The Influence of replacing Maize with Chrysophyllum Albidum Seed Meal on Growth Response and Nutrient Utilization in Clarias Gariepinus

The study investigated the effect of replacing maize with Chrysophylum albidum seed meal on the growth performance and nutrient utilization in Clarias gariepinus. Five isonitrogenous diets containing maize which was replaced by Chrysophylum albidum at a rate of 0, 25, 50, 75 and 100% were formulated. Experimental diets were randomly assigned to the fish in tanks and each group of fish was fed 5% body weight in equal proportion per day. Significant variation (P<0.05) existed in weight gain, specific growth rate; feed conversion, and survival rate among the fish fed various dietary treatments. There was no significant difference (P>0.05) in all the aforementioned parameters between fish fed diet 75% and 100 Chrysophylum albidum. A decrease in growth and nutrient utilization parameters of fish fed various dietary treatments was observed as the level of Chrysophyllum albidum seed meal increased. Replacement of maize by Chrysophyllum albidum in the diets of Clarias gariepinus significantly reduce the growth and nutrient utilization by Clarias gariepinusKeywords: Chrysophyllum albidum, Clarias gariepinus,maize, fish feed ingredients and energy source

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

Replacement Value of Soybean Meal with Luffa cylindrical in Diet of Clarias gariepinus Fingerlings

The study investigated the effects of replacing soybean meal with Luffa cylindrical seed meal on the growth performance of Clarias gariepinus fingerlings. Five isonitrogenous diets containing soybean meal which was replaced by Luffa cylindrica at a rate of 15, 30, 45 and 60% levels were formulated. The diets without Luffa cylindrical seed meal served as the control. Experimental diets were assigned randomly to the fish in tanks and each group of fish was fed at 5% of body weight in equal proportions twice daily. There were significant (P,0.05) decreases in growth and nutrient utilization parameters of fish fed different dietary treatments containing 30 to 60 % levels of Luffa cylindrical seed meal. However, there were no significant (P>0.05) variations in growth and nutrient utilization parameters of fish fed the control diet and those fed diet containing 15% Luffah cylindrica

Edibility of Trachyandra ciliata (L.f.) Kunth- an underutilized vegetable from South African Western Cape coast: a review

The aim of Sustainable Development Goal 2 (SDG2) is to end hunger, improve food security and nutrition and promote sustainable crop production by 2050. However, climate change, increasing soil salinization and the inadequate availability of fresh water have negatively affected crop production around the world including South Africa, making it difficult to meet the required target. This necessitates the use of wild edible plants that are adapted to adverse conditions such as drought and salinity in order to mitigate this problem. The genus Trachyandra (Asphodelaceae) consist of three edible species (T. ciliata, T. divaricata and T. falcata) which are native to the dry saline environments of the western Cape coastal sand dunes. The genus is less studied with no record of cultivated species, although the existing literature states that T. ciliata, (wild cabbage) was originally used as a food source by the indigenous Khoi-san people who lived on the South African Cape coast. Colonization and removal of indigenous people from cultural lands led to erosion and detachment from the knowledge of the land and its useful plants. The species is used in selected restaurants where the inflorescence is steamed and eaten as a vegetable or added into a stew. This review explores the importance of Asphodelaceae family, T. ciliata as a vegetable crop and its potential as a pharmaceutical candidate. Furthermore, this review examines potential technological advances such as hydroponics that could be used for sustainable crop production of T. ciliata. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) was utilized in the selection of articles in this review. The existing literature provided useful information on the potential of T. ciliata as a vegetable crop and the importance of using halophytes to achieve food security. This appraisal is expected to serve as a template for researchers, food enthusiasts, potential farmers and policy makers who may be keen in exploring further nutritional composition and medicinal potential of this plant

Quality of primary care physicians’ communication of diabetes self-management during medical encounters with persons with diabetes mellitus in a resource-poor country

Background: Most of the Nigerian studies on the determinants of diabetes self-management have focused on patient-related factors. There is no previous local study that examined the quality of diabetes self- management education provided by primary care physicians to people with diabetes mellitus.Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 105 primary care physicians during a workshop. The quality of diabetes self-management education provided by the physicians was assessed using a self-designed scale of 39 Likert questions derived from American  Association of Diabetes Educators seven domains of diabetes self-management. Cronbach’s reliability coefficient of each domain/subscale was ≥ 0.7. The data was analysed using the independent sample t-test and one-way ANOVA.Results: Over half of the physicians provided ‘inadequate quality’ diabetes self-management education in all the domains. Physicians had the highest mean score in the ‘taking medication’ domain (4.35 ± 0.59). The mean scores in the ‘problemsolving domain’ (3.63 ± 0.74) and the ‘being active domain’ (3.57 ± 0.71) were low. The quality of diabetes self-managementeducation provided by the physicians was not associated with any of the physician characteristics.Conclusion: The quality of physicians’ communication of diabetes self-management was suboptimal in this study. The majority of the adequately communicated diabetes self-management behaviours were risk factors reduction related and disease-centred. Thus, training of primary care physicians on diabetes self-management education is recommended because of the key role these physicians play in diabetes management in resource-poor countries.Keywords: diabetes self-management, patient–physician communication, primary care physicians, resource-poor countries, Nigeri

Microbial flora of the gastro-intestinal tract of Clarias gariepinus caught from river Dandaru Ibadan, Nigeria

