The Effect of Sprouting on the in Vitro Digestibility of Maize and Cowpea

Despite the high protein content of cowpeas, their maximum contribution to nutrition has not been fully exploited in many parts of the world because of the following problems: the presence of anti-nutritional factors, such as trypsin inhibitor, which are common with legumes; flatulence factors; low level of sulphur amino acids, particularly methionine; and, in many instances, the inconvenience involved in their long preparation into local dishes. Moreover, there is the problem of the beany off-flavour. Grinding treatments that break most of the cells and release the cell contents of raw legumes prevent the subsequent development of the characteristic beany flavor on cooking. An off-flavour develops when ground raw legumes are suspended in water probably because of mixing of the cell contents enzyme lipoxygenase and could be controlled by adjusting the pH of the slurry towards the acid side. Germination is widely claimed as a means of correcting nutrient deficiencies of particular seeds, especially through alterations in the amino acid balance of the proteins and enhancement of the content of vitamins. This wide belief is emphasized and investigated in this research. In maize, however, the various food enzymes exited during germination had already played vital roles in breaking down the higher molecular components to simple molecules especially protein, which eases the digestibility as depicted in this investigation

Effect of Processing on Total Amino Acid Profile of Maize and Cowpea Grains

During the processing of cereal grains, a substantial proportion of the nutrients are lost, most especially the proteins in the form of the smallest moiety called amino acids. The objective of this study is to investigate the proportional loss due to processing, in order to throw more light in external fortification of the processed grains as may be necessary for the future. This investigation carried out the amino acid profile of drum dried; freeze dried and spray dried products of processed maize and cowpea grains in order to establish the after effects of these processing methods on the amino acid profile of the residual products. The processed methods investigated have been reported to be ideal for the preservation of processed grains in the powdered forms and amino acids availability in the products will determine the final protein nutritional value of the processed food products

Changes in FDNB-Available Lysine in Sprouted Cowpea

Cowpea a member of the legume family was sprouted to be able to improve its nutritive value especially the amino acids. Lysine, however, is highly venerable to process loss. One of the ways to determine the availability of the essential amino acids is to determine the available lysine. This study was geared not only in measuring the available amino acids, by determining the available lysine using the FDNB (Fluoro-di-nitro-benzene) extraction method, but to improve on the availability of these amino acids through germination. This method is also capable of removing the drudgery of animal study and faster to achieve the desired results

Responses of selected inflammatory, kidney and liver function markers in Serum of Nigerian Children with Severe Falciparum Malaria to treatment with artesunate/artemether-lumefantrine combination therapy

Malaria tolerance is a defence strategy that limits the damage caused by Plasmodium species irrespective of pathogen burden. The mechanisms responsible for this, responses of these mechanisms and their impact on organs to treatment have not been extensively studied. Thus, in this study, serum levels of selected pro- and anti-inflammatory markers, liver and kidney function indices with leucocytes indices in 100 children (1-10 years) with severe falciparum malaria were determined before treatment, at 48 hours during treatment and 48 hours after treatment with WHO recommended dosage of artesunate/artemether-lumefantrine combination therapy using standard methods. Data were analysed using SPSS, differences were considered significant at p<0.05. The results revealed that the serum levels of interleukin-12 (IL-12), interleukin-4 (IL-4), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interferon-γ (IFN-γ), C-reactive protein (CRP), nitric oxide (NO), creatinine, albumin, total protein and conjugated bilirubin were not significantly changed at higher parasite densities before treatment. Only serum IL-4, CRP, total bilirubin, urea and creatinine levels and alanine aminotransferase activity were significantly reduced below the ranges of those with severe malaria. The results suggest a self-protective feed-back control, indicating tolerance, which reduced the adverse effects of the disease on kidney and liver functions at higher parasite densities. The results also suggest serum IL-12, IL-4, TNF-α, IFN-γ, CRP and NO levels as immune-protective markers for tolerance and serum IL-4 level as an effective marker for disease severity and recovery from the disease in children with severe malariaKeywords: Immunity, falciparum malaria, inflammatory markers, childrenAfr. J. Biomed. Res. Vol. 22 (May, 2019); 165-17

An appraisal of blood pressure control and its determinants among patients with primary hypertension seen in a primary care setting in Western Nigeria

Background: Achieving guideline-recommended blood pressure is imperative in reducing the rising tide of uncontrolled hypertension and its attendant sequelae, which are major causes of morbidity and mortality globally. The aim of the study was to describe the pattern of blood pressure control and identify the factors influencing blood pressure control among patients with primary hypertension seen at family medicine clinics of FMC, Abeokuta.Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional hospital-based study. A systematic random sampling technique was used in selecting 360 hypertensive respondents over four months. Data were collected through a pre-tested interviewer-administered questionnaire. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 17.0 was used to analyse data.Results: Blood pressure was controlled in 167 (46.4%) of the respondents. The independent predictors of blood pressure control were female gender (p = 0.001, OR = 2.494, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.477–4.214), regular use of medication (p = 0.001, OR = 2.900, 95% CI = 1.508–5.577), regular clinic attendance (p < 0.001, OR = 3.512, 95% CI = 1.772–6.960), and absence of diabetes mellitus (p < 0.001, OR = 7.357, 95% CI = 3.190–16.966).Conclusions: The rate of blood pressure control among the hypertensive respondents was low. Multiple independent predictors of controlled blood pressure call for a team-based approach as well as multiple approaches including education of patients, expansion of a community-based health insurance programme and intensification of treatment efforts when managing hypertensive patients.Keywords: blood pressure control, family medicine clinics, primary hypertensio

