Growth, reproduction and feeding biology of Malapterurus electricus (Gmelln,1789) in lower Benue River, Nigeria

The reproductive biology, food and feeding habit and growth pattern of Malapterurus electricus (Gmelin) were investigated using a sample of 50 males and 67 females collected from the River Benue in Makurdi. The mean standard lengths of males and females were 18.9 ~ 1.49cm and 17. 8 ± 0.43 cm respectively, while the mean total weights were 195.7 ± 50.4g for males and 130.1 ± 21.7gfor females. The mean condition factors were 2.32 ± 0.02 (males) and 2.09 ± 0.01 (females). Malapterurus electricus in River Benue exhibited isometric growth and their main food items were fish and arthropod. The species attained sexual maturity at a mean standard length of 16.7 ± 2.3cmin males and 17.4 ± 3.2cm in females. The mean fecundity was 2331 ± 970.2 eggs. The results were discussed in relation to the need for a full understanding of the basic biology of this important ornamental fish

Hydrogeology and Groundwater Quality of Deep and Shallow Boreholes in Kano Metropolis, Northwestern Nigeria

The study area is located in the Kano Municipal. It is bounded by latitudes 11°51´ to 12°06´N and longitudes 8°23´ to 8°38´ E covering an area of about 770.063 Km2. It lies on the average altitude of 478m above sea level, and is generally undulating lowland. The relief is greatly influenced by the geology; characterized by small, blocky and low laying outcrops. Twenty (20) samples of groundwater collected from the study area from both deep (about 200m) and shallow boreholes, following the standard procedure as prescribed by APHA Guidelines. The analysis was achieved using Atomic Absorption Spectrometer (AAS-Varian AA240Fs), Direct reading Photometer (Hanna model), Titrimetric method, and Flame photometer (FPF9 Jenwy model).The interpretation of groundwater chemistry of the samples suggest that most of the samples analysed are within the WHO and Nigerian Standards for drinking, while some have concentrations beyond desirable limits. However, the concentrations of some elements such as Pb, above permissible limits in the samples analyzed have created a concern over the suitability of the water for drinking and other domestic uses. The assessment of water for irrigation indicates that most of the samples are suitable for irrigational purposes. The result of the laboratory analysis revealed that the selected ions were present in varying concentrations in the study area. The chemical parameters of water samples from the boreholes were plotted using AquaChem and revealed interaction between the groundwater and aquifer materials, and identified important data trends and groupings. Keywords: Water quality, analysis, WHO, SON, AquaChem, permissible limits, anion, cation, Kano

Lineaments Analysis to Identify Favourable Areas for Groundwater in Kano City, Northwestern Nigeria

This work was carried out to investigate groundwater potentials of Kano city using lineament analysis, and to study the relationship between the characteristics and occurrence of groundwater in aquifers of about 200m deep in crystalline basement rocks of the area by examining the possibility of groundwater occurrence at such depths; despite the general understanding that fractures closes with depth. It shows the use of LANDSAT ETM+ imagery and geological map to investigate areas favorable for groundwater development.  This was achieved by plotting the lineament trends, and lineament density to know the groundwater potentials. Rose (azimuth-frequency) diagram of the lineaments delineated on the imagery shows trends in the directions of N-S, E-W, NE-SW, and NW-SE. The dominant trend is NW-SE. The analyses have shown that the study area has numerous fractures whose major trends are mainly in north-south and northwestern-southeastern directions. Lineament density map shows the cross-cutting lineaments are relatively high in areas around the north-eastern and south-western parts of the study area but low in the other areas. The zones of high lineament intersection density are feasible zones for groundwater prospecting.  The positions of deep boreholes on the map of the area do not coincide with the cross cutting lineaments, and are therefore the yields of the deep boreholes are not sustainable. Keywords: Lineaments, groundwater, boreholes, aquifer, fracture

Assessing the performance of global solar radiation empirical equations in Sokoto, Nigeria using meteorological parameters

In this study, the meteorological parameters measured in Sokoto (12.55o N, 5.15o E) for a period of 10 years (2005- 2014) were obtained from the Nigerian Meteorological Agency Sultan Abubakar III International Airport, Sokoto state. The data used include Gunn-Bellani solar radiation, sunshine hour duration, maximum and minimum temperatures, which were analyzed using modified Angstrom models to estimate the monthly mean global solar radiation in Sokoto. Four statistical methods have been used in order to evaluate the results namely; Mean Bias Error (MBE), Mean Percentage Error (MPE), Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) and T-statistic. The standard error (SE) and coefficient of determination (R2) were also obtained for each model. Based on the result obtained models 4 & 5 gave a lower RMSE, and R2 approaches unity, which indicates that there is a good agreement between measured and estimated global solar radiation.Keywords: coefficient of determination, solar radiation, sunshine hours, meteorological parameters, temperatur

Instrumental vaginal delivery in Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto: A ten‑year review

