Knowledge and utilization of non-pneumatic anti-shock garment for the management of postpartum hemorrhage among Midwives in government hospitals in Ogun State, Nigeria

Objective: To assess the knowledge and determine the level of utilization of Non-Pneumatic Anti-Shock Garment (NASG) for the management of PPH among Midwives. Method: The study employed a descriptive cross-sectional study design, using a validated self-administered questionnaire. A total of 198 randomly selected midwives across three health facilities in Ogun State participated in the study. A 10-point knowledge scale was used to assess the knowledge of midwives on NASG. Descriptive statistics were used to determine the level of utilization of NASG among midwives, while Chi-square statistics were used to determine the relationship between the dependent and independent variables of interest at p<0.05 level of significance. Results: Most (88.9%) of the respondents were female with a mean age of 40.2±5.6years. Most (48.5%) had a BNS degree. The majority (74.7%) of the respondents were aware of NASG. Close to a half (49.3%) of the respondents had fair knowledge scores, 34.5% had good knowledge scores, while 16.2% had poor knowledge scores. Only 22.7% of the respondents had ever used NASG in the management of PPH; 77.3% never used it before. Also, 67.2% of the respondents reported NASG was not available in their facilities. There was a significant influence of knowledge of NASG on the utilization among midwives (X2=37.151, P<0.05, df=2). Conclusion: This study demonstrated that midwives in healthcare facilities were aware, but did not have good knowledge of NASG. The utilization of the garment for the management of PPH was also very poor, probably due to suboptimal knowledge and non-availability of the garment

Description and Composition of Tree Species in a Tertiary Institution Agricultural Faculty Arboretum, Ibadan, South-West Nigeria

The Arboretum of the Agricultural Faculty of a tertiary institution in Ibadan is known for its rich diversity of trees. Therefore, the study investigates the tree growth variables in the arboretum such as diameter at breast height (dbh), diameter at the base, middle and top of the bole, total height, merchantable height and crown diameter. The basal area and volume were then calculated per species and per family. Several models were fitted for the height – diameter relationship and crown diameter – diameter relationship and crown diameter – dbh relationship. Positive linear relationships were observed among the growth variables. The fitted models showed that cubic models exhibit a more reliable function than quadratic and linear models for crown diameter – dbh predictions as it has R2 above 0.75. Endangered species were observed too and this was indicated through the diversity index obtained. The highest basal area encounter belongs to myrtaceae family (9.61m2) while the lowest belongs to pinaceae family (0.24m2). The total basal area obtained at (31.72m2) from the faculty trees indicates that they are exhibiting better growth and yield

Insolvency of Small Civil Engineering Firms: An Examination of Critical Strategic Factors

Construction industry insolvency studies have failed to stem the industry’s high insolvency tide because many focus on big civil engineering firms (CEF) when over 90% firms in the industry are small or micro (S&M). This study thus set out to uncover insolvency criteria of S&M CEFs and the underlying factors using mixed methods. Using convenience sampling, storytelling method was used to execute interviews of 16 respondents from insolvent firms. Narrative and thematic analysis were used to extract 17 criteria under 2 groups. Criteria were used to formulate questionnaire of which 81 completed copies were received and analysed using Cronbach’s alpha coefficient and relevance index score for reliability and ranking respectively. The five most relevant criteria are: economic recession, immigration, too many new firms springing up, collecting receivables and burden of sustainable construction. The 4 underlying factors established through factor analysis are: market forces, competence-based management, operations efficiency and other management issues and information management. The factors were in line with Mintzberg’s and Porters’ strategy theories. Results demonstrate that insolvency factors affecting big and small CEF can be quite different and sometimes, even opposite. This research will provide a unique resource on the ‘beware’ factors for potential owners of S&M CEF. The criteria are potential variables for insolvency prediction models for S&M CEFs

Human Solid Tumor Xenografts in Immunodeficient Mice Are Vulnerable to Lymphomagenesis Associated with Epstein-Barr Virus

Xenografting primary human solid tumor tissue into immunodeficient mice is a widely used tool in studies of human cancer biology; however, care must be taken to prove that the tumors obtained recapitulate parent tissue. We xenografted primary human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tumor fragments or bulk tumor cell suspensions into immunodeficient mice. We unexpectedly observed that 11 of 21 xenografts generated from 16 independent patient samples resembled lymphoid neoplasms rather than HCC. Immunohistochemistry and flow cytometry analyses revealed that the lymphoid neoplasms were comprised of cells expressing human CD45 and CD19/20, consistent with human B lymphocytes. In situ hybridization was strongly positive for Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) encoded RNA. Genomic analysis revealed unique monoclonal or oligoclonal immunoglobulin heavy chain gene rearrangements in each B-cell neoplasm. These data demonstrate that the lymphoid neoplasms were EBV-associated human B-cell lymphomas. Analogous to EBV-associated lymphoproliferative disorders in immunocompromised humans, the human lymphomas in these HCC xenografts likely developed from reactivation of latent EBV in intratumoral passenger B lymphocytes following their xenotransplantation into immunodeficient recipient mice. Given the high prevalence of latent EBV infection in humans and the universal presence of B lymphocytes in solid tumors, this potentially confounding process represents an important pitfall of human solid tumor xenografting. This phenomenon can be recognized and avoided by routine phenotyping of primary tumors and xenografts with human leukocyte markers, and provides a compelling biological rationale for exclusion of these cells from human solid tumor xenotransplantation assays

Atg7-Mediated Autophagy Is Involved in the Neural Crest Cell Generation in Chick Embryo

Autophagy plays a very important role in numerous physiological and pathological events. However, it still remains unclear whether Atg7-induced autophagy is involved in the regulation of neural crest cell production. In this study, we found the co-location of Atg7 and Pax7+ neural crest cells in early chick embryo development. Upregulation of Atg7 with unilateral transfection of full-length Atg7 increased Pax7+ and HNK-1+ cephalic and trunk neural crest cell numbers compared to either Control-GFP transfection or opposite neural tubes, suggesting that Atg7 over-expression in neural tubes could enhance the production of neural crest cells. BMP4 in situ hybridization and p-Smad1/5/8 immunofluorescent staining demonstrated that upregulation of Atg7 in neural tubes suppressed the BMP4/Smad signaling, which is considered to promote the delamination of neural crest cells. Interestingly, upregulation of Atg7 in neural tubes could significantly accelerate cell progression into the S phase, implying that Atg7 modulates cell cycle progression. However, β-catenin expression was not significantly altered. Finally, we demonstrated that upregulation of the Atg7 gene could activate autophagy as did Atg8. We have also observed that similar phenotypes, such as more HNK-1+ neural crest cells in the unilateral Atg8 transfection side of neural tubes, and the transfection with full-length Atg8-GFP certainly promote the numbers of BrdU+ neural crest cells in comparison to the GFP control. Taken together, we reveal that Atg7-induced autophagy is involved in regulating the production of neural crest cells in early chick embryos through the modification of the cell cycle

NEXT-CRAB-0: A High Pressure Gaseous Xenon Time Projection Chamber with a Direct VUV Camera Based Readout

The search for neutrinoless double beta decay ($0\nu\beta\beta$) remains one of the most compelling experimental avenues for the discovery in the neutrino sector. Electroluminescent gas-phase time projection chambers are well suited to $0\nu\beta\beta$ searches due to their intrinsically precise energy resolution and topological event identification capabilities. Scalability to ton- and multi-ton masses requires readout of large-area electroluminescent regions with fine spatial resolution, low radiogenic backgrounds, and a scalable data acquisition system. This paper presents a detector prototype that records event topology in an electroluminescent xenon gas TPC via VUV image-intensified cameras. This enables an extendable readout of large tracking planes with commercial devices that reside almost entirely outside of the active medium.Following further development in intermediate scale demonstrators, this technique may represent a novel and enlargeable method for topological event imaging in $0\nu\beta\beta$.Comment: 32 Pages, 22 figure