Distinct Metal Ion Requirements for the Phosphomonoesterase and Phosphodiesterase Activities of Calf Intestinal Alkaline Phosphatase

The roles of Mg2+ and Zn2+ ions in promoting phosphoryl transfer catalysed by alkaline phosphatase are yet to be fully characterised. We investigated the divalent metal ion requirements for the monoesterase and diesterase activities of calf intestinal alkaline phosphatase. The synergistic effect of Mg2+ and Zn2+ in promoting the hydrolysis of para-nitrophenyl phosphate (monoesterase reaction) by alkaline phosphatase is not observed in the hydrolysis of the diesterase substrate, bis-para-nitrophenyl phosphate. Indeed, the diesterase reaction is inhibited by concentrations of Mg2+ that were optimal for the monoesterase reaction. This study reveals that the substrate specificities of alkaline phosphatases and related bimetalloenzymes are subject to regulation by changes in the nature and availability of cofactors, and the different cofactor requirements of the monoesterase and diesterase reactions of mammalian alkaline phosphatases could have significance for the biological functions of the enzymes

SautiLearn : improving online learning experience with accent translation

The paper demonstrates the use case for SautiLearn, a tool that can help students to learn in localized language accents. The work focuses on converting audio speech from one accent to another using a sequence-to-sequence neural network model that uses speaker-independent linguistic features such as the phonetic posterior gram as input. SautiDB is a dataset collection platform that collects speech recordings of various Nigerian accents through the power of crowdsourcing. Together with SautiDB, the SautiDB-919 dataset contains 919 speech samples collected via crowdsourcing through the SautiDB web application platform. The dataset covers a wide range of ethnicities and Nigerian accent variants

TOXICITY EVALUATION OF CRANKCASE OIL IN RATS

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of crankcase oil on the cellular and func-tional integrity of rat skin. Thirty (30) rats were randomly grouped into six viz groups A–F. Group A (base-line control) received 2 ml of distilled water. 2.5 %, 5.0 %, 7.5 %, and 10.0 % v/v of the crankcase oil were prepared using unused oil as solvent and 2 ml of the concentra-tions were topically administered to groups C–F respectively for seven consecutive days. Group B served as positive control and received 2 ml of the unused oil. The rats were sacri-ficed 24 hours after the last administration, and blood and part of the skin were collected. Al-kaline phosphatase (ALP), acid phosphatase (ACP), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and malondialdehyde level in the blood and skin samples collected were evaluated. Elemental analysis of the crankcase oil was also carried out. The result revealed high lead, iron and chromium levels. Blood lead concentration of rats was significantly (P<0.05) high after seven days of administration. ALP level in skin and serum increased significantly (P<0.05) with the concentration of crankcase oil. There was a significant decrease (P<0.05) in skin ACP activity while it increased significantly (P<0.05) in the serum. Similar results were observed in the SOD levels of the serum and the skin. The level increased significantly (P<0.05) in groups D–F when compared with controls. The MDA concentration of both serum and skin were signif-icantly (P<0.05) elevated. This suggests toxic potential of used lubricating oil and its potential predisposition to cance

A framework for intelligent policy decision making based on a government data hub

Author ProofThe e-Oman Integration Platform is a data hub that enables data exchanges across government in response to transactions. With millions of transactions weekly, and thereby data exchanges, we propose to investigate the potential of gathering intelligence from these linked sources to help government officials make more informed decisions. A key feature of this data is the richness and accuracy, which increases the value of the learning outcome when augmented by other big and open data sources. We consider a high-level framework within a government context, taking into account issues related to the definition of public policies, data privacy, and the potential benefits to society. A preliminary, qualitative validation of the framework in the context of e-Oman is presented. This paper lays out foundational work into an ongoing research to implement government decision-making based on big data.“SmartEGOV: Harnessing EGOV for Smart Governance (Foundations, Methods, Tools)/NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000037”, supported by Norte Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE 2020), under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (EFDR

Five-year mortality in a cohort of people with schizophrenia in Ethiopia

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Schizophrenia is associated with a two to three fold excess mortality. Both natural and unnatural causes were reported. However, there is dearth of evidence from low and middle income (LAMIC) countries, particularly in Africa. To our knowledge this is the first community based report from Africa.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We followed a cohort of 307 (82.1% males) patients with schizophrenia for five years in Butajira, rural Ethiopia. Mortality was recorded using broad rating schedule as well as verbal autopsy. Standardized Mortality Ratio (SMR) was calculated using the mortality in the demographic and surveillance site as a reference.</p> <p>Result</p> <p>Thirty eight (12.4%) patients, 34 men (11.1%) and 4 women (1.3%), died during the five-year follow up period. The mean age (SD) of the deceased for both sexes was 35 (7.35). The difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.69). It was 35.3 (7.4) for men and 32.3 (6.8) for women. The most common cause of death was infection, 18/38 (47.4%) followed by severe malnutrition, 5/38 (13.2%) and suicide 4/38 (10.5%). The overall SMR was 5.98 (95% CI = 4.09 to7.87). Rural residents had lower mortality with adjusted hazard ratio (HR) of 0.30 (95% CI = 0.12-0.69) but insidious onset and antipsychotic treatment for less than 50% of the follow up period were associated with higher mortality, adjusted HR 2.37 (95% CI = 1.04-5. 41) and 2.66(1.054-6.72) respectively.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The alarmingly high mortality observed in this patient population is of major concern. Most patients died from potentially treatable conditions. Improving medical and psychiatric care as well as provision of basic needs is recommended.</p