Patch loading and the effects of eccentricity on steel girders

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A survey of sorghum downy mildew in sorghum in the Sudano-Sahelian Savanna zones of Nigeria

An extensive survey was conducted across the 13 states constituting the Sudan and Sahel savanna agro-ecological zones of Nigeria to determine the occurrence and distribution of sorghum downy mildew in sorghum during the 2008 growing season. The survey was conducted at two different stages of the crop development; seedling and dough stage. The first survey was in early July while the second was carried out in late September. Three farmers’ fields were critically investigated at every stop on a road system. During the first survey, a total of 97 farmers’ fields in 36 locations were investigated while 110 sorghum fields in 37 locations were visited in the second survey. Average incidence (%) of the disease was obtained from a sample of 100 plants selected using simple random sampling technique from each of the three farms visited per stop. Results of the survey (16.20 and 9.64% and 3.28 and 1.16% during the first and second visits in the Sudan and Sahel savanna AEZs respectively) indicated that the disease was present only at the seedling stage and virtually absent at flowering stage .In the areas where it was noticed at the juvenile stage the incidence was more prevalent in the Sudan than in the sahel savanna regions. The results also revealed that there was a relationship between soil type (which was mostly sandy loam) and disease incidence. Disease incidence was relatively higher on sandy loam soil than other soil types. The prevalence was generally low, but efforts should be made towards controlling the spread of the disease further. Farmers should be advised to use improved cultural practices like early sowing, seed dressing with the sole aim of reducing the disease. Keywords: sorghum downy mildew, incidence, distribution, Sudan and Sahel savanna agroecological zone

Screening of Sorghum Genotypes fFor Resistance to Loose Smut in Nigeri

One hundred and four sorghum genotypes were screened under field conditions for loose smut disease using the hypodermic stem injection artificial inoculation technique. The experiment was laid out on a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with two replications. The results of the trial indicated that only twenty nine genotypes (27.9 %) showed loose smut symptom at varying degrees of incidence and with varying severity. Both disease incidence and severity were significantly different (P<0.01) among sorghum genotypes. More than 70 % (73 genotypes) were found to be immune (I) and 5.76 % (six) genotypes were highly resistant (HR) which included, SSV2008030, SSV2008031, SSV2008034, SSV2008066, SSV20080075, and SSV2008088 and nineteen (18.27%) were very susceptible (VS) genotypes. There was no moderately susceptible genotype obtained from the experiment. The results have shown that there are some promising sorghum genotypes that are resistant to the disease and could therefore be introduced to farmers and sorghum breeders for further breeding as well as multi-locational trials.Keywords; field screening, hypodermic injection, loose smut, sorghum varieties, Sudan savann

State of sorghum downy mildew in maize in the Sudan and sahel savanna agro-ecological zones of Nigeria

The incidence, distribution and prevalence of downy mildew in maize were investigated during the 2008 growing season following a planned–two time survey across the Sudan and the Sahel savanna agro-ecological zones of Nigeria. The occurrence of the disease was investigated in 102 and 120 farmers’ fields in 34 and 40 locations in the first and second surveys respectively. Average incidence (%) of the disease was obtained from a sample of 100 plants each from three farms per stop; each farm representing a replicate. Simple random sampling technique was employed in the selection of plants. Results of the survey have revealed that 20 out of the 34 locations visited during the first survey had maize with early symptoms of the disease while only 4 out of the 40 locations visited in the second survey was having the symptoms of the disease. The incidence of the disease was 8.20% and 1.12%, in the first and second survey respectively and therefore significantly different (p>0.05) indicating that the disease was more prevalent at seedling than at grain filling stage which is an indication of the absence of certified, sorghum downy mildew (SDM) free seeds in most of the regions surveyed. The incidence was also higher in the Sudan than in the Sahel savanna (16.28% and 3.28% first and second visits respectively). This might be probably because of differences in climate of the two zones and the fact that maize was grown more in the Sudan than in the Sahel savanna zone. Although the incidence was generally low, proper measures should be taken to avoid unexpected epidemic of the disease in the future

Incidence and distribution of head and loose smuts of sorghum (s. Bicolor l. Moench) in the Nigerian Sudan savanna

