PR 610 The Servant as Proclaimer

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Unveiling the mind of Kenyan undergraduates : motives for abortion

9TH Annual ethics conference. Theme : Bioethics medical, legal, environmental and cultural aspects in healthcare ethics at STRATHMORE UNIVERSITY, 25-26 OCTOBER 2012.Abortion has become a highly volatile moral issue in which neutrality proves almost impossible (Novak, 1993). Looking back in time, the concept proves itself not uncommon even to the most primitive societies where feticide for instance, was considered one of the ‘abominations of Egypt’ (Bleich, 1968). For the Kenyan context, this is reflected in what has been termed as ‘female crimes’ whereby abortion accounts for 84% of these crimes by young women aged 16 – 25 years (Njonjo, 2010). With such statistics, it is quite clear why this topic is heavily studied and researched on. It must be highlighted though, that people’s views on abortion reflect their beliefs on fundamentally important issues such as when life begins, when the rights of the fetus become equal to the rights of the mother and whether or not we have complete sovereignty over our own bodies (Gleeson, Forde, Bates, Powell, Jones & Draper, 2008).Abortion has become a highly volatile moral issue in which neutrality proves almost impossible (Novak, 1993). Looking back in time, the concept proves itself not uncommon even to the most primitive societies where feticide for instance, was considered one of the ‘abominations of Egypt’ (Bleich, 1968). For the Kenyan context, this is reflected in what has been termed as ‘female crimes’ whereby abortion accounts for 84% of these crimes by young women aged 16 – 25 years (Njonjo, 2010). With such statistics, it is quite clear why this topic is heavily studied and researched on. It must be highlighted though, that people’s views on abortion reflect their beliefs on fundamentally important issues such as when life begins, when the rights of the fetus become equal to the rights of the mother and whether or not we have complete sovereignty over our own bodies (Gleeson, Forde, Bates, Powell, Jones & Draper, 2008)

Identification of fungal pathogens causing postharvest rot of bulb onions (Allium cepa L.) in selected major growing regions of Kenya

Rot is a major cause of bulb onion losses in Kenya, accounting for about 14 % of total postharvest losses. In Kenya, the fungi associated with bulb onion postharvest rot of onion postharvest rots are not well known. Therefore, this study aimed at identifying the fungal pathogens contributing to bulb onion postharvest rot in major growing regions of Kenya. Bulb onion samples were collected from seven major markets and isolates were obtained by cutting 3 mm tissue segments from the edges of rotten lesions. These were cultured in water agar followed by incubation for seven days at room temperature (23 ± 3℃). After seven days, mycelia plugs from the growing edge of each colony were sub-cultured in potato dextrose agar and incubated for ten days. A total of fifty fungal isolates were obtained from the isolations and in vitro pathogenicity test was done on bulb onions. Eighteen fungal isolates that turned out to be pathogenic were inoculated in bulb onions to assess their level of virulence by measuring lesion size after 21 days of incubation at room temperature (23 ± 3℃).  The fungal isolates caused statistically (P0.001) different sized lesions, ranging from 0.4±0.1 cm to 2.6±0.5 cm. Based on morphological characteristics the eighteen fungal pathogenic isolates were identified as Fusarium spp. and were grouped into three clusters. Molecular technique confirmed the three Fusarium spp. clusters as Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. cepae (55%), F .acutatum (17%) and F. solani (28%). F. oxysporum f.sp. cepae was predominantly isolated from bulb onions collected in Bungoma County, while F. solani was mainly obtained from samples in Kajiado County and F. acutatum on bulb onions from Meru County. This study indicates that these three Fusarium species are the main fungal species causing postharvest rot in the major bulb onion growing regions of Kenya. Application of appropriate postharvest technology such as curing before storage would minimize postharvest rot in bulb onion

Postharvest losses of bulb onion (Allium cepa L.) in selected sub-counties of Kenya

