Spatial variations in residential property development in Birnin-Kebbi, Nigeria

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Markers of Diabetic Nephropathy in Diabetic Patients in Gusau, Zamfara State, Nigeria

Diabetic nephropathy is the kidney disease that occurs as a result of diabetes. Cardiovascular and renal complications share common risk factors such as blood pressure, blood lipids, and glycemic control. The markers of diabetics nephropathy in diabetic patients, serum glucose, creatinine clearance, urinary albumin and blood pressure in 40 diabetic (9 type I and 31 type II diabetics) patients attending Federal Medical Centre, Gusau, were determined. Sixteen (16) age- matched volunteers served as control. In type I diabetes mellitus; serum glucose level, creatinine clearance, and microalbuminuria were significantly different (P< 0.05) between the subjects and control. In type II diabetes mellitus, serum glucose level, systolic pressure and age were significantly different (P< 0.05) between the subjects and control. Therefore, serum glucose level, creatinine Clearance and microalbuminuria could be the markers of nephropathy in type I diabetics while serum glucose level, systolic pressure and higher age could be for type II diabetics. Other markers of risk for diabetic nephropathy are needed for optimal clinical management. The implication of this result for improving the quality of life of diabetics is discussed

Bacteraemia in patients admitted to an urban hospital in West Africa

BACKGROUND: Few studies on bacteraemia in Africa have been published. We aimed to prospectively identify the causative organisms of bacteraemia in The Gambia and their relation to clinical diagnoses, outcome and antimicrobial susceptibility. METHODS: Between November 2003 and February 2005 we studied those admitted to the Medical Research Council hospital who were suspected of having bacteraemia. We documented clinical features, outcome, pathogens identified and their susceptibility patterns, and searched for factors associated with bacteraemia. RESULTS: 871 patients were admitted and had a blood culture taken. The median age was 2 years (range 2 months to 80 years) and 36 of 119 tested were HIV positive; 54.5% were male. 297 (34%) had a positive result and 93 (10.7% overall) were considered a genuine pathogen. Those with bacteraemia were more likely to die in hospital (OR 2.79; 1.17–6.65, p = 0.017) and to have a high white cell count (WCC; OR 1.81;95% CI 1.09–3.02; p = 0.022). Three organisms accounted for 73% of bacteraemias: Streptococcus pneumoniae (45.2%), Staphylococcus aureus (18.3%) and Escherichia coli (9.7%) while non-typhoidal salmonellae (NTS) accounted for 8.6%. Antimicrobial susceptibility of S. pneumoniae was very high to penicillin (97.5%); high resistance was found to co-trimoxazole. S. aureus was generally highly susceptible to cloxacillin, gentamicin and chloramphenicol. E. coli and NTS were all susceptible to ciprofloxacin and mostly susceptible to gentamicin. Thirteen (33%) S. pneumoniae isolates were of serotypes contained in a 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine and 20 (51.3%) were of the same serogroup. CONCLUSION: In The Gambia, those with bacteraemia are more likely than those without to die in hospital and to have a raised peripheral blood WCC. S. pneumoniae is the most common organism isolated. Introduction of a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine can be expected to lead to a reduction in disease incidence

Perfusion by Arterial Spin Labelling following Single Dose Tadalafil in Small Vessel Disease (PASTIS): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Background Cerebral small vessel disease is a common cause of vascular cognitive impairment in older people, with no licensed treatment. Cerebral blood flow is reduced in small vessel disease. Tadalafil is a widely prescribed phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitor that increases blood flow in other vascular territories. The aim of this trial is to test the hypothesis that tadalafil increases cerebral blood flow in older people with small vessel disease. Methods/design Perfusion by Arterial Spin labelling following Single dose Tadalafil In Small vessel disease (PASTIS) is a phase II randomised double-blind crossover trial. In two visits, 7-30 days apart, participants undergo arterial spin labelling to measure cerebral blood flow and a battery of cognitive tests, pre- and post-dosing with oral tadalafil (20 mg) or placebo. Sample size: 54 participants are required to detect a 15% increase in cerebral blood flow in subcortical white matter (p < 0.05, 90% power). Primary outcomes are cerebral blood flow in subcortical white matter and deep grey nuclei. Secondary outcomes are cortical grey matter cerebral blood flow and performance on cognitive tests (reaction time, information processing speed, digit span forwards and backwards, semantic fluency). Discussion Recruitment started on 4th September 2015 and 36 participants have completed to date (19th April 2017). No serious adverse events have occurred. All participants have been recruited from one centre, St George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Trial registration European Union Clinical Trials Register: EudraCT number 2015-001235-20. Registered on 13 May 2015

