Entomophagy — An evaluation of quality and acceptability of Raphia palm weevil larvae (Rhynchophorus phoenicis) as influenced by thermal processing methods

In this study, the quality and acceptability factor of Raphia palm weevil larvae (Rhynchophorus phoenicis) as influenced by different thermal processing methods were investigated. Raphia palm weevil larvae (n=1000) were randomly distributed into four groups of 250 larvae per group according to a treatment, namely: T1 = boiling (100 °C), T2 = roasting (120 °C) T3 = frying (160 °C) and T4 = oven-drying (180 °C). All treatments lasted 20 minutes. Analyses were carried out to determine the physical, chemical, vitamin and mineral composition, and microbial load. In addition, sensory characteristics were evaluated. Weevil larvae processed by the boiling method had the highest cooking yield (97.59%), water holding capacity (21.78%) and the lowest cooking loss (2.41%). The protein and fat content was higher in weevil larvae processed by frying (37.63% and 17.70%, respectively), while moisture was lowest (18.68%) in oven-dried larvae. The calcium, magnesium and phosphorus content was higher in oven-dried larvae, while there were no significant differences in iron, manganese, zinc and vitamins in the processed larvae irrespective of the methods. Boiled larvae had a higher microbial load, while fried and oven-dried larvae had the lowest microbial load. Fried larvae elicited highest sensory characteristics except tenderness, which was higher in boiled larvae, but fried larvae had higher overall acceptability than those processed by other methods. Therefore, it has been shown that the frying method is an appropriate method of processing Raphia palm weevil larvae for enhanced quality and acceptability.In this study, the quality and acceptability factor of Raphia palm weevil larvae (Rhynchophorus phoenicis) as influenced by different thermal processing methods were investigated. Raphia palm weevil larvae (n=1000) were randomly distributed into four groups of 250 larvae per group according to a treatment, namely: T1 = boiling (100 °C), T2 = roasting (120 °C) T3 = frying (160 °C) and T4 = oven-drying (180 °C). All treatments lasted 20 minutes. Analyses were carried out to determine the physical, chemical, vitamin and mineral composition, and microbial load. In addition, sensory characteristics were evaluated. Weevil larvae processed by the boiling method had the highest cooking yield (97.59%), water holding capacity (21.78%) and the lowest cooking loss (2.41%). The protein and fat content was higher in weevil larvae processed by frying (37.63% and 17.70%, respectively), while moisture was lowest (18.68%) in oven-dried larvae. The calcium, magnesium and phosphorus content was higher in oven-dried larvae, while there were no significant differences in iron, manganese, zinc and vitamins in the processed larvae irrespective of the methods. Boiled larvae had a higher microbial load, while fried and oven-dried larvae had the lowest microbial load. Fried larvae elicited highest sensory characteristics except tenderness, which was higher in boiled larvae, but fried larvae had higher overall acceptability than those processed by other methods. Therefore, it has been shown that the frying method is an appropriate method of processing Raphia palm weevil larvae for enhanced quality and acceptability

Preparation, analysis, and application of coated glass targets for the Wendelstein 7-X laser blow-off system

Coated glass targets are a key component of the Wendelstein 7-X laser blow-off system that is used for impurity transport studies. The preparation and analysis of these glass targets as well as their performance is examined in this paper. The glass targets have a high laser damage threshold and are coated via physical vapor deposition with μm thick films. In addition, nm-thin layers of Ti are used as an interface layer for improved ablation efficiency and reduced coating stress. Hence, the metallic or ceramic coating has a lateral homogeneity within 2% and contaminants less than 5%, being optimal for laser ablation processing. With this method, a short (few ms) and well defined pulse of impurities with about 1017 particles can be injected close to the last closed flux surface of Wendelstein 7-X. In particular, a significant amount of atoms with a velocity of about 1 km/s enters the plasma within 1 ms. The atoms are followed by a negligible concentration of slower clusters and macro-particles. This qualifies the use of the targets and applied laser settings for impurity transport studies with the laser blow-off system in Wendelstein 7-X. © 2020 Author(s)

Image overlay surgery based on augmented reality : a systematic review

Acknowledgements We thank the staff of the Medical Library of the University of Aberdeen for their advice and Prof. Jennifer Cleland and Dr Jenny Gregory for discussion and support. This work was funded by the Roland Sutton Academic Trust (0053/R/17) and an Elphinstone PhD Scholarship from the University of Aberdeen.Postprin

Mortality from gastrointestinal congenital anomalies at 264 hospitals in 74 low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries: a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study

