Micropropagation of pineapple (Ananas comosus L. Var. Smooth cayenne) in temporary immersion bioreactor system (TIPS)

Pineapple is an important edible fruit in the family Bromeliaceae popularly grown in the tropical and subtropical countries. Commercial prodution of pineapple requires large volume of planting materials which could not easily be obtained using conventional method of propagation. A protocol for mass propagation of pineapple (Ananas comosus L. var.smooth cayenne) using temporary immersion bioreactor system has been developed.The protocol involves four immersion cycles in Murashinge and Skoog (MS) media fortified with 1mg/L or 2mg/L 6-Benzylaminopurine (BAP) with or without 0.25g/L activated charcoal (AC). The highest multiplication rate (120 -130 plants/bottle) was obtained when media was fortified with 1mg/l or 2mg/L BAP alone. The presence of activated charcoal (AC) promoted root morphogenesis, resulting in significant increase in roots formation in BAP suplemented media. A combination of BAP with AC significantly increased the number of competent plants(20 – 30 plants/bottle) after four weeks of culture in temporary immersion system. The system is recommended for rapid and efficient micropropagation of pineapple

Micropropagation of banana (Musa spp) using temporary immersion bioreactor system

Banana is an important crop in the tropics which possess the potential for commercial production in Nigeria. Large scale production requires large volume of planting materials which may be difficult to obtain using conventional methods of propagation. Temporary immersion bioreactor system (TIBs) is a cost effective method for micropropagation of plants. The present study was carried out to develop an efficient method for rapid multiplication of banana using temporary immersion bioreactor system (TIBs). Banana microshoots were regenerated from young suckers obtained from field grown plants using conventional plant tissue culture. Microshoots of 2cm length were used as explants for multiplication in temporary immersion bioreactor system. Ten (10) explants were cultured in bioreactor bottles containing Murashinge and Skoog (MS) liquid media supplemented with different concentrations of 6-bezylaminopurine (BAP) with or without 250mg/L Activated Charcoal (AC). Results showed that explants cultured in media supplemented with 2 mg/L or 1mg/L BAP without AC gave the highest shoot multiplication rate of 900% and 800%, respectively compared to hormone free media. Production of competent plants (plants ready for ex vitro establisment) were however, influenced by the presence of AC and the highest percentage of competent plants (80%) were produced when media was fortified with 1mg/L BAP+ 250mg AC. Regenerated plants were successfully established in the field and were morphologically normal and fertile

Prevalence and pattern of paediatric neurological disorders managed in outpatient physiotherapy clinics in Kano

Neurological disorders are among the major causes of physical disability in children. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence and pattern of Paediatric Neurological Disorders (PNDs) managed in outpatient Physiotherapy clinics in Kano. The 10-year retrospective descriptive study collected relevant data on PNDs from case files of the children who have been managed in Physiotherapy clinics of the 5 major referral hospitals in Kano using a data capture form. The population of children in Kano State based on the 2006 Census and the projected population for 2017 was obtained from the National Population Commission, Kano State office. The data obtained was analysed with descriptive statistics of mean, standard deviation, frequency and percentage. Dataanalysis was done using Microsoft excel and SPSS version 20. Results showed that 1927paediatric cases were analysed out of which PNDs accounted for 1618 (83.96%). The mean age of the children at the time of their first treatment visit was 3.13 years ± 3.04years (range =33days-12years). Most of the children with PNDs are males 1101(57.1%), with male to female ratio of 1.3:1. The Prevalence of PNDs in Kano was 0.257/1000 (i.e.25.7/100,000). The most common PND that was managed by physiotherapists in KanoState was cerebral palsy which has a prevalence of 0.106/1000 (i.e.10.6/100,000),(proportion = 41.16%). It was concluded that PNDs are the most common paediatric cases managed by physiotherapists in Kano State with cerebral palsy having higherprevalenc

Mutagenic effectiveness and efficiency of gamma rays on variability for yield attributing traits in Fonio (Digitaria exilis [Kippist] Stapf.)

