Antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of Aeromonas hydrophila among patients presented with diarrhea attending two teaching hospitals in northern, Nigeria

A total of one hundred and twenty eight (128) stool samples were collected from patients attending Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital Zaria and Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital Kano, and screened for the presence of Aeromonas hydrophila infection. Out of the one hundred and twenty eight samples analyzed 4 (3.12%) were found positive for Aeromonas hydrophila infection. Antibioticsusceptibility testing of Aeromonas hydrophila isolated showed that all the 4 (100%) isolates were sensitive to Colistin and Ceftazidime, 3 (75%) to Augmentin and 2(50%) to Gentamicin and Cefuroxine. All the isolates (100%) were however resistant to Cotrimoxazole, Tetracycline, Sulphatriad, Streptomycin, Cephalothin and Ampicilin. This study confirmed that Aeromonas hydrophila as a sole enteropathogen could be responsible for diarrhea and should be considered amongst the causative agents of diarrhea. Key words: Aeromonas, diarrhoea, antibiotic, susceptibility testing, ABUTH, AKTH

Study of the Geographically Weighted Regression Application on Climate Data

This study used Geographical Weighted Regression (GWR) technique to find spatial relationship between Elevation and climate (Rainfall, Temperature) in Northern Nigeria using climate (Rainfall, Temperature) data from weather stations from 1980 – 2010 obtained from Nigerian Meteorological Agency (Nimet). From the results of the analysis it was shown that there is significant relationship between the elevation and climate variables (Rainfall, Tmax and Tmin). The study also shows that GWR has smaller residual sum of square than OLS in analysing the relationship between Elevation and Climate data. This may be due to the consideration of the spatial variation of the relationship over the study region. When mapping the results of GWR model it was observed that the effect of Elevation on climate variables appears to vary geographically Keyword: Geographical Weighted Regression (GWR), Ordinary Least square (OLS)

Influence of socio-demographic variables on the choice of contraceptives among women attending ANC unit at specialist hospital Sokoto, Sokoto State, Nigeria

Background: A contraceptive choice that couples make is a key component of the Sustainable Development Goal agenda and a major contributor to national health. In spite of the importance of increased contraceptive uptake among couples of reproductive ages, meeting the reproductive health rights of women remains an issue due to multi-faceted obstacles within complex environments. The issues which impact women’s reproductive health rights in relation to contraception relate to availability, accessibility, affordability, literacy, tradition, and culture. This study explores the influence of socio-demographic data on the choice of contraceptives among women who are accessing family planning services at a Specialist hospital, Sokoto-Nigeria.Methods: A cross sectional study was used in this quantitative research to generate data on contraceptive choices of women within the reproductive age (18-49 years) who are accessing family planning services at Specialist hospital, Sokoto. A structured questionnaire was used to elicit information from 352 respondents who were randomly sampled at a Specialist hospital, Sokoto-Nigeria. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Descriptive statistics, correlation and regression analyses were used in the data analyses.Results: The findings of this study established age, occupation and level of education to be related with the usage and choice of contraceptives among women attending family planning unit at a Specialist hospital in Sokoto.Conclusions: The result of the study indicated that the socio–demographic data of the respondent, has a significant role in the choice of contraceptives among the women attending family planning unit of Specialist Hospital Sokoto

Direct Experimental Observation of in situ Dehydrogenation of an Amine-Borane System Using Gas Electron Diffraction

In situ dehydrogenation of azetidine-BH3, which is a candidate for hydrogen storage, was observed with the parent and dehydrogenated analogue subjected to rigorous structural and thermochemical investigations. The structural analyses utilized gas electron diffraction supported by high-level quantum calculations, while the pathway for the unimolecular hydrogen release reaction in the absence and presence of BH3 as a bifunctional catalyst was predicted at the CBS-QB3 level. The catalyzed dehydrogenation pathway has a barrier lower than the predicted B-N bond dissociation energy, hence favoring the dehydrogenation process over the dissociation of the complex. The predicted enthalpy of dehydrogenation at the CCSD(T)/CBS level indicates that mild reaction conditions would be required for hydrogen release and that the compound is closer to thermoneutral than linear amine boranes. The entropy and free energy change for the dehydrogenation process show that the reaction is exergonic, energetically feasible, and will proceed spontaneously toward hydrogen release, all of which are important factors for hydrogen storage

Spatial and Seasonal Estimation of Tropospheric Radio Refractivity in Nigeria

The spatial and seasonal variation of tropospheric radio refractivity of Nigeria has been studied using meteorological variables (temperature, relative humidity and pressure) retrieved from the archive of the United States’ National Aeronautics for Space Administration (NASA). This work established a seasonal variation. The results also revealed an increase in radio refractivity from minimum of about 270N-units at Abadam to maximum of about 415N-units at Warri. The variation of radio refractivity is synchronous with rainfall in most of the stations especially those in the Guinea Savannah, Tropical Rainforest and Coastal areas where the effects of august break manifest vividly on the curves. Intense refractivity was measured mostly in the tropical rainforest and coastal areas. This could be attributed to the intensity of rain and the length of the wet season in those locations. The Sahel, Sudan and Guinea savannah which experience less rain with short period of wet season recorded reduced refractivity. Just like rainfall, the movement of Inter Tropical Discontinuity (ITD) is also found to be linked to the variation of the radio refractivity. The northward movement of the ITD brings with it elevated refractivity while the southward movement leads to reduced refractivity. This is because the ITD is an element of two high pressure cells which influences its motion. Majorly, the seasonal variation is found to be the product of climate except in some high ground areas where the topography was found to be majorly responsible

