Quantitative Fluorescence Microscopy of Protein Dynamics in Living Cells

The advent of confocal microscopy, fast microcomputers with high storage capacity and, moreover, the availability of fluorescent proteins of various excitation and emission properties have made fluorescence microscopy the method of choice in the study of protein behaviour in living cells. In this thesis we investigated in detail two important quantitative methods, fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) and fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP). Model systems used in demonstrating the complementarity of the techniques and their merits included the nuclear excision repair (NER) system, transcription regulation by the androgen receptor (AR), and signal transduction by two membrane receptors, the EGF receptor and the IL2-receptor. In Chapter 1 an introduction to microscopy is given. A brief history traces the development of microscopy from the modest lens arrangement of Zacharias Janssen to modern fluorescence microscopes allowing quantitative investigation of protein dynamics in living cells. A discussion of fluorescence properties of the GFP is presented and several quantitative fluorescence microscopy techniques used are discussed. Also the model systems studied are described. In Chapter 2 the long-lived dark state of EGFP, the fluorescent tag used in most live cell studies, is investigated as observed in a set-up similar to a typical fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) experiment. A method is presented to measure light in

Epiphyseal plate closure of radio-ulna bone in red Sokoto goat ecotype

This study was conducted with 57 Red Sokoto goats, which were randomly obtained from three different small ruminant farms with birth record within Sokoto metropolis, Nigeria. They were classified into different age groups and subgroups, from 1-144 weeks. The radiographs of their forearms were taken and the proximal and distal epiphyseal plate lengths of both radius and ulna bones were measured. The radiographic images of the bones showed that the proximal and distal epiphyseal plates of the radius were opened at week 1 with mean lengths of 0.50±0.05mm and 1.10±0.01mm respectively but fuses at week 8 and 36 respectively. The proximal ulna epiphyseal plate was opened at week 1, with mean length of 1.67±0.02mm and fused at week 144. However, the distal ulna epiphyses appeared radiolucent at week 1 and 2 and became radiopaque at week 3 with an epiphyseal plate mean length of 3.67±0.26mm which reduced chronologically and fused at 96 week. It was therefore concluded that in Red Sokoto goat, epiphyseal plate lengths decreases with increase in age and fuses at different age even within the same bone, and the epiphyseal plates of radius bones fuse earlier than the ulna bones.Keywords: Epiphyseal plate, Red Sokoto goat, Radiography, Radius, Uln

Mechanochemical synthesis, characterization and antimicrobial screening of Metal (II) complexes derived from amoxicillin

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Taxpayer’s right to refund under the Nigerian law: a right in fact or privilege in camouflage?

The need for a fair, equitable and legitimate taxation is paramount to the protection of human rights and national development. Unfortunately, a practical analysis of human rights issues in the Nigerian tax system seems to leave one in the limbo and confusing situation as to whether the so called taxpayer’s rights especially right to refund as stated in the Nigerian tax laws are actually a right or at best describe a mere privileges. The jurisprudence of this paper therefore is an examination of the actual legal status of the taxpayer’s rights to refund as stated in the Nigerian tax laws. Using doctrinal research method, the paper found that the said rights are curtailed and the practicability of most of them is difficult there by allowing for a breach with impunity by the tax authorities. To check this, the paper proffers some solutions in form of recommendations.Keywords: Taxpayer’s Right, Nigerian Law, Privilege, Fact, Camouflag

The efficacy of peanut oil and palm oil in preserving chicken eggs in a tropical environment

The study was undertaken to compare the effect of different  storage methods on external and internal quality of Isa Brown eggs obtained from Rufai Poultry Farms Bakura, Zamfara State. Ninety (90) eggs were collected from the Rufai farms sales office at Talata Mafara, Zamfara State. The eggs were divided into three groups (A, B and C) of 30 eggs each. The mean weight of the eggs in each of the groups was determined. Group A was left uncoated in a crate, while groups B and C were coated with peanut oil and palm oil respectively, and stored for four (4) weeks at room temperature. The egg shell, mean egg weight, egg yolk, egg white (albumen) and volume of each individual eggs were evaluated. The average percentage whole egg weight loss for all the groups showed significant difference (p<0.05) after preservation, with group A having the highest average percentage egg weight loss of 64.16±5.00%, although, group B had heavier weight compared to group A before preservation. Eggs coated with palm oil had better internal quality compared to peanut oil coated eggs and non-oil coated eggs, as it was seen to have intact internal content. A significant difference (P< 0.05) was also seen in the volume of group B and C with group C having the highest volume of 67.67±10.79ml. In conclusion this study showed that all palm oil coated eggs had good external and internal quality and longer shelf-life than non-oil coated and peanut coated eggs. It was therefore recommended that eggs should be preserved by coating with palm oil, so as to extend their shell-life.Keywords: Chicken egg, Egg Albumen, Egg Yolk, Palm oil, Peanut oil, Preservatio

