The Use of Lateritic Soils as a Cover Material in Municipal Solid Waste Landfills in Nigeria

Classification tests were undertaken on lateritic soils ( Soil A, Soil B, Soil C, Soil D) obtained from four borrow pits near the main waste dump being used for the disposal of municipal solid waste (MSW) produced by the residents of Ado Ekiti, Nigeria. Classification according to BS 5930 indicated the soils as clayey SAND (clay of intermediate plasticity). Using AASTHO classification system, Soil A and Soil C were classified as soil type A-2-6 and Soil B and Soil D were classified as soil type A-2-7. The effectiveness of different soil types used as cover material were rated and the different functions of the cover materials in a landfill were ranked according to their perceived importance. Overall rating of the performance of each soil as daily cover and as intermediate cover were obtained from the mathematical computation using the ranking and rating of each soil. The results show that the lateritic soils tested in this study are good as intermediate cover. Although the lateritic soils appear to be fair as a daily cover, it may be used if the clay content is excluded as much as possible. Keywords: daily cover, intermediate cover, lateritic soil, municipal solid waste landfill, rating, ranking

Efficacy of egg-yolk citrate extender fortified with aqueous garlic extract on rooster semen for artificial insemination

An experiment was designed to harness the potential of aqueous fresh and dried garlic extracts supplement in egg yolk extender for rooster semen to improve  fertility and hatchability of egg. Aqueous extract of fresh and dry garlic were  obtained and supplemented into egg yolk-citrate buffer at 0,1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7% for treatments 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8, respectively and unextended semen as control (T1) A total of 20 Marshal roosters and 160 hens of 40 weeks old were used for the experiment. The ejaculate pool of the marshal roosters was collected and pooled, divided into eight equal parts and randomly allotted to the treatment groups, the extenders were diluted with the semen in ratio 2:1 and evaluated for semen quality parameters. The hens were inseminated with the constituted extenders for three weeks and eggs were collected for the period of two weeks. The eggs were assessed for fertility and hatchability. The results obtained showed that livability of sperm cells and semen pH were not adversely affected by the treatments. The percentage sperm motility was high and within 80% to 100% in all aqueous dry garlic inclusive extended semen compare to aqueous fresh garlic extended semen which recorded 60% at 5% and 6% fresh garlic inclusion in egg yolk extender. The result of fertility of hens inseminated with egg yolk-aqueous dry garlic extracts extended semen showed that treatments 7 (5%) compare favourably with treatment 1 (unextended) with highest fertility percentage value of 80.0%. Aqueous fresh garlic extract  inclusions of 2% and 6% had apparently better percentage values compare to unextended treatment. Inclusion of aqueous fresh garlic extracts at 6% in egg-yolk extenders, and 5% inclusion of aqueous dry garlic extract to egg yolk extender are recommended as an extender in roosters' semen extension.Keywords: Egg-yolk citrate extender, aqueous garlic extract, rooster semen,artificial inseminatio

Apparent nutrient digesibility coefficient of sunflower and sesame seed meal in Clarias gariepinus (Burchell 1822) fingerlings

The apparent digestibility coefficient of raw sunflower (Helianthus annus). and sesame (Sesamum indicum) seedmeal by Clariid catfish (Clarias gariepinus) fingerlings was evaluated at 15,30 and 45% levels of replacement respectively using soybean meal based diets as control diet. There was significant difference (p0.05) in apparent lipid and fibre digestibilities of fish fed control diet and test diets RSF15 and RSM1

Haematological profile of blood of African catfish (Clarias gariepinus, Burchell 1822) fed sunflower and sesame meal based diets

The effect of substituting soybean meal with raw sunflower and sesame seed meal was evaluated using haematological indices of Clarias gariepinus fed the diets containing sunflower and sesame seed meal. Seven isonitrogeneous and isocaloric diets containing sunflower and sesame seed meal replacing soybean meal at a rate of 15, 30 and 45% were prepared. A diet without replacement of soybean meal served as control. The result of fish fed test diets showed significant (P0.05) in the fish fed control diet and test diets with respect to MCH, MCHC, ESr, Neutrophil, Monocytes, Eusinophils and Lymphocytes. Hence it can be concluded that the haemotological parameter of Clarias gariepinus is not significantly (P>0.05) changed with increase dietary inclusion of raw sunflower and sesame seed meal

