Role of Platelet-Derived Growth Factor Receptor signalling in microglia-mediated neuroinflammation

Neuroinflammation, associated with the onset and progression of neurodegenerative events, is predominantly orchestrated by microglia, the resident immune cells of the central nervous system. Microglia-mediated neuroinflammation, thus, results from dysregulation of its physiological functions, which are tightly controlled by several signalling pathways, including growth factor signalling. Despite the involvement of Platelet-Derived Growth Factor Receptor (PDGFR) signalling and microglia in physiologic and pathologic angiogenesis, this signalling remains uncharacterised in microglia. Thus, the role of PDGFR signalling in microglia-mediated neuroinflammatory responses have been investigated using BV-2 microglial cell line. The expression of PDGFs and their receptors were first characterised in microglia using quantitative polymerase chain reaction, immunocytochemistry, and western blot. Microglia functions, PDGF receptor’s role and intracellular signal transduction pathways were investigated using recombinant human PDGF ligands. Resting BV-2 cells expressed Pdgfa, Pdgfb, Pdgfc, Pdgfrα and Pdgfrβ genes. In Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) activated cells, Pdgfb and Pdgfrβ were significantly upregulated and sustained at protein levels, Pdgfa and Pdgfrα were not significantly altered, while Pdgfc was significantly downregulated. PDGF induced an amoeboid-like phenotype with concomitant downregulation of the homeostatic gene, P2Y purinoceptor-12 (P2ry12); however, migratory and phagocytic capacities were not significantly affected. Also, reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels were significantly decreased with an upregulation of the anti-oxidant genes, glutathione reductase (Gsr) and superoxide dismutase 2 (Sod2), though, the main ROS generating enzymes, Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidases, Nox1 and Nox2, were significantly upregulated. PDGF induced an inflammatory response in BV-2 cells; however, decreasing neurotoxicity effects on 661W photoreceptor cells cultured in microglia conditioned medium. Pharmacological inhibition and RNAi mediated silencing of Pdgfrβ gene reduced both LPS and PDGF-induced inflammatory responses while variable results were seen for Pdgfrα gene. Using small-molecule kinase inhibitors, a role for phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/Akt (PI3K/Akt), extracellular-signal-regulated kinase -1/2 (ERK1/2) and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) pathways were defined in PDGF-induced inflammatory response in BV-2 cells. These results demonstrate a fundamental regulatory role of autocrine PDGFR signalling in microglia-mediated responses in resting and activated state

The Impact of Financial Statement on Investment Decision: An Empirical Study of Ecobank Nigeria PLC

The importance of financial statement on investment to managers of business firms and investors of financial institutions have been undermined due to lack of proper understanding of their relationship. This study aims to assess the impact of financial statement on investment decision making in Ecobank Nigeria Plc. In order to achieve this aim, the study employed both descriptive survey research design which involve the collection of primary data and the ex-post facto research design which involved the use of secondary data in form of annual published financial statement of the bank. The primary data were sourced through the use of online questionnaire and were further analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistical method, while the secondary data were subjected to trend test using the Mann Kendall’s test, and regression analysis for model establishment. The study unraveled that all the selected profitability ratios had negative trend, while profit after tax had a very significant positive trend between 2002 and 2018; the regression model established was found to be weak in making future prediction of profit after tax based on ROE, ROA and cost to income ratio due to the low coefficient of determination and higher p-value of 0.167 than 0.05; while correlation analysis proved that all of the selected profitability ratios negatively affect the profit after tax of Ecobank, although none significantly. In addition, Chi-Square test lead to the conclusion that the component of the annually published financial statement of the bank do not significantly affect investment decision making (p-value = 0.305); and that the credibility of the financial statement has significant impact on investment of the Ecobank Nigeria Plc (p-value = 0.009). The study concludes that the components of the financial statement is less important than its credibility when making investment decision; while it was recommended that future studies should endeavor to employ machine learning model for establishing the non-linear relationships between investment and profitability ratios

The Use or Misuse of Urban Streets? Exploration of Everyday Urbanism in Traditional City Centres

Urban residents often transform street precincts into places for informal activities through everyday urbanism to meet their daily needs, particularly in traditional city centres. Although strict regulations and control over public space exist, people-centred (bottom-up) interventions usually occur in traditional city centres. While such action exemplifies the rights people claim to suit their requirements and improve the daily living experience, there are arguments that everyday use of the streets generates land-use problems. In this regard, using data collected through questionnaire surveys, observations, and interviews, this study explores the factors that facilitate everyday urbanism and encourage using the streets as public spaces in traditional city centres of Nigeria. This is to provide helpful information that could serve as a tool for putting everyday urbanism into urban planning and design practices. The study established that the three most common street activities in the traditional city centres were informal trading, social events/ceremonies, and cultural festivals. It was also shown that the everyday use of public spaces created a unique setting for social interaction among people and contributed to the liveliness of the city centres. The principal component analysis (PCA) showed that the crucial factors that facilitated and encouraged the everyday use of streets were the economic factor (18.2%), the inadequacy of environmental amenities (17.8%), and culture and social lifestyle (12.2%). This study concludes that everyday urbanism contributes significantly to creating vibrant communities and improving life quality; therefore, it is recommended that the control and management of activities in public spaces should align with people's culture, lived experiences and socioeconomic realities