A study was conducted to determine the mutagenic effectiveness and efficiency of different doses of gamma rays in inducing variability that could be exploited in the genetic improvement of fonio. Seeds of five accessions of fonio were irradiated with five different doses of gamma rays (100 Gy, 200 Gy, 400 Gy, 500 Gy and 0 Gy as control). The seeds were sown in a plot in a completely randomized design with three replications to rise the M1 generation which was advanced to M2 generation. The result obtained from the M2 mutants revealed highly significant difference (P≤0.01) in the effects of different gamma rays doses on the growth and yield traits of fonio. This implies the presence of high genetic variability induced by the mutagen in fonio. The effect is concentration dependent, increase with decrease in irradiation dose. More so, the effectiveness of the mutagen decreases with increase in dose. Seven different chlorophyll deficient mutants were found in the form of: Albina, Chlorina, Lustescent, Striata, Viridis, Viriscent and Xantha, with Xantha, Chlorina and Albina as the most frequent chimeras, The result indicated that lower dose of gamma rays (100 Gy) is more effective and efficient as it induces favorable mutation that could be utilized in the genetic improvement of fonio. Accession Nkpowas was found to respond more to the mutagenic treatment. Keywords: Accessions, Fonio, Gamma Rays, Mutation

Assessment of early-maturing maize hybrids and testing sites using GGE biplot analysis

Article Purchased; Published: 7 Sept. 2017Identification of outstanding maize (Zea mays L.) hybrids for target environments is complicated by genotype × environment interactions. Thirty-two early-maturity maize hybrids were evaluated at eight locations in Nigeria and six locations in Ghana for 2 yr to (i) identify high-yielding, stable hybrids across locations and/or hybrids specifically adapted to different locations, and (ii) identify ideal test sites for selection of superior hybrids in the two countries. Genotype, country, year, location (country), and their interactive effects were significant (P < 0·01) for grain yield, days to anthesis and silking, anthesis-silking interval, plant and ear aspects, and ears per plant. Mean grain yield of the hybrids ranged from 3177 kg ha−1 for EWH-5 to 4596 kg ha−1 for EWH-29. The genotype main effects plus genotype × environment interaction (GGE) biplot analysis revealed that EWH-29, EWH-8, and EWH-30 did not differ significantly in grain yield and were the most stable hybrids in both countries, whereas EWH-26 and EWH-32 were the most stable hybrids only in Ghana. The GGE biplot analysis identified Samaru, Kafin Soli, and Minjibir in Nigeria and Nyankpala, Damongo, and Fumesua in Ghana as the most discriminating locations. Minjibir (Nigeria) and Nyankpala (Ghana), being most discriminating and representative locations, were considered the ideal testing sites for the respective countries. The type of cultivars evaluated determined the most suitable locations for multilocation testing within Ghana and Nigeria. Whereas hybrids EWH-29, EWH-8, and EWH-30 should be suitable for production in Nigeria, EWH-26 and EWH-32 should be promoted for production in Ghana

The Use of Foramen Magnum in The Determination of Sex Using Computed Tomography (CT) Scan Images of Sampled Population Attending National Ear Care Centre Kaduna State, Nigeria

Determination of sex is an important element of human identification which becomes challenging when only only fragments of body parts are available for investigation by forensic experts. This study was aimed at assessing the utility of foramen magnum parameters in the determination of sex among the Nigerian population. A retrospective study was conducted on patients attending National Ear Care Center Kaduna between the years 2017-2019. A total of 399 normal Multislice CT images of skulls (236 males and 163 females) of the age of 18 – 95 years were randomly picked from the archives of the Hospital in the computer database of the Radiology Department. The foramen magnum and occipital condyles parameters were measured by an experienced radiologist. Males tend to have a significantly higher mean value of foramen magnum width, Foramen Magnum Index, the length of the right occipital condyle, and the length of left occipital condyles as well as the width of the right occipital condyle at a p-value ≤ 0.05. The width of right occipital condyles was the only variable that got a significant (p ≤ 0.05) impact on our sex estimation following multiple logistic regression. However, by applying discriminate function analysis the length of the left occipital condyle and width of the right occipital condyle were the only discriminatory variables chosen for this study population. In conclusion, this study indicated that five variables of foramen magnum out of ten were statistically significantly different with males having higher mean values than females. Moreover, the only significant discriminatory variables to determine sex in this study population were the length of the left occipital condyle and the width of the right occipital condyle respectively

Stability analysis of maize cultivars adapted to tropical environments using AMMI analysis

