Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) Content in Cattle Hides and Meat Singed with Scrap Rubber Tyres

Scrap rubber tyre is used as fuel for singeing animal carcasses in third world countries despite the fact that it can impart hazardous substances like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) on meat. The PAH contents of cattle hide and meat samples singed with flame produced by scrap car tyre in abattoirs located in Umuahia, Aba, Okigwe and Mbaise, South-Eastern Nigeria, were evaluated with Gas chromatography fitted with flame ionization detector (GC-FID). The target analytes were the sixteen non-alkylated priority PAHs which were determined in the samples through ultrasonic extraction, sample clean up and GC-FID analysis. The results revealed that mean concentrations of the carcinogenic PAH, benzo(a)pyrene in the consumer ready singed and washed samples from Aba were lower than EU limit of 2 μg/kg. For samples collected from Umuahia, mean benzo(a)pyrene concentrations were higher in the consumer ready singed washed hide and meat samples compared to the EU limit. Mean benzo(a)pyrene concentrations in the singed washed samples from Okigwe and Mbaise were also lower than the EU limits. The results indicate that the use of rubber tyres for singeing cattle hides and meat can deposit dangerous levels of PAHs which puts consumers of such products at the risk of health hazards like cancer. It is recommended that government at all levels should enact and strictly enforce laws banning the use of scrap rubber tyres for processing food.Keywords: Cattle hide, meat, tyre, singeing, hydrocarbon

Asymptomatic members with SOD1 mutation in a large kindred with familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis have abnormal water diffusion characterisitcs

DTI was carried out in FALS/SALS patients and familial members with SOD1 mutation (AFALS) who may be in a pre-symptomatic phase of ALS. The changes in FA and TT were investigated in CBT/CST and in whole brain. In FALS/SALS, diffusion pattern changes were found in cerebral peduncle, internal capsule, sub-cortical white matter, cerebellum and frontal lobe while in AFALS, abnormal pattern could also be detected in the cerebral peduncle, cerebellum and frontal lobe but with a smaller extent. Our study indicates that DTI can show early diffusion changes in members with SOD1 mutation in FALS prior to symptom-onset.published_or_final_versio

Prevalence and awareness of lower urinary tract symptoms among males in the Outpatient Clinics of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre.

This study aims to determine the prevalence of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) and level of awareness among male outpatients in Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre (UKMMC). A questionnaire consisting of demographic data, questions related to knowledge, attitude and practice on BPH and the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) was used for this study. Uroflowmetry and bladder scan were used to evaluate the function of the urinary tract and severity of BPH. Urine dipstick was done for glycosuria, proteinuria and haematuria. A total of 220 respondents were surveyed. The prevalence of moderately and severely symptomatic LUTS was 42.7%. The most commonly reported LUTS were nocturia (78.2%), frequency (58.2%) and incomplete emptying (44.6%). The prevalence of glycosuria, proteinuria and haematuria were 23.6%, 11.4% and 1.8% respectively. There was a significant association between increasing age with the severity of LUTS (p=0.005). Out of 102 respondents with voided urine volume greater than 150 mL, there was a significant decrease in maximum (Qmax) (p=0.039) and average (Qave) urine flow rates with every 10 years increase of age (p=0.001). The majority of respondents (59.5%) have heard of BPH before. Over 78.2% of the respondents would seek medical attention if they have LUTS with 15.9% saying they would seek traditional treatment. In conclusion, the prevalence of LUTS was high and the level of awareness was satisfactory

SUITABILITY OF BURNT AND CRUSHED COW BONES AS PARTIAL REPLACEMENT FOR FINE AGGREGATE IN CONCRETE

The suitability of burnt and crushed cow bones (BCCB) as partial replacement for fine aggregate in concrete was studied. The percentages of replacements of fine aggregates of 0, 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50%, respectively of BCCB were tested considering 1: 2: 4 and 1: 11/2 :3 concrete mix ratios. The cow bones were burnt for 50 minutes up to 92oC before being crushed. Ninety-six (96) concrete cubes of 1: 2: 4 mix ratio and ninety-six (96) concrete cubes of 1 : : 3 mix ratio measuring 150x150x150mm were tested for the compressive strength at 7, 14, 21 and 28 days respectively. The research revealed that the BCCB acted as a retarder in the concrete. Water-cement ratio increased with the increase in the percentage of the BCCB. The mixes of 1:2:4 and 1::3 at 28 days curing yielded average compressive strengths in N/mm2 ranging from 16.49 - 24.29 and 18.71 - 29.73, respectively. For the mix ratios of 1:2:4 and 1:: 3 at 28 days curing age,  it was observed that increase in the BCCB content beyond 40 and 50%, respectively resulted to the reduction of the average compressive strength below recommended minimum strength for use of concrete in structural works.http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/njt.v36i3.

Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) analysis of Vibrio cholerae O1 El Tor isolates from Mozambique that harbour the classical CTX prophage.

Vibrio cholerae O1 isolates belonging to the Ogawa serotype, El Tor biotype, harbouring the classical CTX prophage were first isolated in Mozambique in 2004. Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) analysis using nine genetic loci showed that the Mozambique isolates have the same sequence type (ST) as O1 El Tor N16961, a representative of the current seventh cholera pandemic. Analysis of the CTX prophage in the Mozambique isolates indicated that there is one type of rstR in these isolates: the classical CTX prophage. It was also found that the ctxB-rstR-rstA-rstB-phs-cep fragment was PCR-amplified from these isolates, which indicates the presence of a tandem repeat of the classical CTX prophage in the genome of the Mozambique isolates. The possible origin of these isolates and the presence of the tandem repeat of the classical prophage in them implicate the presence of the classical CTX phage

Micro-Electro-Mechanical-Systems (MEMS) and Fluid Flows

The micromachining technology that emerged in the late 1980s can provide micron-sized sensors and actuators. These micro transducers are able to be integrated with signal conditioning and processing circuitry to form micro-electro-mechanical-systems (MEMS) that can perform real-time distributed control. This capability opens up a new territory for flow control research. On the other hand, surface effects dominate the fluid flowing through these miniature mechanical devices because of the large surface-to-volume ratio in micron-scale configurations. We need to reexamine the surface forces in the momentum equation. Owing to their smallness, gas flows experience large Knudsen numbers, and therefore boundary conditions need to be modified. Besides being an enabling technology, MEMS also provide many challenges for fundamental flow-science research

Solid Phase Sorption of Phenols on Metals Acetylacetonates

The solid phase extraction properties of surface layers of Eu(III), Al(III), Fe(III), Cr(III) acetylacetonates are compared for sorption some phenols and chlorophenols. The effects of the energies of adsorption and complexation on the retention of various sorbates were calculated. GC methods with preconcentration are proposed to evaluate phenols by means of solid-phase extraction on a sorbent with a surface layer of Eu acetylacetonate with extraction effectiveness of 85%

Acute renal failure in an AIDS patient on tenofovir: a case report

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licens

VUV frequency combs from below-threshold harmonics

Recent demonstrations of high-harmonic generation (HHG) at very high repetition frequencies (~100 MHz) may allow for the revolutionary transfer of frequency combs to the vacuum ultraviolet (VUV). This advance necessitates unifying optical frequency comb technology with strong-field atomic physics. While strong-field studies of HHG have often focused on above-threshold harmonic generation (photon energy above the ionization potential), for VUV frequency combs an understanding of below-threshold harmonic orders and their generation process is crucial. Here we present a new and quantitative study of the harmonics 7-13 generated below and near the ionization threshold in xenon gas. We show multiple generation pathways for these harmonics that are manifested as on-axis interference in the harmonic yield. This discovery provides a new understanding of the strong-field, below-threshold dynamics under the influence of an atomic potential and allows us to quantitatively assess the achievable coherence of a VUV frequency comb generated through below threshold harmonics. We find that under reasonable experimental conditions temporal coherence is maintained. As evidence we present the first explicit VUV frequency comb structure beyond the 3rd harmonic.Comment: 16 pages, 4 figures, 1 tabl

Treatment of osteonecrosis of the femoral head using autologous cultured osteoblasts: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Osteonecrosis of the femoral head is a progressive disease that leads to femoral head collapse and osteoarthritis. Our goal in treating osteonecrosis is to preserve, not to replace, the femoral head.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We present the case of a patient with bilateral osteonecrosis of the femoral head treated with autologous cultured osteoblast injection.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Although our experience is limited to one patient, autologous cultured osteoblast transplantation appears to be effective for treating the osteonecrosis of femoral head.</p