The Perceived Impacts of Sport Tourism: A Host Community’s Perspective around Iten town, Kenya

Sport tourism is one of the fastest growing market segments in the global tourism industry. Kenya is no different, as it is reputed world over for its exemplary performances in diverse competitions including long distance athletics and rugby. More significantly, the North Rift region in Kenya is famous for producing world champions including long distance runners. Accordingly, the North Rift region has over the years experienced an increase in the number of athletes and development of athletics training camps not only to nurture young talent but also tap revenue from sport tourists who comprise of world-class athletes from all over the world residing in training camps in the region for weeks or months ahead of major events. However, economic, social and environmental impacts of sport tourism upon destinations in Kenya have received little attention, with prior research on tourism impacts in Kenya focusing almost exclusively on wildlife, cultural and beach tourism. The purpose of this study was to examine residents’ perceived impacts of sport tourism around Iten town. In particular, the study looked at how the development of sport tourism has affected the local environment and the livelihood of local people. The study population consisted of local people living in Iten town and the surrounding area. Cluster sampling was applied to select the sampling units where most local people reside. Simple random sampling technique was then used to recruit respondents from each sampling unit. Data collection involved a combination of questionnaires, interviews and observations. Questionnaires and interviews were administered in training camps and residential areas. In addition, interviews were conducted with local community leaders. In total 150 respondents participated in the study. The findings supported the social exchange theory and showed that the economic benefits appear to have the greatest influence on whether local residents support further sport tourism developments. Keywords: Tourism; Sport; Impacts; Social exchange theory; Community; Sustainable Development.

Recurrent Signature Patterns in HIV-1 B Clade Envelope Glycoproteins Associated with either Early or Chronic Infections

Here we have identified HIV-1 B clade Envelope (Env) amino acid signatures from early in infection that may be favored at transmission, as well as patterns of recurrent mutation in chronic infection that may reflect common pathways of immune evasion. To accomplish this, we compared thousands of sequences derived by single genome amplification from several hundred individuals that were sampled either early in infection or were chronically infected. Samples were divided at the outset into hypothesis-forming and validation sets, and we used phylogenetically corrected statistical strategies to identify signatures, systematically scanning all of Env. Signatures included single amino acids, glycosylation motifs, and multi-site patterns based on functional or structural groupings of amino acids. We identified signatures near the CCR5 co-receptor-binding region, near the CD4 binding site, and in the signal peptide and cytoplasmic domain, which may influence Env expression and processing. Two signatures patterns associated with transmission were particularly interesting. The first was the most statistically robust signature, located in position 12 in the signal peptide. The second was the loss of an N-linked glycosylation site at positions 413–415; the presence of this site has been recently found to be associated with escape from potent and broad neutralizing antibodies, consistent with enabling a common pathway for immune escape during chronic infection. Its recurrent loss in early infection suggests it may impact fitness at the time of transmission or during early viral expansion. The signature patterns we identified implicate Env expression levels in selection at viral transmission or in early expansion, and suggest that immune evasion patterns that recur in many individuals during chronic infection when antibodies are present can be selected against when the infection is being established prior to the adaptive immune response

Effect of level of coffee production on the performance of coffee cooperative societies in Kenya

Purpose: To evaluate the effect of level of coffee production on the performance of coffee cooperative societies in Kenya. Methodology: This study adopted a descriptive research design. The population of the study will be 1052 small holder coffee factories in Kenya. The research was done in the entire country which was divided into 18 strata from where 283 factories were sampled and studied. Results: The regression results revealed that level of coffee production had a positive and significant effect on performance of coffee cooperative societies in Kenya. Unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: The study recommends that the cooperative societies should work hard so as to improve the level of their coffee production. This will boost their performance

Mediating role of entrepreneurial orientation on the relationship between key firm factors and the performance of coffee cooperative societies in Kenya

