COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH BEHAVIOUR OF CONCRETE PRODUCED USING OKIGWE RED LUMP STONE AS COARSE AGGREGATE

This study was carried out in order to ascertain if the Okigwe red lump stone, found in South-eastern Nigeria, could be used as coarse aggregate in making structural concrete. The maximum compressive strength values, obtained at 28 days for red lump stone concrete were 13.72 N/mm2 at w/c ratio of 0.53 for mix ratio 1:2:4 and 8.74 N/mm2 for mix ratio 1:3:6, at w/c ratio of 0.55. These values were not up to 20 N/mm2 which is the ACI 318 (1995) recommendation for structural concrete. Therefore, Okigwe red lump stone must not be used in making structural concrete using mixes 1:2:4 and 1:3:6

COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH BEHAVIOUR OF CONCRETE PRODUCED USING OKIGWE RED LUMP STONE AS COARSE AGGREGATE

This study was carried out in order to ascertain if the Okigwe red lump stone, found in South-eastern Nigeria, could be used as coarse aggregate in making structural concrete. The maximum compressive strength values, obtained at 28 days for red lump stone concrete were 13.72 N/mm2 at w/c ratio of 0.53 for mix ratio 1:2:4 and 8.74 N/mm2 for mix ratio 1:3:6, at w/c ratio of 0.55. These values were not up to 20 N/mm2 which is the ACI 318 (1995) recommendation for structural concrete. Therefore, Okigwe red lump stone must not be used in making structural concrete using mixes 1:2:4 and 1:3:6

Soil Degradation and the Human Condition, Including the Pandemic, Interactions, Causes, Impacts, Control Measures and Likely Future Prospects

The global spread of soil degradation threatens the sustainability of human life. The review focused on soil degradation beyond global pandemic, causes, impacts, control and prospects. The work majorly concentrated on developing countries like Nigeria while giving a global view of soil degradation. In this work we attempted to show the critical nature of soil degradation, requiring serious attention like the current global pandemic known as corona virus or covid 19. We show that the causes of soil erosion are associated with the degradation of key physical and chemical soil properties. Notable physical soil property reductions are caused by water and wind erosion, including surface crust formation, and the chemical soil property reductions are associated with soil fertility decline, salinization, sodification, and other processes. Each cause of soil degradation may be traced to land management. This review notes that addressing soil degradation is important to meeting the 2015 United Nation sustainable development goals

Comparative Analysis of Measures of Viral Reservoirs in HIV-1 Eradication Studies

HIV-1 reservoirs preclude virus eradication in patients receiving highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). The best characterized reservoir is a small, difficult-to-quantify pool of resting memory CD4+ T cells carrying latent but replication-competent viral genomes. Because strategies targeting this latent reservoir are now being tested in clinical trials, well-validated high-throughput assays that quantify this reservoir are urgently needed. Here we compare eleven different approaches for quantitating persistent HIV-1 in 30 patients on HAART, using the original viral outgrowth assay for resting CD4+ T cells carrying inducible, replication-competent viral genomes as a standard for comparison. PCR-based assays for cells containing HIV-1 DNA gave infected cell frequencies at least 2 logs higher than the viral outgrowth assay, even in subjects who started HAART during acute/early infection. This difference may reflect defective viral genomes. The ratio of infected cell frequencies determined by viral outgrowth and PCR-based assays varied dramatically between patients. Although strong correlations with the viral outgrowth assay could not be formally excluded for most assays, correlations achieved statistical significance only for integrated HIV-1 DNA in peripheral blood mononuclear cells and HIV-1 RNA/DNA ratio in rectal CD4+ T cells. Residual viremia was below the limit of detection in many subjects and did not correlate with the viral outgrowth assays. The dramatic differences in infected cell frequencies and the lack of a precise correlation between culture and PCR-based assays raise the possibility that the successful clearance of latently infected cells may be masked by a larger and variable pool of cells with defective proviruses. These defective proviruses are detected by PCR but may not be affected by reactivation strategies and may not require eradication to accomplish an effective cure. A molecular understanding of the discrepancy between infected cell frequencies measured by viral outgrowth versus PCR assays is an urgent priority in HIV-1 cure research

