The Renoprotective Effect of Methanolic Extract of Portulaca Oleracea on Cisplatin-Induced Nephrotoxicity in Wistar Rats

This study was carried out to investigate the renoprotective effect of Portulaca oleracea on cisplatin-induced nephrotoxic wistar rats. Twenty four (24) female wistar rats were randomly divided into six (6) groups - Group A were given no treatment and served as the control group; Group B was given only a single dose of cisplatin (2ml/kg) and served as the cisplatin control group. Groups C and D were orally given 400mg/kg and 800mg/kg body weight of methanolic extract of portulaca oleracea (MEPO) respectively 6 hours after cisplatin injection (2ml/kg) . Groups E and F were orally given 400mg/kg and 800mg/kg body weight of MEPO respectively 6hours before cisplatin injection (2ml/kg) for 7 days. The effect of the treatment on relative kidney weight, serum creatinine level, serum uric acid and histoarchitecture of the rat kidney were accessed. Results showed significantly decreased serum creatinine levels (p<0.05) in rats treated with 400mg/kg b.wt. and 800mg/kg b.wt.  MEPO as compared with the cisplatin control group. Serum uric acid was significantly decreased  in groups C, D, E, and F when compared with control A. The relative average weight of the kidney increased significantly in all treated groups except group treated with 800mg/kg b.wt. MEPO 6hours before cisplatin. Kidney histological slides showed both recovery from and prevention of effects of induced toxicity at all treatment doses. Results suggest that Portulaca oleracea extract may be used to cure or prevent cisplatin-induced renal toxicity without any adverse effect; hence it can serve as a novel combination agent with cisplatin to limit renal injury. Keywords: Cisplatin, portulaca oleracea, renoprotection, nephrotoxicity

ASSESSMENT OF THE KNOWLEDGE AND USE OF BRIQUETTES FOR CLIMATE CHANGE OPTION AMONG RICE PROCESSORS IN ANAMBRA STATE, NIGERIA

The study on the assessment of the knowledge and use of briquettes for climate change option among rice processors in Anambra State, Nigeria investigated the level of rice processor’s knowledge and perception on the use of briquettes, perceived advantages of renewable energy, as well as the socio-economic characteristic influence on the processor’s perception and the perceived challenges to the production of briquettes. Data were collected from 974 randomly selected rice processors and analyzed with descriptive statistics and Tobit regression model. The study shows that the majority (62.2%) of the processors are female with mean age, processing experience and a monthly output of 43 years, 15 years and 4.5 tons respectively. Also, the processors were fairly knowledgeable on the use of briquettes but perceived renewable energy as economically viable, and climate-smart among others. The socioeconomic variables influencing their perception were Age, marital-status, enterprise size, experience, monthly income, and rice residues. Finally, the likely challenges that will constrain briquettes production include; high initial cost, high maintenance cost etc. furthermore, policymakers must swing into action to sensitize processors on the need to adopt renewable energy for environmental sustainability

Women Academe and Criticism of Nigerian Culture: The Input of Mabel Evwierhoma through Theatre Scholarship

The giant strides to be taken in becoming an academic do not just entail acquiring knowledge through formal education but demand further steps to master, philosophize and profess knowledge. Apart from the credentials to show that quality conditions were fulfilled in a higher education, volumes of well researched publications in peer review academic journals are vital. In Nigeria, when this form of learning came through colonial education women were not as privileged as men to acquire it immediately. So, men become educated first, hence were the first set of academics. Subsequently, women joined this league of educated men in the academic world. The utilization of this knowledge by both men and women in academic community encroached on culture, its administration and expression. In this instance, issues in various endeavours, including academics are expressed through culture of criticism and criticism of culture. This study examines women’s academic world and their efforts in criticizing Nigerian culture with a focus on Mabel Evwierhoma’s involvement using theatre scholarship. The theory of Cultural Studies as it relates to cultural criticism specifically feminist criticism will be adopted to explore cultural feminist thoughts of Nigerian women in the academics with Evwierhoma’s input as a focus. The study finds that since the inception of feminism in Nigeria, women have deployed its scholarship, to criticise culture. Women in the theatre have used every available tool including creative writing, critical writing, research, pedagogy and philosophy to highlight cultural values that favour women. Evwierhoma has made a robust impact in this regard

Liver function tests values in albino wistar rats administered with isolated Nigeria Achatina achatina snail lectin

