Timely and reliable packets delivery over Internet of Vehicles (IoVs) for road accidents prevention: a cross-layer approach

With the envisioned era of Internet of Things (IoTs), all aspects of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) will be connected to improve transport safety, relieve traffic congestion, reduce air pollution, enhance the comfort of transportation and significantly reduce road accidents. In IoVs, regular exchange of current position, direction, velocity, etc., enables mobile vehicles to predict an upcoming accident and alert the human drivers in time or proactively take precautionary actions to avoid the accident. The actualization of this concept requires the use of channel access protocols that can guarantee reliable and timely broadcast of safety messages. This paper investigates the application of network coding concept to increase content of every transmission and achieve improved broadcast reliability with less number of retransmission. In particular, we proposed Code Aided Retransmission-based Error Recovery (CARER) scheme, introduced an RTB/CTB handshake to overcome hidden node problem and reduce packets collision rate. In order to avoid broadcast storm problem associated with the use of RTB/CTB packet in a broadcast transmission, we developed a rebroadcasting metric used to successfully select a vehicle to rebroadcast the encoded message. The performance of CARER protocol is clearly shown with detailed theoretical analysis and further validated with simulation experiments

Childhood and Adult Asthma: Phenotype- and Endotype-Based Biomarkers

The concept of asthma has changed from that of a single disease entity to that of a heterogeneous disease comprising several phenotypes linked to specific endotypes. Recently, significant progress has been made in disease classification into phenotypes and biologically distinct variants (endotypes). Classification of patients into endotypes has led to precision medicine in which specific biomarkers and appropriate individualized treatments have now been identified. Despite the ongoing classification of disease endotypes, the presence or absence of a T-helper 2 (Th2) molecular signature has resulted in the association of asthma endotypes with phenotypes so as to establish responders and non-responders to inhaled corticosteroid therapy. More importantly, biologic therapies predicated on disease endotypes may in future constitute a paradigm shift from the traditional pharmacologic treatments and lead to better prognosis in moderate-to-severe forms of the disease (in which they are presently used). This book chapter aims to discuss the current concepts on asthma classification and biomarker-based diagnosis

MANAGERIAL COMPETENCIES REQUIRED OF BUSINESS EDUCATION GRADUATES FOR HANDLING ENTREPRENEURSHIP CHALLENGES IN ANAMBRA STATE, NIGERIA

This study determined the managerial competencies required of business education graduates for handling entrepreneurship challenges in Anambra State. Two research questions guided the study. Four null hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance. Related literature pertinent to the study were reviewed which exposed the need for the study. Descriptive survey research design was adopted, using a population of 1124 entrepreneurs of small and medium scale enterprises. Stratified random sampling technique was used to select a sample size of 338. A structured questionnaire developed by the researcher was used for data collection. Cronbach Alpha method was used to establish the reliability of the instrument. The reliability yielded coefficient values of .91 and .85. Data collected were analyzed using mean, standard deviation, t-test and ANOVA. Mean was used to answer the research questions and standard deviation was used to explain how the responses of the respondents varied. ANOVA and t-test were used to test the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The results showed that entrepreneurs of SMEs agreed that innovative and ICT competencies are required by business education graduates for handling entrepreneurship challenges in Anambra State. The results also showed that there was no significant difference in the mean ratings of entrepreneurs on innovative and ICT competencies required of business education graduates based on gender and years of experience. Based on the findings, the researcher recommended among others, that the management of tertiary educational institutions through the centre for entrepreneurship development should work in collaboration with the existing entrepreneurs/ business organizations around them in providing entrepreneurship training to students in order to enable students develop self-employment initiatives through the programme.  Article visualizations

Advances in Vehicular Ad-hoc Networks (VANETs): challenges and road-map for future development

Recent advances in wireless communication technologies and auto-mobile industry have triggered a significant research interest in the field of vehicular ad-hoc networks (VANETs) over the past few years. A vehicular network consists of vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications supported by wireless access technologies such as IEEE 802.11p. This innovation in wireless communication has been envisaged to improve road safety and motor traffic efficiency in near future through the development of intelligent transportation system (ITS). Hence, governments, auto-mobile industries and academia are heavily partnering through several ongoing research projects to establish standards for VANETs. The typical set of VANET application areas, such as vehicle collision warning and traffic information dissemination have made VANET an interesting field of mobile wireless communication. This paper provides an overview on current research state, challenges, potentials of VANETs as well as the ways forward to achieving the long awaited ITS

Adding 6 months of androgen deprivation therapy to postoperative radiotherapy for prostate cancer: a comparison of short-course versus no androgen deprivation therapy in the RADICALS-HD randomised controlled trial

Background Previous evidence indicates that adjuvant, short-course androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) improves metastasis-free survival when given with primary radiotherapy for intermediate-risk and high-risk localised prostate cancer. However, the value of ADT with postoperative radiotherapy after radical prostatectomy is unclear. Methods RADICALS-HD was an international randomised controlled trial to test the efficacy of ADT used in combination with postoperative radiotherapy for prostate cancer. Key eligibility criteria were indication for radiotherapy after radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer, prostate-specific antigen less than 5 ng/mL, absence of metastatic disease, and written consent. Participants were randomly assigned (1:1) to radiotherapy alone (no ADT) or radiotherapy with 6 months of ADT (short-course ADT), using monthly subcutaneous gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogue injections, daily oral bicalutamide monotherapy 150 mg, or monthly subcutaneous degarelix. Randomisation was done centrally through minimisation with a random element, stratified by Gleason score, positive margins, radiotherapy timing, planned radiotherapy schedule, and planned type of ADT, in a computerised system. The allocated treatment was not masked. The primary outcome measure was metastasis-free survival, defined as distant metastasis arising from prostate cancer or death from any cause. Standard survival analysis methods were used, accounting for randomisation stratification factors. The trial had 80% power with two-sided α of 5% to detect an absolute increase in 10-year metastasis-free survival from 80% to 86% (hazard ratio [HR] 0·67). Analyses followed the intention-to-treat principle. The trial is registered with the ISRCTN registry, ISRCTN40814031, and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT00541047. Findings Between Nov 22, 2007, and June 29, 2015, 1480 patients (median age 66 years [IQR 61–69]) were randomly assigned to receive no ADT (n=737) or short-course ADT (n=743) in addition to postoperative radiotherapy at 121 centres in Canada, Denmark, Ireland, and the UK. With a median follow-up of 9·0 years (IQR 7·1–10·1), metastasis-free survival events were reported for 268 participants (142 in the no ADT group and 126 in the short-course ADT group; HR 0·886 [95% CI 0·688–1·140], p=0·35). 10-year metastasis-free survival was 79·2% (95% CI 75·4–82·5) in the no ADT group and 80·4% (76·6–83·6) in the short-course ADT group. Toxicity of grade 3 or higher was reported for 121 (17%) of 737 participants in the no ADT group and 100 (14%) of 743 in the short-course ADT group (p=0·15), with no treatment-related deaths. Interpretation Metastatic disease is uncommon following postoperative bed radiotherapy after radical prostatectomy. Adding 6 months of ADT to this radiotherapy did not improve metastasis-free survival compared with no ADT. These findings do not support the use of short-course ADT with postoperative radiotherapy in this patient population

Duration of androgen deprivation therapy with postoperative radiotherapy for prostate cancer: a comparison of long-course versus short-course androgen deprivation therapy in the RADICALS-HD randomised trial

Background Previous evidence supports androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) with primary radiotherapy as initial treatment for intermediate-risk and high-risk localised prostate cancer. However, the use and optimal duration of ADT with postoperative radiotherapy after radical prostatectomy remains uncertain. Methods RADICALS-HD was a randomised controlled trial of ADT duration within the RADICALS protocol. Here, we report on the comparison of short-course versus long-course ADT. Key eligibility criteria were indication for radiotherapy after previous radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer, prostate-specific antigen less than 5 ng/mL, absence of metastatic disease, and written consent. Participants were randomly assigned (1:1) to add 6 months of ADT (short-course ADT) or 24 months of ADT (long-course ADT) to radiotherapy, using subcutaneous gonadotrophin-releasing hormone analogue (monthly in the short-course ADT group and 3-monthly in the long-course ADT group), daily oral bicalutamide monotherapy 150 mg, or monthly subcutaneous degarelix. Randomisation was done centrally through minimisation with a random element, stratified by Gleason score, positive margins, radiotherapy timing, planned radiotherapy schedule, and planned type of ADT, in a computerised system. The allocated treatment was not masked. The primary outcome measure was metastasis-free survival, defined as metastasis arising from prostate cancer or death from any cause. The comparison had more than 80% power with two-sided α of 5% to detect an absolute increase in 10-year metastasis-free survival from 75% to 81% (hazard ratio [HR] 0·72). Standard time-to-event analyses were used. Analyses followed intention-to-treat principle. The trial is registered with the ISRCTN registry, ISRCTN40814031, and ClinicalTrials.gov , NCT00541047 . Findings Between Jan 30, 2008, and July 7, 2015, 1523 patients (median age 65 years, IQR 60–69) were randomly assigned to receive short-course ADT (n=761) or long-course ADT (n=762) in addition to postoperative radiotherapy at 138 centres in Canada, Denmark, Ireland, and the UK. With a median follow-up of 8·9 years (7·0–10·0), 313 metastasis-free survival events were reported overall (174 in the short-course ADT group and 139 in the long-course ADT group; HR 0·773 [95% CI 0·612–0·975]; p=0·029). 10-year metastasis-free survival was 71·9% (95% CI 67·6–75·7) in the short-course ADT group and 78·1% (74·2–81·5) in the long-course ADT group. Toxicity of grade 3 or higher was reported for 105 (14%) of 753 participants in the short-course ADT group and 142 (19%) of 757 participants in the long-course ADT group (p=0·025), with no treatment-related deaths. Interpretation Compared with adding 6 months of ADT, adding 24 months of ADT improved metastasis-free survival in people receiving postoperative radiotherapy. For individuals who can accept the additional duration of adverse effects, long-course ADT should be offered with postoperative radiotherapy. Funding Cancer Research UK, UK Research and Innovation (formerly Medical Research Council), and Canadian Cancer Society

Socio-demographic characteristics of children and young adults with varied asthma control- does it make a difference?

Background The socioeconomic status and caregiver perception of asthma as a disease, the availability of specialty care and medication adherence have major influence on outcome of asthma control in children with asthma. The control of asthma therefore depends on the optimizing the interplay of these factors taking into consideration the regional and racial variations.ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to evaluate the association between socio-demographic factors and asthma control outcome in children with asthma.Materials and MethodsThis was a cross-sectional study involving 66 consecutively enrolled participants with asthma whose economic burden for asthma was assessed in a previous study. Based on the number of registered children attending the clinic, a minimum sample size of 66 calculated for this study was obtained.The participants were consenting children and young adults between the ages of 1 and 20 years. Using standard methods, data on socio-economic status, personal and family demographics, including household number, mothers’ educational attainments and employment status; and asthma control were collected and analyzed. Asthma control was assessed using Asthma control test (ACT) and guided by the original developers scoring, participants were grouped into well controlled, partly controlled and uncontrolled. The Chi-square test was used to test for association between participants’ socio-demographic characteristics (age, socioeconomic status, mothers’ education and employment, and number of children in the household) and asthma control status at 5% level of significance. ResultsOf all study participants, 34 (51.55%) were male, with mean age (SD) of 11.6 (4.8) years. The mean (SD) age at initial asthma diagnosis was 6.2 (4.6) years. The majority 49(76.5%) of the mothers had tertiary education. Study participants belonging to the poorest; very poor; poor; and least poor socio-economic cadres were, 16 (24.2%); 17 (25.8%); 17 (25.8%); and 16 (24.2%) respectively. Asthma control classification showed that, 26 (39.4%); 31 (47%) and 9 (13.6%) participants had well controlled asthma, partially controlled asthma and uncontrolled asthma respectively. The factors like age, socioeconomic status, mothers ‘educational level, employment status and number of children in the household did not show any statistically significant association with the asthma control status of participants.Conclusions Asthma control outcome remains multifactorial as participants’ socio-demographic characteristics did not impact on the level of control of asthma, among participants in the south eastern parts of Nigeria, despite being in a LMIC. A larger study is recommended to further explore this

Phytochemical, Anti-inflammatory, Antioxidant, Toxicity and Antimicrobial Activities of Sarcophrynium brachystachys (Benth) K. Shum Leaves

Communication in Physical Sciences, 2024, 11(2): 316-331 Authors: Joy N. Egbucha1, Eze C. Victor, Nlemchukwu  N.C. Benjamin1, Obikee M. Caroline, Joseph N. Aniezi and  Ifeanyi E. Otuokere Received: 06 March 2024/Accepted: 03 May 2024 This study investigates the phytochemical composition and pharmacological properties of Sarcophrynium brachystachys leaf extract. The extract was obtained through ethanol percolation and subjected to qualitative and quantitative phytochemical analyses, revealing significant amounts of flavonoids (5.51 mg/100 g), alkaloids (6.68 mg/100 g), and saponins (4.28 mg/100 g). Antibacterial screening against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa demonstrated notable inhibitory effects, particularly with the methanol fraction showing zones of inhibition ranging from 12±1.03 mm to 15±1.23 mm. Acute toxicity evaluation revealed no mortalities across all dose groups, indicating a favorable safety profile. Anti-inflammatory assessment exhibited dose-dependent reductions in paw circumference post-induction, with percentage inhibition ranging from 34.07% to 40.98% compared to aspirin (56.92%). Furthermore, in vitro antioxidant assays demonstrated dose-dependent scavenging activity against DPPH radicals (18.90% to 73.74%), nitric oxide radicals (13.10% to 73.16%), and ferric ions (3.91% to 53.92%). These findings underscore the therapeutic potential of S. brachystachys leaf extract as a source of natural bioactive compounds with antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties, warranting further investigation for pharmaceutical applications

Investigating barriers and challenges to the integrated management of neglected tropical skin diseases in an endemic setting in Nigeria.

