Modes of Compensation in Exchange for Indigenous Knowledge: A Case Study of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Nigeria

Indigenous or Traditional Knowledge is that information or knowledge that has been developed by indigenous people in various regions of the world. Such knowledge generally relies exclusively on past experiences and observations and has been transmitted orally or in some form of script across generations of groups or communities of indigenous people. Therefore, this knowledge often has a cultural context, a collective ownership and is constantly evolving. More often than not, this indigenous knowledge is the only source of livelihood for the practitioners. As a result, most of them are not willing to divulge the knowledge without any form of benefit. In order to further develop this knowledge for the benefit of the general populace, promote and improve traditional medicine practice, guard against misappropriation, prevent extinction, and ensure documentation and conservation, it is necessary to promote equitable rewards and invariably protection for the originators of the knowledge. This study was to determine reciprocal benefits based on the requests of the local people through the use of questionnaires. As envisaged, majority of the practitioners wanted immediate and monetary form of compensation. However this was superseded by the desire for traditional medicine clinic/ hospital. It was discovered that further training was desired by only a handful of the practitioners and these were practitioners from a particular geopolitical zone of the country. Other needs included basic equipment to make the practice easier, cars and infrastructure for the practitioners’ communities

Starch Source and Its Impact on Pharmaceutical Applications

Starch can be obtained from a variety of plant sources. The specific source of starch, the environmental conditions during starch maturation, and the age of the plant affect the physicochemical composition of the starch. This is because of the effect they have on critical factors especially the amylose amylopectin content of the starch as well as their relative quantities. These factors also affect the starch granule size and size distribution and the levels of minor components such as phosphates, lipids, and the nature of these interactions with amylose and amylopectin. In its wide use as a pharmaceutical excipient especially as binder and disintegrant, unmodified starch is affected in its functionality by the physicochemical properties of the starch. These factors especially by their influence on the swelling power and gelatinization as well as granule size and shape determine the properties of dosage forms in which the starches are used. This results in dosage forms that, although meeting compendial standards, differ in specific properties. The source of starches therefore affects the properties of pharmaceutical dosage forms. This should be taken into consideration in the choice of excipients in drug formulation and before the substitution of one starch for another in a formulation

Evaluation of 100 most cited research articles on African medicinal plants

The mission for drug discovery and progress has prompt researchers to scientifically validate the therapeutic uses of medicinal plants available worldwide, of which, African medicinal plants serve as a great reservoir. Despite the extensive work in the field of medicinal plants of African origin, however, bibliometric report on the work conducted on African medicinal plants is scarce, and hence, the present study aimed at evaluating the top 100 most cited articles on medicinal plant wealth of Africa. The literature data used for the bibliometric analysis was explored from Web of Science (WoS) while RStudio and VOSviewer software were used for data analysis and collaboration network visualization, respectively. The most prolific authors were Van Staden J, Jager AK, Teklehaymanot T whereas, the top 3 journals were Journal of Ethnopharmacology, Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, and South African Journal of Botany. Most cited journals were Journal of Ethnopharmacology, Phytochemistry, Phytotherapy Research. The topmost institutions in terms of the number of articles were the University of KwaZulu-Natal, University of Addis Ababa and Pretoria. South Africa was the most cited country followed by Nigeria. Single country publications dominated the field and therefore, multiple country collaboration should be a focus of social networks among the researchers in the field

A Study on the Corrosion Inhibition Effect of Hexamethylene Tetramine on Welded API 5L X70 Steel in E10 Fuel Ethanol Environment

The inhibition effect of hexamethylenetetramine (HT) in E10 environment for the corrosion protection of welded API 5L X70 pipeline steel was examined using immersion tests. Welded samples of API-5L X70 steel of dimension 30 mm x 15 mm were immersed into E-10 fuel ethanol containing hexamethylenetetramine concentration of (0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8) g and the control for a minimum of 4 days and a maximum of 28 days. Analysis was done using mass loss, corrosion rate, inhibitor efficiency and ANOVA test. From the mass loss and corrosion rate analysis, it was observed that 0.2g HT, which was the lowest concentration of inhibitor, proved best for inhibiting corrosion at 24 days

