Youth Migration and Agricultural Production: Analysis of Farming Communities of Osun State, Nigeria

The study investigated the causes and examined the effects of youth migration on agricultural production in Osun State, Nigeria. A two stage sampling produre was used to select 295 farmers in selected farming communities in the state. The mean age of the farmers was 49.67 ± 9.70 and 70.2 per cent were male while the mean years of formal education was 6.84 ± 0.73. Absence of social amenities, poverty and search for better education in the cities were the major causes of migration. Reduction in farm size, hired and family labour with negative consequence of food production were the predominant effects of youth migration on agricultural production. The findings also showed that agricultural production (r = -0.634; p ≤ 0.01) was negatively correlated with the effects of youth migration in Osun State. It is therefore, recommended that government and developmental stakeholders should ensure that social amenities are provided in farming communities of Nigeria in order to encourage youths retention in rural areas with the aim of enhancing rural and agricultural development in the State

Youth Migration and Agricultural Production: Analysis of Farming Communities of Osun State, Nigeria

The study investigated the causes and examined the effects of youth migration on agricultural production in Osun State, Nigeria. A two stage sampling produre was used to select 295 farmers in selected farming communities in the state. The mean age of the farmers was 49.67 ± 9.70 and 70.2 per cent were male while the mean years of formal education was 6.84 ± 0.73. Absence of social amenities, poverty and search for better education in the cities were the major causes of migration. Reduction in farm size, hired and family labour with negative consequence of food production were the predominant effects of youth migration on agricultural production. The findings also showed that agricultural production (r = -0.634; p ≤ 0.01) was negatively correlated with the effects of youth migration in Osun State. It is therefore, recommended that government and developmental stakeholders should ensure that social amenities are provided in farming communities of Nigeria in order to encourage youths retention in rural areas with the aim of enhancing rural and agricultural development in the State

HIV-1 recombinants with multiple parental strains in low-prevalence, remote regions of Cameroon: Evolutionary relics?

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The HIV pandemic disseminated globally from Central West Africa, beginning in the second half of the twentieth century. To elucidate the virologic origins of the pandemic, a cross-sectional study was conducted of the genetic diversity of HIV-1 strains in villagers in 14 remote locations in Cameroon and in hospitalized and STI patients. DNA extracted from PBMC was PCR amplified from HIV(+) subjects. Partial <it>pol </it>amplicons (N = 164) and nearly full virus genomes (N = 78) were sequenced. Among the 3956 rural villagers studied, the prevalence of HIV infection was 4.9%; among the hospitalized and clinic patients, it was 8.6%.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Virus genotypes fell into two distinctive groups. A majority of the genotyped strains (109/164) were the circulating recombinant form (CRF) known to be endemic in West Africa and Central West Africa, CRF02_AG. The second most common genetic form (9/164) was the recently described CRF22_01A1, and the rest were a collection of 4 different subtypes (A2, D, F2, G) and 6 different CRFs (-01, -11, -13, -18, -25, -37). Remarkably, 10.4% of HIV-1 genomes detected (17/164) were heretofore undescribed unique recombinant forms (URF) present in only a single person. Nearly full genome sequencing was completed for 78 of the viruses of interest. HIV genetic diversity was commonplace in rural villages: 12 villages each had at least one newly detected URF, and 9 villages had two or more.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>These results show that while CRF02_AG dominated the HIV strains in the rural villages, the remainder of the viruses had tremendous genetic diversity. Between the trans-species transmission of SIV_cpzand the dispersal of pandemic HIV-1, there was a time when we hypothesize that nascent HIV-1 was spreading, but only to a limited extent, recombining with other local HIV-1, creating a large variety of recombinants. When one of those recombinants began to spread widely (i.e. became epidemic), it was recognized as a subtype. We hypothesize that the viruses in these remote Cameroon villages may represent that pre-epidemic stage of viral evolution.</p

Traditional Medicine: Past, present and future research and development prospects and integration in the National Health System of Cameroon

Traditional medicine refers to health practices, approaches, knowledge and beliefs incorporating plant, animal and mineral based medicines, spiritual therapies, manual techniques and exercises, applied singularly or in combination to treat, diagnose and prevent illnesses or maintain well-being. In the last decade traditional medicine has become very popular in Cameroon, partly due to the long unsustainable economic situation in the country. The high cost of drugs and increase in drug resistance to common diseases like malaria, bacteria infections and other sexually transmitted diseases has caused the therapeutic approach to alternative traditional medicine as an option for concerted search for new chemical entities (NCE). The World Health Organisation (WHO) in collaboration with the Cameroon Government has put in place a strategic platform for the practice and development of TM in Cameroon. This platform aims at harmonizing the traditional medicine practice in the country, create a synergy between TM and modern medicine and to institutionalize a more harmonized integrated TM practices by the year 2012 in Cameroon. An overview of the practice of TM past, present and future perspectives that underpins the role in sustainable poverty alleviation has been discussed. This study gives an insight into the  strategic plan and road map set up by the Government of Cameroon for the organisational framework and research platform for the practice and development of TM, and the global partnership involving the management of TM in the country.Key words: Tradttional medicine, Cameroon

Exposure to Nonhuman Primates in Rural Cameroon

A high percentage of rural villagers are exposed to blood of nonhuman primates and risk acquiring infectious diseases

TRADITIONAL MEDICINE: PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROSPECTS AND INTEGRATION IN THE NATIONAL HEALTH SYSTEM OF CAMEROON.