Fungal Planet description sheets: 1436–1477

Novel species of fungi described in this study include those from various countries as follows: Argentina, Colletotrichum araujiae on leaves, stems and fruits of Araujia hortorum. Australia, Agaricus pateritonsus on soil, Curvularia fraserae on dying leaf of Bothriochloa insculpta, Curvularia millisiae from yellowing leaf tips of Cyperus aromaticus, Marasmius brunneolorobustus on well-rotted wood, Nigrospora cooperae from necrotic leaf of Heteropogon contortus, Penicillium tealii from the body of a dead spider, Pseudocercospora robertsiorum from leaf spots of Senna tora, Talaromyces atkinsoniae from gills of Marasmius crinis-equi and Zasmidium pearceae from leaf spots of Smilax glyciphylla. Brazil, Preussia bezerrensis from air. Chile, Paraconiothyrium kelleni from the rhizosphere of Fragaria chiloensis subsp. chiloensis f. chiloensis. Finland, Inocybe udicola on soil in mixed forest with Betula pendula, Populus tremula, Picea abies and Alnus incana. France, Myrmecridium normannianum on dead culm of unidentified Poaceae. Germany, Vexillomyces fraxinicola from symptomless stem wood of Fraxinus excelsior. India, Diaporthe limoniae on infected fruit of Limonia acidissima, Didymella naikii on leaves of Cajanus cajan, and Fulvifomes mangroviensis on basal trunk of Aegiceras corniculatum. Indonesia, Penicillium ezekielii from Zea mays kernels. Namibia, Neocamarosporium calicoremae and Neocladosporium calicoremae on stems of Calicorema capitata, and Pleiochaeta adenolobi on symptomatic leaves of Adenolobus pechuelii. Netherlands, Chalara pteridii on stems of Pteridium aquilinum, Neomackenziella juncicola (incl. Neomackenziella gen. nov.) and Sporidesmiella junci from dead culms of Juncus effusus. Pakistan, Inocybe longistipitata on soil in a Quercus forest. Poland, Phytophthora viadrina from rhizosphere soil of Quercus robur, and Septoria krystynae on leaf spots of Viscum album. Portugal (Azores), Acrogenospora stellata on dead wood or bark. South Africa, Phyllactinia greyiae on leaves of Greyia sutherlandii and Punctelia anae on bark of Vachellia karroo. Spain, Anteaglonium lusitanicum on decaying wood of Prunus lusitanica subsp. lusitanica, Hawksworthiomyces riparius from fluvial sediments, Lophiostoma carabassense endophytic in roots of Limbarda crithmoides, and Tuber mohedanoi from calcareus soils. Spain (Canary Islands), Mycena laurisilvae on stumps and woody debris. Sweden, Elaphomyces geminus from soil under Quercus robur. Thailand, Lactifluus chiangraiensis on soil under Pinus merkusii, Lactifluus nakhonphanomensis and Xerocomus sisongkhramensis on soil under Dipterocarpus trees. Ukraine, Valsonectria robiniae on dead twigs of Robinia hispida. USA, Spiralomyces americanus (incl. Spiralomyces gen. nov.) from office air. Morphological and culture characteristics are supported by DNA barcodes

Phase 3 Safety and Efficacy of AZD1222 (ChAdOx1 nCoV-19) Covid-19 Vaccine

BACKGROUND: The safety and efficacy of the AZD1222 (ChAdOx1 nCoV-19) vaccine in a large, diverse population at increased risk for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in the United States, Chile, and Peru has not been known. METHODS: In this ongoing, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, phase 3 clinical trial, we investigated the safety, vaccine efficacy, and immunogenicity of two doses of AZD1222 as compared with placebo in preventing the onset of symptomatic and severe coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) 15 days or more after the second dose in adults, including older adults, in the United States, Chile, and Peru. RESULTS: A total of 32,451 participants underwent randomization, in a 2:1 ratio, to receive AZD1222 (21,635 participants) or placebo (10,816 participants). AZD1222 was safe, with low incidences of serious and medically attended adverse events and adverse events of special interest; the incidences were similar to those observed in the placebo group. Solicited local and systemic reactions were generally mild or moderate in both groups. Overall estimated vaccine efficacy was 74.0% (95% confidence interval [CI], 65.3 to 80.5; P CONCLUSIONS: AZD1222 was safe and efficacious in preventing symptomatic and severe Covid-19 across diverse populations that included older adults. (Funded by AstraZeneca and others; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT04516746.)

Seedlings Emergence in Compacted Soil as Measured by a Pressure Transducer

Research was conducted to obtain an instrument for a more precise method of measuring seedlings emergence, also to indicate the amount of pressure exerted by seedlings before emerging to the surface, hence the design and fabrication of a data logger capable of measuring and logging the pressure exerted by seedlings of maize (hypogeal) and okra (epigeal) in emergence study on compacted Egbeda soil series (Ultisol). The PIC18F4550 Microchip microcontroller unit serves as the heart of the data-logging system, while seedling emergence pressure was determined using MPX5050DP pressure sensor (0-5000 milibar). The date and time were monitored with DS1307 RTC (Real Time Clock) timer, 24LC512 a 512 kbit EEPROM was used as the storage unit and LCD LM016L was used as the display unit. The circuit was designed with Proteus ISIS. The software that interfaced the design with computer was designed with Microsoft Visual Studio using Visual Basic.NET. The experiment was conducted at the departments of Physics, Civil Engineering and Soil Science and Land Resources Management of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria, between August, 2013 and June, 2014. The emergence experiment was conducted with soil treatments consisting of four levels of soil compaction (0, 5, 15, and 25 blows of a standard proctor rammer of 2.5 kg; light BS 1377, equivalent to 0, 39, 116 and 193 kJm-3 respectively), at 0.12 g/g moisture content, and replicated three times in a completely randomized design. The results showed that soil strength had significant (p = 0.05) effect on percent seedlings emergence and pressure exerted by seedlings, percent seedlings emergence was negatively correlated (p ≤ 0.05) with pressure exerted by seedlings. Positive correlation (p ≤ 0.05) was also observed between soil strength and pressure exerted by seedlings at emergence as measured by the pressure transducer. Therefore the pressure transducer provides an alternative method of measuring seedling emergence as against indirect method being used. &nbsp