In this study, field surveys were conducted (between October to November) in the 2008 and the same period in the 2009 agricultural years to determine the incidence, prevalence and severity of head and loose smuts of sorghum in the Sudan savanna agro-ecological zone of Nigeria. The surveys were conducted in three states, namely; Kano, Katsina and Jigawa states representing the Sudan savanna region during which farmers’ fields were surveyed every 15-20 km on a road network. Disease incidence was obtained from a random sample of 100 plants each from three fields in an “X” or “W” pattern across each farm. Results of the study revealed that both head and loose smuts occurred in both years and in more than 84% of the fields surveyed. Incidence of both loose and head smuts varied significantly (P=0.05) between years and locations probably because of the variability of the pathogens and the little differences in climatic factors of the two years. The incidence of loose and head smuts in 2008 was 8.33% and 3.33%, respectively but both diseases were more prevalent and severe in Kano and Katsina states than Jigawa state. In 2009 on the other hand, head smut incidence was relatively higher averaging 5.00% compared to loose smut with mean incidence of 3.00%. However, prevalence and severity of the two diseases were still higher in Kano and Katsina states compared to jigawa state. It appeared that the incidence of the two smuts varied with the year, location and sorghum variety. The severity of the two smuts was generally low but taken together, could result into serious financial loss to farmers. So efforts should be made to find means of minimizing these losses

Evaluation of the inner thigh as site for mantoux test among children in Owerri South Eastern Nigeria

Background: Mantoux test, a type IV hypersensitivity reaction, is commonly used to screen children for possible tuberculosis. It is applied on the volar surface of forearm. Sunlight ultraviolet rays (UV) have recently been shown to induce immunosuppression that alters the skin response to Mantoux test negatively.Objective: The study aimed to evaluate the inner thigh as a possible site for Mantoux test in children attending Federal Medical Centre Owerri whom their primary attending Physicians requested a Mantoux test.Methods: This was a cross sectional study conducted between June and October 2011. Concomitant intradermal injection of 0.1ml of purified protein derivative on the volar aspect of the forearm and the inner thigh was carried out. Induration was measured concurrently in 106 consecutive children, between the ages of 3months and 15 years. Using volar surface of forearm as gold standard, values of inner thigh induration at a set cut-off was determined. Students’t test, Pearson correlation coefficient and the Chi square were used to compute data.Results: The mean diameter of induration on the inner thigh (12.51 ±3.44mm) was higher than mean diameter of induration on the volar surface of the arm (11.03±6.34mm). This is however not statistically significant. There were (29) children who had reactive induration on the inner thigh whilst 19 had similar induration on the volar surface of the forearm. In the presence of factor(s) that negatively affects the response of the skin to Mantoux test; the inner thigh induration yield was higher. There was a strong positive correlation between the two site measurements.Conclusions: The inner thigh as a site for Mantoux test in children has shown potential for higher yield.Keywords: Sunlight, Inner thigh, Mantoux test, TB, Childre

Medium term electrical load forecast of Abuja Municipal Area council using artificial neural network method

This paper presents a medium-term electric load forecast for Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) distribution network based on Artificial Neural Network (ANN). The technique results are compared with that of a conventional method (Multiple Linear Regression method), for the same data. The ANN proposed method takes into account the effect of temperature, time, population growth rate and the activities of different regions of city areas regarding lifestyle and types of consumers. The data of monthly to annual peak values are collected for the period from 2012 to first quarter of 2018. Hence, the Artificial Neural Network method presented a result with average MAPE of 0.00197 while the multiple linear regression having an average MAPE of 0.004545. The R-Value deviation was 8.06% and 34.42% for ANN and MLR methods respectively. Keywords: Artificial Neural Network, Forecast, Load, Energy Demand, Capacity Allocation, Percentage error, Forecasting Accuracy

Sociodemographic characteristics and handling of life‑threatening obstetric cases by traditional birth attendants in Cross River State, Nigeria

