Effects of Junk Food Diet and High Fat Diet Manipulation on Working Memory of Sprague Dawley Rats

Obesity has become not only a nationwide problem, but a cause for worldwide concern as the prevalence of processed junk-food is currently on the rise. Along with numerous physical ailments induced by obesity, emerging evidence suggests that consumption of a high-fat diet has negative neurological implications. The prefrontal cortex (PFC), known to play an important role in mediating “executive” functions such as inhibitory control, working memory, and decision-making is one region that appears to be affected by consumption of a junk food diet. In this study, we explored the effects of a junk-food diet and a high fat diet on PFC function. Rats were fed either a junk-food diet (19.6% fat) intended to mimic a typical Western diet, a high fat diet (60% fat), or a standard chow diet. Behavioral testing were then conducted following a 4 week exposure to the diets and included the Egocentric Morris Water Maze, Spontaneous Alternation, Novel Object Recognition and Attentional Set Shift. These behavioral tests were performed in order to identify any differences in working memory or attention between groups

Effect of Partial Replacement of Coarse Aggregate with Electronic Waste Plastic in Light Weight Concrete

This study assessed the usefulness of the replacement of coarse aggregate partially with electronic waste (e-waste) plastic in lightweight concrete since developing countries have been challenged with management of e-waste as well as high cost of coarse aggregates for concrete production. Coarse aggregates were replaced with e-waste plastic in concrete at 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20% for a concrete class of C20. The particle size distribution of the e-waste plastic aggregates was determined as well as the slump, compressive strength, water absorption and bulk density of the concrete. Generally, the slump decreased as the e-waste increased. The compressive strengths decreased for the 5% and 10% replacement of coarse aggregates with e-waste but increased for the 15% and 20% replacement of coarse aggregate with e-waste. 0% water absorption was obtained for the 15% and 20% e-waste content while the 10% e-waste concrete obtained 0.01% and the 5% e-waste obtaining of 0.013% after 28days of curing. The densities of 5%, 10%, 15% and 20% e-waste plastic content decreased as compared to the 0% e-waste plastic content. The values of compressive strength obtained showed that coarse aggregate replacements by e-waste plastic at 15% and 20% may be appropriate for lightweight concrete of class C20/25 since compressive strengths ranged between 16.09 Nmm–2 and 22.87 Nmm–2. This implies that partial replacement of coarse aggregate with e-waste plastic may be useful for lightweight concrete as well as helping in eradicating the environment of the menace of e-waste plastic

RFID Technology in Real Time Attendance Register System

RFID stands for Radio Frequency Identification which provides the ability to identify, locate and sense the conditions of animate and inanimate entities. Radio frequency identification or RFID is a generic term for technologies that are used for auto identification of people or object using radio waves. In this technology a unique serial number is stored to identify a person or an object and other related information, on a microchip of silicon that is attached to an antenna which in turn is attached to a RFID reader. The antenna enables the chip to transmit the identification information to a reader then the reader converts the radio waves reflected back from the RFID tag into digital information that can then passed on to computers running RFID application middleware, that can make use of it. The system stores the absent and present student’s attendance details in electronic format so that management of attendance becomes easy. Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) is a technology that uses radio waves to transfer data from an electronic tag, called RFID tag or label, attached to an object, through a reader for the purpose of identifying and tracking the object. RFID technology which is a matured technology that has been widely deployed by various organizations as part of their automation systems. In this study, an RFID based system has been built in order to produce a time-attendance management system. This system consists of two main parts which include: the hardware and the software. The hardware consists of the motor unit and the RFID reader. The RFID reader, which is a low-frequency reader (125 kHz), is connected to the host computer via a serial to USB converter cable. The Time-Attendance System GUI was developed using visual basic.Net. The Time-Attendance Management System provides the functionalities of the overall system such as displaying live ID tags transactions, registering ID, deleting ID, recording attendance and other minor functions. This interface was installed in the host computer. Keywords: Systems, RFID, Technology, Attendance, Register, DOI: 10.7176/CEIS/12-2-06 Publication date: September 30th 202