Herbal effects of ginger in turkey poults

The study was conducted to investigate the effects of ginger supplementation on growth performance and serum biochemistry of turkey poults. A total of 96 two-weeks old American bronze turkey poults were randomly allocated into four dietary treatments. 24 poults per treatment replicated thrice with 8 turkey poults per replicate in a completely randomized design (CRD). The turkey poults were given a basal diet supplemented with 0, 0.2, 0.4 and 0.6% ginger powder during the 42days of the experiment. Growth performance and serum biochemistry were determined. The final liveweight, body weight gain and feed conversion ratio improved in treatment groups especially among turkey poults fed diet containing 0.6% of ginger powder. The supplementation of ginger powder at 0.6% reduced cholesterol, triglyceride, low density lipoprotein, ALT, AST values and increased the high density lipoprotein value. Supplementing turkey poults with ginger enhanced the growth performance and reduced the cholesterol profiles. It was obvious that birds on treatment 4 (0.6%) ginger inclusion increased final liveweight and improved the feed conversion ratio (FCR) of turkey poults. It is therefore concluded and recommended that the dietary inclusion of ginger powder meal at 0.6% levels in turkey poults should be adopted by animal nutritionist and farmers. Keywords: ginger, turkey poults, growth performance, serum biochemistr

Metabolic and oxidative stress markers of rabbit bucks at peak of heat stress in Southwest Nigeria

In this cross-sectional study, serum biochemical and oxidative stress indicators in rabbit bucks of different age groups were assessed at peak of heat stress in the tropical condition of South west Nigeria. This investigation was carried out between February and March, when highest temperature-humidity index (THI) is observed in the study location. Thirty-four (34) pubertal rabbit bucks between 4 and 5 months old, thirty-six (36) mature rabbit bucks between 7 and 9 months old and thirty-five (35) adult rabbit bucks above 1 year old were used in this study. Animals were housed individually and allotted randomly into experimental units using the Completely Randomised Design (CRD). After 9 weeks of exposure of the animals to the prevailing heat stress condition in the study area; blood was sampled from all the rabbit bucks through the ear vein into sample bottles for serum biochemical and oxidative status assay using standard procedures. The result revealed that serum glucose, magnesium and sodium in adult rabbit bucks was significantly (P<0.05) higher than those of pubertal and mature bucks. Serum lipid peroxidation of adult rabbit bucks was significantly (P<0.05) higher than mature bucks, while serum superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase and catalase activities of bucks were not significantly (p>0.05) affected by the differences in age. Total antioxidant capacity of adult and mature rabbit bucks was significantly (P<0.05) higher than pubertal bucks. The study concluded that at peak of heat stress, adult rabbit bucks are more sensitive to oxidative stress than mature and pubertal bucks. Efforts to combat heat stress in rabbits with antioxidant supplements should cut across three physiological age groups

A synthetic player for Ayὸ board game using alpha-beta search and learning vector quantization

Game playing especially, Ayὸ game has been an important topic of research in artificial intelligence and several machine learning approaches have been used, but the need to optimize computing resources is important to encourage the significant interest of users. This study presents a synthetic player (Ayὸ) implemented using Alpha-beta search and Learning Vector Quantization network. The program for the board game was written in Java and MATLAB. Evaluation of the synthetic player was carried out in terms of the win percentage and game length. The synthetic player had a better efficiency compared to the traditional Alpha-beta search algorithm

Health and Ecological Risks Associated with Heavy Metal Contamination in Surface Soils from Lagos Lagoon Wetlands, Lagos, Nigeria