Purpose: To evaluate the mediating role of entrepreneurial orientation on the relationship between key firm factors and the performance of coffee cooperative societies in Kenya. Methodology: This study adopted a descriptive research design. The population of the study was 1052 small holder coffee factories in Kenya. The research was done in the entire country which was divided into 18 strata from where 283 factories were sampled and studied. The sampling was multistage sampling which combined simple random sampling and stratified sampling methods. Results: The regression results revealed that firm level factors had a positive and significant effect on entrepreneurial orientation. In addition, entrepreneurial orientation had a positive and significant effect on performance of coffee cooperative societies in Kenya. The influence of the firm level factors on performance was insignificant in the presence of the mediating variable, entrepreneurial orientation. The hypothesis results revealed that entrepreneurial orientation affect the relationship between firm level factors and performance Unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: The study recommends that factories should be proactive in business practices. They should also be risk takers and be innovative. They should practice autonomy and be competitively aggressive in business. This would serve to improve their performance

Antiplasmodial, Cytotoxic and Acute Toxicity Activities of Vernonia lasiopus O. Hoffman

Background: Malaria continues to cause heavy morbidity and mortality and it is the fifth leading cause of death globally. The disease causes over one million deaths annually and affects many more, particularly due to increasing multi-drug resistant strains of Plasmodium falciparum. Sustained investigations in both curative and prophylactic interventions have supported the ethno-pharmacological approach to identify novel compounds as a major channel towards achieving a solution. Vernonia lasiopus has been used in traditional medicine for their antimalarial, antiviral and analgesic properties. Objective: To investigate the antiplasmodial activity and toxicity profile Vernonia lasiopus extracts. Methodology: Extraction of aerial parts and roots was done using dichloromethane:chloroform (1:1) and the resulting crude extracts each fractionated into six fractions by vacuum liquid chromatography using solvents of different polarities. The crude extract and fractions were investigated for antiplasmodial activity using the chloroquine (CQ) sensitive D6 and chloroquine (CQ) resistant W2 laboratory adapted Plasmodium falciparum strains. Cytotoxicity was evaluated on Vero 199 cells at starting concentrations of 100µg/ml, whereas acute toxicity (LD50) determined on healthy female Swiss mice (20±2 gm.). Selectivity index was used as an indicator of antiplasmodial viability. Results: The fractions of V. lasiopus roots showed higher activity combined than individually. The crude V. lasiopus root extract had an IC50 13.1 µg/ml and selectivity index >7.63. Fraction 1 of the crude root extract (VLR1) was the most viable fraction with an IC50 of 16.8 µg/ml and S.I >5.95. Both had CC50>100 µg/ml and LD50 >5000mg/kg. Conclusion: extracts of V. lasiopus aerial parts and roots were found to exhibit notable viable antiplasmodial effects, and had minimal acute toxicity in mice. Key words: Plasmodium falciparum, Vernonia lasiopus, antiplasmodial activity, toxicity, selectivity index

Assessing the impact of integrated pest management (IPM) technology for mango fruit fly control on food security among smallholders in Machakos County, Kenya

Adoption and extensive use of agricultural innovations is seen as a key avenue for poverty reduction and improved food and nutritional security in developing countries. This paper evaluated the impact of IPM strategy for mango fruit flies suppression on food security with the help of a two-wave panel household survey data collected in Machakos County in Kenya. Using a randomly selected sample of 600, a difference in difference was fitted to the data in order to assess the impact of IPM on food security. The results showed that on average, both IPM participants and non-participants were food secure as measured by per capita calorie intake and Household Dietary Diversity Index (HDDI). The difference in difference estimates indicated that fruit fly IPM had a positive impact on per capita calorie intake but no significant effect on HDDI. Other factors that had an effect on per capita calorie include level of farm income, access to extension services, wealth category and distance to agricultural input market and household size. Our study recommends wider dissemination and upscaling of the fruit fly IPM strategy to facilitate broader impacts on household-level food security

Lumefantrine-resistant and Piperaquine-resistant Plasmodium berghei show cross-resistance to Primaquine but not to Atovaquone

