Earthworm-assisted bioremediation of petroleum hydrocarbon contaminated soil from mechanic workshop

The use of earthworms (Eudrilus eugenia) for vermi-assisted bioremediation of petroleum hydrocarbon contaminated mechanic workshop soils was investigated. Parameters of interest where earthworm survival, microbial count and identification, carbon and nitrogen contents of the soil and total petroleum hydrocarbon content of the soil. Earthworm survival was found to be dependent on the concentration of petroleum hydrocarbon and nature of the mechanic workshop. The survival of the worms in the as-obtained mechanic workshop soil was much lower than the survival in mechanic workshop soil diluted with petroleum hydrocarbon free soil. Earthworm inoculation also resulted in lower soil C and N contents after 35 days of vermi-assisted bioremediation. After 35 days of treatment, earthworm inoculation effected a higher drop in total petroleum hydrocarbon contents as compared to the samples without worms, indicating that earthworms may be used as biocatalysts in the bioremediation process.Key words: Eudrilus eugeniae, total petroleum hydrocarbon, mechanic workshop soil

Impact of treated sewage effluent on the microbiology of a small brook using flow cytometry as a diagnostic tool

Flow cytometry was applied to assess the microbiological impact of treated sewage effluent discharge into a small brook carrying surface runoff water. Increases in dissolved organic carbon and soluble reactive phosphorous were accompanied by increases in counts of intact bacteria by up to eightfold. Effluent ingress furthermore resulted in a pronounced shift of bacterial clusters. Whereas brook water upstream of the discharge point was characterised by a bacterial cluster with low nucleic acid (LNA) content, downstream water showed a shift to bacteria with high nucleic acid (HNA) content. Changes in the LNA/HNA ratio were largely maintained along the course of the brook. Results suggest that the LNA/HNA ratio can under certain conditions serve as an indicator of anthropogenic nutrient impact. Measuring impact on this low trophic level might be more sensitive and straightforward than measuring macroindicators. More evidence will however be required to assess the usefulness of LNA/HNA measurements to assess the ecological nutrient status of natural waters and the impact of nutrient pollution

Heavy metal contamination of soil in mechanic workshops

The distribution of metal in soil from mechanic workshops around Zaria, Nigeria (Latitude: 11° 4' 0 N, Longitude: 7° 42' 0 E) was studied. The types of mechanic workshops considered were motorcycle, motorcar, truck/lorries and generator set. The soils were sampled in August 2010. The results indicated that there was an increase in the metal content of soil in all types of mechanic workshops. The heavy metal (nickel, copper, zinc, lead and arsenic) content of the soil was compared with recommended limits. The percentage composition of some of the heavy metals, in many of the samples, were found to be in excess of the considered set limit, particularly for lead for which the percentage of soil samples analyzed from motorcycle, motorcar, truck/lories and generator set mechanic workshops in excess of the considered recommended set limit was found to be 88.89, 100, 100 and 100% respectively. 11.1% of all the samples analyzed were found to contain arsenic in excess of recommended limit. Statistical analysis of the heavy metal content (one-way analysis of variance) indicated that the Zn and Pb contents of soil from mechanic workshops were not functions of the workshop type (P > 0.05) but the nickel and copper contents were found to be dependent on workshop type (P < 0.05).Keywords: Elemental analysis, Heavy metals, Mechanic workshop, Soil, Zari

Effect of earthworm inoculation on the bioremediation of used engine oil contaminated soil

The effect of earthworm (Eudrilus eugeniae) on the bioremediation of used engine oil contaminated soil, amended with poultry manure, was investigated. Investigation into the effect of initial concentration of used engine oil, in soil, for earthworm inoculated samples showed that the biodegradation rate of used engine oil contaminant increased with increasing initial concentration of used engine oil. For initial used engine oil concentration of 5, 10, 15 and 20 g/kg soil, the drop in total petroleum hydrocarbon was found to be -16.91, 20.82, 34.68 and 36.28% respectively after 42 days of treatment. Investigation into the effect of earthworm concentration showed that the use of earthworms did not result in catalysis of the bioremediation process as the extent of biodegradation for the sample without earthworm was found to be higher than those of all concentrations of earthworm considered (5 - 20 worms/kg soil). However, the rate of bioremediation was found to increase with increase in earthworm concentration (as earthworm concentration was increased from 5 to 20 worms per kg of used engine oil contaminated soil). Similarly when the rate of bioremediation in the without-earthworm but manually tilled and the without-earthworm and untilled samples where compared with samples inoculated with earthworm for bioremediation, both samples without worms recorded higher bioremediation rates.Keywords: Concentration, Time, Total petroleum hydrocarbon, vermicomposting, Eudrilus eugenia