The study reports the microbial load and diversity in the gastro-intestinal tract of Clarias gariepinus caught in River Dandaru, Ibadan. A set of adult samples of Clarias gariepinus was caught from the river Dandaru, Ibadan. Determination of microbial loads and characterization of microorganisms present in the gut region of the captured Clarias gariepinus were carried out using standard microbiological procedures. The fungi isolated were Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus flavus, Penicillium atrovenetum and Penicillium expansum while the bacteria isolated were Pseudomonas fluorescens, Bacillus alvei, Aeromonas hydrophilia, Bacillus megaterium, Flavobacterium rigense and Enterobacter aerogenes. The microbial counts were; total plate count 6.5 x 105 CFUs/g, total coliform count 1.9 x104 CFUs/g, total anaerobic count 4.2 x 102 CFUs/g, total faecal coliform count was 2.2 x 103 CFU/ml, total fungi count 3.0 x 103 spore/g.Keywords: Microbial Load,Catfish gut, Microbial diversity, River Dandar

Preparation and use of plant medicines for farmers' health in Southwest Nigeria: socio-cultural, magico-religious and economic aspects

Agrarian rural dwellers in Nigeria produce about 95% of locally grown food commodities. The low accessibility to and affordability of orthodox medicine by rural dwellers and their need to keep healthy to be economically productive, have led to their dependence on traditional medicine. This paper posits an increasing acceptance of traditional medicine country-wide and advanced reasons for this trend. The fact that traditional medicine practitioners' concept of disease is on a wider plane vis-à-vis orthodox medicine practitioners' has culminated in some socio-cultural and magico-religious practices observed in preparation and use of plant medicines for farmers' health management. Possible scientific reasons were advanced for some of these practices to show the nexus between traditional medicine and orthodox medicine. The paper concludes that the psychological aspect of traditional medicine are reflected in its socio-cultural and magico-religious practices and suggests that government should fund research into traditional medicine to identify components of it that can be integrated into the national health system

An Automated Cassava Peeling System for the Enhancement of Food Security in Nigeria

Cassava is second only to sweet potato as the most important starchy root crop of the tropical world. In most parts of the tropics, cassava is grown on small plots. However, in some countries, e.g. Mexico, Brazil and Nigeria,large plantations have been started and interest in mechanization is growing. The degree of mechanization depends on the size of the land and availability of machines for each unit operation involved in cassava processing. However, of all the unit operations involved in cassava processing, cassava peeling remains a serious global challenge to processengineers. An automated cassava peeling machine was thus developed in the Department of Agricultural Engineering, Federal University of Technology, Akure. The design of the machine was based on the development and modification of the peeling tool of previous cassava peeling machines and the peeling principle is by impact. This machine wasevaluated using newly harvested improved variety of cassava tuber (TMS 30572) grouped into different sizes: 100 . L < 140, 140 . L < 180, 180 . L < 220, 220 . L < 260, and 260 . L < 300. The speed of the machine varies from 100 . 600 rpm while machine operational parameters such as throughput capacity, peeling efficiency, mechanical damage, quality performance efficiency and peel retention were determined for each size. Results revealed that throughput capacity ranged from 76 . 442 kg/h, peeling efficiency ranged from 50 . 75%, mechanical damage ranged from 12 . 44%, quality performance efficiency ranged from 22 . 66%, and peel retention ranged from 7.2 . 33%. These results show appreciable improvement over manual method and existing machines.Keywords: Performance evaluation, cassava, food, peeling, machine

Safety evaluation of the extract from the shoots of Arctotis arctotoides in rats and mice

The aqueous extract from the shoot of Arctotis arctotoides (L.f.) O. Hoffm (Asteraceae) was evaluated for its acute toxicity by the oral route in mice and for the sub-acute effect on haematological,biochemical, and histological parameters in rats. In the acute toxicity test, A. arctotoides caused no death even up to 3200 mg/kg dose. Oral treatments with this extract at 500, 1,000 and 2,000 mg/kg didnot cause any significant change in the red blood cell count, packed cell volume, haemoglobin concentration, mean corpuscular volume, mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration, and mean corpuscular haemoglobin. It did cause a significance increase in white blood cell count and its differentials. The extract caused a significant decrease in the levels of some liver enzymes, blood urea nitrogen, potassium, total and conjugated bilirubin. Changes were noted in the body and organ weights while variable changes were observed in the levels of some electrolytes. No significant lesions were observed in the organs examined. The result indicated that the plant may be relatively safe for medicinal uses

Prevalence and Correlates of Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use among Cancer Patients in Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto, Nigeria

Background: The rate of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use among cancer patients is on the increase worldwide. This is due to the innate urge among humans to try new and alternative ways of medicine, especially where conventional medicine failed to provide satisfactory solution such as in sickle cell disease and cancer. Objective: To assess the prevalence and correlates of CAM use among cancer patients in Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital (UDUTH), Sokoto, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: A cross‑sectional study was conducted among 240 cancer patients selected by systematic sampling technique from July to September 2016. Data were collected using a semi‑structured standardized questionnaire. Results: The mean age of the study participants was 45 ± 13.7 years. Majority, 159 (66.3%) of the 240 respondents, were CAM users, with the most common methods being prayer (30.8%) and herbal therapy (28.3%). Majority of CAM users (64.2%) did not derive any benefit from CAM use, but rather reported adverse effects such as nausea and vomiting (52.5%) and diarrhea (44.2%). Physicians were unaware of CAM use in most cases (87.4%), and this was majorly attributed to the physicians not asking them about CAM use. Male sex and absence of comorbidities were the predictors of CAM use identified. Conclusion: The prevalence of CAM use is high among cancer patients in UDUTH, Sokoto, Nigeria, but the physicians were largely unaware of CAM use due to communication gap. These findings underscore the need for physicians to consistently ask their patients on CAM use, while government should enact laws regulating CAM use in Nigeria.Keywords: Cancer patients, complementary and alternative medicine, correlates, prevalenc