An Appraisal of Ozone Layer Depletion and Its Implication on the Human Environment

Ozone layer depletion is a reality which poses threat to human survival if not curtail. However, it has received international attention and cooperation in which nation states have come up with series of conventions and protocols. It is no more gainsaying that the protection of the environment is a duty of all as no one can be left behind.This paper examines the ozone depletion substance, the impacts and implications of ozone layer depletion on human health and environment, and possible suggestion out of the challenges. The methodology adopted is basically doctrinal with primary sources from various international instruments relating to ozone layer depletions. The secondary sources are mainly from articles in journals, commentaries and online publications.It is our humble conclusion that ozone layer protection is a global and continuous assignment in which all hands must be on deck in order to meet the desirable target. The international communities’ cooperation in this regard is commendable. DOI: 10.7176/JLPG/83-02 Publication date:March 31st 201

Possible antimicrobial activity of Morinda lucida stem bark, leaf and root extracts

Inhibitory activities of both aqueous and methanolic extracts of the root, stem bark, and leaf of Morinda lucida on Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhi, Salmonella paratyphi, and Salmonella typhorium was investigated in vitro. In vitro experiment was carried out using the agar well diffusion and disc diffusion methods with Gram-negative enterobacteria. M. lucida extracts were more active against all the tested bacteria than the standard antibiotics, chloramphenicol and ciprofloxacin even at the same concentrations of 5, 10 and 20 mg/ml. The results of this study show that the extracts of M. lucida has the potentials of inhibiting the growth of E. coli and Salmonella species, thereby suggesting its potency in the treatment of infections in which E. coli and Salmonella species are implicated.Keywords: Gram-negative, inhibitory activity, Escherichia coli, Salmonella species, enterobacteria, infections, antibioticsAfrican Journal of Biotechnology, Vol. 13(3), pp. 471-475, 15 January, 201

Premature discharge of children from hospital admission at Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital Zaria: A 3-year review

Introduction: Leaving hospital care prematurely could threaten the healthy survival of and expose children to a risk of harmful alternatives. It is also a concern and a challenge to healthcare providers and the health system. A better understanding of its characteristic could help mitigate the impact on children.Objective: To determine the prevalence, types of, and reasons for premature hospital discharge amongst children.Methods: We carried out a threeyear retrospective review of case notes of children who were taken away from hospital admission by their parents/caregivers before they were due for discharge.  Socio-demographic, clinical anddischarge information were collected and data was entered into Microsoft® Excel® for Mac 2011 (Version 14.1.0), cleaned and analysed. Results were presented as percentages, statistical means and standard deviations, tables and charts.Results: There were 56 cases of premature discharge out of 2858 admissions, giving a prevalence of 2.0%. Under-five children constituted 65.4%, with a male: female ratio of 2.3:1. Thirty-one (55.3%) children were absconded with while 25 (44.7%) were taken away by caregivers against medical advice. The commonest diagnoses were protein-energy malnutrition and pneumonia and majority were from poor socio-economic family background. The commonest reasons for discharge AMA were unaffordable costs and perception of improvement of child’s medical condition.Conclusion: Socio-economic factors were significant determinants of utilization of in-patient hospital services for the children studied. There is a need for provision of affordable health care as well as efficient discharge policy to protect children from potential risks associated with premature hospital discharge.Keywords: Children; admission; premature discharge; discharge against medical advice; absconding; elopemen

Experimentation And Modeling Of Infective Treatment And Recovery Of HIV Patients (A Case Study Of Kwara State)

The outbreak and spread of diseases have been studied for many years. The ability to make predictions about diseases could enable scientists to evaluate inoculation/vaccination or isolation plans and may have a significant effect on the mortality rate of a particular epidemic. Therefore this research experimentation and modeling of infective treatment and recovery of HIV patients (a case study of kwara state) will studynbspnbsp the rate at which people contact the HIV, investigate how many people a person can infect at a particular point in time. , develop model for male and female with HIV, develop estimating functions for such a model and determine the control measures and sensitivities to change in parameter. Regression analysis, Chi ndash square and SIR model were use to analyse the data. Result of the analysis using regression analysis give the fitted model Y= 12.302 + 0.00009X and Y= 13.077 + 0.00007X for male and Female respectively. The result shows that the fitted model is adequate and the rate at which people contact HIV is increasing. Also chi - square analysis revealed thatnbsp contacts ofnbsp HIV is not depend on gender and that there are differences in respondents health when taking drugs recommended by health workers. Further analysis using SIR model shows that there will likely be epidemic on HIV and that 29% of the male that have HIVnbsp must be treated to avoid epidemicsnbsp 9% of the female that have HIV must be treated to avoid epidemics. And we recommend that Health Planner should administer enough drugsnbspnbsp to HIV patient on regular basis and Health Planner should educate people more on HIV and the preventive measure should be thought