Feasibility of Recycling Plutonium and Minor Actinides in Light Water Reactors Using Hydride Fuel

The objective of this DOE NERI program sponsored project was to assess the feasibility of improving the plutonium (Pu) and minor actinide (MA) recycling capabilities of pressurized water reactors (PWRs) by using hydride instead of oxide fuels. There are four general parts to this assessment: 1) Identifying promising hydride fuel assembly designs for recycling Pu and MAs in PWRs 2) Performing a comprehensive systems analysis that compares the fuel cycle characteristics of Pu and MA recycling in PWRs using the promising hydride fuel assembly designs identified in Part 1 versus using oxide fuel assembly designs 3) Conducting a safety analysis to assess the likelihood of licensing hydride fuel assembly designs 4) Assessing the compatibility of hydride fuel with cladding materials and water under typical PWR operating conditions Hydride fuel was found to offer promising transmutation characteristics and is recommended for further examination as a possible preferred option for recycling plutonium in PWRs

Filling Knowledge Gaps with Five Fuel Cycle Studies

During FY 2010, five studies were conducted of technology families’ applicability to various fuel cycle strategies to fill in knowledge gaps in option space and to better understand trends and patterns. Here, a “technology family” is considered to be defined by a type of reactor and by selection of which actinides provide fuel. This report summarizes the higher-level findings; the detailed analyses and results are documented in five individual reports, as follows: • Advanced once through with uranium fuel in fast reactors (SFR), • Advanced once through (uranium fuel) or single recycle (TRU fuel) in high temperature gas cooled reactors (HTGR), • Sustained recycle with Th/U-233 in light water reactors (LWRs), • Sustained recycle with Th/U-233 in molten salt reactors (MSR), and • Several fuel cycle missions with Fusion-Fission Hybrid (FFH). Each study examined how the designated technology family could serve one or more designated fuel cycle missions, filling in gaps in overall option space. Each study contains one or more illustrative cases that show how the technology family could be used to meet a fuel cycle mission, as well as broader information on the technology family such as other potential fuel cycle missions for which insufficient information was available to include with an illustrative case. None of the illustrative cases can be considered as a reference, baseline, or nominal set of parameters for judging performance; the assessments were designed to assess areas of option space and were not meant to be optimized. There is no implication that any of the cases or technology families are necessarily the best way to meet a given fuel cycle mission. The studies provide five examples of 1-year fuel cycle assessments of technology families. There is reasonable coverage in the five studies of the performance areas of waste management and uranium utilization. The coverage of economics, safety, and proliferation resistance and physical protection in the five studies was spotty. Some studies did not have existing or past work to draw on in one or more of these areas. Resource constraints limited the amount of new analyses that could be performed. Little or no assessment was done of how soon any of the technologies could be deployed and therefore how quickly they could impact domestic or international fuel cycle performance. There were six common R&D needs, such as the value of advanced fuels, cladding, coating, and structure that would survive high neutron fluence. When a technology family is considered for use in a new fuel cycle mission, fuel cycle performance characteristics are dependent on both the design choices and the fuel cycle approach. For example, the use of the sodium-cooled fast reactor to provide recycle in either breeder or burner mode has been studied for decades, but the SFR could be considered for once-through fuel cycle with the physical reactor design and fuel management parameters changed. In addition, the sustained recycle with Th/U-233 in LWR could be achieved with a heterogeneous assembly and derated power density. Therefore, it may or may not be adjustable for other fuel cycle missions although a reactor intended for one fuel cycle mission is built. Simple parameter adjustment in applying a technology family to a new fuel cycle mission should be avoided and, if observed, the results viewed with caution