Nutrient composition of commonly used complementary foods in North western Nigeria

Studies on the nutrient composition of commonly used complementary foods in North Western Nigeria were carried out using Kaduna, Kebbi and Niger states as case studies. Ready to eat complementary food samples were collected from mothers with children older than 6 months but younger than 24 months and evaluated for its nutrient components using standard procedures. Results obtained showed that guinea corn and millet paps were the first foods introduced to children in the zone. The ash content ranged from 0.63±0.01 to 1.21±0.20 g/100 g with the crude protein ranging from 1.38±0.30 to 3.15±0.01 g/100 g and crude fat 0.07±0.01 to 2.56±0.06 g/100 g. Levels of lysine (1.55 to 3.11 g/100 g protein) and methionine (0.70 to 1.15 g/100 g protein) were below the international reference values of 4.2 and 2.2 for lysine and methionine, respectively. Zinc content ranged from 4.16 to 7.47 mg/100 g and iron content was between 17.82 and 33.88 mg/100 g. Phytates (0.04±0.01 to 0.12±0.02 mg/100 g), tannins (12.95±5.79 to 56.54±11.59 mg/100 g) and free cyanide (0.05±0.01 to 0.74±0.04 mg/100 g) levels in the commonly used complementary foods were low. There is low protein intake by children in the zone since their diet is mainly based on cereal with no other supplementation

Predictors of health care use by adults 50 years and over in a rural South African setting

KIMBACKGROUND: South Africa's epidemiological transition is characterised by an increasing burden of chronic communicable and non-communicable diseases. However, little is known about predictors of health care use (HCU) for the prevention and control of chronic diseases among older adults. OBJECTIVE: To describe reported health problems and determine predictors of HCU by adults aged 50+ living in a rural sub-district of South Africa. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study to measure HCU was conducted in 2010 in the Agincourt sub-district of Mpumalanga Province, an area underpinned by a robust health and demographic surveillance system. HCU, socio-demographic variables, reception of social grants, and type of medical aid were measured, and compared between responders who used health care services with those who did not. Predictors of HCU were determined by binary logistic regression adjusted for socio-demographic variables. RESULTS: Seventy-five percent of the eligible adults aged 50+ responded to the survey. Average age of the targeted 7,870 older adults was 66 years (95% CI: 65.3, 65.8), and there were more women than men (70% vs. 30%, p<0.001). All 5,795 responders reported health problems, of which 96% used health care, predominantly at public health facilities (82%). Reported health problems were: chronic non-communicable diseases (41% - e.g. hypertension), acute conditions (27% - e.g. flu and fever), other conditions (26% - e.g. musculoskeletal pain), chronic communicable diseases (3% - e.g. HIV and TB), and injuries (3%). In multivariate logistic regression, responders with chronic communicable disease (OR=5.91, 95% CI: 1.44, 24.32) and non-communicable disease (OR=2.85, 95% CI: 1.96, 4.14) had significantly higher odds of using health care compared with those with acute conditions. Responders with six or more years of education had a two-fold increased odds of using health care (OR=2.49, 95% CI: 1.27, 4.86) compared with those with no formal education. CONCLUSION: Chronic communicable and non-communicable diseases were the most prevalent and main predictors of HCU in this population, suggesting prioritisation of public health care services for chronic diseases among older people in this rural setting

Determination of the genetic marker of the mutagenized strains of pseudomonas aeruginosa and bacillus cereus isolated from effluent of petroleum refinery

Bacillus cereus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were isolated from the effluent of the Kaduna refining and petrochemical company, using standard methods. These were UV-irradiated for 30mins and thereafter subjected to nitrous acid treatment. Determination of essential amino acids required by both parents and mutants for growth showed that the mutant of Pseudomonas aeruginosa did not require valine and histidine for growth. The mutational treatments resulted in a sense mutation with beneficial effects of increased petroleum degradation. The amino acids requirement for growth could thus be used as a genetic marker for organisms that are subjected to mutational treatments