Inappropriate postharvest practices such as unsuitable harvesting methods and inadequate curing in bulb onion lead to losses. Postharvest losses in bulb onion contribute to food and nutrition insecurity. Although Kenya has suitable environmental conditions for bulb onion production, its productivity is low, which is attributed to pre- and postharvest factors. Information on bulb onion postharvest losses and their causes in the country is scanty which limits development of postharvest losses reduction strategies. Therefore, this study was carried out in three major bulb onion growing sub-counties of Kenya namely Mt. Elgon, Buuri and Kajiado East to determine postharvest practices, causes and factors influencing postharvest losses of bulb onion. A multi-stage sampling design was used to select the study areas and a total of 166 respondents were randomly selected. Face-to-face interviews were conducted using a structured questionnaire to collect information on postharvest handling practices, postharvest loss levels and their causes at farm level. Data were subjected to descriptive and logistic regression analysis using Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS) software version 2.0. Results indicated that 68% of the respondents were males and with an average age of 40 years in the three sites. Forty eight percent of the respondents used leaves toppling, and 25% used drying of upper leaves as maturity indices. About 42% of the respondents used machete (panga) as a harvesting tool which significantly (P<0.05) influenced postharvest losses. Seventy seven percent of the respondents indicated that up to 30% postharvest losses occurred at farm level. Forty percent of the respondents indicated that bulb onion rots caused 10 % loss at farm level. The level of education, and mode of transport (bicycles and donkeys) significantly (P<0.05) influenced postharvest losses. It was concluded that the postharvest losses at farm level was 30% and were mainly caused by rotting. Socio-economic characteristics and postharvest handling practices nfluenced bulb onion losses at farm level. Development of postharvest losses reduction strategies on bulb onions focusing on alleviating rotting through appropriate postharvest handling practices at farm level was recommended

Direct and host-mediated interactions between Fusarium pathogens and herbivorous arthropods in cereals

Fusarium head blight and fusarium ear rot diseases of cereal crops are significant global problems, causing yield and grain quality losses and accumulation of harmful mycotoxins. Safety limits have been set by the European Commission for several Fusarium-produced mycotoxins; mitigating the risk of breaching these limits is of great importance to crop producers as part of an integrated approach to disease management. This review examines current knowledge regarding the role of arthropods in disease epidemiology. In the field, diseased host plants are likely to interact with arthropods that may substantially impact the disease by influencing spread or condition of the shared host. For example, disease progress by Fusarium graminearum can be doubled if wheat plants are aphid-infested. Arthropods have been implicated in disease epidemiology in several cases and the evidence ranges from observed correlations between arthropod infestation and increased disease severity and mycotoxin accumulation, to experimental evidence for arthropod infestation causing heightened pathogen prevalence in hosts. Fusarium pathogens differ in spore production and impact on host volatile chemistry, which influences their suitability for arthropod dispersal. Herbivores may allow secondary fungal infection after wounding a plant or they may alter host susceptibility by inducing changes in plant defence pathways. Post-harvest, during storage, arthropods may also interact with Fusarium pathogens, with instances of fungivory and altered behaviour by arthropods towards volatile chemicals from infected grain. Host-mediated indirect pathogen–arthropod interactions are discussed alongside a comprehensive review of evidence for direct interactions where arthropods act as vectors for inoculum

In vitro growth characteristics of Fusarium langsethiae isolates recovered from oats and wheat grain in the UK

Fusarium langsethiae is a fungus that has recently been implicated in the contamination of small-grain cereal crops such as oats, wheat and barley with high levels of HT-2 and T-2 toxins in many European countries. The epidemiology of this fungus is not well known and may therefore be a bigger problem than currently thought to be. A study was carried out investigating the in vitro growth characteristics of F. langsethiae isolates from contaminated oats and wheat at various temperatures; 15, 20, 25 and 30 °C. Results indicated similar growth trends of oats and wheat isolates of F. langsethiae. Wheat isolates grew significantly (p<0.001) faster than oat isolates although this difference may have been confounded by the age of cultures, with oat isolates collected one year earlier. The estimated optimum growth temperature for all isolates was 24 °C. Isolates were macro-morphologically categorized as having lobed or entire colony margins, and either possessing one of the following colony colours: white, orange or purple. Since the estimated optimum growth temperature of F. langsethiae is typical in temperate summers when small-grain cereals are flowering, it is possible that this species can infect, colonise and possibly contaminate the developing grains with HT-2 and T-2 toxins which are of food safety concern

