraemia mostly, but Mansonella perstans and Loa loa showed greatestt endency towa rds doubl e and t r ipl e spe c i e s mi c rof i l a r a emi a . The pr eva l enc e of Wuche re r ia banc rof t imicrofilaraemia among those positive for Onchocerca volvulus was significantly lower than the overall prevalenceof Wuchereria bancrofti. Wuchereria bancrofti microfilaraemia was most common among those who had L. loamicrofilaraemia. Wuchereria bancrofti microfilarial intensity was higher among those with M. perstansmicrofilaraemia than among those positive for any of the other filarial species. Similarly, the intensity of M.perstans microfilaraemia among those positive for W. bancrofti exceeded the overall intensity of M. perstans.Conclusion: It is concluded that there was no definite pattern in mf densities discernible from co-occurrenceinfections either in the onchocerciasis endemic or sporadic population. There could be varied outcomes ofonchocerciasis infection attributable to positive or negative regulatory effects of other pathogens harbored bythe victims

Is poor maternal mortality index in Nigeria a problem of care utilization? A case study of Anambra State

Maternal mortality in Nigeria is unacceptably high. Some of the reasons may include poor socioeconomic development, weak health care system, low socioeconomic status of women and socio-cultural barriers to care utilization. A cross sectional study was carried out to assess the use of maternal services in Anambra State. A multi stage sampling technique was used to select 800 nursing mothers from the State who were interviewed on the use of maternal services during their last pregnancy. Over 95% of the subjects had formal education. Almost all the subjects (99.7%) attended antenatal clinics during their last pregnancy with 92.3% (646) of them making 4 or more visits before delivery. Over 97%(680) of the deliveries took place in formal health facilities. Obviously, the women in the study population utilize maternal health services. The problem of maternal mortality in the country may not necessarily lie with utilization but with the quality of services. Keywords: Maternal mortality, maternal services, care utilizationAfrican Journal of Reproductive Helath Vol. 12 (2) 2008: pp. 132-14

UK export performance research - review and implications

Previous research on export performance has been criticized for being a mosaic of autonomous endeavours and for a lack of theoretical development. Building upon extant models of export performance, and a review and analysis of research on export performance in the UK for the period 1990-2005, an integrated model of export performance is developed and theoretical explanations of export performance are put forward. It is suggested that a multi-theory approach to explaining export performance is viable. Management and policy implications for the UK emerging from the review and synthesis of the literature and the integrated model are discussed

Abusive Supervision Emotional Exhaustion and Work Family Conflict as Predictors of Organizational Cynicism among Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Officers in Imo State

This study examined Abusive Supervision, Emotional Exhaustion, and Work-Family Conflict as predictors of Organizational Cynicism among Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Officers in Imo State. A total of 273 officers from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC) in Imo State participated in the study. The participants were selected using the convenience sampling technique. The age range of the participants was between 27 and 58 years (M = 41.21, SD = 7.93), comprising 111 males and 162 females. Three hypotheses were formulated and tested. Data were collected using paper-based questionnaires, which included a demographic survey and four standardized self-report measures. They are: the Abusive Supervision Scale (ASS) by Tepper (2000), the Burnout Inventory (OLDI) by Demerouti et al. (2003), the Work-Family Conflict Scale (WFC) by Haslam et al. (2015), and the Organizational Cynicism Scale by Dean, Brandes, and Dharwadkar (1998). The study employed a cross-sectional survey design, and data were analyzed using hierarchical multiple regression. Findings revealed that Abusive supervision significantly predicted organizational cynicism (accounting for 27.7% of the variance), Emotional exhaustion was also a significant predictor (explaining 12.2% of the variance), and Work-family conflict contributed significantly as well, though modestly, accounting for 3.3% of the variance. These findings underscore the importance of adopting a holistic, evidence-based approach to organizational leadership that promotes ethical and non-abusive management practices, supports employee emotional well-being, and fosters a healthy work-life balance. Such measures are crucial to mitigating organizational cynicism among security personnel

Microsoft Excel 2007 Programme for Effective Tertiary Institution Result Grading

Microsoft Excel 2007 Programme for effective Tertiary Institution result grading is an enhanced and interactive method of managing and processing key issues in Tertiary Institution, which are the problems of result grading. Grading of in course, exams and keeping track of grades in a grade book is one of the most laborious tasks a lecturer can undergo. Small errors can creep into your grade book when you add up scores, possibly resulting in your posting an incorrect student grade. Using Microsoft Excel 2007 to keep track of grades not only cuts down on the amount of work you have to do, but also cuts down or even eliminates mathematical errors. This study has addressed this key issue with a programme, from step one to step six. Keywords: Microsoft Excel 2007, Result, Grading Computation, Tertiary Institution

Assessment of two Biofertilizers under two Crop Combination on Microbial Population and Plant Growth in South Eastern Nigeria