A Comparative Evaluation of the Flow and Compaction Characteristics of a-Cellulose obtained from Waste Paper

Purpose: Alpha-cellulose obtained as pulp from fibrous plant materials has found use in the pharmaceutical industry as a disintegrant and direct compression diluent. The aim of this study was to evaluate the suitability of α-cellulose obtained from waste paper as a direct compression excipient. Method: The flow and compaction characteristics of α-cellulose (ACP) obtained from waste paper, in comparison with Avicel PH 101, using the Kawakita and Heckel models were evaluated. Result: The results indicate that the flow properties of these materials could not be predicted accurately using the Kawakita model. A comparison of compression behaviour and compactibility of the two powders showed Avicel PH 101 to be a slightly better binder. Conclusion: It was concluded that ACP material could find use as a potential dry binder and direct compression diluent in tableting as the binding properties were comparable to those of Avicel PH 101. . Keywords: Alpha-cellulose, microcrystalline cellulose, flow and compaction characteristics, direct compression diluent. > Tropical Journal of Pharmaceutical Research Vol. 6 (1) 2007: pp. 645-65

Climate Change and Its Attendant Issues

Climate change and its attendant issues has generated various debates especially in this century. Various arguments and positions have been put forward concerning the affects of climate change on the human race; much concern however has been placed on the role of human beings as agents in the continuous degradation of our climatic conditions. Activities necessitated by man’s insatiable quest for the “good life” and of course, bettering his life has negatively impacted on our environment such that environmentalists, philosophers and even laymen have expressed concerns on the rapid and continuous degradation of our ecological-system. The task of this paper will center around the activities of human persons as agents of climate change with a view at examining the ethical implications of human’s continuous exploitation of the eco-system for economic and social development thereby disturbing the balance of nature. The paper will also take into consideration certain ethical principles as they affect man’s insatiable quest for development and how it affects and encourages climate change

Effect of Different Drying Methods on the Drying Kinetics of Fermented Cardaba Banana Peels

Cardaba banana peels (Musa acuminata) were fermented for three days and dried using solar dryer, open sun and tunnel dryer. Nonlinear regression analysis was used to fit in the experimental data. Moisture drying was investigated using Fick’s second law. Statistical tools such as coefficient of determination (R2), reduced chi square (χ2), Mean Bias Error (MBE) and Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) were used to test the reliability of the model. Sample dried in sun had single falling rate pattern whereas samples in solar and tunnel dryer exhibited a second falling rate pattern. The values of R2 ranged from 0.872-0.989, χ2(1.4E-34-0.0624), MBE (-0.0067-0.0491) and RMSE (1.1E-17-0.2247). Effective moisture diffusivity for samples dried in solar, tunnel and sun were 2.92 E-11m2/s, 1.98 E-11m2/s and 1.09 E-11m2/s, respectively. The energy of activation in the process was 64.9kJ/mol. Page model best described drying behavior of the samples

Učinak molekulske mase karboksimetilceluloze i nekih polimera na usporeno oslobađanje teofilina iz hidrofilnih matriksa

