Insect Pest occurrence on Cultivated Amaranthus Spp in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria

Amaranthus is one of those rare plants whose leaves are eaten as vegetables and seeds as cereal.   Unfortunately, one of the major factors limiting the productivity of Amaranthus is the incidence of insect pests attack. The aim of this study was to determine the insect pest occurrence on cultivated Amaranths in Benin City, Nigeria. The experiment was conducted in the Agricultural farm of University of Benin, Edo State,  Nigeria. Three varieties of Amaranth were used for this experiment, namely, Amaranthus cruentus (white–seeded), Amaranthus hybridus (red–seeded) and Amaranthus hybridus (black–seeded). The experimental  design used was completely randomized design with three replicates, each replicate having nine plots. The result showed the diversity of insect pests associated with Amaranth. Insects found on Amaranth were  classified into seven (7) orders, namely Coleoptera, Lepidoptera, Diptera, Hemiptera, Orthoptera,  Hymenoptera and Mantodea; and eight (8) species. The species included Gasteroclisus rhomboidalis and  Hypolixus sp. (Coleoptera); Hymenia recurvalis and Psara sp. (Lepidoptera); Liriomyza sp. (Diptera); Cletus sp. and Aspavia armigera (Hemiptera) and Zonocerus variegates (Orthoptera). Majority of the pests are defoliators, except Cletus sp. and Aspavia armigera that attack grains. The result also revealed that the period of pest occurrence is associated with Amaranth age. Knowledge from this study can be employed by Amaranth growers to ensure proper management of these insect pests

Effect of variety and nutrient on insect pest infestation of Amaranthus spp

Amaranthus species is one of the plants often considered as the most important green leaf vegetable in Nigeria and other countries. Its production has been plagued with an array of factors including incidence of insect pest. This experiment took place in Agricultural farm of University of Benin, Edo state Nigeria from February to April 2013 and 2014. The aim was to investigate the effect of Nutrient and Variety on Insect Pest infestation of Amaranthus spp. The experimental design used was completely randomized design with three replicates comprising a factorial combination of three types of Soil and three varieties of Amaranth. The result showed that Amaranthus cruentus suffered more insect pest attack than other Amaranthus used and that Amaranths planted on poultry manure attracted more insect pests than Amaranths planted on other Nutrients. These results can be employed as part of cultural control methods in the management of insect pests of Amaranths

Excessive Daytime Sleepiness among Hypertensive US-Born Blacks and Foreign-Born Blacks: Analysis of the CAATCH Data

Background. Evidence shows that blacks exhibit greater daytime sleepiness compared with whites, based on the Epworth Sleepiness Scale. In addition, sleep complaints might differ based on individuals' country of origin. However, it is not clear whether individuals' country of origin has any influence on excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS). Study Objectives. We tested the hypothesis that US-born blacks would show a greater level of EDS compared with foreign-born blacks. The potential effects of sociodemographic and medical risk were also determined. Design. We used the Counseling African-Americans to Control Hypertension (CAATCH) data. CAATCH is a group randomized clinical trial that was conducted among 30 community healthcare centers in New York, yielding baseline data for 1,058 hypertensive black patients. Results. Results of univariate logistic regression analysis indicated that US-born blacks were nearly twice as likely as their foreign-born black counterparts to exhibit EDS (OR = 1.87, 95% CI: 1.30-2.68, p < 0.001). After adjusting for effects of age, sex, education, employment, body mass index, alcohol consumption, and smoking habit, US-born blacks were 69% more likely than their counterparts to exhibit EDS (OR = 1.69, 95% CI: 1.11-2.57, p < 0.01). Conclusion. Findings demonstrate the importance of considering individuals' country of origin, in addition to their race and ethnicity, when analyzing epidemiologic sleep data