An Alternative to the MVU Estimator to Estimate the Level of DC in AWGN

In statistics, Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE) is a method of estimating the parameters of a particular statistical model, finding parameter values that maximize probability, observations, and the parameters are specified. The MLE can be seen as a special case of maximum post-positive estimation (MAP), which includes a uniform preventive distribution of parameters, or as a variant of the MAP that ignores the above and is therefore unregulated. Now let's look at an alternative to the MVU estimator, which is desirable in situations where the minimum variance unbiased (MVU) estimator does not exist or cannot be found, even if it exists. This estimator, which relies on the principle of maximum likelihood, is primarily the common method for obtaining a practical estimator. It has the clear advantage of being a crank turning procedure, which allows you to implement it for complicated estimation problems. A clear advantage of MLE is that it can be found numerically for a given data-set. The safest way to find the MLE is to search the grid, as long as the space between the searches are small enough, we are sure to find the MLE. Keywords: Maximum Likelihood Estimation, minimum variance unbiased, Estimator, Probability Distribution Function. DOI: 10.7176/ISDE/11-3-05 Publication date: June 30th 202

Prevalence of liver lesions in small ruminants (sheep and goats) slaughtered at the Kumasi Abattoir, Ghana

This study aimed to determine the occurrence of liver lesions in slaughtered sheep and goat with specific reference to the prevalence, breed, age, sex and month influence on liver lesion and also the pathological changes and its effect on the cost. This study involves a 3 months period (October and December 2015) weekly inspection of 2044 slaughtered sheep and goat, 824 were purposively examined, of which 75 were partially condemned and 36 samples out of the partially condemned were used for histopathological analysis. Lesions recorded were granuloma, necrosis, degeneration, cystic vacuole and some with no lesion. Age, sex and breeds had significant influence (p>0.05) on the prevalence of liver lesions in sheep and goat. West African dwarf was the most susceptible breed. The ages in both species (sheep and goats) above 2 – 3 years were most susceptible to liver lesions. Goats were more susceptible than sheep and within the 3 months study the abattoir loss GH¢ 1125 due to liver lesion Economic loss due to liver condemnation estimated has showed there is much to be done to save loss incomes from liver condemnation. Good husbandry practices, proper feeding and good veterinary care should be given to small ruminants in order to minimize liver disease in small ruminants in Ghana

Coconut Wastes as Bioresource for Sustainable Energy: Quantifying Wastes, Calorific Values and Emissions in Ghana

Coconut husks with the shells attached are potential bioenergy resources for fuel-constrained communities in Ghana. In spite of their energy potential, coconut husks and shells are thrown away or burned raw resulting in poor sanitation and environmental pollution. This study focuses on quantifying the waste proportions, calorific values and pollutant emissions from the burning of raw uncharred and charred coconut wastes in Ghana. Fifty fresh coconuts were randomly sampled, fresh coconut waste samples were sun-dried up to 18 days, and a top-lit updraft biochar unit was used to produce biochar for the study. The heat contents of the coconut waste samples and emissions were determined. From the results, 62–65% of the whole coconut fruit can be generated as wastes. The calorific value of charred coconut wastes was 42% higher than the uncharred coconut wastes. PM2.5 and CO emissions were higher than the WHO 24 h air quality guidelines (AQG) value at 25 °C, 1 atmosphere, but the CO concentrations met the WHO standards based on exposure time of 15 min to 8 h. Thus, to effectively utilise coconut wastes as sustainable bioresource-based fuel in Ghana, there is the need to switch from open burning to biocharing in a controlled system to maximise the calorific value and minimise smoke emissions

Antibiotic-resistant pathogenic bacterial isolates from patients attending the outpatient department of university of Cape Coast hospital, Ghana: A retrospective study between 2013-2015.

Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (E. coli) is an important urinary tract infection (UTI) that has been associated with both complicated and uncomplicated disease conditions. The global emergence of multiple drug-resistant (MDR) and extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) is of public health concern as the resistance limits the current treatment options. The objective of this study was to analyze the antibiotic-resistant patterns among the uropathogenic E. coli isolates at the University of Cape Coast (UCC) hospital between 2013 and 2015 as baseline data to understand the current antibiotic resistance situation within UCC and its environs. A retrospective cross-sectional study of bacteria isolates at UCC hospital from January 2013 to December 2015 were analyzed. A standard biochemical and antibiotic susceptibility tests were performed using Kirby-Bauer NCCLs modified disc diffusion technique. The network of interaction between pathogenic isolates and antibiotic resistance was performed using Cytoscape software. Statistical significance was tested using ANOVA and one-sample Wilcoxon test. The overall E. coli prevalence was 15.76% (32/203); females had the highest infection of 17.33% (26/150) compared to male subjects who had 11.32% (6/53) out of all the pathogenic infections. The E. coli prevalence among the age categories were 2/21 (9.52%), 27/154 (17.53%) and 4/21 (19.05%) among ≤20 years, 21-40 years and 41-60 years respectively. The isolated resistant pathogens exhibited different antibiotic resistance patterns. An interaction network of nodes connecting to other nodes indicating positive correlations between the pathogens and antibiotic resistance was established. Escherichia coli, Citrobacter spp, Klebsiella spp among other isolated pathogens formed higher centrality in the network of interaction with antibiotic resistance. The individual E. coli isolates showed a significant difference in the mean ± SD (95% CI) pattern of antibiotic resistance, 2.409±1.205 (1.828-2.990), χ2 = 36.68, p<0.0001. In conclusion, the study reports the interaction of E. coli isolates at UCC hospital and its antibiotic-resistant status between 2013 and 2015. This data forms the baseline information for assessing the current antibiotic status in UCC and its environs

Rubella virus IgM and IgG antibodies with avidity in pregnant women and outcomes at a tertiary facility in Ghana.

BackgroundCongenital rubella syndrome (CRS) is a recognised cause of childhood deafness and blindness caused by the transplacental transmission of rubella virus during pregnancy. Women in the reproductive age group, and by extension their unborn babies may therefore be at increased risk. The prevalence of Rubella virus specific IgM and IgG antibodies, including IgG avidity, was determined in pregnant women attending the antenatal clinic at a Teaching Hospital in Ghana.MethodsOne hundred and forty-five women in their second and third trimesters of pregnancy from the outpatient clinic were recruited over a period of 2 months after written informed consent was obtained. Study participants completed a questionnaire and venous blood drawn for IgM, IgG, and avidity testing using SERION ELISA (SERION® Immunologics, Würzburg, Germany). Babies of mothers with positive or indeterminate IgM and low avidity IgG antibodies were offered specialist cardiological, ophthalmological or hearing assessment during follow up.ResultsOne hundred and twenty-eight (88.3%) had only IgG antibodies, 5 (3.4%) had IgM and IgG antibodies, while 12 (8.3%) had no antibodies. No patient had IgM antibodies alone. Ten women (6.9%) had indeterminate levels of IgM antibodies. Majority of the women had high avidity IgG antibodies, while 5 (3.4%) had low avidity antibodies. No patient had IgM with low avidity antibodies. There was no statistical association between socio-demographic factors and the presence of IgM, IgG (low or high avidity) antibodies. Of all the children followed, none had the clinical definition of CRS.ConclusionsConsistent with the World Health Organization elimination strategy for measles and rubella viruses, non-immune women in the reproductive age group should be vaccinated. The immunization programme should be expanded to include teenagers and adults. Though Congenital Rubella Syndrome was not detected, the risk still remains

Isolation of 18 Novel Mycobacteriophages and Genomic Analyses of Krueger and Phrappuccino

Eighteen new mycobacteriophages were isolated from soil samples collected around the state of Michigan and parts of the United States. All phages were capable of infecting Mycobacterium smegmatis and were isolated through either enrichment or direct plating at 25°C. A variety of plaque morphologies were produced based on size, shape, and clarity; both lytic and temperate phages appear represented in this collection. Two mycobacteriophages, Krueger and Phrappuccino, were chosen for complete genome sequencing and comparative genomic analyses. The predominant plaque produced by Krueger at 32°C was circular and 2 mm in diameter. The predominant plaque produced by Phrappuccino at 32°C was 1 mm in diameter, and took 48 hours to appear. Complete genome sequence for Krueger revealed relationships to members of the novel Subcluster K6, while Phrappuccino was not closely related to any known phage and is currently classified as a Singleton. The genome of Krueger is 60.3 Kb, 66.5% GC, and contains 101 genes, including 1 tRNA(Lys-TTT) gene; the genome of Phrappuccino is 136.3 Kb, 67.4% GC, and contains 200 genes. While Phrappuccino is a Singleton, there is strong evidence at the morphological (Myoviridae) and genomic levels for a relationship to Cluster C phages. Despite this relationship, Phrappuccino does not carry any tRNA genes. Forty (39.6%) and thirty-six (18%) protein coding genes were assigned functions in Krueger and Phrappuccino, respectively, based on comparative analyses. A detailed analysis of the complete genome sequences and comparison with sequenced mycobacteriophages is the subject of the second semester of this yearlong course and is presented

