Perception of Sources, Accessibility and Consequences of Domestic Water Supply in Mbaitoli Local Government Area of Imo State, Nigeria.

The study focused on the accessibility  and consequences of domestic water supply(DWS) in Mbaitoli L. G.A. Structured questionnaire was administered  on 10 autonomous communities that were randomly selected.   Sources of  DWS  evaluated includes : bore hole, stream, pond, rainwater, underground water, water vendor and pipe borne water. The results revealed that rainwater consumption has the highest percentage of 24% with pipe borne water having the lowest percentage of 1%. Accessibility study revealed that 26% travelled between 1-2km, 51% between 3-4km and 23% revealed above >4 km in search of water. The result hygienic condition shown that  69% affirmed the poor hygienic  conditions of sources of DWS, while 48% do not treat water meant for drinking and provision of potable water is on self-help basis constituting 76%,  with Government having 16%, and  Non-governmental Organizations(NGOs) constituting 8%. Based on the results, Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) should be practiced to include Government and NGOs  involvement in water supply, operation and  maintenance  (O&M) of rainwater harvesting (RWH) to: improves water availability, its proximity, its quantity and its quality in order to eradicate women's and girl’s children burden of collecting water for domestic use  and reduce the  amount of rainwater that goes to the drainage  in order to  avoid the floods phenomena. Keywords: Sources, Consequences,  Accessibility ,  Domestic, Water

Environmental Risk Assessment of Heavy Metal Concentrations in Road Runoff with Absorption Atomic Spectrophotometer(AAS) , Imo State, Nigeria.

The study focused on the environmental risk evaluation of heavy metals in road runoff as non-point source   in the selected Routes in Owerri using Absorption Atomic Spectrophotometer. The major roads selected include Aba Road (RRSP1),  Orji Road (RRSP2),  Orlu Road (RRSP3),  Onitsha Road (RRSP4),  Wetheral Road (RRSP 5),  Okigwe Road (RRSP6),   and Port- Harcourt Road (RRSP) respectively. A total of twenty one runoff samples, three each from the seven selected roads were collected across three months (April-July, 2012), and analyzed using the M-Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer (AAS). Results  shown that heavy metal concentrations originating from the  non-point source (NPS)  in  the six selected routes were in the following ranges: Cd(0.02 – 0.04 µg/l-1), Cu (10.00-45.00 µg/l-1), Cr(0.01-7.00 µg/l-1), Zn(15.00 – 103.00 µg/l-1), and Pb (12.00 – 79 µg/l-1), which further explained  that concentrations were higher in the months of  April and May  in Aba road and reduced in other routes. An increased in heavy metals were observed during the month of July than the month of May.  Statistically, mean variations were observed  among heavy metals from road runoff that ranged between : Cd 0.07 µg/l-1, Cr 3.10 µg/l-1, Cu 22.70 µg/l-1, Pb 36.70 µg/l-1 and Zn 51. 40 µg/l-1in order of Zn >Pb>Cu> Cr>Cd respectively. The results also indicated that Cd, Cu, Cr, Zn  and Pb concentrations in road runoff sampled were    above the  FMENV and WHO standards for potable water  during the  month of April being first flush, May being the after first flush and July that proceeds August break that affects man and his environment. Keywords: Environmental Risk , Road runoff, Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer, Heavy Metals, Nigeria

Insecticidal Effect of African Nutmeg (Monodora myristica) Oil on Sitophilus zeamais and Tribolium castaneum in African Breadfruit

This study investigated insecticidal effect of African nutmeg (Monodora myristica Gaertn) oil against Sitophilus zeamais (Motsch) and Tribolium castaneun (Herbst) in African breadfruit during storage. Fruits (400g) of African nutmeg were milled into flour. Two hundred grams (200g) of flour was extracted for oil using 500ml of n-hexane. The fruit oil at 0.0, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, 1.00ml per 1ml ethanol was dosed against 10 adults of either insects infested on 15-20g African breadfruit seeds during post-exposure (24h), contact (7-12 days) and fumigant (72h) toxicity tests at ambient conditions (33-39oC; 42-59% RH) in Lafia, Nasarawa State, Nigeria. The oil caused dose-dependent mortality (%) which increased with exposure time of the insects. Sitophilus zeamais (Motsch) had higher mortality than Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) within the same oil concentration and exposure time. In a glass vial filled to 70% column with African breadfruit, 1ml oil concentration caused 63% kill of T. Castaneum (Herbst), but 90% kill of S. zeamais (Motsch) in 7days exposure. The 1ml oil concentration on 72hour fumigation test killed 95% of S. zeamais (Motsch) and 62% of T. castaneum (Herbst). Monodora myristica (Gaertn) oil could replace synthetic insecticides to preserve this grain against the two insect pests under storage