Achatina achatina snail specie are considered by many people in Nigeria, Ghana and other parts of West Africa to be the most prized snail for eating. In general, lectins bind to sugar moieties in cell walls or membrane, thereby change the physiology of the membrane to cause agglutination, mitosis or other biochemical changes in the cell. It has been deduced that lectins could be toxic and can as well be used as potent administrations that could be used or serve as substitutes for routine treatment or management of many disorders. Based on these, the toxicity of the Achatina achatina snail lectin in animals was investigated with a view to determining the nutritional value of the snail as food stuffs by carrying out tests to determine the blood values of Liver Function Tests (LFT) parameters in Albino Wistar Rats administered with the lectin. A total of 120 samples of the Nigeria Achatina achatina snail specie were collected, authenticated at the Zoology Department of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and 80mls of pooled crude Lectin extract was obtained. Purifications were performed on 20mls of the crude extract in three steps viz, Ammonium sulphate precipitation and Dialysis (Partial purifications), Con A Sepharose 4B affinity Chromatography column (Complete purification). The affinity purified lectin was used for all the tests conducted in this research. The crude, partially and complete/affinity purified Lectin extracts were subjected to Haemagglutination tests. The Lectin was further assessed to determine its effects on Liver Function Tests (LFT) parameters viz, Total bilirubin (TB), Conjugate bilirubin (CB), Alkaline phosphatase (ALP), Aspartate transaminase (AST) and Alanine transaminase (ALT) as follows: A total of Thirty-five (35) male Albino Wistar Rats weighing 101-180g and aged 2-3 months obtained from the Animal house of University of Nigeria, Nsukka, were used in this research. The animals were Grouped into 5 (A-E) and allowed for 2 weeks acclimatization. Graded doses of 0.04ml, 0.05ml and 0.06ml of the Affinity purified Lectin were administered intra-peritoneally to each of the rats in Groups A-D (test groups) according to their body weights at intervals of 2 days for 1 week. Group E served as the control. Two (2) mls of blood was collected from each of the rats before and 24 hours after the last day of lectin administration for the following tests: TB, CB, ALP, AST and ALT (performed by means of Roche Cobas C111 automated chemistry analyser). The results of the research showed as follows: On complete/affinity purification, 15mls of pure sample containing only the high molecular weight lectin was obtained. The respective haemagglutination tests on the crude, partially and affinity purified Lectin showed on standardization preferential agglutinations with Blood group A type. Bar charts statistics show that there was Post lectin administration mean increase in TB, CB and AST when the Post administrations values were compared with the Pre values. The Bar charts statistics show that there was Post lectin administration mean decrease in ALP and ALT. However, the differences in the Pre and Post administration mean values of these parameters were further subjected to one way analysis of variance (ANOVA) test statistics aimed at determining whether the mean increases or decreases in these assessed parameters were statistically significant. The ANOVA statistics show that the effects of the lectin on all the assessed LFT parameters viz, TB, CB, ALP, AST and ALT were statistically insignificant (P > 0.05). The results obtained in this research has succeeded in demonstrating that the A. achatina snail lectin is non-toxic, non-carcinogenic and therefore point to its nutritive value as food stuff, hence supports the snail eating education

Leucocytes, urea and glucose levels in Albino Wistar rats exposed to doses of isolated Achatina achatina snail lectin

There are five (5) types of mature White blood cells (WBC) or Leucocytes found in the peripheral blood viz, Neutrophils (NEU), Eosinophils (EOS) and Basophils (BAS) (granulocytes); Monocytes (MON) and Lymphocytes (LYM) (agranulocytes). Urea is an organic chemical compound, and is essentially the waste produced by the body after metabolizing protein. Urea levels can be used to detect diseases and disorders that affect the kidneys. A common disease related to irregular management of glucose is diabetes. Lectins are proteins that recognize specifically and bind reversibly the carbohydrate-containing molecules of foreign cells and that elicit diverse physiological responses in various organisms. A total of 120 samples of Nigeria Achatina achatina snail specie were collected, authenticated at the Zoology Department of University of Nigeria, Nsukka and 80mls of pooled crude Lectin extract was obtained. Purifications were performed on 20mls of the crude extract in three steps viz, Ammonium sulphate precipitation and Dialysis (Partial purifications), Con A Sepharose 4B affinity Chromatography column (Complete purification). The affinity purified Lectin was used for all the tests conducted in this research. The crude, partially and complete/affinity purified Lectin extracts were subjected to Haemagglutination tests. The Lectin was further assessed to determine its effects on Leucocytes, Urea and Glucose as follows: A total of Thirty-five (35) male Albino Wistar Rats weighing 101-180g and aged 2-3 months obtained from the Animal house of University of Nigeria, Nsukka, were used in this research. The animals were Grouped into 5 (A-E) and allowed for 2 weeks acclimatization. Graded doses of 0.04ml, 0.05ml and 0.06ml of the Affinity purified Lectin were injected intra-peritoneally into each of the Rats in Groups A-D (test groups) according to their body weights at intervals of 2 days for 1 week. Group E served as the control. Two (2) mls of blood was collected from each of the Rats before and 24 hours after the last day of Lectin Doses injections for the following tests: WBC-Total and Differential counts (using Sysmex Corporation, 1999 automated equipment), Urea and Glucose estimations (performed by means of Urease-Berthelot and GOD-PAP Randox Monza automated analyser methods respectively). The results of the research showed as follows: On complete/affinity purification, 15mls of pure sample containing only the high molecular weight Lectin was obtained. The haemagglutination tests conducted showed on standardization preferential agglutination with Blood group A type. Bar Charts statistics show that there was Post Lectin Doses injections mean increase in Total WBC, NEU, LYM and decrease in MON, EOS, BAS, Urea and Glucose levels. However, the differences in Pre and Post Lectin Doses injections mean values of these parameters were further subjected to One way analysis of variance (ANOVA) test statistics to determine if statistically significant. The ANOVA statistics show that the effects of the Lectin on all the assessed Leucocytes parameters viz, Total WBC, and Differential LYM, NEU, MON, EOS, BAS, the Urea and Glucose levels were found to be statistically insignificant. However, the EOS values of only group A was statistically significant. This research has therefore succeeded in Assessment of Activities of the A. achatina snail Lectin on Leucocytes, Glucose and Urea levels

