An alternative management strategy for Lake Victoria (Kenya)

In Kenya, fisheries resource management has been based on the top-down centralized approach since the colonial days. Stakeholders have never been consulted concerning management decisions. The 4-beaches Study was undertaken to investigate the potential for an alternative management system for Lake Victoria

Socio-cultural factors influencing male involvement in home-based care for people living with HIV and AIDS in Maseno Division, Western Kenya

Background: Home-based care has emerged as an effective method of providing costeffective and compassionate care to those infected with HIV and AIDS. Traditionally, women have been in the forefront in the provision of care for those infected with HIV and AIDS. However, there was low male involvement in home-based care services and little research has been done.Objective: To investigate socio-cultural factors that influence male involvement in home-based HIV and AIDS care in Western Kenya.Design: Cross-sectional, descriptive study.Setting: Maseno division Western Kenya.Subjects: Two hundred and fourty eight (248) caregivers selected fromregistered support groups in Maseno Division, Western Kenya.Results: Overall, 29% of the caregivers were male, 75% took care of close relatives and 59.7% of the respondents had not received formal training on home-based care. Those respondents who had no employment indicated low levels of male involvement than those who had employment (χ2=17.18, p=0.001). Male caregivers performed fewer nursing activities such as changing soiled beddings (μ =1.97, SD=0.95) compared to the general activities like buy and carry food home (μ=2.95, SD=1.15). Respondents who had high number patients were statistically more likely to report lower levels of male involvement than those who had lower number of patients χ2=61.69, p= 0.025. Although 92% agreed that men should be involved in care giving, over 50% said that it is taboo for men to cook or fetch water, that care giving is for women, and the men who participate in housework are considered weak or bewitched. Male involvement in home-based care variables were negatively correlated with socio-cultural variables. For example, there was a significant strong negative relationship between taboo for married man to cook with men cook and feed HIV patients (r =- 0.69, P=0.01). Conclusion: Full participation of males’ in HIV home care is hindered by the current socio-cultural constraints. There is need to address it through health education using context-specific and culturally-sensitive messages

Plant Species in the Folk medicine of Kit Mikayi Region, Western Kenya

An ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants used in Kit Mikayi area of Western Kenya was carried out in 2007. The area is adjacent to Lake Victoria, the second largest fresh water lake in the world. Being a shrine, an ethnobotanical survey was conducted with the aim of documenting the local plants of economic value which have over time attracted both local and foreign visitors. Thirty-seven species were documented, and their use values and informant consensus factors were determined. The results were considered as important in defining conservation priorities as well as for further investigation of the identified plants for possible pharmacological applications

Molecular epidemiology of human rhinovirus infections in Kilifi, coastal Kenya

This study reports pediatric surveillance over 3 years for human rhinovirus (HRV) at the District Hospital of Kilifi, coastal Kenya. Nasopharyngeal samples were collected from children presenting at outpatient clinic with no signs of acute respiratory infection, or with signs of upper respiratory tract infection, and from children admitted to the hospital with lower respiratory tract infection. Samples were screened by real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (real-time RT-PCR) and classified further to species by nucleotide sequencing of the VP4/VP2 junction. Of 441 HRV positives by real-time RT-PCR, 332 were classified to species, with 47% (155) being HRV-A, 5% (18) HRV-B, and 48% (159) HRV-C. There was no clear seasonal pattern of occurrence for any species. The species were present in similar proportions in the inpatient and outpatient sample sets, and no significant association between species distribution and the severity of lower respiratory tract infection in the inpatients could be determined. HRV sequence analysis revealed multiple but separate clusters in circulation particularly for HRV-A and HRV-C. Most HRV-C clusters were distinct from reference sequences downloaded from GenBank. In contrast, most HRV-A and HRV-B sequences clustered with either known serotypes or strains from elsewhere within Africa and other regions of the world. This first molecular epidemiological study of HRV in the region defines species distribution in accord with reports from elsewhere in the world, shows considerable strain diversity and does not identify an association between any species and disease severity

Removal of nickel from wastewater using an agricultural adsorbent

Chemical wastewater streams may contain toxic compounds which are non-biodegradable, and therefore require advanced treatment techniques such as adsorption. However, application of adsorption processes is often limited by the cost of adsorbents. In this study, the adsorption capacity of a low-cost adsorbent (pine sawdust) was investigated by treating wastewater containing nickel (II) and other heavy metal ions. Results were analysed using response surface methodology and a factorial design was employed to determine the interactive effects of the various factors on the adsorption capacity. Furthermore, Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption isotherms were fitted to experimental data to characterise the adsorption of the nickel ions by the pine sawdust. As a result, the highest adsorption capacity was attained at the combined effect of low adsorbent dose, high pH and high initial concentration. On the other hand, the Freundlich isotherm fitted the experimental data better than the Langmuir isotherm. Results of this study indicate that the use of pine sawdust could be a promising solution to the elimination of nickel ions from multi-component aqueous solutions.Keywords: sawdust, adsorption, nickel ions, wastewater, isother

