Effects of differently processed soybean substituted diets on nutrient utilization and the growth perormance of Clarias gariepinus juveniles

Growth and nutrient studies was carried out on Clarias gariepinus Juveniles of mean weight 7.00-8.00g stocked into rectangular plastic aquarium tanks 30cm x 15cm for 120 days fed with differently processed soya bean meal. There were eight  treatments labeled as diet T1-T8, diet T1 (control diet; contains no soybean meal but has fishmeal as the protein source); diet T2 (Conventional diet; purchased  commercially); diet T3 (contains a partial replacement of fishmeal with raw soybean meal at 66.7 replacement) diet T4 (has 100% of raw soybean meal inclusion), diet T5 (66.7% toasted soybean inclusion); diet T6 (100% toasted soybean inclusion); diet T7 (100% raw soybean with methionine and lysine); diet T8 (100% toasted  soybean with methionine and lysine). The diets were formulated at 40% crude  protein containing soya bean meal at different inclusion rates; the toasted soya bean was toasted at 100oC for 10 minutes using an oven and then milled into a fine powder before being mixed with other ingredients. Results showed that the highest average weight gain of 432.55g, specific growth rate (SGR) of 3.38% and food conversion ratio (FCR) of 5.78 of the formulated diets respectively were recorded in fish fed with diet T5 (toasted soyabean meal) P<0.05. The Juveniles fed raw soybean gave the least growth performance (Diet T3) and (Diet T4) P>0.05. this relative lower growth performance of the fish might be attributed to the presence of higher levels of anti-nutritional factors present in soybeans for example trypsin inhibitors and phytic acid which may interfere with the availability of nutrients to the fish; from the result It could be concluded in practice that toasted soybean based diet is optimal for growth of Clarias gariepinus Juvenile. Mortality rates recorded during the dietary trial ranged between 30% in fish fed diet T8 to 100% in the remaining diets. The results were discussed in relation to fish feed production and its implication for fish culture intensification in Nigeria and it is recommended that toasted soya bean should be embraced as the most preferred treatment for the soyabean used in fish feedKeywords: Processed soya bean, fishmeal, growth Juveniles, Clarias gariepinu

Evaluation of Groundwater Potential of Crystalline Basement Area of Kogi State Polytechnic, Osara Campus, North-Central Nigeria using Electrical Resistivity Method

Hydrogeophysical study was carried out in the Basement Complex area of Kogi State Polytechnic, Osara Campus, to investigate the groundwater potential of the subsurface layers. Acute water shortage and challenges of abortive and non-functional open and closed wells has prompted this study on the development of the groundwater resources. This work involves using the electrical resistivity method to investigate concealed fractures within the area with the aim of delineating near surface/subsurface geological layers to determine the depths, thickness, structural trends and spatial distribution of basement rocks as potential sources of groundwater.  A total of thirty six vertical electrical sounding (VES) using the Schlumberger configuration was employed for the study. The depth and resistivity of the subsurface layers were determined.  The interpreted results of the geo electrical sections indicates the presence of four subsurface layers: top soil of thickness and resistivity values ranging from 0.2 – 5.0m and 169 – 3728 ohms meter, weathered basement ranging from 5 – 12m and 100 – 914 ohms meter, fractured basement ranging from 6.2 – 196 meters and 42 - 196 ohms meter the fresh rock bedrock ranging from infinity in thickness and 741 – 3691 ohms metres.  Geo electric sections, overburden Isopach maps of the area were drawn with basement depressions and elevations, the basement depressions are the priority areas for groundwater abstraction within the study area. Keywords: Osara, Groundwater, Electrical Resistivity, Fracture, Geoelectrical sections

Nosocomial infections and the challenges of control in developing countries.