Retail sector distribution chains for malaria treatment in the developing world: a review of the literature

BACKGROUND: In many low-income countries, the retail sector plays an important role in the treatment of malaria and is increasingly being considered as a channel for improving medicine availability. Retailers are the last link in a distribution chain and their supply sources are likely to have an important influence on the availability, quality and price of malaria treatment. This article presents the findings of a systematic literature review on the retail sector distribution chain for malaria treatment in low and middle-income countries. METHODS: Publication databases were searched using key terms relevant to the distribution chain serving all types of anti-malarial retailers. Organizations involved in malaria treatment and distribution chain related activities were contacted to identify unpublished studies. RESULTS: A total of 32 references distributed across 12 developing countries were identified. The distribution chain had a pyramid shape with numerous suppliers at the bottom and fewer at the top. The chain supplying rural and less-formal outlets was made of more levels than that serving urban and more formal outlets. Wholesale markets tended to be relatively concentrated, especially at the top of the chain where few importers accounted for most of the anti-malarial volumes sold. Wholesale price mark-ups varied across chain levels, ranging from 27% to 99% at the top of the chain, 8% at intermediate level (one study only) and 2% to 67% at the level supplying retailers directly. Retail mark-ups tended to be higher, and varied across outlet types, ranging from 3% to 566% in pharmacies, 29% to 669% in drug shops and 100% to 233% in general shops. Information on pricing determinants was very limited. CONCLUSIONS: Evidence on the distribution chain for retail sector malaria treatment was mainly descriptive and lacked representative data on a national scale. These are important limitations in the advent of the Affordable Medicine Facility for Malaria, which aims to increase consumer access to artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT), through a subsidy introduced at the top of the distribution chain. This review calls for rigorous distribution chain analysis, notably on the factors that influence ACT availability and prices in order to contribute to efforts towards improved access to effective malaria treatment

Enhancement of Viscosity and Thermal Conductivity of Soybean Vegetable Oil using Nanoparticles to Form Nanofluids for Minimum Quantity Lubrication Machining of Difficult-To-Cut Metals

Sustainable use of vegetable oil as a base fluid in minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) strategy for machining advanced materials is promising but limited due to their low thermal conductivity and viscosity. This paper presents the results of experimental investigation for enhancing viscosity and thermal conductivity of high oleic soybean vegetable oil (HOSO) using Al2O3, MoS2, and TiO2 nanoparticles (30 nm particle size and 0.5-4.0% wt. concentration) inclusion to form nanofluids at temperature ranging from 25 to 70 °C for use in vegetable oil-based nanofluids-MQL machining of difficult-to-cut metals. The result shows that viscosity and thermal conductivity of HOSO increase with increase in nanoparticle weight concentration, but there is a decrease in suspension stability of the nanofluid. Also, viscosity of HOSO nanofluids decreases with increase in temperature, but thermal conductivity increases with increase in temperature, while for the base HOSO, it decreases with increase in temperature. This is a very significant positive observation especially for difficult-to-cut materials that generate high heat that need to be conducted away from the cutting zone. Thermal conductivity and viscosity were enhanced up to 55% (using MoS2 at 70 °C and 4% wt. concentration) and 11.5% (using TiO2 at 50 °C and 3.5% wt. concentration), respectively. The Brownian motion of the nanoparticles and liquid-solid interlayer interfaces are responsible for this behavior of the nanofluid thermal conductivity, while nanoparticle thickening and entangle mechanism were responsible for the behavior of the nanofluid viscosity. This implies that lower oil flow rate can be applied during machining of Inconel-718 due to increased viscosity and thermal conductivity to obtain optimal machining performance, lower power consumption, and reduce negative impact on the environment

Integrating Reproductive Health and HIV indicators into the Nigerian Health System – Building an evidence base for action

The lack of integrated M&E system makes it difficult to assess the effectiveness of HIV and family planning (FP) service integration. Since 2007, Nigeria integrated FP and HIV M&E systems. A pre-post survey compared the availability and use of FP-HIV integration M&E tools six months pre- and 12-months post-integration in 71 health facilities supported by the Global HIV/AIDS Initiative Nigeria (GHAIN). Pre-integration, four facilities (6%) had national FP registers, 32 (45%) had monthly aggregated FP data and 33 (46%) reported data up to national level. Post-integration, all (100%) facilities used national FP register with FP-HIV integration indicators, and reported data up to national level. Sixty six facilities (93%) had at least one monthly supervisory visit. Average number of FP clients per facility referred for HIV testing increased from five in the first month to 15 by month 12 postintegration. Leveraging resources of HIV programs improved significantly the monitoring of FP-HIV servicesintegration (Afr J Reprod Health 2010; 14[1]:109-116)