Background: Malaria affects 300-500 million people annually and kills more than 1 million, with majority of the clinical cases and deaths occurring in Sub-Saharan Africa. Rapid development of drug resistance remains a major challenge in malaria control and has lead to use of combined antimalarial therapies. Resistance to an antimalarial drug may however, be selected for by another drug in which the mechanism of resistance is similar. Objective: This study sought to establish cross-resistance patterns between four antimalarials namely atovaquone (ATQ), primaquine (PMQ), lumefantrine (LM) and piperaquine (PQ) using murine malaria models. Method: The activities of ATQ and PMQ against drug sensitive, PQ and LM-resistant Plasmodium berghei lines was assessed using the 4-day test and 90% index of resistance (I90) determined. Results: Analysis of cross-resistance patterns showed a significant decrease in PMQ sensitivity (I90 of 6.39), and a slight but not significant decrease in ATQ (I90 of 1.19) activity towards the LM-resistant P.berghei ANKA. Conclusion: PQ-resistance in P. berghei is associated with a significant resistance of PMQ (I90 of 12.22) and a slight, though not significant reduction in ATQ (I90 of 1.27) efficacy. Key words: Plasmodium berghei, resistance, piperaquine, lumefantrine, primaquine, atovaquon

Quality and Brands of Amoxicillin Formulations in Nairobi, Kenya

Antibiotics are among the most counterfeited anti-infectious medicines in developing countries. Amoxicillin is one of the commonly prescribed, affordable, and easily accessible antibiotic in Kenya. It is a broad-spectrum antibiotic hence commonly used in chemotherapy. This study sought to determine the quality and identify the various brands of amoxicillin and its combination amoxicillin/clavulanic acid marketed in Nairobi County. Nairobi is the capital city of Kenya, gateway for imports and exports, and the headquarters to most of the pharmaceutical distributors. Ten wards in Nairobi County representing different socioeconomic settings were purposively sampled for the study. A detailed questionnaire was used to collect background data on brands of amoxicillin and amoxicillin/clavulanic acid in the market. A total of 106 different brands were found in the market: 85 were imports while 21 were locally manufactured. Fifty-three samples were analyzed with reference to the United States Pharmacopoeia. Amoxicillin and clavulanic acid contents for oral suspensions were determined immediately after reconstitution and 7 days thereafter to determine their stability during the prescription period. On day seven, 23.1% (3 out of 13) of amoxicillin and 66.7% (8 out of 12) amoxicillin/clavulanic acid oral suspensions presented levels below recommended limits. Uniformity of weight for amoxicillin capsules noted 13.6% (3 out of 22) failure rate, while amoxicillin/clavulanic acid tablets complied. Potency determination for all amoxicillin capsules analyzed were within required limits, but amoxicillin/clavulanic acid tablets showed 33.3% (2 out of 6) noncompliance. For amoxicillin capsule and amoxicillin/clavulanic acid tablet dissolution tests, there was 10.5% (2 out of 19) and 50% (2 out of 4) noncompliance, respectively. Overall, 37.7% of the drugs analyzed failed to comply with the Pharmacopoeia. These results highlight the presence of poor-quality amoxicillin formulations in Nairobi County, affirming the need for regular postmarket surveillance to inform on the situation of antibiotic quality in the Kenyan market

Constituents of the Roots and Leaves of Ekebergia capensis and Their Potential Antiplasmodial and Cytotoxic Activities

A new triterpenoid, 3-oxo-12β-hydroxy-oleanan-28,13β-olide (1), and six known triterpenoids 2–7 were isolated from the root bark of Ekebergia capensis, an African medicinal plant. A limonoid 8 and two glycoflavonoids 9–10 were found in its leaves. The metabolites were identified by NMR and MS analyses, and their cytotoxicity was evaluated against the mammalian African monkey kidney (vero), mouse breast cancer (4T1), human larynx carcinoma (HEp2) and human breast cancer (MDA-MB-231) cell lines. Out of the isolates, oleanonic acid (2) showed the highest cytotoxicity, i.e., IC50’s of 1.4 and 13.3 µM against the HEp2 and 4T1 cells, respectively. Motivated by the higher cytotoxicity of the crude bark extract as compared to the isolates, the interactions of oleanonic acid (2) with five triterpenoids 3–7 were evaluated on vero cells. In an antiplasmodial assay, seven of the metabolites were observed to possess moderate activity against the D6 and W2 strains of P. falciparum (IC50 27.1–97.1 µM), however with a low selectivity index (IC50(vero)/IC50(P. falciparum-D6) < 10). The observed moderate antiplasmodial activity may be due to general cytotoxicity of the isolated triterpenoids