Antidiabetic activity of the chemical constituents of Combretum dolichopetalum root in mice

The root of Combretum dolichopetalum (Combreatacea) is used in ethnomedicine for the management of diabetes mellitus. Though some compounds have been isolated from it, the antidiabetic principles have not been identified. The present study was designed to evaluate the chemical constituents from the root of C. dolichopetalum with a view to identifying the antidiabetic principles. The constituents include the alkaloids, echinulin (1) and arestrictin B (2), the terpenoids, arjunolic acid (3) and 4'-dihydrophaseic acid (4) as well as the phenolic acids, ellagic acid (5) and 3, 4, 3'-tri-O-methylellagic acid (6). Twenty eight mice (in seven groups, n = 4) were made diabetic using alloxan monohydrate (i.p., 120 mg/kg) and treated orally with either the vehicle (control group), any of the constituents or glibenclamide (standard drug). The fasting blood glucose of the diabetic animals was monitored for nine hours. Results showed that all the chemical constituents (1-6) exhibited significant (p < 0.05) antidiabetic activity comparable to glibenclamide. The alkaloids exhibited the most profound antidiabetic activity. The present study has thus identified the antidiabetic principles of C. dolichopetalum root as echinulin, arestrictin B, arjunolic acid, 4'-dihydrophaseic acid, ellagic acid and 3, 4, 3'-tri-O-methylellagic acid. The study has further validated the ethnomedicinal use of the root of C. dolichopetalum in diabetes

Isolation and structure elucidation of polyphenols from Loranthus micranthus Linn. parasitic on Hevea brasiliensis with antiinflammatory property

The present study was carried out to evaluate the anti-inflammatory activities of polyphenols isolated from the leaves of mistletoe (Loranthus micranthus Linn.) parasitic on Hevea brasiliensis. The anti-inflammatory properties of the isolated compounds were evaluated on the basis of their ability to inhibit the production of nitric oxide (NO) and tumuor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in lipopolysaccharide (LPS) activated RAW 264.7 mouse macrophages. Semipreparative HPLC separation of the ethyl acetate (EtOAc) and butanol (n-BuOH) fractions of the leaves of mistletoe (Loranthus micranthus Linn) parasitic on Hevea brasiliensisled to the isolation of four polyphenols: 3-O-(3,4,5-trimethoxybenzoyl)-(-)-epicatechin (TMECG) (1);(-)-epicatechin-3-O-(3′′-O-methyl)-gallate (ECG3′′Me) (2); rutin (3) and peltatoside (4). Compounds 1-4 were isolated for the first time from this plant while 1 was isolated for the first time in nature. These compounds (1-4) were readily identified by comparison of their spectroscopic data with those reported in the literature. The polyphenols proved to have anti-inflammatory activity as evidenced by the suppression of inducible nitric oxide (iNO) and cytokine (TNF-α) levels in the culture supernatant of lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW 264.7 murine macrophages. However, the study showed that the quercetin diglycosides showed stronger inhibition of proinflammatory mediators than the epicatechin derivates. These data provide evidence that polyphenolic compounds isolated from the mistletoe parasitic on Hevea brasiliensis may contribute to its anti-inflammatory properties by inhibiting the expression of inducible nitric oxide and proinflammatory cytokines such as tumour necrosis factor-α

Undergraduate business education students’ perception on information and communication technology use in teaching and learning

The study was carried out to assess the undergraduate Business Education Students’ Perception on the use of Information and communication technology (ICT) in teaching and learning in the University. Thus, to achieve the purpose, two research questions and two hypotheses guided the study. A sample of 100 students was randomly drawn using balloting and proportionate stratified random sampling techniques. A questionnaire of 4-point scale was used to collect data. It has face validity determined through expert judgement, and construct validity verified through factor analysis. The reliability of the instrument was obtained through Cronbach Alpha. A reliability coefficient of 0.82 was obtained as a measure of internal consistency. The data collected were analyzed with mean and Z-test. Mean was used to answer the research questions while Z-test was used to test the hypotheses at the 0.05 level of significance. The result showed that there was high perception of students to use ICT in teaching and learning in the university. There was no significant difference between male and female students as well as 300 level and 400 level students on the use of ICT in teaching and learning. Therefore, it was recommended that ICT should be used in teaching and learning Business Education in the University

Construction of Valid and Reliable Test for Assessment of Students

The study was carried out to construct a valid and reliable test in Economics for secondary school students. Two research questions were drawn to guide the establishment of validity and reliability for the Economics Achievement Test (EAT). It is a multiple choice objective test of five options with 100 items. A sample of 1000 students was randomly drawn to determine the validity and reliability of the test. After item analysis, the result showed that the Economics achievement test has a high face and content validity. The test item validity was determined through Difficulty and discrimination indices. A difficult index or p-value of 0.5 for each item was considered after applying the formula of correction for guessing. The discrimination index was established through point biserial statistics for each item with a correction coefficient of at least 0.3. The test has a reliability coefficient of 0.95 established through the use of Kuder-Richardson formula 20.The test is valid and reliable for assessing students internally and prepare them for external examinations. Keywords: Construction, Economics, Achievement Test and Education