Genotype × environment interactions complicate selection of superior genotypes for narrow and wide adaptation. Eighteen tropically-adapted maize cultivars were evaluated at six locations in Nigeria for 2 yrs to (i) identify superior and stable cultivars across environments and (ii) assess relationships among test environments. Environment and genotype × environment interactions (GEI) were significant (P −1 for TZL COMP4 C3 DT C2 with an average of 2555 kg ha−1. Cultivar DT SYN2-Y had the least additive main effect and multiplicative interaction (AMMI) stability value of 7.4 and hence the most stable but low-yielding across environments. AMMI biplot explained 90.5% and classified cultivars and environments into four groups each. IWD C3 SYN F3 was identified as the high-yielding and stable cultivar across environments. ZA15, ZA14, BK14, BK15 and IL15 had environment mean above the grand mean, while BG14, BG15, LE14, LE15, IL14, LA14 and LA15 had mean below the grand mean. ZA, BK, BG, LE and LA were found to be consistent in ranking the maize cultivars. However, Zaria, Birnin Kudu, and Ilorin were identified as the best test locations and could be used for selecting the superior maize cultivars. The identified high-yielding and stable cultivar could be further tested and promoted for adoption to contribute to food insecurity in Nigeria

Anemia prevalence in women of reproductive age in low- and middle-income countries between 2000 and 2018

Anemia is a globally widespread condition in women and is associated with reduced economic productivity and increased mortality worldwide. Here we map annual 2000–2018 geospatial estimates of anemia prevalence in women of reproductive age (15–49 years) across 82 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), stratify anemia by severity and aggregate results to policy-relevant administrative and national levels. Additionally, we provide subnational disparity analyses to provide a comprehensive overview of anemia prevalence inequalities within these countries and predict progress toward the World Health Organization’s Global Nutrition Target (WHO GNT) to reduce anemia by half by 2030. Our results demonstrate widespread moderate improvements in overall anemia prevalence but identify only three LMICs with a high probability of achieving the WHO GNT by 2030 at a national scale, and no LMIC is expected to achieve the target in all their subnational administrative units. Our maps show where large within-country disparities occur, as well as areas likely to fall short of the WHO GNT, offering precision public health tools so that adequate resource allocation and subsequent interventions can be targeted to the most vulnerable populations.Peer reviewe

All-sky search for long-duration gravitational wave transients with initial LIGO

We present the results of a search for long-duration gravitational wave transients in two sets of data collected by the LIGO Hanford and LIGO Livingston detectors between November 5, 2005 and September 30, 2007, and July 7, 2009 and October 20, 2010, with a total observational time of 283.0 days and 132.9 days, respectively. The search targets gravitational wave transients of duration 10-500 s in a frequency band of 40-1000 Hz, with minimal assumptions about the signal waveform, polarization, source direction, or time of occurrence. All candidate triggers were consistent with the expected background; as a result we set 90% confidence upper limits on the rate of long-duration gravitational wave transients for different types of gravitational wave signals. For signals from black hole accretion disk instabilities, we set upper limits on the source rate density between 3.4×10-5 and 9.4×10-4 Mpc-3 yr-1 at 90% confidence. These are the first results from an all-sky search for unmodeled long-duration transient gravitational waves. © 2016 American Physical Society

All-sky search for long-duration gravitational wave transients with initial LIGO

We present the results of a search for long-duration gravitational wave transients in two sets of data collected by the LIGO Hanford and LIGO Livingston detectors between November 5, 2005 and September 30, 2007, and July 7, 2009 and October 20, 2010, with a total observational time of 283.0 days and 132.9 days, respectively. The search targets gravitational wave transients of duration 10-500 s in a frequency band of 40-1000 Hz, with minimal assumptions about the signal waveform, polarization, source direction, or time of occurrence. All candidate triggers were consistent with the expected background; as a result we set 90% confidence upper limits on the rate of long-duration gravitational wave transients for different types of gravitational wave signals. For signals from black hole accretion disk instabilities, we set upper limits on the source rate density between 3.4×10-5 and 9.4×10-4 Mpc-3 yr-1 at 90% confidence. These are the first results from an all-sky search for unmodeled long-duration transient gravitational waves. © 2016 American Physical Society