Towards A Responsible Entrepreneurship Education and the Future of the Workforce

Highlights • PRME provides a Compass for universities to embed responsible education. • Limited information is available on the stream of African Entrepreneurship education. • Many universities are ill-equipped to develop adequate skills required for the modern job market. • This study is based on the Curricular, Co-curricular and Extra-curricular Learning Pipeline Model. Abstract This article explores how entrepreneurship education (EE) could be adopted towards improving graduate’s skills and preparing the future workforce. It adopts interviews with 30 experienced higher education academics, executives of employment and work placement agencies in Nigeria that reveals substantial benefits of adopting entrepreneurial pedagogics, critical thinking and problem-based learning (PBL). The critical question is how can EE practices be utilised in higher education to improve future workforce? Linked to the UN Principles of Responsible Management Education (PRME), this study is based on the model of curricular, co-curricular and extra-curricular learning pipeline that focuses on ‘learning in the curriculum’ and ‘learning beyond the curriculum’. The model somehow links to the six domains that formed our analytical model – knowledge and cognitive learning, innovation in teaching pedagogy, change in thinking, change in attitudes, social learning and change in action

The effects of body mass index on some electrocardiographic parameters in young adults: Report of a pilot study

No Abstract

Telemedicine: An Imperative Concept During COVID-19 Pandemic in Africa

With social distancing being a key preventative measure of COVID-19, proper provision of healthcare services becomes a challenge as healthcare professionals are concerned about the risk of potential infection. Telemedicine, a practice that uses telecommunication networks for the delivery of healthcare services and medical education, has been adopted by several countries and has shown to provide positive outcomes. This concept is poorly practiced in African Countries compared to other countries of the world. This paper reiterates the need for the expansion of telemedical systems in Africa for the dual goals of COVID-19 prevention and provision of quality healthcare services to people

Rapid quantification of the latent reservoir for HIV-1 using a viral outgrowth assay.

HIV-1 persists in infected individuals in a stable pool of resting CD4(+) T cells as a latent but replication-competent provirus. This latent reservoir is the major barrier to the eradication of HIV-1. Clinical trials are currently underway investigating the effects of latency-disrupting compounds on the persistence of the latent reservoir in infected individuals. To accurately assess the effects of such compounds, accurate assays to measure the frequency of latently infected cells are essential. The development of a simpler assay for the latent reservoir has been identified as a major AIDS research priority. We report here the development and validation of a rapid viral outgrowth assay that quantifies the frequency of cells that can release replication-competent virus following cellular activation. This new assay utilizes bead and column-based purification of resting CD4(+) T cells from the peripheral blood of HIV-1 infected patients rather than cell sorting to obtain comparable resting CD4(+) T cell purity. This new assay also utilizes the MOLT-4/CCR5 cell line for viral expansion, producing statistically comparable measurements of the frequency of latent HIV-1 infection. Finally, this new assay employs a novel quantitative RT-PCR specific for polyadenylated HIV-1 RNA for virus detection, which we demonstrate is a more sensitive and cost-effective method to detect HIV-1 replication than expensive commercial ELISA detection methods. The reductions in both labor and cost make this assay suitable for quantifying the frequency of latently infected cells in clinical trials of HIV-1 eradication strategies

Adolescent medical emergencies: baseline survey in a Nigerian tertiary hospital

Background: Globally, there is dearth of data on non-traumatic adolescent medical emergencies, with most studies focussing on adolescent traumatic, psychotic and obstetric emergencies. There is need for extension of focus to this neglected area, especially in Africa where differences in lifestyle, perception and socioeconomic status may influence adolescent health.Objective: To describe the morbidity pattern of adolescents admitted as medical emergencies in a Nigerian tertiary hospital and to identify factors that correlate with mortality amongst them.Methodology: This was a prospective study of all adolescents aged 10 to 19 years consecutively admitted into the Children Medical Emergency Ward of a Nigerian tertiary hospital, over a 2 year period. Their bio-data, clinical condition at time of presentation and outcome at discharge from the emergency room were documented. Bivariate analysis for correlation of these factors with mortality was done utilizing the Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 20.Results: Two hundred and two adolescents were admitted in the emergency room within the period. Their mean age was 13.3 +2.3 years with male to female ratio of 1.5:1. The major presenting symptom was fever with the predominant disease category being infectious and parasitic diseases in 31.2% of them. A sickle cell disease crisis was responsible for 15% of admissions and was the commonest single disease entity amongst them. The mortality rate was 6.4%. Acute exacerbations of chronic diseases were responsible for 85% of the mortalities. Chronic kidney disease with case fatality of 36% was significantly correlated with mortality [OR 8.4 CI 3.2-22.3]. Gender, age and maternal educational status had no significant correlation to the outcome.Conclusion: Acute exacerbation of chronic medical conditions account for poor outcome of medical emergencies in adolescents in the study centre. This calls for intensification of Preventive Medicare and adoption of the principle of pro active follow up of adolescents living with chronic diseases.Keywords: Non-traumatic, Acute exacerbations, Chronic diseases, Outcom