Virus-host interactions in the cassava brown streak disease pathosystem

The research seeks to understand the virus-host plant interactions for cassava brown streak disease (CBSD) caused by two viruses, Cassava brown streak virus (CBSV) and Ugandan Cassava brown streak virus (UCBSV) of the genus Ipomovirus, family Potyviridae. The diversity of six CBSD isolates from the endemic (Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania) and the recently developed epidemic areas (Uganda) of the disease in eastern Africa was studied. Five cassava varieties differing in virus resistance levels; Albert, Columbian, Ebwanateraka, TMS60444 (all susceptible) and Kiroba (tolerant) were graft-inoculated with the UCBSV and CBSV isolates. Based on a number of parameters, the isolates can be grouped into two main categories; severe and milder forms. Transmission of viruses using non-vector modes confirmed that CBSV was sap transmissible from cassava to cassava. Graft-inoculation of infected scions onto CBSD-free cassava plants was the most efficient mode of transmission which resulted in 80 and 100% rate for UCBSV and CBSV respectively. The two virus isolates were not transmitted through contaminated tools and hands. The effect of host-tolerance on virus was investigated in a long-term experiment where three cassava varieties Albert, Kiroba and Kaleso (field-resistant to CBSD) were graft-inoculated with UCBSV and CBSV. The three cassava varieties showed differences in virus movement, symptom development, severity and relative virus titres. The mechanisms of resistance to CBSD were investigated by making cuttings, from various parts of the plants, and a greater number of disease-free plants were generated from cuttings made from Kaleso than Kiroba and Albert. The fecundity of B. tabaci and its ability to transmit the virus were determined and results indicated no significant differences in the ability of the three cassava varieties to support whitefly development. Finally, thermal and chemical treatments of tissue cultured plants were conducted and the combinations of both treatments produced the greatest number of disease-free plants in all three varieties; Kaleso (50%), Kiroba (44%) and Albert (35%). The information generated in this thesis has greatly improved our understanding of the interactions between the three biotic factors; the host, virus and vector in the CBSD-pathosystem, which would be highly useful in designing effective disease management strategies

Stock Market Development, Foreign Direct Investment and Macroeconomic Stability: Evidence from Nigeria

Stock market development is not only important in economic development of a nation, it is also an important indicator of future economic activity and a nation’s economic strength. This paper employs the Johensen co-integration and the error correction mechanism (ECM) techniques to examine the impact of foreign direct investment and macroeconomic stability (exchange rate and inflation rate) on the level of development of the Nigerian stock market over the peiod 1981-2010. The results reveal that a long run relationship exists between the variables and FDI was found to have a positive but insignificant impact on stock market development. The results also demonstrate that inflation rate has a negative insignificant effect but exchange rate has a significant and negative relationship with stock market development. The paper recommends that foreign firms operating in the Nigeria’s oil and gas and telecommunication sectors should be encouraged to be listed to promote the development of the market. This should be complemeted with policies that will promote macroeconomic stability to attract more foreign direct investment and making the contribution of the foreign direct investment meaningful to the economy. Keywords: Stock market development, FDI, macroeconomic stability, error correction model, Nigeria

Effect of educational intervention on knowledge about hypertension and factors predicting adherence to drug therapy

The present study was aimed at identifying the degree of knowledge of people with hypertension about the disease, identifying the factors predicting adherence to therapy and administering intervention. It was a quasi-experimental study involving 600 patients selected by multistage sampling technique. Adherence status was assessed using Morisky medication adherence scale8. Knowledge was measured using an eight-item instrument. Educational intervention in form of group discussions was administered. Values of p ≤ 0.05 were considered statistically significant. BP control was significantly higher in those that adhered to antihypertensive medication compared with non-adhering patients (χ2 = 14.526; df = 1; p-value = < 0.001). Comorbidity and number of antihypertensive drugs the patients were taking were found to be the predictors of adherence. After intervention, the percentage of respondents with good adherence increased from 41.3% to 48.3% (p = 0.369) in the intervention group. Furthermore educational intervention had a positive effect on knowledge of the respondents [from 64% to 66.3% (p= 0.623)] in the intervention group. The results revealed that the educational intervention had positive impact of knowledge of hypertension and its treatment. Additionally, Comorbidity and number of antihypertensive prescribed were found to be the predictors of adherence to medications.&nbsp