The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of the molecular size of carboxymethylcellulose (cmc) and some hydrophobic polymer additives on the release properties of theophylline from the tablet matrices. The cmc matrices were prepared by the conventional wet granulation method. The granules were evaluated for angles of repose, bulk density, compressibility index, and porosity, while the tablets were subjected to hardness, friability and compression characteristics. All the tablet formulations showed acceptable pharmacotechnical properties. Low molecular size cmc (cmc-L) had the fastest drug release t50% values of 27 min, for medium size cmc (cmc-M) 55 min and high molecular size cmc (cmc-H) 200 min. Overall, results showed that drug release rate decreases with increase in molecular size of cmc. All the polymer additives ethylcellulose (ETC), cellulose acetate phthalate (CAP) and Eudragit l-100 (EUD) retarded theophylline release from cmc-L and cmc-H, with ethylcellulose having the most pronounced effect on cmc-L. Kinetic studies using Hixson-Crowell and Peppas-Ritger equations showed that different drug release mechanisms were involved in controlling drug dissolution from the tablets. Drug release mechanism was influenced by both the molecular size of cmc and the presence of polymer additives.U radu je ispitivan učinak molekulske mase karboksimetilceluloze (cmc) i nekih hidrofobnih polimera kao aditiva na profil oslobađanja teofilina iz tabletnih matriksa. Matriksi s cmc pripremljeni su uobičajenom metodom vlažne granulacije. Granulama je određivana sipkost, gustoća, poroznost i indeks kompresivnosti, dok je tabletama ispitivana tvrdoća, rastrošljivost i kompresibilnost. Sve priređene tablete imala su prihvatljiva farmakotehnološka svojstva. Najbrže vrijeme oslobađanja t50% od 27 min postignuto je iz pripravka cmc male molekulske mase (cmc-L), 55 min iz pripravka cmc srednje molekulske mase (cmc-M) 55 min i 200 min iz pripravka cmc velike molekulske mase (cmc-H). Rezultati ukazuju da se brzina oslobađanja smanjuje povećanjem molekulske mase cmc. Svi polimerni aditivi, etilceluloza, celuloza acetat ftalat i Eudragit l-100 usporili su oslobađanje teofilina iz cmc-L i cmc-H pripravka, a najveći učinak imala je etilceluloza na cmc-L. Kinetičke studije provedene pomoću Hixson-Crowell-ove i Peppas-Ritger-ove jednadžbe ukazuju da su u oslobađanju teofilina iz tableta uključeni različiti mehanizmi. Na mehanizam oslobađanja utjecali su i molekulska masa cmc i prisutnost polimernih aditiva

AgriculturalWaste as a Reinforcement Particulate for Aluminum Metal Matrix Composite (AMMCs): A Review

The desire to create sustainable development through research birthed this study. Over time, several authors have focused on the utilization of various chemical particulates as reinforcement constituents for metallic matric composites (MMCs) and aluminum metal matrix composites (AMMCs), which has thus far yielded positive outcomes for achieving the chemical, mechanical, microstructural, thermal, corrosion, and wear property improvement of various reinforced composites. However, this study focused on the search for the residing potentials in alternative materials that can be used as reinforcement particulates in place of the commonly used graphite, silicon nitride, titanium nitride, zirconium, and the likes. This study literarily revealed, via several reviews of literature, that the search for less expensive and easily procured materials with a silicon oxide and magnesium oxide chemical content instigated the utilization of materials from agricultural waste (agro-waste). According to the reviewed literature, some of the waste materials from agriculture that have been found to be useful for the particulate reinforcement of composites are groundnut shell, coconut shell, rice husk, breadfruit seed hull ash, aloe vera, bean pod ash, cow horn, and so on. It was discovered that processed agro-wastes in the form of powdery particulates have demonstrated great reinforcing abilities, as recorded in literature. In addition, they enhanced the mechanical properties of the various composites developed in comparison to the as-cast material

Infrastructure Conditions in Public Secondary Schools, Ogun State, Nigeria

It is widely believed that all is not well with the facilities and infrastructure in public schools in Nigeria. However studies have shown that maintenance activities go on in these institutions but the intensity and magnitude may be inadequate. The Study examines the availability and condition of infrastructures in Public Secondary School buildings in Ado-Odo/ Ota L.G.A, Ogun State, Nigeria. The study used descriptive survey research method and stratified random sampling technique to sample Thirty-Six Public Secondary Schools out of Forty-Seven in Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area. Data were collected using questionnaire and observation methods. The analysis was done through descriptive statistics and chi square tests. The result shows that user attitude, maintenance culture and lack of fund have major influence on the present condition of the existing infrastructures. It was observed that a sizeable portion of the infrastructures in the Public Secondary School are in the state of disrepair and there is high need for resolving them. This paper concludes that if proper attention is given to school infrastructures there will be improvements in the Public Secondary School building Condition in Ado-Odo.Ota L.G.A Ogun State. Keywords: Disrepair, Infrastructure, Maintenance, Public schools, Secondary Schools