Using decoction of some vitamin C enriched plants for the management of COVID-19 in Jos, Nigeria: A case report

The worldwide influence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic compelled the global health organizations to prioritize the situation over all other related community health issues. The lack of specific treatment modalities against COVID-19 is a major concern nowadays. Here is a case of a 44-year-old man of 176 cm height and 87 kg body weight, who took some powdered mixture equally composed of bitter kola, cinnamon, garlic, ginger, and turmeric sweetened with three teaspoons full of honey. All ingredients were dissolved in 100 ml hot water and taken three times a day during isolation as a positive COVID-19 patient and reversed all associated signs and symptoms after 7 days as confirmed with rapid diagnostic techniques (RDTs). This case revealed that homogenized herbal tea in Jos Nigeria possesses a potential therapeutic that could be a treatment protocol against COVID-19

Proximate, Physicochemical and Sensory Attributes of Stirred Yoghurt Flavoured with African Star Apple Pulp (Chrysophyllum albidum)

Aims: To Investigate the Proximate, Physicochemical and Sensory attributes of Stirred Yoghurt Flavoured with African Star Apple Pulp (Chrysophyllum albidum). Study Design: Randomized Completely Block Design (RCBD). Place and Duration of Study: Department of Food Science and Technology, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Enugu State Nigeria between December 2018 and October 2019. Methodology: The materials, as well as the other ingredients for the preparation of the flavoured stirred yoghurt (African star apple, skimmed milk, sugar, and Starter culture (YoghurmetTM) were sourced from Ogige main market in Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State, Nigeria. The African star apples were sorted to separate the fresh and good fruits from insect-infected and mechanically damaged ones. The fruits were thoroughly washed with water to further eliminate adherent dirt so as to obtain sand-free fruits. Peeling of the fruits was done to remove the back. Each of the peeled fruits was cut into two in order to remove the seeds thereof. The pulps were carefully removed manually with knife and the pulps were blended using a blender after which pasteurization at 83°C for 3 minutes was carried out before being added to the processed yoghurt. Yoghurt flavoured with pasteurized African Star Apple pulp was produced by homogenizing, pasteurizing the milk product followed by cooling to inoculation temperature which is optimum for the starter culture (Yoghurmet). The inoculated milk was made to undergo fermentation after which the pasteurized African star apple pulp at different proportions was added to formulate five samples of stirred yoghurt.  The formulation ratios of yoghurt to African star apple pulp were as follows: 100:0, 90:10, 80:20, 70:30, 60:40, 50:50. The flavoured yoghurt samples were mixed, smoothened and packaged for cold storage. Results: The result of physicochemical analysis revealed that viscosity (2.65 ± 0.06 cP – 3.25 ± 0.06 cP), total solids (22.35 ± 0.06% - 30.20 ± 0.06%), total titratable acidity (0.36 ± 0.00% -   0.39 ± 0.01%) and pH (5.20 ± 0.00 - 5.40 ± 0.00) differed significantly (P < 0.05) as the control sample YC (100:0) was compared with the yoghurt samples flavoured with African star apple pulp. The proximate parameters -  Carbohydrate (11.20 ± 0.64% - 21.41 ± 0.10%), moisture content (71.53 ± 0.05% - 80.36 ± 1.17%) and ash content (1.30 ± 0.00% - 1.98 ± 0.03%) of the formulated yoghurt samples showed significant (P < 0.05) decrease as concentration of ASA pulp increased while crude protein (3.67 ± 0.01% -  4.92 ± 0.02%), fat (1.21 ± 0.02% - 2.72 ± 0.03%) and crude fibre (0.20 ± 0.00% - 1.40 ± 0.00%) showed significant (P < 0.05) increase with increasing concentration of ASA pulp. Among the formulated yoghurt samples, sample YP1 was the most preferred with respect to color (7.25 ± 0.91), taste (7.25 ± 1.07), aftertaste (7.00 ± 1.17), mouthfeel (6.95 ± 1.40), flavour (7.25 ± 0.64) and overall acceptability (7.30 ± 0.73). Conclusion: Although the control sample YC (100:0) had most preferred sensorial qualities, yoghurt samples flavoured with African Star Apple pulp would rival the “used-to plain yoghurt” with improved awareness, and usage lower than 20% of the ASA pulp in yoghurt samples would maintain the product’s acceptability among the variety-loving dairy consumers

Controle de mosquitos com base em larvicidas no Estado do Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil: a escolha do agente de controle Mosquito control based on larvicides in the State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil: choice of the control agent