Background: Congenital anomalies are the fifth leading cause of mortality in children younger than 5 years globally. Many gastrointestinal congenital anomalies are fatal without timely access to neonatal surgical care, but few studies have been done on these conditions in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). We compared outcomes of the seven most common gastrointestinal congenital anomalies in low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries globally, and identified factors associated with mortality. // Methods: We did a multicentre, international prospective cohort study of patients younger than 16 years, presenting to hospital for the first time with oesophageal atresia, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, intestinal atresia, gastroschisis, exomphalos, anorectal malformation, and Hirschsprung's disease. Recruitment was of consecutive patients for a minimum of 1 month between October, 2018, and April, 2019. We collected data on patient demographics, clinical status, interventions, and outcomes using the REDCap platform. Patients were followed up for 30 days after primary intervention, or 30 days after admission if they did not receive an intervention. The primary outcome was all-cause, in-hospital mortality for all conditions combined and each condition individually, stratified by country income status. We did a complete case analysis. // Findings: We included 3849 patients with 3975 study conditions (560 with oesophageal atresia, 448 with congenital diaphragmatic hernia, 681 with intestinal atresia, 453 with gastroschisis, 325 with exomphalos, 991 with anorectal malformation, and 517 with Hirschsprung's disease) from 264 hospitals (89 in high-income countries, 166 in middle-income countries, and nine in low-income countries) in 74 countries. Of the 3849 patients, 2231 (58·0%) were male. Median gestational age at birth was 38 weeks (IQR 36–39) and median bodyweight at presentation was 2·8 kg (2·3–3·3). Mortality among all patients was 37 (39·8%) of 93 in low-income countries, 583 (20·4%) of 2860 in middle-income countries, and 50 (5·6%) of 896 in high-income countries (p<0·0001 between all country income groups). Gastroschisis had the greatest difference in mortality between country income strata (nine [90·0%] of ten in low-income countries, 97 [31·9%] of 304 in middle-income countries, and two [1·4%] of 139 in high-income countries; p≤0·0001 between all country income groups). Factors significantly associated with higher mortality for all patients combined included country income status (low-income vs high-income countries, risk ratio 2·78 [95% CI 1·88–4·11], p<0·0001; middle-income vs high-income countries, 2·11 [1·59–2·79], p<0·0001), sepsis at presentation (1·20 [1·04–1·40], p=0·016), higher American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score at primary intervention (ASA 4–5 vs ASA 1–2, 1·82 [1·40–2·35], p<0·0001; ASA 3 vs ASA 1–2, 1·58, [1·30–1·92], p<0·0001]), surgical safety checklist not used (1·39 [1·02–1·90], p=0·035), and ventilation or parenteral nutrition unavailable when needed (ventilation 1·96, [1·41–2·71], p=0·0001; parenteral nutrition 1·35, [1·05–1·74], p=0·018). Administration of parenteral nutrition (0·61, [0·47–0·79], p=0·0002) and use of a peripherally inserted central catheter (0·65 [0·50–0·86], p=0·0024) or percutaneous central line (0·69 [0·48–1·00], p=0·049) were associated with lower mortality. // Interpretation: Unacceptable differences in mortality exist for gastrointestinal congenital anomalies between low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries. Improving access to quality neonatal surgical care in LMICs will be vital to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3.2 of ending preventable deaths in neonates and children younger than 5 years by 2030

Mortality from gastrointestinal congenital anomalies at 264 hospitals in 74 low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries: a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study

