Nasopharyngeal cancer in north-eastern Nigeria: clinical trends

Nasopharyngeal cancer is the malignancy of the posterior aspect of the nose called Nasopharynx. It is one of themost difficult diseases to diagnose at an early stage. To determine prevalence, clinical trends and histopathological types of Nasopharyngeal cancer in Maiduguri, North Eastern Nigeria. Fifteen year retrospective evaluation of patient’s case notes and cancer registry records of 40 patientswith histologically confirmed nasopharyngeal cancer between 1991-2005. Nasopharyngeal cancers constituted 35.1% of all malignancies of ear, nose, throat during the study period.TheM:Fwas 2.1-1, themean agewas 39( 16.5) years and a peak age group and its occurrence of 40-49 years. The commonest symptom at presentation were cervical lymphadenopathy (72.5%), rhinorrhoea (55%), epistaxis(45%). The commonest histological type was squamous cell carcinoma(92.5%). Patients who received chemotherapy in addition to radiotherapy and higher symptom free period. Cancer is a difficult disease to diagnose at an stage.Ameticulous ear, nose and throat examination and thorough evaluation of nasal symptoms with associated cervical lymphadenopathy may lead to an early diagnosis of nasopharyngeal cancer’s.Keywords: Nasopharyngeal cancer, clinical trend, Maiduguri, Nigeria

Impact of Salicide and Source/Drain Implants on Leakage Current and Sheet Resistance in 45nm NMOS Device

In this paper, we investigate the impact of Source/Drain (S/D) implant and salicide on poly sheet resistance (RS) and leakage current (I Leak ) in 45nm NMOS device performance. The experimental studies were conducted under varying four process parameters, namely Halo implant, Source/Drain Implant, Oxide Growth Temperature and Silicide Anneal Temperature. Taguchi Method was used to determine the settings of process parameters. The level of importance of the process parameters on the RS and I Leak were determined by using analysis of variance (ANOVA). The fabrication of the devices was performed by using fabrication simulator of ATHENA. The electrical characterization of the device was implemented by using electrical characterization simulator of ATLAS. These two simulators were combined with Taguchi method to aid in design and optimizing the process parameters. The optimum process parameter combination was obtained by using the analysis of signal-tonoise (S/N) ratio. In this research, the most effective process parameters with respect to poly sheet resistance and leakage current are silicide anneal temperature (88%) and S/D implant (62%) respectively. Whereas the second ranking factor affecting the poly sheet resistance and leakage current are S/D implant (12%) and silicide anneal temperature (20%) respectively. As conclusions, S/D implant and silicide annealtemperature have the strongest effect on the response characteristics. The results show that the R S and I Leak after optimizations approaches are 42.28□□ and 0.1186mA/□m respectivel

Studies on effect of Vitamin E supplementation on antioxidant status and lipid peroxidation in human volunteers

Effect of supplementation of Vitamin E (Natopherol,400 ill/day) alone or in combination with B-complex for a period of one year on serum levels of MDA (index of lipid peroxidation), total antioxidant status, total cholesterol & HDL cholesterol was studied in 74 male healthy Malay volunteers ranging in age from 18-55 years. Results of the study indicated which is serum MDA levels increase with age without any change in the total antioxidant status which supports the theory that imbalance between oxidative stress and antioxidant status may be involved in aging process, supplementation of Vit E & B-complex reduced serum MDA levels and increased total antioxidant status, E+B administration being superior to E alone, both E alone and E+B administration reduced total cholesterol levels to the same extent, supplementation of E alone did not affect HDL cholesterol levels significantly but E+B administration significantly increased the HDL cholesterol, both E alone and E+B administration reduced the tot. chol.:HDL chol. ratio, the reduction being significantly more with E+B compared to E alone.It is concluded from the study that administration of E+B as opposed toE alone provides better protection against free radical mediated damage. E+B administration may also be more effective in prevention of IHD through their effect on HDL cholesterol levels

Estimation of live weight in Red Sokoto kids using linear body traits

The study was carried out in Akko, Kwame and Yamaltu/Deba Local Government Areas of Gombe State, between August and November, 2019 to estimate body weight of Red Sokoto kids using linear body measurements. A total of 460kids (219 males and 241 females) were used to obtain the following parameters; live weight (LW), body length (BL), chest girth (CG), wither height (WH), leg length (LL), loin girth (LG), ear length (EL) and face length (FL). The animals were sampled from four local markets across the study area (Kashere, Kumo, Malam Sidi and Kwadom). Data generated were subjected to descriptive statistics, analysis of variance, Pearson’s correlation and linear regression analyses. The coefficients of variation of the variables observed ranged from 21.14 % for body weight to 7.86 % for chest girth. The mean LW, BL, CG, WH, LL, LG, EL and FL were 11.09 kg, 37.94 cm, 50.95 cm, 43.84 cm, 14.21 cm, 54.47 cm, 11.13 cm and 8.23 cm, respectively. Location had effect on leg (P<0.01), ear and face lengths (P<0.001). Similarly, significantly wider chest, longer ear and face (P<0.05) were observed in males. The correlation coefficients observed among the parameters were mostly moderate to high, positive and significant (P<0.01). The step-wise multiple regression analysis showed that CG had coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.44 (44 %) when used in the prediction of LW, while subsequent inclusion of LG and BL yielded better result (0.47 and 0.49, respectively). Therefore, the study revealed that both location and sex had no effect on most of the linear body measurements and the accuracy of these traits (linear body measurements) in the prediction of LW is moderate. Keywords: Red Sokoto kids, Prediction, Body weight, Linear body trait

