Ameliorative Effect of Lecaniodiscus cupanioides (Sapindaceae) Aqueous Root Extract in Loperamide- Induced Constipated Rats

Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy of aqueous root extract of Lecaniodiscus cupanioidies Planch. (Sapindaceae) against loperamide-induced constipation in Wistar rats.Methods: Constipation was induced by oral administration of loperamide (3 mg/kg body weight). The constipated rats were orally treated daily either with 50, 150, 250 mg/kg body weight per day of the extract or 0.21 mg/kg bisacodyl (reference drug) for 7 days while the normal control group received distilled water. The feeding characteristics, body weight, faecal properties and gastrointestinal transit ratio were monitored throughout the study period. The activities of acid phosphatase (ACP), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), γ-glutaryltransferase (GGT) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were also determined in the serum of the animals.Results: There was significant decrease (p < 0.05) between normal and constipated rats in the number of faecal pellets (54.06 and 45.43) while body weight increased (124.45 and 135.38 g) respectively. Administration of 250 mg/kg L. cupanioides extract to the constipated rats significantly normalized (p < 0.05) their body weight gain (8.15 g) and gastrointestinal ratio (87.75) compared to the constipated control. Serum levels of ACP and AST were significantly elevated (p < 0.05) in the 150 and 250 mg/kg dose groups compared to controls while ALP witnessed reduction. However, there was no alteration in the levels of GGT and LDH across all groups.Conclusion: The aqueous root extract of L. cupanioides possesses laxative activity in loperamideinduced constipated rats.Keywords: Constipation, Lecaniodiscus cupanioides, Gastrointestinal transit ratio, Loperamide, Bisacody

Antiglycation and Hypolipidemic Effects of Polyphenols from Zingiber officinale Roscoe (Zingiberaceae) in Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Rats

Purpose: To evaluate the antiglycation and hypolipidemic potential of polyphenols from Zingiber officinale in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.Methods: Diabetes was induced in male Wistar rats by single intraperitoneal injection of 50 mg/kg body weight (bw) of streptozotocin. This was followed by oral administration of 500 mg/kg each of free and bound polyphenol extracts of Z. officinale to the rats daily for 42 days. Distilled water and glibenclamide (5 mg/kg) were used as normal and positive controls, respectively.Results: Significant increases (p < 0.05) in blood glucose level (369.26 mg/dL), serum advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) (6.80 μg/mL), lipid profile and atherogenic indices, with decrease in high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (15.55 mg/dL) were observed in diabetic rats compared to control. Free polyphenol extracts of Z. officinale significantly reduced (p < 0.05) blood glucose (147.96 mg/dL), serum AGEs (1.98 μg/mL), lipid profile and atherogenic indices while it significantly increased HDL-C (23.28 mg/dL). However, bound polyphenol extract did not cause any significant change in the lipid profile of the diabetic rats except for LDL-C.Conclusion: This study indicates that free and bound polyphenols from Z. officinale can ameliorate diabetes as well as its complications, and its effect is comparable to that of the standard drug, glibenclamide.Keywords: Zingiber officinale, Diabetes, Lipid profile, Atherogenic index, Polyphenol, Glycation, Streptozotoci

Acute and Sub-acute Toxicity Profile of Aqueous Leaf Extract of Nymphaea lotus Linn (Nymphaeaceae) in Wistar Rats