TALENT MANAGEMENT AND COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE: THE MODERATION ROLE OF WORKPLACE CULTURE

The study aims to analyse the effect of talent management on competitive advantage through workplace culture moderation. The data was collected from 425 full-time employees from the top ten deposit money banks in Lagos State using a questionnaire as a data collection tool. This research uses a quantitative approach with a survey method. Respondents were selected from the top ten deposit money banks in Lagos State through a stratified random sampling technique. The collected data were analysed using hierarchical regression analysis (HRA) to test the hypothesis and evaluate the regression model specified. These findings show that the effect of talent management on competitive advantage was significantly moderated by workplace culture (β = -0.015, R2 ∆ = 0.003, F∆ = 13.865, p<0.05). It was concluded that workplace culture moderated the relationship between talent management and competitive advantage in the selected deposit money banks in Lagos State. A recommendation was anchored on management to create a positive workplace culture that supports talent management practises to achieve sustainable competitive advantage.  Article visualizations

CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACT, ITS ADAPTATION MEASURES ON FISHERMEN LIVELIHOOD STATUS IN COASTAL AREA OF SOUTHWEST NIGERIA

Climate change effect and adaptation measure on the livelihood deeds of artisanal Fishermen was carried out within the coastal areas of Southwest Nigeria. Multi-stage sampling technique was used to select 263 fishermen from Lagos, Ogun and Ondo States. Information obtained was with the use of structured interviewed schedule and subjected to descriptive and inferential statistics at 0.05 level of significance. Findings shows that majority (65.4%) of the Fishermen were between 45-64 years of age, 77.9% married, 67.7% had above 11 years of fishing experience across the Coastal area of Southwest, Nigeria. Also, 22.4% of Fishermen in the coastal area have access to extension services while 22.4% of them only had access to extension services. Major livelihood activities were fishing gathering (95.1%), fish processing (91.6%) and fish marketing (81.7%) in the selected area. the main effect of climate change on the fishermen activities were flooding (x̄= 2.43), while increased waves were (x̄ = 2.24), ocean surge (x̄ =2.23), rainfall intensity (x̄ = 2.07) and high temperature (x̄ = 2.06) respectively across the selected states respectively. Majority of the artisanal Fisherfolk utilized different adaptation measures/practices towards climate change. There were significant relationship (p < 0.05) between the respondent sex (c2 = 19.342, df = 1), educational level (c2 = 11.242, df = 4), ethnicity (c2 = 10.523) and climate change effect on livelihood deeds of artisanal Fishermen across selected states. Correlation result also reveals significant relationship (p < 0.05) between age (r = 0.872), household size (r = 0.653), years of fishing experience (r = 0.815) and the climate change effect on livelihood activities of artisanal Fishermen across selected States, Results also showed that there is significant difference in the effect of climate change on livelihood of artisanal Fishermen (F = 16.325; P = 0.001) across the selected states. The study realized that Artisanal Fishermen sampled experienced high effect of climate change in term of flooding, increased waves, ocean surges, rainfall intensity and high temperature across the selected States sampled. The study recommended that Artisanal Fishermen should be participating in policy and strategy formulation in mitigate climate change impacts on their fishing and livelihood activities so as to reduce the vulnerability of the effects caused by climate change in the coastal areas. Keywords: Artisanal, Climate change, Coastal communities, Fishermen, Livelihood activities, Southwest. DOI: 10.7176/JNSR/14-12-07 Publication date:September 30th 2023

Response of Upland Rice and Soil Chemical Properties to Formulated Organic Manures in Asaba, Delta State, Nigeria