Summary Background Congenital anomalies are the fifth leading cause of mortality in children younger than 5 years globally. Many gastrointestinal congenital anomalies are fatal without timely access to neonatal surgical care, but few studies have been done on these conditions in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). We compared outcomes of the seven most common gastrointestinal congenital anomalies in low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries globally, and identified factors associated with mortality. Methods We did a multicentre, international prospective cohort study of patients younger than 16 years, presenting to hospital for the first time with oesophageal atresia, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, intestinal atresia, gastroschisis, exomphalos, anorectal malformation, and Hirschsprung’s disease. Recruitment was of consecutive patients for a minimum of 1 month between October, 2018, and April, 2019. We collected data on patient demographics, clinical status, interventions, and outcomes using the REDCap platform. Patients were followed up for 30 days after primary intervention, or 30 days after admission if they did not receive an intervention. The primary outcome was all-cause, in-hospital mortality for all conditions combined and each condition individually, stratified by country income status. We did a complete case analysis. Findings We included 3849 patients with 3975 study conditions (560 with oesophageal atresia, 448 with congenital diaphragmatic hernia, 681 with intestinal atresia, 453 with gastroschisis, 325 with exomphalos, 991 with anorectal malformation, and 517 with Hirschsprung’s disease) from 264 hospitals (89 in high-income countries, 166 in middleincome countries, and nine in low-income countries) in 74 countries. Of the 3849 patients, 2231 (58·0%) were male. Median gestational age at birth was 38 weeks (IQR 36–39) and median bodyweight at presentation was 2·8 kg (2·3–3·3). Mortality among all patients was 37 (39·8%) of 93 in low-income countries, 583 (20·4%) of 2860 in middle-income countries, and 50 (5·6%) of 896 in high-income countries (p<0·0001 between all country income groups). Gastroschisis had the greatest difference in mortality between country income strata (nine [90·0%] of ten in lowincome countries, 97 [31·9%] of 304 in middle-income countries, and two [1·4%] of 139 in high-income countries; p≤0·0001 between all country income groups). Factors significantly associated with higher mortality for all patients combined included country income status (low-income vs high-income countries, risk ratio 2·78 [95% CI 1·88–4·11], p<0·0001; middle-income vs high-income countries, 2·11 [1·59–2·79], p<0·0001), sepsis at presentation (1·20 [1·04–1·40], p=0·016), higher American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score at primary intervention (ASA 4–5 vs ASA 1–2, 1·82 [1·40–2·35], p<0·0001; ASA 3 vs ASA 1–2, 1·58, [1·30–1·92], p<0·0001]), surgical safety checklist not used (1·39 [1·02–1·90], p=0·035), and ventilation or parenteral nutrition unavailable when needed (ventilation 1·96, [1·41–2·71], p=0·0001; parenteral nutrition 1·35, [1·05–1·74], p=0·018). Administration of parenteral nutrition (0·61, [0·47–0·79], p=0·0002) and use of a peripherally inserted central catheter (0·65 [0·50–0·86], p=0·0024) or percutaneous central line (0·69 [0·48–1·00], p=0·049) were associated with lower mortality. Interpretation Unacceptable differences in mortality exist for gastrointestinal congenital anomalies between lowincome, middle-income, and high-income countries. Improving access to quality neonatal surgical care in LMICs will be vital to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3.2 of ending preventable deaths in neonates and children younger than 5 years by 2030

Use of human teardrop fluid for the determination of trace elements in healthy individuals and diabetic patients

The use of unconventional biological materials in human trace element studies has increased in terms of published research studies. The aim of present study was to develop and validate the use of teardrop fluid for determining trace element levels in the human body. No study has been published in this area yet. This is a new non-invasive approach in the possible early diagnosis of the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes.Human teardrop fluid samples were obtained from Karbala (Iraq) (n = 111) healthy individuals and with type 2 diabetes (n = 44); and London (UK) healthy individuals (n = 18). The levels of V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, As, Sr and Cd were determined using an inductively coupled plasma mass equipped with collision cell technology for polyatomic ion correction (ICP-MS).Discriminate function analysis (DFA) was carried out to determine the set of variables that discriminated between the trace elements in teardrop fluid samples from healthy individuals and diabetic patients.The trace element levels of human teardrop fluid are similar for many elements to that reported for human blood serum in the literature. This is interesting since they have different physiological functions, although overall they are mainly water containing electrolytes (∼ 90 %) and solids (antibodies, hormones, etc). In general, for the study groups in Karbala, Iraq, significantly higher teardrop fluid levels of Mn and Sr were found in type 2 diabetic patients when compared with healthy individuals (evaluated using an F-test and a two-tailed t-test). The levels of V, Cu and As were found to be significantly higher (P  0.05). Cr and Cd were found to have similar levels for both study groups. Significantly higher teardrop fluid levels of V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Zn, As and Sr were found in healthy individuals from Karbala (Iraq) when compared with those from London (UK). In contrast, the levels of Cd observed to be significantly higher in London (UK) than Karbala. No statistical difference was found for Cu between the two healthy groups.Discriminate analysis showed that human teardrop fluid V, Mn, Zn, As, Sr and Cd levels could be used to discriminate between healthy and type 2 diabetes study groups in Karbala, Iraq (83 % of cases correctly classified).The use of human teardrop fluid for determining the trace element levels of human health conditions has been evaluated. Trace elemental levels are like that for blood serum which is widely used as an invasive method for assessing human health conditions. Sample collection for teardrop fluid is non-invasive and the application has potential for determining the trace element levels in healthy individuals and disorder conditions (like type 2 diabetes) in countries where cultural and gender sensitivity are issues with respect to the collection methods used for other body fluid samples

Users’ demographics, perceived benefits and impacts of public library services in Ogun State, Nigeria

A public library is a library that is accessible by the general public and generally funded by the government through public sources such as taxes and levies. This study examined public library services in Ogun state from the perspective of identities of users, their perceived benefits, and impacts of the library on the socio-economic wellbeing of the users. The descriptive research method was employed and a questionnaire was used to gather data for the study. Three thousand copies of the questionnaire were administered in the four zones of the state where the library has headquarters and branches. Two thousand one hundred copies (70%) of the questionnaire completed, returned and found useful for the study. Findings revealed that majorities of public users are school leavers and graduates who are searching for information for personal and professional development in the area of sports, politics and economic affairs. The benefits and perceived impacts of using public library were also reported.Keywords: Public libraries, users, evaluation of public libraries, benefit