Haemoglobin genotype, ABO and rhesus blood group pattern among students of Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology Ikere, Ekitis state, Nigeria

Background: The two most significant blood group systems of clinical importance are ABO and rhesus. An essential blood component that determines haemoglobinopathies is haemoglobin genotype. The aim of the study was to determine the distribution of haemoglobin genotypes, ABO and rhesus blood groups pattern among students of Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology Ikere (BOUESTI), Ekiti state.  Methods: Two thousand (2,000) samples comprising 840 (42%) males and 1,160 (58%) females were recruited for this study. The ABO blood group was determined using tile method, while the haemoglobin genotype was determined using haemoglobin electrophoresis. Data analysis was done using simple percentage and Chi square test.Results: The results obtained showed that out of the two thousand subjects that participated in this study, 1,448 (72.4%) of the subjects had HbAA, 452 (22.6%) had HbAS, 72 (3.6%) had HbAC, 20 (1%) had HbSS and 8 (0.4%) had HbSC. The distribution of ABO blood groups of the subjects were; blood group O (53.6%), blood group B (26.6%), blood group A (17.8%) and blood group AB (2.0%). Furthermore, 96.0% of the subjects were rhesus ‘D’ positive, while 4.0% were rhesus ‘D’ negative. There was no significant difference (p>0.05) in the haemoglobin genotypes and ABO blood groups of the subjects with respect to age and sex.Conclusions: The study concludes that the distribution of ABO blood group in the study population was given by O>B>A>AB, while the genotype was given by AA>AS>AC>SS>SC respectively. Continued haemoglobin genotype test and premarital counselling of potential couples is highly recommended

EFFECT OF UNTREATED SEWAGE DUMP ON THE QUALITY OF GROUNDWATER IN IDDO COMMUNITY, LAGOS, NIGERIA

This study was carried out to assess contamination of groundwater in Iddo as a result of many yearsof untreated sewage dump into the adjacent Lagos lagoon. Water samples were collected from fivedifferent sites in the lagoon at certain intervals. Similarly, water samples were collected from five boreholesand seven hand – dug wells sited in the immediate neighbourhood of the sewage dump sites.Sampling covered both the dry and wet seasons and tested for faecal coliform (FC) counts along withother parameters such as Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) and salinity in order to determine theireffects on the density of faecal coliforms. Analysis of parameters was subjected to standard proceduresand data presented in simple statistics. Results for faecal coliform in boreholes ranged from 20-100 total plate count (TPC) /ml in dry season and 5-100 TPC/ml in wet season, while in well water, thevalues are >100 TPC/ml (dry season) and 30 TPC/ml – TNTC (too numerous to count) (wet season).In the lagoon water samples, faecal coliform counts are generally greater than 100 TPC/ml in dry seasonand varied between 100 TPC/ml and TNTC in wet season. BOD values of the lagoon varied fromND (not detected) to 2.8 mg/l (dry season) and 2.4-3.8 mg/l (wet season) with salinity values 3.27-3.45% and 0.70-0.96 % in dry and wet season respectively. Coliform values were higher than World HealthOrganisation standard in drinking water. Results of analysis showed that both surface water andgroundwater in Iddo community are heavily contaminated by the disposal of untreated sewage dump

Hedging potentials of green investments against climate and oil market risks

Purpose: This study examines the ability of clean energy stocks to provide cover for investors against market risks related to climate change and disturbances in the oil market.Design/methodology/approach: The study adopts the Feasible Quasi Generalized Least Squares technique to estimate a predictive model based on Westerlund and Narayan’s (2015) approach to evaluating the hedging effectiveness of clean energy stocks. The out-of-sample forecast evaluations of the oil risk-based and climate risk-based clean energy predictive models are explored using Clark and West’s model (2007) and a modified Diebold & Mariano forecast evaluation test (Harvey et al., 1997) for nested and non-nested models respectively.Findings: The study finds ample evidence that clean energy stocks may hedge against oil market risks. This result is robust to alternative measures of oil risk and holds when applied to data from the COVID-19 pandemic. In contrast, the hedging effectiveness of clean energy against climate risks is limited to 4 of the 6 clean energy indices and restricted to climate risk measured with Climate Policy Uncertainty.Originality/value: The study contributes to the literature by providing extensive analysis of hedging effectiveness of several clean energy indices (global, US, Europe, and Asia) and sectoral clean energy indices (solar and wind) against oil market and climate risks using various measures of oil risk (WTI and Brent volatility) and climate risk (Climate Policy Uncertainty and Energy and Environmental Regulation) as predictors. It also conducts forecast evaluations of the clean energy predictive models for nested and non-nested models

Income inequality, health expenditure and outcomes in Nigeria

This study investigated the nexus between income inequality and health status in Nigeria. Life expectancy, public health expenditure and infant mortality rate were used as proxy for health. The study presumed that the link between income inequality and health is better investigated through the use of inter-temporal measures such as growth rate and per capita indicators since income inequality and health are macroeconomic variables with microeconomic foundations. The technique of Autoregressive Distributed Lags (ARDL) was used on secondary data spanning 1980 to 2015. The study sought to ascertain whether a long-run equilibrium condition holds among the variables in the model and a reparameterized ARDL was used to examine the short-run dynamics of the variables’ interaction. The study found the link between income inequality and health to be measure sensitive; depending on the indicator used for empirical investigations. The use of qualitative measures such as life expectancy and infant mortality rate indicate that income inequality does not matter for health status in Nigeria.Keywords: Income inequality, Health expenditure, Health outcomes, Life expectancy, Infant mortality rat