Effect of Amino Acid Formulation and Dietary Direct-Fed Microbial Supplementation on Egg Production and Egg Characteristics in Laying Hens

An experiment was conducted to determine whether direct-fed microbial supplementation could alleviate a marginal amino acid (AA) deficiency in Hyline 36 laying hens from 33 to 44 wk of age. The experiment was a 2 × 4 factorial design with or without a commercial directfed microbial (Primilac; 1.36 kg/1,000 kg) and 4 levels of AA formulation. Egg characteristics (yolk, albumen, or shell proportions and yolk or albumen solids) were not affected by diet. Primilac supplementation had no effect on egg production or egg mass. However, Primilac supplementation reduced feed intake-to-egg mass ratio by 2.4 and 3.4% from 33 to 36 wk and 41 to 44 wk, respectively. Total eggs laid and egg mass were greatest when at least 14.4 g of CP, 804 mg of Lys, 382 mg of Met, 601 mg of TSAA, 502 mg of Thr, and 609 mg of Ile were consumed per hen per day from 33 to 44 wk of age. In conclusion, Primilac supplementation was not able to completely alleviate a marginal AA deficiency in laying hens but did improve feed intake-to-egg mass ratios during 8 wk of the 12-wk study

Prevalence and treatment of hypertension, diabetes and asthma in Kenya: A representative household survey in eight counties in 2016

Objectives: In 2014, 27% of total deaths in Kenya were due to non-communicable diseases (NCDs). The objectives of this study were: 1) To report on the prevalence of households with members diagnosed and treated for hypertension, diabetes, and asthma in eight counties in Kenya, and 2) To explore possible reasons for the variation in prevalence of these three NCDs in the different counties. Design, Setting andSubjects: A total of 7,870 households in a representative sample in eight Kenyan counties were screened for the presence of any non-communicable disease. Diagnosis and treatment data on these NCDs was collected and compared using county specific independent data from the 2014 Kenyan Demographic Health Survey (DHS).Main Outcome Measures: Over all the eight surveyed counties, 10.7% of households reported having one or more individuals with an NCD. The county specific prevalence varied from 3% to 30.2%. Of the 7,870 households surveyed, 6.9% reported having a diagnosis of hypertension, 3.2% of asthma, and 2.3% of diabetes.Results: The strongest explanatory variables for the variation in overall prevalence of NCDs related to access to health services and lifestyle risk factors. Conclusion: The prevalence of reported NCDs varies considerably between  counties in Kenya. Reasons may relate to a lack of access to diagnostic facilities or  ifferences in lifestyle risk factors. We recommend a comprehensive field survey of biometric, health access, and lifestyle risk factors to determine the true prevalence and related risk factors for NCDs in Kenya

The ZmRCP-1 promoter of maize provides root tip specific expression of transgenes in plantain

Background Bananas and plantains (Musa spp.) provide 25 % of the food energy requirements for more than 100 million people in Africa. Plant parasitic nematodes cause severe losses to the crop due to lack of control options. The sterile nature of Musa spp. hampers conventional breeding but makes the crop suitable for genetic engineering. A constitutively expressed synthetic peptide in transgenic plantain has provided resistance against nematodes. Previous work with the peptide in potato plants indicates that targeting expression to the root tip improves the efficacy of the defence mechanism. However, a promoter that will provide root tip specific expression of transgenes in a monocot plant, such as plantain, is not currently available. Here, we report the cloning and evaluation of the maize root cap-specific protein-1 (ZmRCP-1) promoter for root tip targeted expression of transgenes that provide a defence against plant parasitic nematodes in transgenic plantain. Results Our findings indicate that the maize ZmRCP-1 promoter delivers expression of β-glucuronidase (gusA) gene in roots but not in leaves of transgenic plantains. In mature old roots, expression of gusA gene driven by ZmRCP-1 becomes limited to the root cap. Invasion by the nematode Radopholus similis does not modify Root Cap-specific Protein-1 promoter activity. Conclusions Root cap-specific protein-1 promoter from maize can provide targeted expression of transgene for nematode resistance in transgenic plantain

Village Baseline Study: Site Analysis Report for Xai Xai, Zongoene Village, Bairro 1, Mozambique

This is the report of the village baseline study of Zongoene Village, Bairro 1, in the CCAFS benchmark site of Xai Xai, Mozambique in May 2013 to complement an earlier household baseline survey done in the same village. Zongoene village is located by the coast at the mouth of the Limpopo River where there are extensive wetlands along with forests and sand dunes. The village is divided into five sections: Bairro 1, Bairro 2, Bairro 3, Bairro 4 and Bairro 5. Zongoene is the result of a government resettlement program that brought people together to ease service provision. Nonetheless, the level and quality of services remain very low with roads in bad condition, local schools poorly built and lacking water, one hospital with insufficient staff and resources, and nascent electrical availability. The concentrated and expanding population is also increasing pressures on the environment as demand for food and farmland grows