Selective Killing of Cancer Cells by Ashwagandha Leaf Extract and Its Component Withanone Involves ROS Signaling

Ashwagandha is a popular Ayurvedic herb used in Indian traditional home medicine. It has been assigned a variety of health-promoting effects of which the mechanisms remain unknown. We previously reported the selective killing of cancer cells by leaf extract of Ashwagandha (i-Extract) and its purified component Withanone. In the present study, we investigated its mechanism by loss-of-function screening (abrogation of i-Extract induced cancer cell killing) of the cellular targets and gene pathways.Randomized ribozyme library was introduced into cancer cells prior to the treatment with i-Extract. Ribozymes were recovered from cells that survived the i-Extract treatment. Gene targets of the selected ribozymes (as predicted by database search) were analyzed by bioinformatics and pathway analyses. The targets were validated for their role in i-Extract induced selective killing of cancer cells by biochemical and molecular assays. Fifteen gene-targets were identified and were investigated for their role in specific cancer cell killing activity of i-Extract and its two major components (Withaferin A and Withanone) by undertaking the shRNA-mediated gene silencing approach. Bioinformatics on the selected gene-targets revealed the involvement of p53, apoptosis and insulin/IGF signaling pathways linked to the ROS signaling. We examined the involvement of ROS-signaling components (ROS levels, DNA damage, mitochondrial structure and membrane potential) and demonstrate that the selective killing of cancer cells is mediated by induction of oxidative stress.Ashwagandha leaf extract and Withanone cause selective killing of cancer cells by induction of ROS-signaling and hence are potential reagents that could be recruited for ROS-mediated cancer chemotherapy

Global-scale evidence for the refractory nature of riverine black carbon

Author Posting. © The Author(s), 2018. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here under a nonexclusive, irrevocable, paid-up, worldwide license granted to WHOI. It is made available for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Nature Geoscience 11 (2018): 584-588, doi:10.1038/s41561-018-0159-8.Wildfires and incomplete combustion of fossil fuel produce large amounts of black carbon. Black carbon production and transport are essential components of the carbon cycle. Constraining estimates of black carbon exported from land to ocean is critical, given ongoing changes in land use and climate, which affect fire occurrence and black carbon dynamics. Here, we present an inventory of the concentration and radiocarbon content (∆14C) of particulate black carbon for 18 rivers around the globe. We find that particulate black carbon accounts for about 15.8 ± 0.9% of river particulate organic carbon, and that fluxes of particulate black carbon co-vary with river-suspended sediment, indicating that particulate black carbon export is primarily controlled by erosion. River particulate black carbon is not exclusively from modern sources but is also aged in intermediate terrestrial carbon pools in several high-latitude rivers, with ages of up to 17,000 14C years. The flux-weighted 14C average age of particulate black carbon exported to oceans is 3,700 ± 400 14C years. We estimate that the annual global flux of particulate black carbon to the ocean is 0.017 to 0.037 Pg, accounting for 4 to 32% of the annually produced black carbon. When buried in marine sediments, particulate black carbon is sequestered to form a long-term sink for CO2.A.C. acknowledges financial support from the University of Zurich Forschungskredit Fellowship and the University of Zurich (grant No. STWF-18-026). M.R., S.A. and M.S. acknowledge support from the University Research Priority Projection Global Change and Biodiversity (URPP-GCB). M.Z. acknowledges support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 41521064). T.E. acknowledges support from the Swiss National Science Foundation (“CAPS-LOCK” and “CAPS-LOCK2” #200021_140850). V.G. acknowledges financial support from an Independent Study Award from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Towards the ontology-based consolidation of production-centric standards

