GUIDE TO AUTHORS

General Instructions   Authors should submit electronic copy of the manuscript to: [email protected] and [email protected].  Correspondence on the manuscript should thereafter be to:   The Editor–in–Chief, Journal of Natural Sciences, Engineering and Technology,  Federal University of Agriculture, P.M.B. 2240, Abeokuta, Postcode 110001. Ogun State,  Nigeria.   &nbsp

A five–year review of female sterilization at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Lagos

Background: Over the decades, female sterilization has become a highly effective, convenient, simple and safe method of long term contraception, attributable to technological and medical advances.Objective: This study aims at determining the uptake, indications, timing and surgical techniques of female sterilization in LUTH.Methodology: A retrospective study involving all female clients who had sterilization done at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital  between January 2010 and December 2014. Clinical data were retrieved from the case files and analyzed with SPSS version 19. one hundred and eighteen clients were eligible, however only 115 case files could be located. Available case files had adequate information for the study.Results: There were 8,695 deliveries with 115 cases female sterilization, resulting in an incidence of 13 per 1000 births. The mean age at sterilization was 37.9 years. Completed family size was the main indication. Ninety percent of the clients had a postpartum procedure and Pomeroy's method was used in 76.5% of the clients.Conclusion: Female sterilization still has a role to play in family planning in our environment. Majority of the procedure were performed during planned caesarean section.Keywords: female sterilization, contraception, family planning, Pomeroy, tubal ligation

Response of soil moisture content to sampling depth and canopy types in a tropical climate, Southwest Nigeria

Soil moisture plays a very important role on vegetation growth and hydrological cycle in tropical wet and dry climates. Response of soil moisture to sampling depth and canopy type in a tropical wet and dry climate, South-West Nigeria was assessed during 2015 meteorological year. The selected canopy types were Cashew plantation(AnacardiumOccidentale) (7°.43¹N, 3°.85¹E), Teak plantation (Tectonagrandis) (7o .66¹N, 3o .84¹E) and Palm tree plantation (Elaeis guineensis) (7o .51¹N,3o .99¹E) all in the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Nigeria. Result showed that the moisture values under the Palm tree canopy obtained from the three methods was significantly ( p ≤ 0.05) higher than moisture content from other canopy types, though soil moisture under Cashew had slightly higher moisture readings than those under Palm canopy sometimes. In terms of sampling depth, soil moisture determined by gravimetric method at 10cm depth ranged from 2.92 to 9.48, then at 20cm ranged from 3.41 to 9.46 while at 30cm, it ranged from 3.77 to 9.57. Soil moisture readings obtained using volumetric method at 10cm ranged from 3.62 to 10.30, then at 20cm ranged from 3.79 to 9.87 while it ranged from 4.42 to 11.73 at 30cm depth. The values of soil moisture using TDR method at 10cm depth ranged from 3.31 to 8.46, then at 20cm, it ranged from 3.14 to 9.03 while at 30cm ranged from 3.43 to 9.79. Conclusively, leaves attached to palm tree perhaps maintained their saturated water content longer than leaves attached to shorter trunk such as cashew and teak trees, hence less moisture uptake by palm tree in contrast to cashew and teak trees.Keywords: Soil moisture, Teak plantation, Cashew Plantation, and Palm Plantatio

Effect of levels of niacin supplementation on egg quality

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of niacin supplementation in layers diets on the internal and external quality of table eggs. A total of 75 laying birds at 24 weeks of age were used in the trial. Four dietary treatments with niacin at 0ppm, 30ppm, 40ppm, and 50ppm were fed to the birds for a period of 20 weeks. Each treatment had 18 birds comprising of 3 replicates of six birds each.Twenty four eggs (2 per replicate) from each treatment were used for the egg quality analysis at four weeks interval for the 20 weeks of the experiment. Significant (p<0.05) effect of niacin was noticed in the egg shape index (ESI) and shell thickness at (0-4) and (4-8) weeks of the experiment when 50ppm of niacin was fed. The shell % was significant (p<0.05) at (16-20) weeks of the experiment when 30ppm of niacin was fed. No significant differences were noticed in egg weight and yolk %. Egg shape index, (ESI) was generally above 0.66 across all the treatment groups