Purpose: To evaluate the acute and sub-acute toxicity profile of the aqueous leaf extract of Nymphaea lotus L in Wistar rats.Methods: Acute toxicity study was performed by administering a single oral dose of 5000 mg/kg body weight of the extract to 5 rats while distilled water was given to another 5 rats (control), and the animals were observed for 14 days. Thereafter, 50, 100 and 200 mg/kg doses of the extract were administered to different groups of 5 rats each daily for 28 days while control received distilled water. At the end of the experiment, the animals were sacrificed and the serum obtained was used for the assessment of haematological and biochemical parameters. Histological examination was also performed on the liver and kidney of the rats.Results: The concentrations of alanine aminotransferase (42.56 U/L), aspartate aminotransferase (126.01 U/L) and alkaline phosphatase (183.33 U/L) significantly decreased while creatinine (0.64 mg/dL) and chloride ions (94.50 mmol/L) were significantly elevated (p < 0.05) compared to those of control following the extract treatment. Haematological parameters were not significantly different (p > 0.05) from those of control except white blood cell count (7.80 × 109/L), lymphocytes (5.20 %) and monocytes (2.72 %) which were significantly elevated (p 0.05) in the 100 and 200 mg/kg treated groups. Histopathology did not reveal any sign of lesions or pathological changes in the organs that could be attributed to treatment with the plant extract.Conclusions: These results suggest that the aqueous leaf extract of Nymphaea lotus may be safe for use at the doses tested.Keywords: Nymphaea lotus, Toxicity, White Blood Count, Alkaline Phosphatase, Histolog

Isolation and partial characterization of a protease enzyme from Thaumatococcus daniellii waste

A protease enzyme was isolated and partially purified from the pulp of Thaumatococcus daniellii fruit by gel filtration on sephadex G-75 followed by ion-exchange column chromatography on DEAEcellulose. The enzyme showed a specific activity of 4.75 × 10-1 unit/mg protein and 6.93 × 10-1 unit/mg protein, respectively after each purification procedure. The purified enzyme had a Km and Vmax of 2.0 × 10-4 M and 1.53 mol/min, respectively, using casein as substrate. The enzyme had an optimum temperature of 35°C and functioned best at pH 7.0 with some residual activity at alkaline pH.Key words: Protease, isolation, characterization, Thaumatococcus danielii

Global, regional, and national burden of disorders affecting the nervous system, 1990–2021: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

BackgroundDisorders affecting the nervous system are diverse and include neurodevelopmental disorders, late-life neurodegeneration, and newly emergent conditions, such as cognitive impairment following COVID-19. Previous publications from the Global Burden of Disease, Injuries, and Risk Factor Study estimated the burden of 15 neurological conditions in 2015 and 2016, but these analyses did not include neurodevelopmental disorders, as defined by the International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-11, or a subset of cases of congenital, neonatal, and infectious conditions that cause neurological damage. Here, we estimate nervous system health loss caused by 37 unique conditions and their associated risk factors globally, regionally, and nationally from 1990 to 2021.MethodsWe estimated mortality, prevalence, years lived with disability (YLDs), years of life lost (YLLs), and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs), with corresponding 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs), by age and sex in 204 countries and territories, from 1990 to 2021. We included morbidity and deaths due to neurological conditions, for which health loss is directly due to damage to the CNS or peripheral nervous system. We also isolated neurological health loss from conditions for which nervous system morbidity is a consequence, but not the primary feature, including a subset of congenital conditions (ie, chromosomal anomalies and congenital birth defects), neonatal conditions (ie, jaundice, preterm birth, and sepsis), infectious diseases (ie, COVID-19, cystic echinococcosis, malaria, syphilis, and Zika virus disease), and diabetic neuropathy. By conducting a sequela-level analysis of the health outcomes for these conditions, only cases where nervous system damage occurred were included, and YLDs were recalculated to isolate the non-fatal burden directly attributable to nervous system health loss. A comorbidity correction was used to calculate total prevalence of all conditions that affect the nervous system combined.FindingsGlobally, the 37 conditions affecting the nervous system were collectively ranked as the leading group cause of DALYs in 2021 (443 million, 95% UI 378–521), affecting 3·40 billion (3·20–3·62) individuals (43·1%, 40·5–45·9 of the global population); global DALY counts attributed to these conditions increased by 18·2% (8·7–26·7) between 1990 and 2021. Age-standardised rates of deaths per 100 000 people attributed to these conditions decreased from 1990 to 2021 by 33·6% (27·6–38·8), and age-standardised rates of DALYs attributed to these conditions decreased by 27·0% (21·5–32·4). Age-standardised prevalence was almost stable, with a change of 1·5% (0·7–2·4). The ten conditions with the highest age-standardised DALYs in 2021 were stroke, neonatal encephalopathy, migraine, Alzheimer's disease and other dementias, diabetic neuropathy, meningitis, epilepsy, neurological complications due to preterm birth, autism spectrum disorder, and nervous system cancer.InterpretationAs the leading cause of overall disease burden in the world, with increasing global DALY counts, effective prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation strategies for disorders affecting the nervous system are needed