Filling Knowledge Gaps with Five Fuel Cycle Studies

During FY 2010, five studies were conducted of technology families’ applicability to various fuel cycle strategies to fill in knowledge gaps in option space and to better understand trends and patterns. Here, a “technology family” is considered to be defined by a type of reactor and by selection of which actinides provide fuel. This report summarizes the higher-level findings; the detailed analyses and results are documented in five individual reports, as follows: • Advanced once through with uranium fuel in fast reactors (SFR), • Advanced once through (uranium fuel) or single recycle (TRU fuel) in high temperature gas cooled reactors (HTGR), • Sustained recycle with Th/U-233 in light water reactors (LWRs), • Sustained recycle with Th/U-233 in molten salt reactors (MSR), and • Several fuel cycle missions with Fusion-Fission Hybrid (FFH). Each study examined how the designated technology family could serve one or more designated fuel cycle missions, filling in gaps in overall option space. Each study contains one or more illustrative cases that show how the technology family could be used to meet a fuel cycle mission, as well as broader information on the technology family such as other potential fuel cycle missions for which insufficient information was available to include with an illustrative case. None of the illustrative cases can be considered as a reference, baseline, or nominal set of parameters for judging performance; the assessments were designed to assess areas of option space and were not meant to be optimized. There is no implication that any of the cases or technology families are necessarily the best way to meet a given fuel cycle mission. The studies provide five examples of 1-year fuel cycle assessments of technology families. There is reasonable coverage in the five studies of the performance areas of waste management and uranium utilization. The coverage of economics, safety, and proliferation resistance and physical protection in the five studies was spotty. Some studies did not have existing or past work to draw on in one or more of these areas. Resource constraints limited the amount of new analyses that could be performed. Little or no assessment was done of how soon any of the technologies could be deployed and therefore how quickly they could impact domestic or international fuel cycle performance. There were six common R&D needs, such as the value of advanced fuels, cladding, coating, and structure that would survive high neutron fluence. When a technology family is considered for use in a new fuel cycle mission, fuel cycle performance characteristics are dependent on both the design choices and the fuel cycle approach. For example, the use of the sodium-cooled fast reactor to provide recycle in either breeder or burner mode has been studied for decades, but the SFR could be considered for once-through fuel cycle with the physical reactor design and fuel management parameters changed. In addition, the sustained recycle with Th/U-233 in LWR could be achieved with a heterogeneous assembly and derated power density. Therefore, it may or may not be adjustable for other fuel cycle missions although a reactor intended for one fuel cycle mission is built. Simple parameter adjustment in applying a technology family to a new fuel cycle mission should be avoided and, if observed, the results viewed with caution

PREVALENCE AND MANAGEMENT OF FALCIPARIUM MALARIA AMONG INFANTS AND CHILDREN IN OTA, OGUN STATE, SOUTHWESTERN NIGERIA

Studies were carried out to determine the prevalence of malaria parasite infection among infants and children (0-12yrs) in Ota, Southwestern Nigeria between April and December 2008. The two hospitals used were Ota General Hospital and Covenant University Health Centre, Canaanland, Ota. Thick and thin films were made and stained using standard parasitological procedures. Structured Questionnaires were distributed to ascertain the age, sex, drugs or insecticides used and state of health of the subjects before recruiting them into the study. Overall, 215 (80.5%) of the 267 children investigated were found to have malaria infection. Age group (0-5 years) had the highest frequency rate of 84.7% with mean parasite density of 900 and the difference between the age groups was statistically significant (p<0.05). Children of illiterates from suburb villages had the highest mean parasite density of 850 with 78.1% prevalence rate. 20% of the children were given local herbs and 22% used orthodox medicine as prophylaxis. Only 18% used insecticide treated mosquito nets while 24% of the parents spray insecticides to prevent mosquito bites. There is therefore need for more awareness on effective use of drugs and Insecticide Treated bed nets in malaria hyperendemic regions

Revitalizing a Traditional Market Space in Ile-Ife, Nigeria: An Analysis of Environmental Quality Indicators and Policy Implications

Traditional market settings in Nigeria have been observed to be poor in environmental quality and less conducive for human physical and economic wellbeing. The physical conditions of the markets have been used to draw conclusions in livability of the space. Policy options to revitalize the overall environmental quality of market spaces require users’ inputs. The study, therefore, examined the environmental quality of a traditional market space in Nigeria, specifically focusing on Odo-Ogbe in Ile-Ife, and explored the potential for policy interventions to revitalize the market. The study was carried out among everyday users of the market. Information obtained through questionnaire administration was the users’ socio-economic backgrounds and twenty-three variables having social, economic and environmental characteristics. Physical observation was also carried out for an all-inclusive environment assessment of the market. Using systematic random and purposive sampling techniques, 119 market users were selected for the survey. Results showed that, the majority of the users were married (64.7%), females (74.8%), who had one form of educational qualification or the other (89.9%). Using an index tagged “Users’ Environmental Quality Index” (UEQI), sixteen environmental quality indicators were rated to be important. Among these were “availability of electricity (UEQI=4.68)”, “availability of water (UEQI=4.52)”, and “clean and healthy environment (UEQI=4.18)”. The study recommended that the government concerned with city administration should pull financial and human resources together to provide facilities and services related to users’ environmental quality indicator data for effective revitalization of the market space

The Corporate Tax Planning and Financial Performance of Systemically Important Banks in Nigeria

Due to the multiplicity and overburdening of Nigeria’s tax system, the economic units in which systemically important banks (SIBs) are included implement the corporate strategies that identify the loophole which minimizes, postpones, or entirely avoids tax payments so as to reduce its negative effect on financial performance. Therefore, this study examined the corporate tax planning and financial performance of systemically important banks in Nigeria. Ex-post facto was adopted as the research design in this study, while Pooled OLS was used to analyze the data. This study has shown that the effective tax rate has a negative and significant impact on financial performance. Thin capitalization has a positive significant impact on the financial performance of SIBs in Nigeria, whereas capital intensity and the lease option have demonstrated an insignificant impact on the financial performance of SIBs in the country. The study concluded that corporate tax planning affects financial performance depending on the adopted tax planning strategies. Likewise, the study recommended, among other things, that the tax authorities should engage in the tax reforms whereby the corporate tax rate is to be adjusted, and that banks should engage in the activities that can reduce the effective tax rate