Coping with the new norm: ICT-pedagogy integration awareness and competencies of TEI faculty

This study examined the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) -pedagogy integration awareness and competencies of faculty membersof a teacher education institution (TEI). Descriptive research methodwas employed through the use of survey questionnaire to collect data.Fifty (50) faculty membersserved as respondentsin this study.Most of the respondents perceived themselves to be extremely aware of utilizing ICT tools/ equipment and moderately aware of using application software despite reporting that they were self-taught in acquiring basic ICT skills. They were also found to be proficient in terms of level of competency in integration. It was also discovered that mostareas of their competency were significantly related to respondents’ awareness in using ICT. This paper suggests that higher education institutions should devise innovative teacher training programs that will increase the ICT pedagogy awareness and integration of teacher education faculty members

T-cell regulation in Erythema Nodosum Leprosum.

Leprosy is a disease caused by Mycobacterium leprae where the clinical spectrum correlates with the patient immune response. Erythema Nodosum Leprosum (ENL) is an immune-mediated inflammatory complication, which causes significant morbidity in affected leprosy patients. The underlying cause of ENL is not conclusively known. However, immune-complexes and cell-mediated immunity have been suggested in the pathogenesis of ENL. The aim of this study was to investigate the regulatory T-cells in patients with ENL. Forty-six untreated patients with ENL and 31 non-reactional lepromatous leprosy (LL) patient controls visiting ALERT Hospital, Ethiopia were enrolled to the study. Blood samples were obtained before, during and after prednisolone treatment of ENL cases. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were isolated and used for immunophenotyping of regulatory T-cells by flow cytometry. Five markers: CD3, CD4 or CD8, CD25, CD27 and FoxP3 were used to define CD4+ and CD8+ regulatory T-cells. Clinical and histopathological data were obtained as supplementary information. All patients had been followed for 28 weeks. Patients with ENL reactions had a lower percentage of CD4+ regulatory T-cells (1.7%) than LL patient controls (3.8%) at diagnosis of ENL before treatment. After treatment, the percentage of CD4+regulatory T-cells was not significantly different between the two groups. The percentage of CD8+ regulatory T-cells was not significantly different in ENL and LL controls before and after treatment. Furthermore, patients with ENL had higher percentage of CD4+ T-ells and CD4+/CD8+ T-cells ratio than LL patient controls before treatment. The expression of CD25 on CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells was not significantly different in ENL and LL controls suggesting that CD25 expression is not associated with ENL reactions while FoxP3 expression on CD4+ T-cells was significantly lower in patients with ENL than in LL controls. We also found that prednisolone treatment of patients with ENL reactions suppresses CD4+ T-cell but not CD8+ T-cell frequencies. Hence, ENL is associated with lower levels of T regulatory cells and higher CD4+/CD8+ T-cell ratio. We suggest that this loss of regulation is one of the causes of ENL

A Systematic Review of Immunological Studies of Erythema Nodosum Leprosum.

Erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL) is a painful inflammatory complication of leprosy occurring in 50% of lepromatous leprosy patients and 5-10% of borderline lepromatous patients. It is a significant cause of economic hardship, morbidity and mortality in leprosy patients. Our understanding of the causes of ENL is limited. We performed a systematic review of the published literature and critically evaluated the evidence for the role of neutrophils, immune complexes (ICs), T-cells, cytokines, and other immunological factors that could contribute to the development of ENL. Searches of the literature were performed in PubMed. Studies, independent of published date, using samples from patients with ENL were included. The search revealed more than 20,000 articles of which 146 eligible studies were included in this systematic review. The studies demonstrate that ENL may be associated with a neutrophilic infiltrate, but it is not clear whether it is an IC-mediated process or that the presence of ICs is an epiphenomenon. Increased levels of tumor necrosis factor-α and other pro-inflammatory cytokines support the role of this cytokine in the inflammatory phase of ENL but not necessarily the initiation. T-cell subsets appear to be important in ENL since multiple studies report an increased CD4+/CD8+ ratio in both skin and peripheral blood of patients with ENL. Microarray data have identified new molecules and whole pathophysiological pathways associated with ENL and provides new insights into the pathogenesis of ENL. Studies of ENL are often difficult to compare due to a lack of case definitions, treatment status, and timing of sampling as well as the use of different laboratory techniques. A standardized approach to some of these issues would be useful. ENL appears to be a complex interaction of various aspects of the immune system. Rigorous clinical descriptions of well-defined cohorts of patients and a systems biology approach using available technologies such as genomics, epigenomics, transcriptomics, and proteomics could yield greater understanding of the condition

A STUDY OF THE FACTORS AND MECHANISMS AFFECTING CONSISTENCY OF PROCESSED TOMATO JUICE

Abstract not availabl

Rapid Assessment of Crop Status: An Application of MODIS and SAR Data to Rice Areas in Leyte, Philippines Affected by Typhoon Haiyan

Asian countries strongly depend on rice production for food security. The major rice-growing season (June to October) is highly exposed to the risk of tropical storm related damage. Unbiased and transparent approaches to assess the risk of rice crop damage are essential to support mitigation and disaster response strategies in the region. This study describes and demonstrates a method for rapid, pre-event crop status assessment. The ex-post test case is Typhoon Haiyan and its impact on the rice crop in Leyte Province in the Philippines. A synthetic aperture radar (SAR) derived rice area map was used to delineate the area at risk while crop status at the moment of typhoon landfall was estimated from specific time series analysis of Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data. A spatially explicit indicator of risk of standing crop loss was calculated as the time between estimated heading date and typhoon occurrence. Results of the analysis of pre- and post-event SAR images showed that 6500 ha were flooded in northeastern Leyte. This area was also the region most at risk to storm related crop damage due to late establishment of rice. Estimates highlight that about 700 ha of rice (71% of which was in northeastern Leyte) had not reached maturity at the time of the typhoon event and a further 8400 ha (84% of which was in northeastern Leyte) were likely to be not yet harvested. We demonstrated that the proposed approach can provide pre-event, in-season information on the status of rice and other field crops and the risk of damage posed by tropical storms