Jejunal linear foreign body obstruction in a three year old female Boerboel

A three year old Boerboel bitch was presented to the Veterinary Teaching Hospital, FUNAAB with complaint of lethargy and inappetence. Clinical signs observed included abdominal tenderness, watery bloody stool and palpable intestinal mass. Blood sample was obtained for complete blood counts, while transcutaneous abdominal ultrasound and lateral abdominal radiograph were also performed. Result of complete blood count showed severe neutrophilic leukocytosis. Transcutaneous abdominal ultrasound revealed dilated bowel loop containing a hyperechoic structure in the lumen, while radiographic contrast examination of the intestine revealed distended bowel loop and a radiopaque foreign body in the jejunum. Based on the findings, a tentative diagnosis of intestinal obstruction was made and an exploratory laparotomy was scheduled. After pre-anaesthetic medications with 3mg/kg intramuscular injection of 5% tramadol, 0.04mg/kg intramuscular injection of 0.1% atropine and 0.5mg/kg intramuscular injection of 2% Xylazine, anaesthesia was induced with a loading dose of 4mg/kg intravenous injection of 1% propofol and maintained with constant infusion of propofol at the rate of 0.12mg/kg/min. During laparotomy, the obstructed region was identified and enterotomy revealed the foreign body to be an ingested plastic bottle cap. Following removal of the foreign body, moderate inflammation of the segment of the intestine around the obstruction site was observed, necessitating the need for resection of the intestine to be performed and anastomosis using an end to end technique. The dog recovered without any complications after one week of postoperative antibiotic therapy and fluid administration. Prompt diagnosis of intestinal foreign body in dogs followed by appropriate selection of anaesthetic protocol and surgical technique with adequate intensive post-operative follow-up is essential for successful management.Keywords: Dog, Foreign-body, Jejuno-ileal, Intestine, Obstructio

Sensitivity assessment of maize (Zea mays l.) Cultivars growth parameters to agrometeorological indices in Abeokuta, southwest Nigeria

Growth parameters namely number of leaves, leaf area per plant and plant height were recorded in a field experiment in the late rainy season of 2016 to study the crop growth-weather relationship of four maize cultivars namely TZPB-SR-W, DMR-LSR-Y, ART/98/SW6 and BR/9928. The experimental plots were arranged in a Randomize Complete Block Design replicated three times. The crop growth parameters (number of leaves, plant height  and leaf area) and selected agrometeorological indices namely rainfall, maximum and minimum temperature, relative humidity and sunshine hour were subjected to correlation analysis. The study confirmed that number of leaves for the cultivars used for this research was the most sensitive  parameter to rainfall, minimum temperature and relative humidity fluctuations whereas it was least sensitive to maximum temperature and sunshine hour. Cultivars plant height and leaf area demonstrated highest sensitivity to maximum temperature and sunshine hour, respectively in the study area. The correlations coefficients (r) obtained in the experiment revealed that rainfall, minimum and maximum temperature and sunshine hour were positively correlated with crop growth parameters, but relative humidity was negatively correlated with all selected growth parameters. It was recommended that number of leaves be used as the most critical factor in determining maize cultivars sensitivity to weather vagaries in the study area.Key words: maize, agrometeorological, indices, cultivars, sensitivit

Water quality assessment of Owiwi River for potential irrigation of vegetables

Understanding water quality used for irrigation and its potential negative impacts on crop growth are important for optimization of crop production. The study involved the assessment of hydro-chemical properties and chemical indices of Owiwi river for irrigation of vegetables from the measured quality parameters and analyzed for important quality indices following standard test procedures. The study revealed that pH of water was acidic in nature resulting in low residual sodium carbonate (RSC) values showing dominance of dissolved CO3, attributed to dissolution of limestone dominant in the study area. The water was regarded as permissible water based on electrical conductivity (EC) and total dissolved solids (TDS), implying non detrimental salinity hazard in the soils. Excessive Na content (> 250 MMg/L) in water reduces the permeability thereby influencing availability of water for the plant usage, obviously associated with low EC and sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) observed in the river water. The excess hardness resulting from high content of calcium and magnesium ions derived from limestone and chalk is undesirable mostly for esthetic reasons like plumbing of irrigation systems. Generally, the water can be classified as good for irrigation of vegetable on the bases of PI, MAR, % Na, SAR and % yield. Keywords: Hydro-chemical, permeability, soil, limestone, yield

Impact of upstream industrial effluents on irrigation water quality, soils and plant in Alakia Area of Ibadan

Knowledge of irrigation water quality is critical to predicting, managing and reducing salt affect on soils. The study assessed the effect of industrial effluents on irrigation water quality, soils and plant tissues in Ibadan, Southwest Nigeria. The degree of pollution was evaluated using Sodium adsorption ratio, pH, cations – Cl and NO3 and 4 heavy metals including Pb, Cu, Cd and Zn using standard procedures. The study established the presence of High pH (pH= 6.65) that caused high alkalinity leading to high SAR of 11.1 which is as a result of calcium and magnesium ions forming insoluble minerals leaving sodium as the dominant ion in solution. Presence of heavy metals in concentration higher than the recommended limits in irrigation water samples analyzed with Cd (0.05 ppm), Cu (0.3 ppm), Pb (0.03 ppm) and Zn (4.0 ppm) in the study location. It was concluded that Eleshin stream and the surrounding ground water is fit for irrigation in relation to sodium hazard, although it is acidic, thus enhancing leaching and corrosive tendencies of the irrigation water. High level of heavy metals in the soil indicated contamination from the effluent from the factories in the area. Plant sampled indicated the presence of higher level of Pb and Cd in the tissues of leaf and roots than that of the reference samples.Keywords: Pollution, discharge, effluent, irrigation, SAR, heavy metal