Relationship between health locus of control with pain, physical function and treatment satisfaction in patients with knee osteoarthritis

Background and Objective: Health locus of control (HLC) beliefs may be valuable predictors of treatment outcomes in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA). The study aimed to investigate the relationship between HLC with knee pain intensity and duration, knee stiffness severity and treatment satisfaction in patients with knee OA. Materials and Methods: This cross sectional study involved 60 patients with knee OA. Multidimensional HLC, Short Assessment of Patient Satisfaction and Western Ontario and McMaster Osteoarthritis Index questionnaires were used to assess participants' self perceived HLC factors, treatment satisfaction, pain, stiffness, and physical function, respectively. Spearman’s correlation was used to find relationships among variables. Data were analysed using SPSS version 22, α was set at 5%. Result: Mean values of 24.30, 23.68 and 18.76 were reported for External HLC, Internal HLC and Chance HLC respectively. Treatment satisfaction was positively correlated with Internal HLC (r=0.33, p<0.01) Chance HLC was positively correlated with pain severity (r=0.37; p=.0.004), and physical function (r=.39; p=0.002). There was also a positive correlation between External HLC and pain duration (r=0.42; p=0.001). Discussion and Conclusion: Most patients with knee OA have high External HLC which means they ascribe their health status prominently to health care professionals, family members and friends. This could negatively influence their recovery outcome and lead to chronicity. HLC beliefs should be considered when managing patients with knee OA to positively impact adherence to instructions, treatment outcomes and overall quality of life

Fermentation and Exrusion Effects on the In Vitro Proteinand Starch Digestibility of Unripe Plantain and Pigeon Pea Blends

This study investigated effects of fermentation and extrusion on the in vitro protein andstarch digestibility of unripe plantain and pigeon pea blends. The blended samples were set-up in three arrangements (A=100g unripe plantain; B= 70g unripe plantain: 30g pigeon pea; C= 50g unripe plantain: 50g pigeon pea) and divided into four batches (i.e. first batch = preconditioned and fermented; second batch = extruded; third batch = fermented and extruded; and fourth batch = unfermented/unextruded). Semi-solid state method of fermentation was deployed to ferment blended samples for 96 hours. The pH, temperature and total titratable acidity (TTA) of these samples were evaluated. Fifteen microorganisms comprising 9 bacteria, 2 yeasts and 4 molds were isolated and identified as; Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus cereus, Micrococcus luteus, Staphylococcus aureus, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus fermentum, Leuconostocmesenteroides, Lactobacillus mali, Streptococcus lactis, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Candida utilis, Aspergillusniger, Aspergillusfumigatus, Aspergilluscandidus, and Mucorhiemalis. There were notable variation in the values of pH and total titratable acidity (TTA) during fermentation. The processes of fermentation and extrusion significantly amplified the in vitro starch digestibility of the flour blends with fermented extruded samples (51.03±0.02 to 55.19±0.02mg/ml) unlike theraw flour blends (36.77±0.20 to 41.26±0.003mg/ml).The in vitro protein digestibility significantly increased with the extruded fermented samples (12.73±0.17 to 15.45±0.06mg/ml) and lowest forraw flour blends (4.57±0.29 to 5.98±0.37mg/ml). Hence, it can be concluded based from the available information from this study that fermentation and extrusion increase the in vitro starch digestibility and protein digestibility of unripe plantain and pigeon pea blends

Inherent Microorganisms Affects the Quality of a Nigerian Fermented Beverage “Agadagidi” During Production

This research produced wine from unripe plantain fruits using spontaneous fermentation method. The period of production was five days. The purpose of this study was to isolate and identify microorganisms associated with unripe plantain fruits, determine the physicochemical parameters of the fermenting medium. Microbial count, foaming density, alcohol content, enzymes assay, sensory analysis, physicochemical properties, mineral content, antioxidants properties, and antinutrient content of the sample were investigated every 24 h for 5 days. A total of seven bacteria and four fungi consisting of yeasts and moulds were isolated during the study. The microbial loads of bacteria and fungi of the unfermented plantain fruits were 8.0 × 106 ± 0.01 cfu/mL and 14.2 × 104 ± 0.01 sfu/mL respectively. The temperature (ºC), pH and titratable acidity (%) ranged from 25.55-32.50, 4.51-5.50 and 0.99-3.50 respectively. The sample was observed to be colourless all through the fermentation periods. Turbidity of the samples increased during fermentation from 43.50 to 111.00. The data obtained from this work has shown the importance of unripe plantain micro-flora in the production of “Agadagidi”. It is also concluded that consortium of microorganisms inherent within the plantain fruits are involved in plantain fruits fermentation. This information can contribute to a better understanding of the “Agadagidi” production process for a consistent quality beverage