Nosocomial infection is a recognized public health problem world-wide with a prevalence rate of 3.0-20.7% and an incidence rate of 5-10%. It has become increasingly obvious that infections acquired in the hospital lead to increased morbidity and mortality which has added noticeably to economic burden. However, after about three decades of nosocomial infection surveillance and control world-wide, it still remains an important problem for hospitals today. Studies have shown that most hospitals in developing countries especially Africa, have no effective infection control programme due to lack of awareness of the problem, lack of personnel, poor water supply, erratic electricity supply, ineffective antibiotic policies with emergence of multiply antibiotic resistant microbes, poor laboratory backup, poor funding and non-adherence to safe practices by health workers. It is recommended that the cost of hospital infection control programme should be included in the health budget of the country and fund allocated for the infection control committee for routine control purposes and to bear the cost of outbreaks. There is need for adequate staffing and continuous education of staff on the principles of infection control, especially hand washing which is the single most important effective measure to reduce the risks of cross infection.

In Vivo Anti-Trypanosomal Activity of Ethanolic Leaf Extract of Carissa Spinarum (Wild Karanda) in Mice Infected with Trypanosoma Brucei Brucei Spp.

Carissa Spinarum plant has been implicated as a medicinal plant for joints, muscle, chest pains by the massai people of Kenya, also as an antiviral supplement for HIV treatment in Tanzania. Acute toxicity of the ethanolic leaf extract and minimum inhibition concentration (MIC) using four (4) microorganism (proteus, e.coli, staphylococcus aureus spp & enterobacter spp) was evaluated in mice using Lorke’s method & serial dilution method respectively. The ethanolic leaf extract was evaluated for in vivo anti-trypanosomal activity against federa strain of Trypanosoma brucei brucei in albino mice. Four days suppressive, curative effect against established infection and prophylactic models of anti-trypanosomal studies were carried out. The median lethal dose of the extract was determined to be ? 100mg ? kg body weight. The extract (12.5, 25, 50mg / kg) exerted some dose dependent suppressive effects at the different levels of infections tested, with no significant curative effects recorded. However, further antitrypanosomal property can be explored for the management of trypanosomiasis. Keywords: Carissa spinarum, antitrypanosomal, albino mice, trypanosome brucei brucei speci

COVID-19 and its impacts: the situation in Niger republic

COVID-19 being a public health emergency of international concern has emerged in most African countries including Niger. Niger, a landlocked country, is tasked with controlling the pandemic. However, of the big challenges the country faced is the fragility of healthcare system which posed limitations to the fight against the virus. The virus overwhelmed the fragile healthcare system which led to inaccessibility of quality healthcare to the citizens coupled with issues of flooding and economic recession that happened during the pandemic. The healthcare sectored has further been crippled by exposure and infection of the already insufficient healthcare workers. In addition to this, there was the burden of NTDs and other communicable and non-communicable diseases that subverted the country in the depths of difficulties. As per the predictions of World Bank, the poverty curve is likely to escalate due to the outrageous impacts of COVID-19. Adding on to this, the occurrence of natural disasters such as flooding has further stretched the country. It's no coincidence that the country would confront plethora of challenges amidst the second wave. Therefore, timely decision and necessary interventions are needed to strengthen the country's fight against the pandemic. However, this is only feasible when Nigerien government, international allies and other wealthy nations work closely to ensure that the challenges faced by the healthcare system are tackled

COVID-19: a novel burden on the fragile health system of Angola

No abstract available

Anisotropic flow of charged hadrons, pions and (anti-)protons measured at high transverse momentum in Pb-Pb collisions at sNN=2.76\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}=2.76 TeV

The elliptic, $v_2$, triangular, $v_3$, and quadrangular, $v_4$, azimuthal anisotropic flow coefficients are measured for unidentified charged particles, pions and (anti-)protons in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}} = 2.76$ TeV with the ALICE detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Results obtained with the event plane and four-particle cumulant methods are reported for the pseudo-rapidity range $|\eta|<0.8$ at different collision centralities and as a function of transverse momentum, $p_{\rm T}$, out to $p_{\rm T}=20$ GeV/$c$. The observed non-zero elliptic and triangular flow depends only weakly on transverse momentum for $p_{\rm T}>8$ GeV/$c$. The small $p_{\rm T}$ dependence of the difference between elliptic flow results obtained from the event plane and four-particle cumulant methods suggests a common origin of flow fluctuations up to $p_{\rm T}=8$ GeV/$c$. The magnitude of the (anti-)proton elliptic and triangular flow is larger than that of pions out to at least $p_{\rm T}=8$ GeV/$c$ indicating that the particle type dependence persists out to high $p_{\rm T}$.Comment: 16 pages, 5 captioned figures, authors from page 11, published version, figures at http://aliceinfo.cern.ch/ArtSubmission/node/186