Global, regional, and national burden of diabetes from 1990 to 2021, with projections of prevalence to 2050: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

Background: Diabetes is one of the leading causes of death and disability worldwide, and affects people regardless of country, age group, or sex. Using the most recent evidentiary and analytical framework from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD), we produced location-specific, age-specific, and sex-specific estimates of diabetes prevalence and burden from 1990 to 2021, the proportion of type 1 and type 2 diabetes in 2021, the proportion of the type 2 diabetes burden attributable to selected risk factors, and projections of diabetes prevalence through 2050. Methods: Estimates of diabetes prevalence and burden were computed in 204 countries and territories, across 25 age groups, for males and females separately and combined; these estimates comprised lost years of healthy life, measured in disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs; defined as the sum of years of life lost [YLLs] and years lived with disability [YLDs]). We used the Cause of Death Ensemble model (CODEm) approach to estimate deaths due to diabetes, incorporating 25 666 location-years of data from vital registration and verbal autopsy reports in separate total (including both type 1 and type 2 diabetes) and type-specific models. Other forms of diabetes, including gestational and monogenic diabetes, were not explicitly modelled. Total and type 1 diabetes prevalence was estimated by use of a Bayesian meta-regression modelling tool, DisMod-MR 2.1, to analyse 1527 location-years of data from the scientific literature, survey microdata, and insurance claims; type 2 diabetes estimates were computed by subtracting type 1 diabetes from total estimates. Mortality and prevalence estimates, along with standard life expectancy and disability weights, were used to calculate YLLs, YLDs, and DALYs. When appropriate, we extrapolated estimates to a hypothetical population with a standardised age structure to allow comparison in populations with different age structures. We used the comparative risk assessment framework to estimate the risk-attributable type 2 diabetes burden for 16 risk factors falling under risk categories including environmental and occupational factors, tobacco use, high alcohol use, high body-mass index (BMI), dietary factors, and low physical activity. Using a regression framework, we forecast type 1 and type 2 diabetes prevalence through 2050 with Socio-demographic Index (SDI) and high BMI as predictors, respectively. Findings: In 2021, there were 529 million (95% uncertainty interval [UI] 500-564) people living with diabetes worldwide, and the global age-standardised total diabetes prevalence was 6·1% (5·8-6·5). At the super-region level, the highest age-standardised rates were observed in north Africa and the Middle East (9·3% [8·7-9·9]) and, at the regional level, in Oceania (12·3% [11·5-13·0]). Nationally, Qatar had the world's highest age-specific prevalence of diabetes, at 76·1% (73·1-79·5) in individuals aged 75-79 years. Total diabetes prevalence-especially among older adults-primarily reflects type 2 diabetes, which in 2021 accounted for 96·0% (95·1-96·8) of diabetes cases and 95·4% (94·9-95·9) of diabetes DALYs worldwide. In 2021, 52·2% (25·5-71·8) of global type 2 diabetes DALYs were attributable to high BMI. The contribution of high BMI to type 2 diabetes DALYs rose by 24·3% (18·5-30·4) worldwide between 1990 and 2021. By 2050, more than 1·31 billion (1·22-1·39) people are projected to have diabetes, with expected age-standardised total diabetes prevalence rates greater than 10% in two super-regions: 16·8% (16·1-17·6) in north Africa and the Middle East and 11·3% (10·8-11·9) in Latin America and Caribbean. By 2050, 89 (43·6%) of 204 countries and territories will have an age-standardised rate greater than 10%. Interpretation: Diabetes remains a substantial public health issue. Type 2 diabetes, which makes up the bulk of diabetes cases, is largely preventable and, in some cases, potentially reversible if identified and managed early in the disease course. However, all evidence indicates that diabetes prevalence is increasing worldwide, primarily due to a rise in obesity caused by multiple factors. Preventing and controlling type 2 diabetes remains an ongoing challenge. It is essential to better understand disparities in risk factor profiles and diabetes burden across populations, to inform strategies to successfully control diabetes risk factors within the context of multiple and complex drivers. Funding: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation