424 research outputs found
Amino acid profile of four earthworms species from Nigeria
The amino acid profile of four species of earthworms from Nigeria namely Eudrilus eugeniae,
Hyperiodrilus africanus, Alma millsoni and Libyodrilus violaceus were evaluated in this study. The
amino acid analysis was conducted using the High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC)
specifically the Technichon TSM-1 (technosequential multisample) analyser for amino acid. Nine essential
namely Lysine, Histidine, Arginine, Threonine, Valine, Methionine, Isoleucine, Leucine and
Phebylalanine and eight non-essential amino acids namely Aspartic acid, Serine, Glutamic
acid, Proline, Glycine, Alanine, Cystine and Tyrosine were recorded in this study. Cystine with
a range of 0.64-0.80 g/100kg protein had the least concentration while Glutamic acid with a
range of 11.50-13.22 g/100kg protein was the highest. Lysine and methionine, which were
limiting amino acids in most feedstuffs, were present in all the earthworm species and ranges
from 4.95-5.70 g/100g protein for lysine and 2.08-2.30 g/100g protein for methionin
Macromineral Profile of Four Species of Earthworm Hyperiodrilus africanus, Eudrilus eugeniae, Libyodrilus violaceus and Alma millsoni from Nigeria
The macro mineral profile of four Nigerian species of earthworm; Hyperiodrilus africanus, Eudrilus
eugeniae, Libyodrilus violaceus and Alma millsoni was conducted. using the atomic absorption
spectrophotometer. Five macro minerals calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium and phosphorus were
determined. Comparatively H. africanus recorded the highest mean Ca (0.494 ±0.038%) while A. millsoni
recorded the lowest (0.318±0.034%). Hyperiodrilus africanus also recorded the highest mean Mg
(0.154±0.015%) whereas L. violaceus recorded the lowest (0.118±0.017%). Alma millsoni recorded the highest
mean K (0.045±0.003% ) whereas H. africanus recorded the lowest (0.027±0.002%). The highest mean Na
(74.209±13.699 ppm) was recorded by A. millsoni while the lowest (19.813±2.087 ppm) was recorded by
H. africanus. Also A. millsoni recorded the highest mean P (0.701±0.022%) while H.africanus recorded the
lowest (0.456±0.034%). A significant difference was observed in the mean % Ca, % M g, % K, ppmNa and %
P between the four species of earthworms (p<0.01). The study revealed that these five macro minerals which
are requirements of animals w ere well represented and adequate in the earthworms. Therefore, the use of meal
prepared from these species as mineral supplement in fish diets could be encouraged
Knowledge, Practice and Willingness to Participate in Community Health Insurance Scheme among Households in Nigerian Capital City
Background: Health insurance is a social security system that guarantees the provision of needed health services to persons on the payment of token contributions at regular intervals. The objective of the survey was to determine knowledge, practice and willingness of households in Nigerian Capital City to pay and participate in Community Health Insurance Scheme.Materials and Methods: This descriptive and analytical cross-sectional study was carried out using the multistage cluster sampling technique to obtain data from 300 selected household heads or main financial decision makers. The data was analyzed using EPI-INFO software package. Statistical significance of p < 0.05 and confidence limit of 95% was used.Results: The major findings showed that the level of awareness (13%) concerning Community Health Insurance (CHI) was found to be very low among the respondents. The general principles of CHI were also poorly understood by the respondents. Attitude to the programme was positive as many showed interest in participating and enrolling themselves (97.0%), some family members (96.3%) and entire family members (90.3%). Borrowing money to settle medical bills in this study has occurred in 30% of instances. Majority of respondents were willing to pay premiums ranging from N450 (96.6%) to N1200 (72.5%) for simple packages that do not include surgery and hospitalization.Conclusions: The community members were willing to participate and enrol if the programme is brought to them. There is a need to adequately subsidize the premiums that respondents were willing to pay in order to meet up with the cost of treatment.Key Words: Willingness, Participate, Community Health Insurance
Partial replacement of fish meal by earthworm meal (Libyodrilus violaceus) in diets for African catfish, Clarias gariepinus
A seven-week feeding trial was conducted to examine the possibility of replacing fish meal with
earthworm meal in the diets of the African catfish, Clarias gariepinus fry. Fish meal protein was
replaced by earthworm meal at 0% (D0); 15% (D15); 25% (D25); 35% (D35); and 50% (D50). The diets
were isonitrogenous (54%) and fed thrice daily to triplicate groups of African catfish fry at 5% body
weight. Diet had a significant effect on growth performance and feed utilization (pâ€0.05). Final
weight, weight gain, daily weight gain, and specific growth rate, were highest in fish fed diet D25. A
similar pattern of growth was observed for length measurements. Fish fed diets exceeding 25%
replacement of fish meal with earthworm meal had depressed growth. Feed conversion ratio was
highest in fish fed D35. Mortality was not dependent on diet. It is concluded that fish meal can be
substituted with earthworm meal up to 25% in the diet of C. gariepinus fry without adverse effects on
growth and nutrient utilizatio
Appraisal of Natural Durability of a Lesser â Known Boscia anguistifolia (A. Rich) Wood Using Ground Contact Test
The optimal utilization of lesser-known wood species is dependent on their natural durability. In this study, the natural durability of a lesser-known wood species (Boscia anguistifolia) using ground contact test was carried out. Wood blocks of Boscia anguistifolia and Ceiba petandra (reference species) with dimensions of 20 x 20 x 300 mm were obtained from the axial and radial direction of the trees. The wood blocks were conditioned and their moisture content determined before exposure to ground contact for 12 weeks after which their weight loss was determined. Data obtained were analysed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) at 0.05 probability level. The moisture content of B. anguistifolia and C. petandra ranged from 12.80 â 18.02 % and 12.73- 16.63%, respectively while the weight loss of B. anguistifolia and C. petandra ranged from 5.10 â 69.11% and 37 â 50 % respectively along the axial position. It was observed that the core wood in the base portion of B. anguistifolia has the lowest weight loss value of 5.10% while the reference species has a value of 39.73%. Conclusively, B. anguistifolia is moderately durable at the base part of the species when compared with the reference non-durable species used in this study
Compressive Strength of a Prescribed Control Mix for High Performance Self-Compacting Concrete
Building Innovative Online Korean and Japanese Courses: A Pilot on Technology- Enhanced Curriculum Development
Our pilot project created blended/online courses to accommodate the growing needs of precollegiate and collegiate students interested in learning Korean and Japanese. In the initial phase, we conducted a survey of studentsâ experiences with and perceptions about blended/online Asian language learning. We found a general lack of familiarity with, and moderate resistance toward, online language learning modes. With learner attitudes in mind, we developed online modules for beginning Korean and Japanese courses. In this article, we report the survey results and the process of developing these innovative blended and online modalities of content delivery, focusing on the strengths of the modules and the unforeseen development challenges. The impacts that these technology-enhanced environments may have on student perceptions of transactional distance and tele-/copresence are explored. We suggest that transforming conventional East Asian language courses into blended/online modes is not only feasible but also beneficial for foreign language teaching and learning
Adsorption mechanism and modeling of radionuclides and heavy metals onto ZnO nanoparticles: a review
Abstract
The contamination of environmental waters with heavy metals and radionuclides is increasing because of rapid industrial and population growth. The removal of these contaminants from water via adsorption onto metal nanoparticles is an efficient and promising technique to abate the toxic effects associated with these pollutants. Among metal nanoparticle adsorbents, zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs) have received tremendous attention owing to their biocompatibility, affordability, long-term stability, surface characteristics, nontoxicity, and powerful antibacterial activity against microbes found in water. In this review, we considered the adsorption of heavy metals and radionuclides onto ZnONPs. We examined the isotherm, kinetic, and thermodynamic modeling of the process as well as the adsorption mechanism to provide significant insights into the interactions between the pollutants and the nanoparticles. The ZnONPs with surface areas (3.93 to 58.0Â m2/g) synthesized by different methods exhibited different adsorption capacities (0.30 to 1500Â mg/g) for the pollutants. The Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms were most suitable for the adsorption process. The Langmuir separation factor indicated favorable adsorption of all the pollutants on ZnONPs. The pseudo-second-order kinetics presented the best for the adsorption of the adsorbates with regression values in the range of 0.986â1.000. Spontaneous adsorption was obtained in most of the studies involving endothermic and exothermic processes. The complexation, precipitation, ion exchange, and electrostatic interactions are the probable mechanisms in the adsorption onto ZnONPs with a predominance of complexation. The desorption process, reusability of ZnONPs as well as direction for future investigations were also presented
Risk factors and a predictive model for under-five mortality in Nigeria: evidence from Nigeria demographic and health survey
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Under-5 mortality is a major public health challenge in developing countries. It is essential to identify determinants of under-five mortality (U5M) childhood mortality because these will assist in formulating appropriate health programmes and policies in order to meet the United Nations MDG goal. The objective of this study was to develop a predictive model and identify maternal, child, family and other risk factors associated U5M in Nigeria.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Population-based cross-sectional study which explored 2008 demographic and health survey of Nigeria (NDHS) with multivariable logistic regression. Likelihood Ratio Test, Hosmer-Lemeshow Goodness-of-Fit and Variance Inflation Factor were used to check the fit of the model and the predictive power of the model was assessed with Receiver Operating Curve (ROC curve).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>This study yielded an excellent predictive model which revealed that the likelihood of U5M among the children of mothers that had their first marriage at age 20-24 years and â„ 25 years declined by 20% and 30% respectively compared to children of those that married before the age of 15 years. Also, the following factors reduced odds of U5M: health seeking behaviour, breastfeeding children for > 18 months, use of contraception, small family size, having one wife, low birth order, normal birth weight, child spacing, living in urban areas, and good sanitation.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study has revealed that maternal, child, family and other factors were important risk factors of U5M in Nigeria. This study has identified important risk factors that will assist in formulating policies that will improve child survival.</p
Trypanosoma brucei Glycogen Synthase Kinase-3, A Target for Anti-Trypanosomal Drug Development: A Public-Private Partnership to Identify Novel Leads
Over 60 million people in sub-Saharan Africa are at risk of infection with the parasite Trypanosoma brucei which causes Human African Trypanosomiasis (HAT), also known as sleeping sickness. The disease results in systemic and neurological disability to its victims. At present, only four drugs are available for treatment of HAT. However, these drugs are expensive, limited in efficacy and are severely toxic, hence the need to develop new therapies. Previously, the short TbruGSK-3 short has been validated as a potential target for developing new drugs against HAT. Because this enzyme has also been pursued as a drug target for other diseases, several inhibitors are available for screening against the parasite enzyme. Here we present the results of screening over 16,000 inhibitors of human GSK-3ÎČ (HsGSK-3) from the Pfizer compound collection against TbruGSK-3 short. The resulting active compounds were tested for selectivity versus HsGSK-3ÎČ and a panel of human kinases, as well as their ability to inhibit proliferation of the parasite in vitro. We have identified attractive compounds that now form potential starting points for drug discovery against HAT. This is an example of how a tripartite partnership involving pharmaceutical industries, academic institutions and non-government organisations such as WHO TDR, can stimulate research for neglected diseases
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