Background: Majority of pregnant women, especially in remote rural areas still desire to be delivered by traditional birth attendants (TBAs) who neither have the skills nor the equipment to treat life‑threatening complications.Objective: To determine the sociodemographic characteristics of TBAs and how they manage life‑threatening obstetric cases.Methodology: This was a prospective study carried out over a 3‑month period during the training of TBAs in the state on the reduction of maternal mortality. A total of 540 TBAs from 18 Local Government Area of the state participated in the study. Data obtained were sex, age, levels of education, number of deliveries conducted per month, difficult cases encountered, and how they managed them. The data were analyzed using Epi Info version‑7 and presented in tables.Results: TBAs are mostly females, i.e. 538 (99.6%) and only 2 (0.4%) were males. Majority of the TBAs were above the age of 55 years, i.e. 488 (88.9%); had primary education 416 (77.0%); married 396 (71.6%); and grand multiparous 293 (54.3%). Most TBAs deliver 4 newborn monthly, i.e. 148 (22.6%), and the mean number of newborn delivered monthly was 3.9. Concerning the mode of handling of the difficult cases, majority, i.e. 338 (62.6%) have a nurse/midwife they always call for assistance while only 147 (27.2%) refer their life‑threatening cases directly to the nearby hospital.Conclusion: TBAs still plays a role in deliveries in most rural and urban areas. Majority of TBAs do not refer their life‑threatening cases directly to the nearby hospital. Therefore, TBAs should be trained on how to identify life‑threatening cases and promptly refer to hospitals for better outcome.Keywords: Cross River State; delivery; emergency obstetrics; maternal mortality; traditional birth attendant

Prevalence and risk factors for stillbirths in a tertiary hospital in Niger Delta area of Nigeria: a ten year review

Background: Stillbirth is a silent but major cause of perinatal mortality and source of foetal wastage. Aim: To determine the prevalence of stillbirth, demographic characteristics and identify the possible risk factors in our Hospital.Methods: This was a ten year cross-sectional retrospective study of stillbirths between 1st January, 2004 and 31st December, 2013. All cases of stillbirths from 28 weeks of gestation or the foetal weight of at least 1000g were included in the study.Results: There were a total of 19,347 deliveries with 937 stillbirths, giving a stillbirth rate of 48.4/1,000 total births or 4.8%. Of the 937 stillbirths identified, only 582 (62.1%) case files could be retrieved and was used for analyses. There were 381(65.5%) macerated and 201(34.5%) fresh stillbirths. Stillbirth rate were higher among grand multiparous women, women with primary education and unbooked women. There were 309(53.1%) male stillbirths and 273(46.9%) female stillbirths. Male foetuses were higher among fresh stillbirth (54.9%) while female foetuses had more macerated stillbirths (48.8%) than fresh stillbirths (45.1%). The major causes of stillbirths were hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (18.9%), prolonged/obstructed labour (13.6%), anaemia in pregnancy (12.2%) and abruption placentae (9.3%). A total of 121(20.8%) of the stillbirths were unexplained.Conclusion: The prevalence of stillbirth in our environment is high. Identified factors such as grandmultiparity, low education, unbooked pregnancy, anaemia in pregnancy, obstructed labour and ruptured uterus are modifiable. Every effort directed at reducing these factors must be made by all healthcare givers including policy makers to reduce stillbirths.Key words: Stillbirth, miscarriage, perinatal mortality, anaemia in pregnancy, obstructed labour, uterine ruptur

Evaluation of Nematicidal Action of Some Botanicals on Meloidogyne incognita In Vivo and In Vitro

Eggmasses or larvae of Meloidogyne incognita were exposed to varying concentrations of neem leaf (fresh and dry), Borelia sp., groundnut leaf and garlic bulb. Neem leaf and garlic bulb extracts inhibited hatching of eggmasses and were lethal to larva. A comparative study of neem and garlic bulb extracts prepared at 20% concentration and applied weekly at 25 ml per pot were carried out in the screenhouse. Each pot filled with 2 kg of pasturised soil was inoculated with 2000 larvae of M. incognita by introducing 500 g of infested soil from tomato culture raised in the screenhouse. These extracts significantly reduced root-knot infection indices on tomato when compared to the control. However, garlic extract demonstrated greater potential than neem leaf extract in the control of root-knot infection of tomato in vivo