FertilScore: A tool for active management of infertility

Background: Active management of infertility involves the reduction of the diagnostic workup time for infertility. However, the timing of decision for assisted conception by the couple and medical personnel is often challenging. FertilScore was developed to simplify this decision timing and make the process more objective.Materials and Methods: A scoring tool was developed using the Delphi method. This involved 3 experts in assisted conception assigning scores to a list of the etiological factors for infertility. The tool was administered to 35 couples presenting to a gynecology clinic and 15 couples who completed the tool on that hospital’s website. Grading for couple’s need for in vitro fertilization (IVF) was low (1–9), moderate (10–14), and high (15–96). The information obtained has been analyzed.Results: Twenty‑four (48%) couples had low need for IVF, 17 (34%) moderate need, and 9 (18%) high need. Seventeen were true positive and 9 false positive. There was no false negative and 24 were true negatives. The sensitivity of the tool was 100%, specificity 72.7%, positive predictive value 65.4%, negative predictive value 100%, and accuracy 82%.Conclusion: FertilScore is sensitive at identifying infertile couples that would require IVF and should help in reducing the time and resources deployed to evaluation. The tool would need to be validated in a larger multicenter population.Keywords: Active management; FertilScore; infertility; scoring too

Perinatal Presentation and Outcome of High Birthweight Infants in Zaria, Nigeria.

Background: Infants with high birth weight are candidates for birth trauma, birth asphyxia and sometimes, death. Perinatologists are therefore gradually beaming the search lights on the contribution of high birthweight delivery to perinatal morbidity and mortality. Objectives: To determine the prevalence presentation and outcome of high birthweight deliveries in Zaria. Methods: A retrospective review of records of babies delivered at Ahmadu Be l lo University Teaching Hospital , Zaria , weighing 4000 grams and above at birth, over a 4-year period was undertaken. Maternal and neonatal records were obtained from the delivery suite and neonatal unit respectively, between January, 2005 and December, 2008. Data were analyzed with EPI INFO version 3.5.1 and statistical significance was set at p&lt;0.05. Results: Of the 3065 deliveries in the study period, 167 (5.5%) weighed 4000 grams and above, giving a prevalence of 54.5 per 1000 births. The male: female ratio was 1.2:1, mean birthweight was 4340&plusmn;290 grams and 65.9% of them were delivered during the rainy season. High birthweight delivery was associated with high maternal age, high birth order and assisted delivery. Per inatal asphyxia , hypoglycaemia , hyperbilirubinaemia, sepsis and trauma were the common perinatal conditions in high birthweight babies. Perinatal mortality rate for high birthweight babies was 3.9 per 1000 total births and 71.9 per 1000 high birthweight deliveries. Conclusion: High birthweight deliveries in the present study had high perinatal morbidity and mortality. Antenatal prediction and generous use of Caesarian section could reduce the prevalent morbidity and mortality rates.Key Words: High birthweight, Presentation, Outcome

Implementing a Web Based On-Demand Mentorship Platform for Young Entrepreneurs

Over 90 percent of startups fail after the first five years of kick-off in many developing economies like Nigeria due to the lack of entrepreneurial experiences, understanding of the environment and relevant insights required to handle peculiar challenges that come with running a startup company. Entrepreneurs and founders of startup companies can, therefore, improve the longevity of startups and mitigate the degree of startup failures if they can be equipped with the required knowledge and capacity. Such capacity can be harnessed from years of experiences gathered from trying, making efforts, succeeding and failing. However, entrepreneurs and founders, who are starters or lack substantial experience, may contribute to the failure rate of startups. This, nevertheless, can be addressed by taking advantage of those who have already gathered substantial experiences. These are referred to as mentorship in this study. Thus, a sound relationship between an experienced entrepreneur (mentor) and a starter entrepreneur (mentee) can enable the transfer of knowledge that mitigates the failure rate of startups. This study, therefore, seeks to explore the development of a web-based mentorship platform, where experienced entrepreneurs and young entrepreneurs meet and transfer knowledge. The platform is meant to give young entrepreneurs a leverage such that they harness the already existing experiences of experienced entrepreneurs, such as their failures, successes, methods, leadership styles and efforts. This will foster mentorship relationships, quick-finding help, and knowledge-sharing such that the failure rate of startup companies in Nigeria is reduced