Traditional medicine refers to health practices, approaches, knowledge and beliefs incorporating plant, animal and mineral based medicines, spiritual therapies, manual techniques and exercises, applied singularly or in combination to treat, diagnose and prevent illnesses or maintain well-being. In the last decade traditional medicine has become very popular in Cameroon, partly due to the long unsustainable economic situation in the country. The high cost of drugs and increase in drug resistance to common diseases like malaria, bacteria infections and other sexually transmitted diseases has caused the therapeutic approach to alternative traditional medicine as an option for concerted search for new chemical entities (NCE). The World Health Organisation (WHO) in collaboration with the Cameroon Government has put in place a strategic platform for the practice and development of TM in Cameroon. This platform aims at harmonizing the traditional medicine practice in the country, create a synergy between TM and modern medicine and to institutionalize a more harmonized integrated TM practices by the year 2012 in Cameroon. An overview of the practice of TM past, present and future perspectives that underpins the role in sustainable poverty alleviation has been discussed. This study gives an insight into the strategic plan and road map set up by the Government of Cameroon for the organisational framework and research platform for the practice and development of TM, and the global partnership involving the management of TM in the country

TRIM5α Modulates Immunodeficiency Virus Control in Rhesus Monkeys

The cytoplasmic TRIM5α proteins of certain mammalian lineages efficiently recognize the incoming capsids of particular retroviruses and potently restrict infection in a species-specific manner. Successful retroviruses have evolved capsids that are less efficiently recognized by the TRIM5α proteins of the natural hosts. To address whether TRIM5α contributes to the outcome of retroviral infection in a susceptible host species, we investigated the impact of TRIM5 polymorphisms in rhesus monkeys on the course of a simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) infection. Full-length TRIM5α cDNAs were derived from each of 79 outbred monkeys and sequenced. Associations were explored between the expression of particular TRIM5 alleles and both the permissiveness of cells to SIV infection in vitro and clinical sequelae of SIV infection in vivo. Natural variation in the TRIM5α B30.2(SPRY) domain influenced the efficiency of SIVmac capsid binding and the in vitro susceptibility of cells from the monkeys to SIVmac infection. We also show the importance in vivo of the interaction of SIVmac with different allelic forms of TRIM5, demonstrating that particular alleles are associated with as much as 1.3 median log difference in set-point viral loads in SIVmac-infected rhesus monkeys. Moreover, these allelic forms of TRIM5 were associated with the extent of loss of central memory (CM) CD4+ T cells and the rate of progression to AIDS in the infected monkeys. These findings demonstrate a central role for TRIM5α in limiting the replication of an immunodeficiency virus infection in a primate host

ASSESSMENT OF RURAL YOUTH INVOLVEMENT IN THE USAGE OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES (ICTs) AMONG FARMERS’ IN OSUN STATE, NIGERIA

This study assessed rural youth involvement in the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in agriculture in Osun State, Nigeria. Specifically, it examined awareness and analysed attitude of rural youths in the use of ICTs to disseminate agricultural information. A multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select one hundred and twenty respondents for the study. The data were collected using structured interview schedule and analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The mean age of respondents was 18.0 years. Also, 71.7 percent of the respondents scored high in ICTs awareness in relation to agriculture. Telephone (56.0%) was commonly used as a mean of passing agricultural information among the youths and the level of computer/literacy was slightly above average (58.3). Result of the correlation analysis shows that there was a positive and significant relationship (r = 0.481; p > 0.05) between the awareness of the usage of ICTs in agriculture and their attitude toward the use of ICTs. The study therefore concluded among others, that rigorous awareness on the inportance of ICTs in farming should be created among youths in Osun State in order enhance and bring about positive solutions to agricultural development stakeholders efforts in combating food insecurity in Nigeria

Deforestation, hunting and the ecology of microbial emergence

Understanding how novel microbes enter into the human population is perhaps the fundamental goal of the study of emerging infectious diseases (EID). The frequency at which microbes will emerge is determined by the diversity of microbes present in the environment, the level of contact between a potential host and this microbial diversity and the susceptibility of the novel host to infection. While a range of microbial media exist, including soils, plants and animals, the greatest emergence risks come through contact with media, such as wild vertebrates, that share susceptibility characteristics with humans and live in regions of high microbial diversity. Lowland tropical forests provide a rich environment for emergence due to their combination of high vertebrate and microbial biodiversity. Human activities that occur in lowland tropical forests, such as ecotourism, logging, and the hunting of wild vertebrates have the potential to increase the frequency of microbial emergence. Of these and other activities considered, hunting and the processing of bushmeat, particularly from nonhuman primates, involve the greatest level of risk for the transmission of microbes. While human hunting in lowland tropical forests poses a serious threat for microbial emergence, it is by no means alone among contemporary human behaviors in doing so, sharing risk characteristics with activities as diverse as lab microbiology, wildlife veterinary work, and modern food production practices