Transformation of Morinda citrifolia via simple mature seed imbibition method

View at Publisher| Export | Download | Add to List | More... Pakistan Journal of Biological Sciences Volume 16, Issue 24, 2013, Pages 1913-1921 Transformation of Morinda citrifolia via simple mature seed imbibition method (Article) Lee, J.J., Ahmad, S., Roslan, H.A. Department of Molecular Biology, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, 94300 Kota Samarahan, Sarawak, Malaysia View references (44) Abstract Morinda citrifolia, is a valuable medicinal plant with a wide range of therapeutic properties and extensive transformation study on this plant has yet been known. Present study was conducted to establish a simple and reliable transformation protocol for M. citrifolia utilising Agrobacterium tumefaciens via direct seed exposure. In this study, the seeds were processed by tips clipping and dried and subsequently incubated in inoculation medium. Four different parameters during the incubation such as incubation period, bacterial density, temperature and binary vectors harbouring β-glucuronidase (GUS) gene (pBIl 21 and pGSAl 131), were tested to examine its effect on transformation efficiency. The leaves from the treated and germinated seedlings were analysed via Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), histochemical assay of the GUS gene and reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR). Results of the study showed that Agrobacterium strain LBA4404 with optical density of 1.0 and 2 h incubation period were optimum for M. citrifolia transformation. It was found that various co-cultivation temperatures tested and type of vector used did not affect the transformation efficiency. The highest transformation efficiency for M. citrifolia direct seed transformation harbouring pBI121 and pGSAl 131 was determined to be 96.8% with 2 h co-cultivation treatment and 80.4% when using bacterial density of 1.0, respectively. The transformation method can be applied for future characterization study of M. citrifolia

Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever in adolescents and young adults in the Department of Internal Medicine, Gadjah Mada

Summary. A short history of Dengue, the etiology of Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever and the vectors are reviewed. A classification and nomenclature for diseases suspected to be of dengue or chikungunya virus etiology, as suggested by WHO is given. Six cases and two additional cases of Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever in adolescents and young adults are reported. The bone marrow findings in our cases compared with those found in the literature. The pathogenesis of Dengue Hemmorrhagic Fever is reviewed in short

USE OF MILK PROGESTERONE ASSAY FOR MONITORING OESTRUS AND EARLY PREGNANCY IN NILI-RAVI BUFFALOES

In this study, the use of milk progesterone assay for oestrus detection and early pregnancy diagnosis in Nili-Ravi buffaloes was investigated. For this purpose, 100 milking buffaloes with clinically normal reproductive tract were used. Oestrus was detected on the basis of visual signs and uterine changes observed through rectal palpation. These buffaloes were then inseminated on day of oestrus. Three milk samples were taken from each buffalo, one each on day of insemination and then on 10-12 and 21-22 days post insemination. These animals were rectally examined for pregnancy 60 days after insemination. The milk samples were analyzed for progesterone concentrations through RIA. Out of 100 buffaloes observed to be in oestrus on the basis of visual signs and rectal examination, 94% showed the milk progesterone concentrations ranging from 0.01 to 0.90 ng/ml, whereas in only 6% animals, milk progesterone concentrations ranged from 3.31 to 7.44 ng/ml. Thus, 6% buffaloes seemed to have been inseminated during luteal phase. On day 21-22, out of 84 buffaloes examined, 50(59.52%) showed the milk progesterone concentrations >2.0 ng/ml and were assumed to be pregnant. However, when 41 out of these 50 animals were rectally examined 60 days post insemination, 36(87.81%) were found pregnant. Perhaps there was early embryonic death in the remaining 5(12.19%) buffaloes. It was concluded that milk progesterone assay may be used to evaluate the accuracy of clinically diagnosed oestrus, as well as for early pregnancy diagnosis in Nili-Ravi buffaloes

Survival of Chlamydia pneumoniae following contact with various surfaces

Objective: In this study, the survival and recovery of Chlamydia pneumoniae (Cp) strains TW‐183, AR‐39, AR‐388 and CWL‐029 were measured after inoculation on glass, stainless steel, FormicaR laminate, paper, fabric and human skin. Methods: Inoculum in throat washes from healthy volunteers was applied to each surface. Samples were taken immediately after inoculum application and at specified intervals thereafter to determine infectivity. Results: Infectious Cp was recovered from glass for up to 4 h, from paper and fabric for up to 3 h, from FormicaR laminate for up to 2 h, from stainless steel for up to 60 min and from human skin for up to 30 min. Drying of the inoculated area had no significant effect on the recovery of infectious Cp. Further experiments demonstrated that infectious Cp could be transferred to hands by touching these contaminated surfaces and could be recovered from these hands for up to 3 min. Addition of albumin, surfactant or phosphatidylcholine had no significant effect on the survival of Cp. Conclusions: These results suggest that contact with contaminated surfaces may be a potential mode of transmission of Cp. 1995 European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Disease

The extended-track reconstruction for MiniBooNE

The Booster Neutrino Experiment (MiniBooNE) searches for muon neutrino to electron neutrino oscillations using the ~1 GeV neutrino beam produced by the FNAL Booster synchrotron. The array of photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) lining the MiniBooNE detector records Cherenkov and scintillation photons from the charged particles produced in neutrino interactions. We describe a maximum likelihood fitting algorithm used to reconstruct the basic properties (position, direction, energy) of these particles from the charges and times measured by the PMTs. The likelihoods returned from fitting an event to different particle hypotheses are used to categorize it as a signal electron neutrino event or as one of the background muon neutrino processes, in particular charged current quasi-elastic scattering and neutral current $\pi^0$ production. The reconstruction and event selection techniques described here can be applied to current and future neutrino experiments using similar Cherenkov-based detection.Comment: 39 pages, 25 figures. Version 2 includes minor editorial change