Centrality dependence of charged particle production at large transverse momentum in Pb-Pb collisions at sNN=2.76\sqrt{s_{\rm{NN}}} = 2.76 TeV

The inclusive transverse momentum ($p_{\rm T}$) distributions of primary charged particles are measured in the pseudo-rapidity range $|\eta|<0.8$ as a function of event centrality in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm{NN}}}=2.76$ TeV with ALICE at the LHC. The data are presented in the $p_{\rm T}$ range $0.15<p_{\rm T}<50$ GeV/$c$ for nine centrality intervals from 70-80% to 0-5%. The Pb-Pb spectra are presented in terms of the nuclear modification factor $R_{\rm{AA}}$ using a pp reference spectrum measured at the same collision energy. We observe that the suppression of high-$p_{\rm T}$ particles strongly depends on event centrality. In central collisions (0-5%) the yield is most suppressed with $R_{\rm{AA}}\approx0.13$ at $p_{\rm T}=6$-7 GeV/$c$. Above $p_{\rm T}=7$ GeV/$c$, there is a significant rise in the nuclear modification factor, which reaches $R_{\rm{AA}} \approx0.4$ for $p_{\rm T}>30$ GeV/$c$. In peripheral collisions (70-80%), the suppression is weaker with $R_{\rm{AA}} \approx 0.7$ almost independently of $p_{\rm T}$. The measured nuclear modification factors are compared to other measurements and model calculations.Comment: 17 pages, 4 captioned figures, 2 tables, authors from page 12, published version, figures at http://aliceinfo.cern.ch/ArtSubmission/node/284

Measurement of charm production at central rapidity in proton-proton collisions at s=2.76\sqrt{s} = 2.76 TeV

The $p_{\rm T}$-differential production cross sections of the prompt (B feed-down subtracted) charmed mesons D$^0$, D$^+$, and D$^{*+}$ in the rapidity range $|y|<0.5$, and for transverse momentum $1< p_{\rm T} <12$ GeV/$c$, were measured in proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 2.76$ TeV with the ALICE detector at the Large Hadron Collider. The analysis exploited the hadronic decays D$^0 \rightarrow$K$\pi$, D$^+ \rightarrow$K$\pi\pi$, D$^{*+} \rightarrow$D$^0\pi$, and their charge conjugates, and was performed on a $L_{\rm int} = 1.1$ nb$^{-1}$ event sample collected in 2011 with a minimum-bias trigger. The total charm production cross section at $\sqrt{s} = 2.76$ TeV and at 7 TeV was evaluated by extrapolating to the full phase space the $p_{\rm T}$-differential production cross sections at $\sqrt{s} = 2.76$ TeV and our previous measurements at $\sqrt{s} = 7$ TeV. The results were compared to existing measurements and to perturbative-QCD calculations. The fraction of cdbar D mesons produced in a vector state was also determined.Comment: 20 pages, 5 captioned figures, 4 tables, authors from page 15, published version, figures at http://aliceinfo.cern.ch/ArtSubmission/node/307

Particle-yield modification in jet-like azimuthal di-hadron correlations in Pb-Pb collisions at sNN\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}} = 2.76 TeV

The yield of charged particles associated with high-$p_{\rm T}$ trigger particles ($8 < p_{\rm T} < 15$ GeV/$c$) is measured with the ALICE detector in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$ = 2.76 TeV relative to proton-proton collisions at the same energy. The conditional per-trigger yields are extracted from the narrow jet-like correlation peaks in azimuthal di-hadron correlations. In the 5% most central collisions, we observe that the yield of associated charged particles with transverse momenta $p_{\rm T}> 3$ GeV/$c$ on the away-side drops to about 60% of that observed in pp collisions, while on the near-side a moderate enhancement of 20-30% is found.Comment: 15 pages, 2 captioned figures, 1 table, authors from page 10, published version, figures at http://aliceinfo.cern.ch/ArtSubmission/node/350