BACKGROUND:There is a dearth of experience in and evidence for cost-effective integrated community-based management of skin neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). The objective of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitude and care-seeking practices including self-care with a view to introducing appropriate community-based interventions for skin NTDs in an endemic setting in Southern Nigeria. METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:This exploratory study adopted a mixed-methods design consisting of cross-sectional surveys of community members and health workers using interviewer-administered questionnaires; and focus group discussions (FGDs) with community members, health care workers and patients with NTDs in Anambra State, Nigeria. The survey was completed by 353 community members (61.8% female) and 15 health care workers (100.0% female). A total of 52 individuals participated in six FGDs. Of the community members, 236 (66.9%) had heard or seen a case of leprosy; 324 (91.8%) and 131 (37.5%) had heard or seen a case of Buruli ulcer and lymphatic filariasis, respectively. Again, 213 (60.3%) of the respondents reported that the diseases were caused by witchcraft or curse. As regards prevention, 241 (68.3%) suggested avoiding handshake with affected persons. Up to 223 (63.2%) of respondents strongly agreed to the seriousness of skin NTDs in their community. Meanwhile, 272 (77.1%) of the respondents believed that the transmission of these skin NTDs can be prevented. Furthermore, 324 (91.7%) desired active community engagement for control of skin NTDs. Regarding community care seeking practices, 197 (55.8%) would first visit the health centre/hospital, followed by 91 (25.8%) traditional healer/herbalist and 35 (9.9%) pharmacy/patent medicine vendor if they develop a skin NTD. Overall, 332 (94.1%) of respondents expressed interest in being taught self-care practices for skin NTDs. Out of 15 healthcare workers, 13 (86.7%) were able to correctly diagnose two of these skin NTDs and 10 (66.7%) would encourage patients to practice self-care. Prominent themes in the FGDs were belief in witchcraft and herbal remedies; as well as the occurrence of physical, social and economic distress. CONCLUSIONS:Our study helped quantify the information gaps that need to be addressed in order to create demand for integrated skin NTDs services in an endemic setting in Nigeria. Individual, structural and socioeconomic challenges to access and delivery of services were identified. Community and health care workers' empowerment and engagement through outreach and regular training, respectively may alleviate these challenges

Unrecognized respiratory morbidity among adolescents and young adults in Nigeria: Implications for future health outcomes

Background: Lung function impairment is a major determinant of morbidity and mortality. Unrecognized respiratory morbidity may be a missed opportunity to improve future health outcomes. Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of respiratory symptoms and the relationship to spirometry abnormalities and respiratory diagnosis among medical students in Lagos, Nigeria. Methods: This was a cross‑sectional study among students aged 16–35 years. We assessed frequency of respiratory symptoms, previous respiratory diagnosis, and spirometry abnormalities. The relationship between respiratory symptoms, spirometry pattern, and previous respiratory diagnosis was determined using the Chi‑square test and stepwise forward logistic regression analysis. Results: Of 640 participants, 464 (72.5%) performed good quality spirometry tests. Two hundred and forty‑four (52.6%) had at least one respiratory symptom. Preexisting conditions were only identified in 60 (12.9%): 49 (7.7%) asthma, 29 (4.5%) allergic rhinitis, 16 (2.5%) treated tuberculosis, and 8 (1.3%) bronchitis/chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Using the Global Lung Function Initiative (GLI) lung function predicted values, obstructive (8.4%) and restrictive abnormalities (25.4%) were common. An obstructive pattern was associated with previous diagnosis of asthma, but there was no significant association for the restrictive spirometry pattern. Conclusions: Among otherwise healthy students, respiratory symptoms and lung function abnormalities are common. The vast majority are without a formal diagnosis. Asthma accounted for the majority of obstructive spirometry pattern seen, but the restrictive abnormalities based on GLI equations remain unexplained. Further research is required to determine the cause of these abnormalities and long‑term implications in apparently healthy young individuals