Background: Instrumental vaginal delivery is one of the key elements of essential obstetric care that mimics spontaneous vaginal delivery in order to expedite delivery with minimal maternal and neonatal morbidity. The objectives of the study were to determine the rate of instrumental deliveries, the common indications, and compare outcome and complications between forceps and vacuum deliveries.Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective cross‑sectional study on instrumental vaginal deliveries carried out in UDUTH over 10 years from January 2007 to December 2016. The list of cases was obtained, the case files were retrieved and relevant information was obtained. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 21. Level of significance was set at P < 0.05.Results: The instrumental vaginal delivery rate was 2.06%. Vacuum deliveries accounted for 83.3% (n = 524) but forceps deliveries accounted for 16.7% (n = 105). The most common indication for both was delayed second stage of labor due to malposition. There was no statistical difference in the mean APGAR scores at 1st and 5th min between babies delivered by vacuum and those delivered by forceps. Majority had no complication and there was no statistical association between the type of procedure and maternal or fetal complications observed during the procedure (χ2 = 3.18, P = 0.2).Conclusion: The rate of instrumental vaginal delivery is much lower than that reported in some centers in Nigeria and globally. Majority of the cases had no complication and there was no significant difference in complications observed between vacuum and forceps deliveries.Keywords: Complications; forceps delivery; rate; vacuum deliver

Extraction of Chrysophyllum albidum Seed Oil: Optimization and Characterization

This work presents the result of the optimization of extraction of oil from Chrysophyllum albidum seed using ethanol as solvent. A 23 factorial designs with replication was employed to study the effect particle size, time, and temperature of extraction. The oil yield from extraction was 12.70 – 16.85 % with the optimal yield of 16.85 % at particle size of 500 µm, temperature of 55 0 C, and a time of 6 hours. Characterizations of the oil reveal a Saponification value of 228.4mgKOH/g, iodine value of 30 gI2 /100g, peroxide value of 1.45 meq/kg, acid value of 2.52 mgKOH/g. The oil extracted from this seed can be effectively used for variety of domestic and industrial application such as the making of paint, candles, soap and biodiesel. Keywords: Optimization, Characterization, Chrysophyllum albidum, Oi

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

INTRODUCTION Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. RATIONALE We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs). RESULTS Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants. CONCLUSION Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century

Rising rural body-mass index is the main driver of the global obesity epidemic in adults

Body-mass index (BMI) has increased steadily in most countries in parallel with a rise in the proportion of the population who live in cities 1,2 . This has led to a widely reported view that urbanization is one of the most important drivers of the global rise in obesity 3�6 . Here we use 2,009 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight in more than 112 million adults, to report national, regional and global trends in mean BMI segregated by place of residence (a rural or urban area) from 1985 to 2017. We show that, contrary to the dominant paradigm, more than 55 of the global rise in mean BMI from 1985 to 2017�and more than 80 in some low- and middle-income regions�was due to increases in BMI in rural areas. This large contribution stems from the fact that, with the exception of women in sub-Saharan Africa, BMI is increasing at the same rate or faster in rural areas than in cities in low- and middle-income regions. These trends have in turn resulted in a closing�and in some countries reversal�of the gap in BMI between urban and rural areas in low- and middle-income countries, especially for women. In high-income and industrialized countries, we noted a persistently higher rural BMI, especially for women. There is an urgent need for an integrated approach to rural nutrition that enhances financial and physical access to healthy foods, to avoid replacing the rural undernutrition disadvantage in poor countries with a more general malnutrition disadvantage that entails excessive consumption of low-quality calories. © 2019, The Author(s)

Diagnostic Techniques and Antimicrobial Susceptibility Test of Helicobacter Pylori Infection in Gashua Town

Helicobacter pylori eradication continues to be a challenge in a group of patients after the failure of several therapeutic regimen attempts. Treatment regimen is generally chosen on the basis of the prevalence of bacterial resistance detected against the tested antibiotics. 60 sixty  (60), adult out patients presented to Gastroenterology clinic of General Hospital Gashua undertook multiple gastric biopsy and specimens were carried for gram stain, culture, antimicrobial sensitivity testing, rapid urease test and histology. Antimicrobial susceptibility test were carryout using Epsilometer testing Kit (E-test) method and tested against Omeprazole, metronidazole Ranitidine, and Amoxicillin. About Sixty percent (30%) of the study population was positive for H. pylori infection (mean age of 34 years ± 15), 60% were males while 40% are women which are mostly married. Helicobacter pylori culture showed a sensitivity of 55% (95% CI (29.5– 62.1), specificity of 97% (95%CI (80.5–100%), positive likelihood ratio of 19.93 (95% CI (1.254– 317.04) and a negative likelihood ratio of 0.76 (95% CI (0.406–0.772). Eighteen (18) strains of Helicobacter pylori isolated 14 are sensitive to Amoxicillin, Ciprofloxacin, metronidazole; amoxicillin three (4) strains were resistant to ciprofloxacin and Amoxicillin and metronidazole when tested. It is imperative to have indebted knowledge on diagnostic method and antibiotic susceptibility patterns in the study area, since the accurate diagnosis of H. pylori is the idealistic view for both gastroenterologists and microbiologists, using synergistically invasive and noninvasive methods will be a future challenge in medical research topics. It is clear that recent advances in invasive and noninvasive methods for accurate diagnosis of the H. pylori can drastically change upcoming guidelines attributed with the management of this infection