Global burden of 288 causes of death and life expectancy decomposition in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations, 1990–2021: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

BACKGROUND Regular, detailed reporting on population health by underlying cause of death is fundamental for public health decision making. Cause-specific estimates of mortality and the subsequent effects on life expectancy worldwide are valuable metrics to gauge progress in reducing mortality rates. These estimates are particularly important following large-scale mortality spikes, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. When systematically analysed, mortality rates and life expectancy allow comparisons of the consequences of causes of death globally and over time, providing a nuanced understanding of the effect of these causes on global populations. METHODS The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2021 cause-of-death analysis estimated mortality and years of life lost (YLLs) from 288 causes of death by age-sex-location-year in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations for each year from 1990 until 2021. The analysis used 56 604 data sources, including data from vital registration and verbal autopsy as well as surveys, censuses, surveillance systems, and cancer registries, among others. As with previous GBD rounds, cause-specific death rates for most causes were estimated using the Cause of Death Ensemble model-a modelling tool developed for GBD to assess the out-of-sample predictive validity of different statistical models and covariate permutations and combine those results to produce cause-specific mortality estimates-with alternative strategies adapted to model causes with insufficient data, substantial changes in reporting over the study period, or unusual epidemiology. YLLs were computed as the product of the number of deaths for each cause-age-sex-location-year and the standard life expectancy at each age. As part of the modelling process, uncertainty intervals (UIs) were generated using the 2·5th and 97·5th percentiles from a 1000-draw distribution for each metric. We decomposed life expectancy by cause of death, location, and year to show cause-specific effects on life expectancy from 1990 to 2021. We also used the coefficient of variation and the fraction of population affected by 90% of deaths to highlight concentrations of mortality. Findings are reported in counts and age-standardised rates. Methodological improvements for cause-of-death estimates in GBD 2021 include the expansion of under-5-years age group to include four new age groups, enhanced methods to account for stochastic variation of sparse data, and the inclusion of COVID-19 and other pandemic-related mortality-which includes excess mortality associated with the pandemic, excluding COVID-19, lower respiratory infections, measles, malaria, and pertussis. For this analysis, 199 new country-years of vital registration cause-of-death data, 5 country-years of surveillance data, 21 country-years of verbal autopsy data, and 94 country-years of other data types were added to those used in previous GBD rounds. FINDINGS The leading causes of age-standardised deaths globally were the same in 2019 as they were in 1990; in descending order, these were, ischaemic heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lower respiratory infections. In 2021, however, COVID-19 replaced stroke as the second-leading age-standardised cause of death, with 94·0 deaths (95% UI 89·2-100·0) per 100 000 population. The COVID-19 pandemic shifted the rankings of the leading five causes, lowering stroke to the third-leading and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease to the fourth-leading position. In 2021, the highest age-standardised death rates from COVID-19 occurred in sub-Saharan Africa (271·0 deaths [250·1-290·7] per 100 000 population) and Latin America and the Caribbean (195·4 deaths [182·1-211·4] per 100 000 population). The lowest age-standardised death rates from COVID-19 were in the high-income super-region (48·1 deaths [47·4-48·8] per 100 000 population) and southeast Asia, east Asia, and Oceania (23·2 deaths [16·3-37·2] per 100 000 population). Globally, life expectancy steadily improved between 1990 and 2019 for 18 of the 22 investigated causes. Decomposition of global and regional life expectancy showed the positive effect that reductions in deaths from enteric infections, lower respiratory infections, stroke, and neonatal deaths, among others have contributed to improved survival over the study period. However, a net reduction of 1·6 years occurred in global life expectancy between 2019 and 2021, primarily due to increased death rates from COVID-19 and other pandemic-related mortality. Life expectancy was highly variable between super-regions over the study period, with southeast Asia, east Asia, and Oceania gaining 8·3 years (6·7-9·9) overall, while having the smallest reduction in life expectancy due to COVID-19 (0·4 years). The largest reduction in life expectancy due to COVID-19 occurred in Latin America and the Caribbean (3·6 years). Additionally, 53 of the 288 causes of death were highly concentrated in locations with less than 50% of the global population as of 2021, and these causes of death became progressively more concentrated since 1990, when only 44 causes showed this pattern. The concentration phenomenon is discussed heuristically with respect to enteric and lower respiratory infections, malaria, HIV/AIDS, neonatal disorders, tuberculosis, and measles. INTERPRETATION Long-standing gains in life expectancy and reductions in many of the leading causes of death have been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the adverse effects of which were spread unevenly among populations. Despite the pandemic, there has been continued progress in combatting several notable causes of death, leading to improved global life expectancy over the study period. Each of the seven GBD super-regions showed an overall improvement from 1990 and 2021, obscuring the negative effect in the years of the pandemic. Additionally, our findings regarding regional variation in causes of death driving increases in life expectancy hold clear policy utility. Analyses of shifting mortality trends reveal that several causes, once widespread globally, are now increasingly concentrated geographically. These changes in mortality concentration, alongside further investigation of changing risks, interventions, and relevant policy, present an important opportunity to deepen our understanding of mortality-reduction strategies. Examining patterns in mortality concentration might reveal areas where successful public health interventions have been implemented. Translating these successes to locations where certain causes of death remain entrenched can inform policies that work to improve life expectancy for people everywhere. FUNDING Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Protective effect of ethanol leaf extract of Carica papaya Linn (Caricaceae) in alloxan-induced diabetic rats