Biofertilizers are becoming increasingly popular in many countries and for many crops, but very few studies on their microbial population and early plant growth in sandy loam soil have been conducted. Therefore, this research evaluated two different biofertilizers: treated Ageratum specie and Crotoloria specie in the Soil Science Department Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, Igbariam Anambra State, Nigeria during 2016 cropping seasons in the growth chamber of the Faculty of Agriculture, using two different test crops (Moringa and Tomato) which was laid out in complete randomized block (CRD). The experiments were conducted in pots with dimension of 17cm × 19cm in length and depth. The bottoms portions of the pots were uniformly perforated for proper aeration. Ten seeds were planted after which they were thinned down to 8 seedlings 10 DAP, later, the remaining 2seedlings were harvested 60 DAP to evaluate the biomass production in each stage respectively. Significant biomass and soil microbial population increase due to biofertilizer use were observed in all experimental treatments. The biofertilizer effect on Moringa and tomato growth did not significantly differ. Nevertheless, positive effects of the biofertilizers occurred on the biological properties. However, the trends in these results seem to indicate that biofertilizers might be most helpful in rainfed environments. However, for use in these target environments, biofertilizers need to be evaluated under conditions with abiotic stresses typical of such systems such as drought, soil acidity, or low soil fertility. &nbsp

ESTIMATION OF GLOBAL SOLAR RADIATION AT CALABAR USING TWO MODELS

In this study, the estimation of global solar radiation with Meteorological parameters at Calabar- Nigeria latitude 40N and longitude 80 E were carried out. The daily mean temperature and relative humidity for seventeen years (1991 to 2007) from Nigerian Meteorological Agency, Federal Ministry of Aviation, Oshodi, Lagos were used. The global solar radiation data were collected courtesy of Renewable Energy for Rural Industrialization and Development in Nigeria. Two models (multiple regression and artificial neural network) were used for the estimation. Comparing the graphs of correlation equation 4 and 5, and equation 6 and 7 of the first model, it is obvious that the first order correlation has better estimation power. Looking at the overview of all the Figures (1 -5A), is it is clear that the two models used in this study has estimation capacity, but Figure 5A shows better correlation with the measured values, which indicates that artificial neural network model is a better model for estimation. Therefore has been recommended for global solar radiation estimation at Calabar and its environs with similar weather condition. Alternatively, first order regression should be use for estimation in the absent of artificial neural network. Keywords: artificial neural network, regression, model, global solar radiatio

Changes in blood counts, serum lactate dehydrogenase activity and haptoglobin level in malaria infected subjects in Nnewi, Anambra state, Nigeria

Background: Malaria is a mosquito-borne public health problem which alters the blood counts, haptoglobin level and serum lactate dehydrogenase (sLDH) activity of the infected individuals. Some of the alterations are associated risk factors in malaria pathology. This study aims at elucidating changes in blood counts, sLDH activity and haptoglobin level in malaria infected subjects seen in a Tertiary Health Institution in Nnewi, as search for associated risk factors in malaria pathology.Methods: This cross sectional study enrolled 270 age matched subjects between 18-65 years. The test group (200) who tested positive to P. falciparium was placed into two groups based on their parasite counts with cut-off of  ≥1000 parasites x 109/L. Group one (100) had counts above the cut-off and group two (100) below. The control (70) was aparasitemic. The demographic data were noted and 4mls of blood drawn. 2mls in K3EDTA was for FBC testing using Mythic 22 hematology analyzer, and remaining dispensed into plain tubes was for sLDH assay by kinetic method and haptoglobin by ELISA technique.Results: The HCT, Hb, RBC and Platelet count of test were progressively significantly lowered (p=0.001) compared to control, with an intra-significant difference among the 3 groups (p<0.05), also the parameters were found to have an inverse significant relationship (p=0.001) to the parasite counts. This trend was also seen with haptoglobin while reverse was the case with LDH activity which rather increased significantly (p = 0.000) at opposite direction as parasite density increases.Conclusions: This study show that the degree of intravascular haemolysis is directly influenced by the parasite density, this portends that high endemicity and perennial parasiteamia in the study area could cause chronic anaemia and thrombocytopenia in the population studied

Evaluation of the diagnostic utility of leucocyte in comparison to other biomarkers in the management of patients with pulmonary tuberculosis

Background: Pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) is an infectious and debilitating disease that affects millions of people each year. Simple, reliable and cost effective biomarkers are vital to fore-stall the morbidity and mortality that is hallmark of the infection especially in resource poor economy.Methods: This comparative study enlisted 140 subjects: 80 had PTB and 60 do not. Blood of 8mls was collected; 3mls in K2-EDTA for FBC testing with XE-2100 Sysmex and ESR by Westergreen method. The remainder was used for serum CRP assay by ELISA. The radiological extent was determined from Chest X ray report and disease severity using modified Bandim TB scoring was extracted from the case note. The aim of the study is to investigate the relationship and diagnostic utility between leucocyte with CRP, ESR, radiological extent of disease and disease severity in PTB.Results: Mean Lymphocyte count was lower while TWBC, Neutrophil and Monocyte counts were higher in subjects compared to control (p<0.05). Median CRP, ESR, NLR, NMR and MLR were higher in subjects compared to control (p<0.05), NLR and MLR showed strong positive significant correlation with ESR, disease severity, and radiological extend of disease. NMR (p= 0.00) had a negative correlation with ESR (p<0.05) and inverse correlation with disease severity and radiological extent.Conclusions: This study found NLR, MLR and NMR as a readily, easily available and inexpensive indices that are as efficient and comparable to known biomarkers in PTB infection, therefore could serve as valuable predictive biomarker in areas of high disease burden with weak economy