Feeding strategies and energy to protein ratio on tambaqui performance and physiology

The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of feed deprivation and refeeding with diets containing different energy to protein ratios (E/P) on the performance and physiology of juvenile tambaqui (Colossoma macropomum). A 4x2 factorial arrangement with three replicates was used, with four E/P ratios (11.5, 10.5, 9.5, and 8.5 kcal g-1 digestible energy per protein) and two feeding regimens (with and without deprivation), during 60 days. Fish from the food-deprived group were fasted for 14 days and refed from the fifteenth to the sixtieth day, whereas the remaining fish were fed for 60 days. At the end of the experimental period, weight of fish subjected to food deprivation was lower than that of those continuously fed; however, this condition did not influence the physiological parameters analyzed. Tambaqui fed 11.5 kcal g-1 achieved lower final weight than those fed with the other diets, in both regimens. Among the physiological parameters, only plasma protein presented significant increase in fish fed 8.5 kcal g-1, in both feeding regimens, probably due to the higher dietary protein concentration. These results indicate that fish show a partial compensatory growth, and that 10.5 kcal g-1 can be recommended for the diet of juvenile tambaqui

Distributed information consensus filters for simultaneous input and state estimation

This paper describes the distributed information filtering where a set of sensor networks are required to simultaneously estimate input and state of a linear discrete-time system from collaborative manner. Our research purpose is to develop a consensus strategy in which sensor nodes communicate within the network through a sequence of Kalman iterations and data diffusion. A novel recursive information filtering is proposed by integrating input estimation error into measurement data and weighted information matrices. On the fusing process, local system state filtering transmits estimation information using the consensus averaging algorithm, which penalizes the disagreement in a dynamic manner. A simulation example is provided to compare the performance of the distributed information filtering with optimal Gillijins–De Moor’s algorithm

Anti-trypanosomal Activity of Bufonidae (Toad) Venom Crude Extract on Trypanosoma brucei brucei in Swiss Mice

Trypanosomiasis afflicts about 6 ~ 7 million people globally and to a large extent impedes livestock production in Africa. Naturally, trypanosomal parasites undergo genetic mutation and have developed resistance over a wide range of therapies. The utilization of animals and plants products has presented therapeutic potential for identifying novel anti-trypanosomal drugs. This study evaluated toad venom for anti-trypanosomal potency invivo in Swiss mice. Toads were collected from July to August 2019. The acute oral toxicity and biochemical characterization of the toad venom were determined. The experimental mice were administered various doses (130 mg/kg, 173 mg/kg and 217 mg/kg) of the toad venom crude extract and 0.75 mg/mL of Diamizan Plus standard drug for the treatment of trypanosomiasis, once daily for 3 days. The in-vivo anti-trypanosomal activity was evaluated by a curative test, after infecting the mice with Trypanosoma brucei brucei. The pre-patent period was 72 hours before treatment commenced. The overall results showed that trypanosomal load was highest in the control group while the group treated with Diamizan drug had the least trypanosomal load. As such, the mean trypanosomal load in relation to treatments showed a very high significant difference (P0.05) across treatment groups. The over 50% reduction in the trypanosomal load in the 130 mg/kg group in comparison with the control group brings to bare the anti-trypanosomal potency of the toad venom. The anti-trypanosomal activity demonstrated by the toad venom has provided basis for development of new therapeutic agents from different toad species. The study recommends further studies (both in-vivo and invitro) followed by the characterization of the active compounds present in the toad venom responsible for the anti-tyrpanosomal activity observed alongside the management and conservation of these species

Preterm birth and small for gestational age in relation to alcohol consumption during pregnancy: stronger associations among vulnerable women? Results from two large Western-European studies

Pfinder M, Kunst AE, Feldmann R, van Eijsden M, Vrijkotte TGM. Preterm birth and small for gestational age in relation to alcohol consumption during pregnancy: stronger associations among vulnerable women? Results from two large Western-European studies. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth. 2013;13(1): 49.BACKGROUND: Inconsistent data on the association between prenatal alcohol exposure and a range of pregnancy outcomes, such as preterm birth (PTB) and small for gestational age (SGA) raise new questions. This study aimed to assess whether the association between low-moderate prenatal alcohol exposure and PTB and SGA differs according to maternal education, maternal mental distress or maternal smoking. METHODS: The Amsterdam Born Children and their Development (ABCD) Study (N=5,238) and the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS) (N=16,301) are both large studies. Women provide information on alcohol intake in early pregnancy, 3 months postpartum and up to 17 years retrospectively. Multivariate logistic regression analyses and stratified regression analyses were performed to examine the association between prenatal alcohol exposure and PTB and SGA, respectively. RESULTS: No association was found between any level of prenatal alcohol exposure (non-daily, daily, non-abstaining) and SGA. The offspring of daily drinkers and non-abstainers had a lower risk of PTB [ABCD: odds ratio (OR) 0.31, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.13, 0.77; KiGGS: OR 0.75, 95% CI 0.57, 0.99]. Interactions with maternal education, maternal distress or maternal smoking were not significant. CONCLUSIONS: Although these results should be interpreted with caution, both studies showed no adverse effects of low-moderate prenatal alcohol exposure on PTB and SGA, not even in the offspring of women who were disadvantaged in terms of low education, high levels of distress, or smoking during pregnancy