This is an Author's Accepted Manuscript of an article published in the International Journal of Production Research [© Taylor & Francis], available online at: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00207543.2011.627885.Production-­centric international standards are intended to serve as an important route towards information sharing across manufacturing decision support systems. As a consequence of textual-­based definitions of concepts acknowledged within these standards, their inability to fully interoperate becomes an issue especially since a multitude of standards are required to cover the needs of extensive domains such as manufacturing industries. To help reinforce the current understanding to support the consolidation of production-­centric standards for improved information sharing, this article explores the specification of well-defined core concepts which can be used as a basis for capturing tailored semantic definitions. The potentials of two heavyweight ontological approaches, notably Common Logic (CL) and the Web Ontology Language (OWL) as candidates for the task, are also exposed. An important finding regarding these two methods is that while an OWL-­based approach shows capabilities towards applications which may require flexible hierarchies of concepts, a CL-­based method represents a favoured contender for scoped and facts-­driven manufacturing applications

Factors influencing obesogenic behaviours of adolescent girls and women in low- and middle-income countries: A qualitative evidence synthesis

This systematic review synthesized the qualitative evidence on factors influencing obesogenic behaviours in adolescent girls and women of reproductive age in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This qualitative evidence synthesis followed the framework synthesis approach to extract, analyse and synthesize data. Electronic searches were conducted in the Web of Science, SCOPUS, CABI Abstracts, MEDLINE, PsycINFO and Google Scholar. Studies were eligible if they were conducted in LMICs, of qualitative nature, and reported obesogenic behaviours of female adolescents (10-19 years of age) or women of reproductive age (15-49 years of age). The review resulted in 71 included studies from 27 different countries. Thirty-two studies focused on dietary behaviours, 17 on physical activity and 22 on both behaviours. Gender norms and failures to recognize the importance of healthy behaviours across the life cycle were important factors. The abundance and promotion of affordable but unhealthy food, food safety concerns, taste preferences and social desirability of foods drive consumption of unhealthy foods. Busy lives and limited exercise spaces keep girls and women from being physically active. Obesogenic behaviours of adolescent girls and women of reproductive age are influenced by factors at individual, social, physical and environmental levels and require diverse solutions to address these factors in LMICs

Hyperbaric treatment for children with autism: a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, controlled trial

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Several uncontrolled studies of hyperbaric treatment in children with autism have reported clinical improvements; however, this treatment has not been evaluated to date with a controlled study. We performed a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, controlled trial to assess the efficacy of hyperbaric treatment in children with autism.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>62 children with autism recruited from 6 centers, ages 2–7 years (mean 4.92 ± 1.21), were randomly assigned to 40 hourly treatments of either hyperbaric treatment at 1.3 atmosphere (atm) and 24% oxygen ("treatment group", n = 33) or slightly pressurized room air at 1.03 atm and 21% oxygen ("control group", n = 29). Outcome measures included Clinical Global Impression (CGI) scale, Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC), and Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist (ATEC).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>After 40 sessions, mean physician CGI scores significantly improved in the treatment group compared to controls in overall functioning (p = 0.0008), receptive language (p < 0.0001), social interaction (p = 0.0473), and eye contact (p = 0.0102); 9/30 children (30%) in the treatment group were rated as "very much improved" or "much improved" compared to 2/26 (8%) of controls (p = 0.0471); 24/30 (80%) in the treatment group improved compared to 10/26 (38%) of controls (p = 0.0024). Mean parental CGI scores significantly improved in the treatment group compared to controls in overall functioning (p = 0.0336), receptive language (p = 0.0168), and eye contact (p = 0.0322). On the ABC, significant improvements were observed in the treatment group in total score, irritability, stereotypy, hyperactivity, and speech (p < 0.03 for each), but not in the control group. In the treatment group compared to the control group, mean changes on the ABC total score and subscales were similar except a greater number of children improved in irritability (p = 0.0311). On the ATEC, sensory/cognitive awareness significantly improved (p = 0.0367) in the treatment group compared to the control group. Post-hoc analysis indicated that children over age 5 and children with lower initial autism severity had the most robust improvements. Hyperbaric treatment was safe and well-tolerated.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Children with autism who received hyperbaric treatment at 1.3 atm and 24% oxygen for 40 hourly sessions had significant improvements in overall functioning, receptive language, social interaction, eye contact, and sensory/cognitive awareness compared to children who received slightly pressurized room air.</p> <p>Trial Registration</p> <p>clinicaltrials.gov NCT00335790</p