Purpose: To investigate the ameliorative effect of ethanolic extract of Carica papaya leaves in alloxan - induced diabetic rats.Methods: Rats were randomly divided into five groups of eight animals each. Group A (control) comprised normal healthy animals which were orally administered 1.0 ml of distilled water daily for 21 days while groups B – E consisted of alloxan-induced diabetic rats. Group B comprised diabetic untreated rats, and groups C and D received 1.0 ml of 250 mg/kg and 500 mg/kg body weight of the extract, respectively. Group E received 300 mg/kg of metformin.Results: Administration of the extract to the diabetic rats significantly reduced (p < 0.05) glucose level (123.50 mg/dl), total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (1.24 mg/dl) and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), while significantly increasing (p < 0.05) high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and total protein level (66.51 g/dl) compared to the diabetic untreated rats. The extract also significantly decreased (p < 0.05) the concentration of serum urea (12.35 mg/dl), creatinine, alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) of the diabetic rats.Conclusion: The ethanol leaf extract of Carica papaya ameliorates metabolic disorder caused by diabetes in rats.Keywords: Diabetes, Carica papaya, Glucose, Lipid profile, Alloxan monohydrat

Seroprevalence of contagious bovine pleuropneumonia in Plateau state, North-central Nigeria

This survey was undertaken to establish the prevalence of contagious bovine pleuropneumonia (CBPP) in Plateau State, Nigeria by screening 528 cattle for Mycoplasma mycoides subspecies mycoides (Mmm) antibodies using competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (c-ELISA). Sera samples were collected from 6 randomly selected local government areas (LGAs) of the State over a 14-month period (May, 2013 – June, 2014). Results showed an overall CBPP seroprevalence of 14.39% for the State. Antibodies to Mmm were detected in all the LGAs sampled with prevalence ranging from 7.50% to 31.58%, indicating a significant association (P<0.05). Seasons (P<0.05, χ2=34.00) and sample collection points (P<0.05, χ2=8.848) were also significantly associated with the seroprevalence of CBPP. There was however, no significant association (P>0.05, χ2=0.47) between the sex of cattle and seroprevalence of CBPP. This study confirms that CBPP is widespread, and the findings could serve as a baseline for initiation of effective control programmes against the disease to improve cattle health and production in the State.Key words: Contagious bovine pleuropneumonia, seroprevalence, Plateau State