Studies on Analgesic and Anti-Inflammatory Activities of Aerial Parts of Tephrosia Bracteolata GUILL. and PERR. (Fabaceae) in Rodents

Background: Tephrosia bracteolata is a widespread shrub belonging to the family (Fabaceae) and genus Tephrosia. It is traditionally used for treating rheumatic pains, dropsy and stomach ache.Objectives: In view of the ethnomedicinal claim and the continuous search for new medicinal agents, the phytochemical constituents, analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities of chloroform fraction (CF) of the methanol extract of Tephrosia bracteolata in mice and rats was evaluated.Methods: Preliminary phytochemical screening was conducted using standard method. Analgesic activity of CF (100, 200 and 400 mg/kg body weight orally) was investigated using acetic acid-induced writhing test and thermally induced pain model in mice. Additionally, anti-inflammatory activity was tested by carragenaan-induced paw edema in rats.Results: Phytochemical screening revealed the presence of alkaloids, triterpenes and flavonoids. The oral LD50 of CF was above 2000 mg/kg body weight. CF significantly (p<0.05) and dose dependently reduced the number of writhes with percentage inhibition of 47.76 48.41 and 72.6 % at dose of 100, 200 and 400mg/kg respectively. CF also significantly (p<0.05) and dose dependently increased the mean reaction time. At dose of 400 mg/kg, CF at 60 and 90 minutes exhibited greater activity when compared to the standard agent pentazocine. CF(200 and 400 mg/kg) at times 3, 4 and 5 hours significantly (p<0.05) decreased the paw edema in rats when compare with the ibuprofen treated group.Conclusions: The chloroform fraction of the methanol crude extract of Tephrosia bracteolata possesses analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities

Process intensification of lemon grass oil in a pilot plant

The extraction of essential oil from lemon-grass was carried out using steam distillation in a locally designed and fabricated pilot plant of 100 kg/day capacity. The extraction pattern and economic analysis of the oil extracted were monitored over time. The extraction revealed that 0.414 litres of oil was produced in a day of five batches with a total production cycle per batch of 1.61 hours. The study further revealed that 94.3% of the oil was extracted in 60 minutes. The GCMS result shows the major components in the extracted Lemon grass oil were Oleic acid, Neral and Citral with percentage composition of 25.69%, 19.32% and 15.38% respectively. These percent compositions compare favourably with literature values. The properties of the Lemon grass oil were found to be: specific gravity, 0.8952; iodine value, 120.7g/g; saponification value, 201.3 mgKOH/g and cetane number, 43.7. The economic analysis on a monthly basis revealed a production cost (direct and indirect) of N160,050.00K and the expected net profit of N378,150.00K.Keywords: Essential Oil, Lemon Grass, Extraction, Pilot Plant and Process Intensificatio

Measurement of the cross section for isolated-photon plus jet production in pp collisions at √s=13 TeV using the ATLAS detector

The dynamics of isolated-photon production in association with a jet in proton–proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV are studied with the ATLAS detector at the LHC using a dataset with an integrated luminosity of 3.2 fb−1. Photons are required to have transverse energies above 125 GeV. Jets are identified using the anti- algorithm with radius parameter and required to have transverse momenta above 100 GeV. Measurements of isolated-photon plus jet cross sections are presented as functions of the leading-photon transverse energy, the leading-jet transverse momentum, the azimuthal angular separation between the photon and the jet, the photon–jet invariant mass and the scattering angle in the photon–jet centre-of-mass system. Tree-level plus parton-shower predictions from Sherpa and Pythia as well as next-to-leading-order QCD predictions from Jetphox and Sherpa are compared to the measurements