Aflatoxin and fumonisin mycotoxins contamination along the maize value chain in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo

Aflatoxin and fumonisin contamination was assessed in different samples along the maize value chain in different territories of South Kivu province. Kabare and Ruzizi Plain were chosen as they represent two different agroecological areas where maize is mostly produced. Twelve districts and one town were selected across the province. The stakeholders were randomly selected, and 215 maize (139 maize grain and 76 maize flour) samples were taken for laboratory analysis. The Q + kit was used to determine the total aflatoxins and fumonisins. Three categories of maize were examined: freshly harvested dry maize, stored maize (maize stored for 3 months ±1.5 month) and market maize. Aflatoxin was found in 100% of the maize samples with the least content of 0.3 μg/kg detected in freshly harvested dry maize with mean 3.2+0.3 and levels ranging from 0.3 to 18.5 μg/kg. The average level of aflatoxin in stored grain samples was 97.9±182 μg/kg within a range of 1.16 to 841.5 μg/kg, and the mean level of aflatoxin in stored flour was 148.9±164.5 μg/kg with levels ranging from 2.05 to 905.1 μg/kg. The mean level of aflatoxin maize collected from the market was 95.1 ±164 μg/kg, with levels ranging from 1 to 823.2 μg/kg. Almost all the maize flour collected from the three areas had a high contamination level that exceeded the maximum tolerable limit of 10 μg/kg. Fumonisin was detected in all samples. However, the levels of fumonisin do not follow a specific trend with the duration of storage. The freshly harvested dry maize concentration was 2.4±5.1 μg/g, with levels ranging from 0.03 to 20.9μg/g. About 37% of freshly harvested maize samples contaminated by fumonisin exceeded the maximum tolerable limit of 4 μg/kg. There was a difference between total fumonisin in grain and flour; the average level of fumonisin in stored maize grain was 1.4±0.9 μg/g with levels ranging from 0.18- 4.7 μg/g while in flour, the level was 2.1±1.3 μg/g with levels ranging from 0.3-4.5 μg/g. Almost all the maize samples collected from the three areas had a degree of contamination that did not exceed the maximum tolerable limit of 4 μg/g. These results indicate that the two mycotoxin levels, particularly aflatoxin, were high in the different samples collected at specific nodes. Therefore, preventing mycotoxins accumulation in maize by post-harvest prevention of contamination and growth of toxigenic moulds by promoting proper grain drying and storage should be encouraged among the actors of the maize value chain.&nbsp

Effects of traditional processing techniques on the nutritional and microbiological quality of four edible insect species used for food and feed in east Africa

Published online: 4 May 2020Edible insects are increasingly being considered as food and feed ingredients because of their rich nutrient content. Already, edible insect farming has taken-off in Africa, but quality and safety concerns call for simple, actionable hazard control mechanisms. We examined the effects of traditional processing techniques—boiling, toasting, solar-drying, oven-drying, boiling + oven-drying, boiling + solar-drying, toasting + oven-drying, toasting + solar-drying—on the proximate composition and microbiological quality of adult Acheta domesticus and Ruspolia differens, the prepupae of Hermetia illucens and 5th instar larvae of Spodoptera littoralis. Boiling, toasting, and drying decreased the dry matter crude fat by 0.8–51% in the order: toasting > boiling > oven-drying > solar-drying, whereas the protein contents increased by 1.2–22% following the same order. Boiling and toasting decreased aerobic mesophilic bacterial populations, lowered Staphylococcus aureus, and eliminated the yeasts and moulds, Lac+ enteric bacteria, and Salmonella. Oven-drying alone marginally lowered bacterial populations as well as yeast and moulds, whereas solar-drying alone had no effect on these parameters. Oven-drying of the boiled or toasted products increased the aerobic mesophilic bacteria counts but the products remained negative on Lac+ enteric bacteria and Salmonella. Traditional processing improves microbial safety but alters the nutritional value. Species- and treatment-specific patterns exist