Wetlands quality and spatial distribution are being threatened by anthropogenic drivers in addition to the emerging threats of climate change. In this study, selected heavy metals (Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn) in soils from Lagos lagoon wetlands were investigated to assess spatial distribution, ecological and health risks. The data obtained were subjected to statistical analysis using GraphPad 7.0 and SPSS 22.0. Spatial distribution mapping of heavy metals was performed using ArcGIS10.0 (ESRI, Redlands, CA, USA) with Kriging interpolation. Results showed that heavy metals in the soil varied significantly (p<0.05). The contamination factors (CF) were generally low with the values for Cr, Ni, Cu, and Zn very low (<1). The CF values for some of the sampling points showed that the soils are generally moderately contaminated by Pb, Cd and Cu. The modified degree of contamination of Pb (2.35) indicates a moderate degree of contamination while that of Cd (12.60) indicates a high degree of contamination of these wetland soils. The potential ecological risk index (RI) of Pb, Cd, Cr, Ni, Cu and Zn were 70.40, 2264.40, 0.68, 1.55, 13.65, and 2.29, respectively. The RI for Pb, Cr, Ni, Cu and Zn were less than 100, hence, low, while the RI value of Cd was a very high risk (RI ≥ 400). Soils from this wetland’s areas show serious significant potential ecological risk due to Cd. Additionally, children were more susceptible to the potential health risk irrespective of the carcinogenic or non – carcinogenic risk. There were no significant carcinogenic and non – carcinogenic risks for adults and children. This wetland assessment provided important information for policymaking to reduce the potential effects of soil contamination on humans and the eco-environment

Phyto-extraction ability of Digitaria exilis (Fonio) to heavy metals

Among the different contaminants in the environment, heavy metals are unique due to the fact that they cannot be broken down to non-toxic forms. The research was conducted to determine the remediation potential of Digitaria exilis and to identify the varieties that can tolerate heavy metals contamination. Soil was collected in an Automobile mechanic workshop, Government Reserved Area (GRA) Ado-Ekiti. Five kilograms (5 kg) of soils collected was air dried, sieved and filled into plastic buckets. The experiment was a completely randomized designed with three replicates. Three different accessions of Digitaria exilis namely; Jakah D Iburua (JAK), Dinat D Iburua (DID) and Jiw D Iburau (JIW) were planted. Soils were watered till field moisture capacity. Plant height was determined every two weeks after planting. Soil analysis was carried out to determine the physical and chemical properties before and after the experiment. Heavy metals including Cd, Fe, Zn, Pb, As and Cu were determined in the plant roots and shoots using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer (AAS). Accession JAK Bio-accumulated heavy-metals in their root than shoot, consequently, significant high plant height was recorded. However, shoot of accession JAK accumulated 22 % Pb, 46.78% Cu and 37.5% Cd and 20.3% Zn than others whereas accession DID accumulated As than accession JAK. Therefore, accession JAK demonstrated highest phyto-extraction of heavy-metals potentials at the root. Variety JIW has the lowest plant height, root and shoots heavy metals accumulation. Although heavy metals contaminated soil affected the growth of D. exilis, nevertheless accession JAK has the highest productivity under this condition and can be further recommended in phyto-extraction of heavy-metals in polluted sites.Keywords: Phyto-extraction, Digitaria exilis and Heavy-metal

Preliminary study on comparative morphometry of Cynothrissa mento (Regan, 1917) from Ologe, Badagry and Epe Lagoons, Lagos, Nigeria

The morphometric characters of Cynothrissa mento from three major Lagoons (Ologe, Badagry and Epe) in Lagos, Nigeria were compared to assess the possibility of this fish species from the three Lagoons belonging to the same sub-population. The length-weight relationships (LWR), and condition factors (CF) of the fish were also described as well as the physico-chemical parameters of the three water bodies. The study was conducted between May, 2009 and April, 2010 and monthly sampling of fish and water was done in each sampling site. Seven7 physico-chemical parameters were assessed and these are; temperature, pH, salinity, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, total alkalinity and total hardness. A total of 294 specimens (Ologe 60, Badagry 174 and Epe 60) of C. mento were collected from the landings of the local fisher folks from the sampling sites. Seven morphometric characters; total length (TL), standard length (SL), body depth (BD), head length (HL), head depth (HD), eye diameter (ED) and interorbital width (IW) were measured. There was no significant difference (p > 0.05) in all the physico-chemical parameters measured among the sampling sites except pH. Coefficient of difference revealed that the C. mento from the three lagoons are uniform in all the morphometric parameters examined, which means that the specimens from the three sampling sites do not belong to different sub-populations. The growth coefficient/slope (b) values obtained for the fish species from the sampling sites ranged from 2.27 - 2.53, and differed significantly (p < 0.05) from 3, which indicates that most of the fish species have negative algometric growth