Desenvolveu-se neste estudo uma comparação entre larvicidas químicos e biológicos usados em programas de controle de mosquitos no Rio Grande do Sul. Em bioensaios de laboratório contra Culex quinquefasciatus constatou-se que as formulações biológicas líquidas Vectobac 12 AS e Teknar 3000 (Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis), ABG 6262 líquido e em pó (B. sphaericus 2362), foram altamente eficazes. Também as formulações experimentais de B. thuringiensis israelensis produzidas em laboratórios brasileiros foram consideradas adequadas. Entre as formulações químicas, os compostos piretróides Pirisa e K-Othrine produziram resultados melhores do que os organo-fosforados Lebaycid e Abate. Estes últimos produziram respostas dez vezes mais fracas do que o previsto em outros estudos. Em condições de campo, a dose de 1250 mg/m² para as formulações biológicas foi considerada adequada para a rotina das aplicações, porque permite superar as influências físicas do meio sobre os resultados. Somente as formulações de B. sphaericus produziram interrupções nas reinfestações dos focos de culicídeos observados. Períodos de até 39 semanas sem reinfestações foram observados em focos naturais e de um mês sem sobrevivência foi observado em tanques, onde procedia-se a reinfestação artificial. Este estudo sugere que as alternativas biológicas devem ser consideradas em programas de controle de mosquitos. Elas podem superar os problemas de resistência e eliminação, bem como da ausência de efeito residual nas aplicações de larvicidas.<br>A comparison between chemical and biological larvicides in routine operations against mosquitoes in Rio Grande do Sul State was carried out in this study. In laboratory bioassays against Culex quinquefasciatus, biological formulations Vectobac 12 AS and Teknar 3000 (Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis) as well as ABG 6262 (B. sphaericus 2362), both in liquid and powder form, were highly effective. Locally produced B.thuringiensis israelensis, formulations also yielded good results. Among chemical larvicides, pyrethroid compounds Pirisa and K-Othrine yielded better results than the organophosphates Lebaycid and Abate. These last formulations yielded responses ten weaker than predicted in other studies. Under field conditions, a dose of 1250 mg/m² for biological formulations was considered adequate for routine application because at this level it is possible to overcome physical influences on results. Only B.sphaericus preparations caused important disruption of mosquito colonization in active breeding sites. Up to 39 weeks were tabulated without complete colonization in natural conditions and one month in artificially colonized tanks. This study suggests that biological alternatives should be considered in mosquito control programs. They may be a solution to such problems as resistance to larvicides, elimination of natural enemies, and short-lasting effects of applications

Development of a Low Cost Bioprocess for Endotoxin Production by Bacillus thuringiensis var israelensis Intended for Biological Control of Aedes aegypti

Aedes aegypti is the vector of Dengue disease, responsible for 20,000 deaths/year worldwide. Bacillus thuringiensis var israelensis - Bti releases selective and effective toxins (crystal proteins) against A. aegypti larvae. We present a low cost bioprocess for toxin production, accomplished by a selected Brazilian strain Bti (BR-LPB01) and employment of low cost substrates. Soybean meal and sugarcane molasses lead to high toxic effectiveness after 2L bioreactor fermentation (LD50=26ng/mL), near to the reference strain IPS82 (LD50=17.3 ng/mL). The pH ranged between 5.8 and 7.0 during the exponential growth period and between 7.0 and 8.4 during the stationary phase, with low activity. Thus, control of foam and pH 7.0 were started and proved to be crucial for high activity. It was verified that the fermentation could be discontinued after 20 hours, when the highest activity was present.<br>A dengue é transmitida pelo Aedes aegypti, doença responsável por 20.000 mortes/ano no mundo. Bacillus thuringiensis var israelensis libera toxinas seletivas e eficazes (proteínas cristal) contra larvas de A. aegypti. Propõe-se um bioprocesso de baixo custo para a produção da toxina, pelo emprego de uma cepa brasileira selecionada de Bti (BR-LPB01) e de substratos de baixo custo. Farelo de soja e melaço de cana levaram a eficácia tóxica alta após fermentação em biorreator 2L (DL50=26ng/mL), valor próximo a estirpe de referência IPS82 (DL50=17,3 ng/mL). O pH variou entre 5,8 e 7,0 durante o período de crescimento exponencial e entre 7,0 e 8,4 durante a fase estacionária, com baixa atividade larvicida. Assim, controles de espuma e de pH 7,0 foram iniciados e demonstraram serem cruciais para alta atividade. Verificou-se que a fermentação deve ser interrompida após vinte horas, quando se obtém a maior atividade