Simplified Elastic Design of Uncracked Reinforced Concept Section

Due to the limitations of the traditional elastic design approach of uncracked section as provided by BS 5337, an alternative design approach is proposed by which the precise depth of the neutral axis and hence the actual area of steel reinforcement are determined for any stipulated value of permissible tensile stress of concrete. The obtained result finds application in elastic flexural design of uncracked section such as required for water-retaining structures

Assessment Score of University Lecturers

The study investigated the types of score used by University lecturers for assessing students. A sample of 6000 lecturers was randomly selected from 12 universities in Nigeria. A questionnaire indicating raw score, percentage, Z-score, T score, percentile and stanine was administered to the lecturers. Data analysis involved the use of percentage and chi-square. Results showed that most of the university lecturers use raw score in assessing students’ achievement after their semester examinations. There was the need to correct measurement error by transforming raw score of students to Percentile, Z-score, and T-score. These have implications for educational measurement. Recommendations on the appropriate score for assessing students by their lecturers were made. Keyword: Assessment, Standard scores and Educatio

Assessment of Secondary School Students’ Parents Participation in Economic Development

The study was carried out to assess the secondary school students’ parents participation in Economic development of Nigeria. The location of male and female parents in their occupation of mining, Agriculture, Trading, Banking and Human resources management were assessed. Three research questions and one hypothesis guided the study. A sample of 1000 (500 male and 500 female) was randomly selected. Data analysis was done through the use of percentage for research questions and chi-square for the hypothesis at .05 level of significance. The result showed that more male than female participate in economic development and there was a significant difference. Recommendations were made for equal gender participation in economic development. Keywords: Assessment, Education, Gender and Economic Development

DEVELOPING INTERVIEW SKILLS FOR ASSESSMENT OF STUDENTS IN BUSINESS EDUCATION

The paper examined how teachers could use interview skills for the assessment of students in Business Education. It was noted that interview is a well-organized discussion between the teacher (interviewer) and the student (interviewee) before, during and after teacher-learning process. The interviewer presents set of questions to the interviewee to respond on the given areas of knowledge It was observed that there are basically two types of interview: Structured and unstructured. Structure interview requires more skills. Some of the interview skills an interviewer is required to develop include: ability to discuss and interact favourably, ability to establish rapport with the interviewee, ability to relax the interviewee, ability to keep issues that are confidential, ability to construct and present valid and reliable questions, ability to encourage interviewee to express thoughts and feelings objectively, ability to listen attentively without reacting emotionally to the interviewee, ability to take note or record facts, ability to establish good eye-contact and non-verbal cues, ability to score, and judge objectively these skills required continuous practice. A teacher in Business education could develop these skills for assessment of students in the secondary and tertiary schools. Recommendations were made.  Article visualizations

Counselling for good conduct in tertiary school examination.

El documento examinó la orientación para la buena conducta en el examen de la educación terciaria, señalando que los exámenes deben ser bien realizados por la autoridad escolar y los estudiantes deben comportarse bien antes, durante y después de los exámenes. Los consejeros deben asegurarse de que los estudiantes estén bien guiados y asesorados antes del examen. Esto ayudará a evitar la mala práctica del examen entre los estudiantes. La mala práctica del examen, por parte de los estudiantes, es una conducta desviada que debe verificarse a través del asesoramiento. Cuando los estudiantes son guiados para una buena conducta, se contribuye al desarrollo nacional. Se identificaron las normas y reglamentos que guían la realización del examen terciario. Se señaló que el asesoramiento debería ser un proceso continuo que ayude a los estudiantes a tener buena conducta en los exámenes de la educación terciaria.The paper examined counselling for good conduct in tertiary school examination, pointing out that school examinations should be well conducted by the school authority and the students should conduct themselves well before, during and after examinations. Counsellors should ensure students are well guided and counselled before examination. This will help to avoid examination malpractice among students. Examination malpractice by students is a deviant behaviour that needs to be checked through counselling. When students are guided for good conduct, they will contribute to national development. Rules and regulations guiding the conduct of tertiary examination were identified. It was pointed out that counselling should be a continuous process in helping students to be of good conduct in tertiary school examinations

Effect of Partial Replacement of Sand With Quarry Dust on the Structural Characteristics of Sandcrete Blocks

This work investigated the effect of partial replacement of sand with quarry dust on the compressive strength, flexural strength, split tensile strength and water absorption of sandcrete blocks. River sand was replaced with quarry dust at percentages ranging from 0 to 40 at cement/combined aggregate ratio of 1: 6. The blocks were moulded using a Rosa Commetta block laying machine and were tested after curing by water sprinkling for 28 days. The results showed that the inclusion of quarry dust improved the properties, with the highest improvement being at 40% replacement for all the properties. The compressive strength, flexural strength and split tensile strength increased by 27, 38 and 19% respectively at 40% replacement.The compressive strength and water absorption of the blocks also met the minimum Nigerian Industrial Standard’s requirement of 3.45N/mm-2 and 12% for vibrated blocks respectively. The results also showed that blocks produced with quarry dust as the sole aggregate have lower qualities than sandcrete blocks of the same mix. It is recommended that partial replacement of sand with quarry dust in sandcrete block production be encouraged as it reduces the excessive demand for river sand and its attendant problems while providing a useful means of utilizing the excess quarry dust produced which, if left to accumulate in large quantities, constitute great environmental hazard.http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/njt.v34i4.