Islamic Finance and Economic Growth: Empirical Evidence from Nigeria

Islamic finance is gradually gaining acceptance locally and internationally which Nigeria is not an exception. The emergence of Islamic finance in Nigeria can be traced back to 1991. The main objective of this paper is to assess the contribution of Islamic finance on the growth of the economy of Nigeria as well as its relationship and directions. Time series data from 2012 to 2015 was used on quarterly basis. Islamic banks’ financing credited to private sector through modes of financing was used as a proxy for Islamic finance, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and TRADE as explanatory variable while Real Gross Domestic Product (RGDP) was used as a measure of real economic growth called the dependent variables. For the analysis, Ordinary Least Square (OLS), the unit root test, cointegration test and Granger Causality tests was used. Our empirical results show that there is a strong positive association between Islamic banks’ financing and economic growth in Nigeria, which reinforces the idea that a well-functioning banking system promotes economic growth. Furthermore, the causal relationship happens only in one direction, i.e, from Islamic banks’ financing to economic growth, which is in compliance with the Schumpeter’s supply-leading theory Keywords: Islamic finance, Economic growth, Causality, Nigeria, Sharia

Organisational Communication as a Tool for Institutionalising Professional Ethics, Core Values and Employee Engagement to Enhance Work Performance in the Public Service Sector

In recent times, cases involving top public officers and political appointees surrounding huge breach of public trust as a result of lackadaisical attitude toward work ethics and core values have been reported in the media. Historically, the Nigerian public service sector has been facing what may be described as insurmountable decay in work ethics and core values leading to high degrees of inefficiency, corruption, and the lack of public trust by the public. Available literature suggests ways of mitigating the problem in addition to providing empirical evidence of the levels and links of the problem with Nigeria’s socio-economic and political advancement. Some of the critical panaceas highlighted in the literature include proactively educating, enlightening, and engaging employees and personnel on the sanctity of the need to abide by work ethics and core values for enhanced work performance. All these, however, can be achieved through effective organisational communication. This article reviews existing literature on work ethics and core values, highlighting theoretical foundations and outlining critical areas that require urgent attention. Educating employees through seminars/webinars, workshops, etc. is shown to possess great potential to make positive impacts. Using critical desktop reviews, secondary data were sourced from Google Scholar, Scopus (ScienceDirect) and other web-based data banks were reviewed and analysed thematically. Implications of the themes are discussed, and conclusion drawn. Keywords:Organisational communication, Work ethics, Core values, Public service, Public organisations, Employees DOI: 10.7176/PPAR/13-1-01 Publication date: January 31st 202

Effect of Executive Compensation on Financial Performance of Listed Non-Financial Firms in Nigeria

Purpose: Examine the effect of executive compensation on the financial performance of listed non-financial firms in Nigeria.   Theoretical framework: The continuous rise in compensation of executives in Nigeria without a corresponding increase in firm performance has continued to generate intense debates and controversial opinions within the corporate environment. Consequently, the need to understand the degree of relationship between executive compensation (measured by salary emolument, bonuses, stock-based compensation and pension) and firm performance (measured by return on equity).   Design/methodology/approach:  A correlational research design was used based on a filtered census population of 63 firms listed on Nigeria’s stock exchange. Secondary data was obtained from the annual financial reports of these firms and analyzed using the generalized methods moments.   Findings: The study found salary emoluments, bonuses and stock-based compensation, as measures of executive compensation, have negative impact on the return on equity of listed non-financial firms in Nigeria. Where executive pension claims a positive impact on the return on equity of listed non-financial firms in Nigeria.   Research,  Practical  &  Social  implications: Regardless of executive compensation being an incentivizing tool for the executive team, which  has a significant impact on company strategy, decision-making, and value creation as well as enhancing executive retention, different components of executive compensation exert different effect on the financial performance of firms as confirmed by this research.   Originality/value: The research points out different executive compensation measures have different impacts on performance. Consequently, the need for stakeholders to determine the perfect combination of the compensation measures that best drive performance

Adherence to antihypertensive medications in patients attending public hospitals in Kano State, Nigeria

Hypertension is a chronic medical condition characterized by an elevated arterial blood pressure with increasing prevalence in developing countries including Nigeria. One of the integral elements in management of hypertension is adherence to medication and life-style modification. This study aimed to assess adherence level for anti-hypertensive medications among adult hypertensive patients attending public hospitals in Kano State, Nigeria. The study was a cross sectional prospective survey involving 600 patients from six public healthcare facilities selected by multistage sampling technique. Adherence status was assessed using Morisky medication adherence scale. Sociodemographic data and other factors that may influence adherence to hypertension medications were evaluated. Out of the 598 patients that participated in the study, only 178 (29.8%) have their BP controlled based on JNC8. Three hundred and thirty two (55.5%) out of 598 patients have good adherence, while 266 (45.5%) have poor adherence. Of the 178 patients who had good BP control, 120 (67.5%) have good adherence while 58 (32.5%) have poor adherence. BP control was significantly higher in those that adhered to antihypertensive medication compared with non-adhering patients (χ2 = 14.526; df = 1; p-value = < 0.001). Additionally, Chi-square test showed significant association between number of antihypertensives and blood pressure control. (χ2=37.556, df=3, p<0.001). The study established that 55.5% of the respondents have good adherence to their antihypertensive medication while 29.8% had their BP controlled. Adherence and number of antihypertensive medication a patient is taking were found to have significant relationship with BP control. Keywords: Medication, adherence, hypertension, antihypertensiv

Effect of Wolbachia as biocontrol agent on fecundity and survival of cassava whitefly in northwest Nigeria

Whitefly (Bemisia tabaci Genn.) is known to vectored Cassava mosaic virus (CMV) and Cassava brown streak virus (CBSV), these viruses caused major diseases of cassava in Africa. An experiment was conducted to determine the effect of Wolbachia as biocontrol agent on fecundity and survival of whitefly infesting cassava. Whiteflies infesting cassava were captured and reared using rearing cages. Wolbachia was isolated from infected cassava whiteflies, cultured and used for the inoculations. The experiment was conducted under control conditions using glass cages. Results of this research revealed that number of eggs lay by Bemisia tabaci inoculated with Wolbachia significantly (P = 0.05) reduced weeks after inoculation which significantly differ among the cassava genotypes. Number of eggs lay by B. tabaci free of Wolbachia was significantly higher (964.35) than those inoculated with Wolbachia (46.541) at 4 weeks after inoculation (4WAI). The genotype ‘Dan Aliero’ had the highest number (4WAI 82.33), while, ‘Farin rogo’ had the lowest number of eggs (4WAI 23.33). Number of whitefly nymphs and adults also significantly reduced when B. tabaci was inoculated with Wolbachia. ‘Dan Aliero’ had the highest number of whitefly nymphs and adults (4WAI = 59.00) and (4WAI = 51.00), respectively. ‘Farin rogo’ recorded the lowest number of whitefly nymphs (17.67) and adults (13.00) at 4WAI, respectively. For the first time, Wolbachia were evaluated for whiteflies management. From the finding of this study, Wolbachia can be used as biocontrol agent to suppress whiteflies infestation on cassava and other vegetable crops

Screening of sweet potato feathery mottle virus resistant sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L., Lam.) cultivars in Kebbi State, Nigeria

Sweet potato is a food security crop because of its ability to withstand adverse climatic conditions. This security, however, is being threaten by viral diseases and use of resistant cultivars remain the best management. This research was conducted to screen cultivars of sweet potato against sweet potato feathery mottle virus (SPFMV) infection. The treatments consisted of five cultivars coded as CV1, CV2, CV3, CV4 and CV5, respectively. The asymptomatic experimental plants were established, maintained under screen house conditions and graft-inoculated using infected vines which were tested SPFMV positive using both Double Antibody Sandwich Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (DAS-ELISA) and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). The experiment was laid out in Completely Randomized Design (CRD) and replicated three times. Results obtained from disease incidence and symptom severity indicated that there was significant difference (P <0.05) among cultivars in their reaction to SPFMV infection. CV2 had the highest mean disease incidence (60.67%) while, CV3 had the lowest mean disease incidence (36.67%). CV1, CV3, and CV5 have the same lowest mean symptom severity score of 2.00 while, CV2 had the highest mean severity score of 4.00. Based on the reaction of the cultivars after inoculation, it could be concluded that, all the cultivars screened were susceptible to SPFMV but CV1, CV3 and CV4 cultivars have some degree of resistance to SPFMV infection and were therefore recommended for use by the farmers in the study area. This is the first research that screened sweet potato cultivars for resistance to SPFMV in Kebbi State, Nigeria

THE PERCEPTION ON THE CONTRIBUTION OF ISLAMIC BANKS AND ISLAMIC WINDOWS TOWARDS THE GROWTH OF NIGERIAN ECONOMY

This study was to assess the perception on the contribution of Islamic banks and Islamic windows towards the growth of the Nigerian economy. To document this, data were obtained through the use of structured questionnaires. 379 copies of questionnaires were administered based on the sample size obtained via the use of Taro Yamane formula. 367 questionnaires were successfully retrieved. Variables such as deposit activities, loan activities and perception of bank employees were also adopted as explanatory or independent variable and dependent variable respectively. To support the study hypothesis were also formulated. For the analysis, measures of central tendency (tables, frequency and percentages) and inferential statistics (Logit Regression) were used. The result revealed that the variables (i.e. deposit and loan activities) have a positive impact on the growth of Nigeria’s economy because the probability values of the variables (P=0.003 and 0.019) were less than alpha (α =0.05) level of significance. In other words, this implies that Islamic banks and windows have largely supported private consumption, business investments of its customers, aid government spending via sukuk to fund developmental projects of its customers. The study concludes that Islamic banks and windows have contributed towards the growth of the Nigeria’s economy. Furthermore, the study recommends that there is need for creating the necessary legal framework to ensure its smooth operations, intensify efforts on creating public awareness, rolling out more shariah compliant products that can take care of the peculiarities that exist in business environment and training and retraining of staff on effective Islamic banking