Response of upland rice and soil chemical properties to formulated organic manures evaluated at Teaching and Research Farm, Department of Agronomy, Delta State University, Asaba Campus for two cropping seasons. Five manures (FRH, RHW, RHCDW, RHC and RHCDC were formulated with rice husk and cowdung, and for twelve weeks. Water and cassava mill effluent used were also added during turning at weekly interval and were applied at 5 t ha-1. The experiment was layout in randomized complete block design with four replicates. New rice for Africa was used as test crop, and height, number of leaves, total leaf area, plant girth, dry matter and rice yield were measured while soil pH, organic matter, total N, available P and exchangeable bases were determined after harvest. Data collected were subjected to analysis of variance, mean differences were separated with DMRT at 5% level of probability. The result shows that RHCDC had highest number of leaves and total leaf area while RHCDW had highest plant height, plant girth, dry matter and rice yield. Both were not significantly different, but significantly higher than other manures. All the manures improved soil chemical properties, therefore it can be concluded that RHCDW is more effective in Asaba and its environment. Key words: Rice husk, organic fertilizer, upland rice, soil chemical properties, cowdun

Farmers’ Behaviour towards Utilisation of Jatropha Curcas for Environmental Mitigation in Oyo State, Nigeria

The dysfunctional environment caused by soil erosion, wind erosion, deforestation, desertification, issues of flood was due to the effect of greenhouse gases emanating as a result of various activities of man and industries. Consequently, this has prompted the exploitation of Jatropha curcas for mitigating the environment. Therefore, this study was carried out to examine farmers’ behaviour towards utilisation of Jatropha curcas for mitigation of environment in the study area. A multistage sampling procedure was used in selecting 120 farmers from 217 trained Jatropha farmers across Ido and Akinyele Local Government Areas in Oyo State. The data was analysed using frequencies, percentages, mean scores, and pearson product moment correlation. The result for the study showed that majority of the respondents had mean age of 44.4± 10.8 with majority also being male (66.7%) and formal education (91.7%). The result revealed that there was significant relationship between socio-economic characteristics of the respondents and farmers’ behaviour towards utilization of Jatropha curcas for environmental mitigation. There was correlation between farmers’ awareness on cultivation of Jatropha curcas and their behavior towards utilisation of Jatropha curcas for environmental mitigation (r = 0.399**, p < 0.05). The respondents’ attitude was significantly related to their behavior towards utilization of Jatropha curcas for environmental mitigation (r = - 0.182*, p < 0.05). The study showed that awareness and attitude of farmers strongly influence their behaviour towards utilization of Jatropha curcas for environmental mitigation. The implication of this study is to ensure that the environment becomes free of hazards and degradation which affect survival of the ecosystem and biodiversity. Hence, government should join in the advocacy to open continuous channels of communication on the importance of Jatropha to motivate farmers to having right behaviour towards utilization of Jatropha curcas as a measure to mitigate the environment. Keywords: Behaviour, utilisation, Jatropha curcas, farmers, mitigation, environmen

Perceived Benefits of Improved Practices in Pre Harvest Tomato Production among Farmers in Afijio Local Government Area, Oyo State

This study was designed to investigate the perceived benefits of improved practices in pre-harvest tomato production among farmers in Afijio Local Government Area of Oyo State. Multistage sampling techniques were used to select respondents in the study area, with the aid of structured questionnaire. Descriptive and inferential (PPMC) statistics were used to analyze the data. Majority of the respondents (88.5%) perceived that it has lots of benefits. Also, 82.7% perceived that improved practices minimize post-harvest losses on a medium scale.  Furthermore, 85.6% perceived that improved practices minimize disease infestation on a medium scale, while 84.6% perceive it protects tomato from decaying. Also, 76.9% of the respondents perceive that improve practices helps to retain nutritional content of tomato on a medium scale.  Also, the category of the respondents that had high awareness considered the improved practices to be highly beneficial to them.  The study further concluded that the benefits derived by minority of the respondents influenced most of the respondents to have favorable perception to derivable benefits embedded in improved practices of tomato in the study area.  In addition, the result also revealed significant relationship between awareness and perceived benefits of improved practices in pre-harvest tomato production (r=0.280, p=0.004).  The study therefore recommended that the extension agents should properly train the farmers on the benefits and use of these improved practices. Adequate information should be made available to the tomato farmers on the most recent developments in tomato farming and production (pre harvest and post-harvest). The government should be able to provide adequate and glitch free loan to the farmers to enable them utilize the information and training

Structural and Optical Properties of Tin Doped Zinc Oxide Fibres Prepared By Electrospinning Technique

The study synthesized ZnO fibers using electrospinning technique. It also characterized and determined the effects of Sn2+ dopant on the optical properties of the fibers synthesized. This was with a view to exploring the potential of improving the performance ZnO semiconductor material in industrial applications. Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) solution was prepared and mixed with ZnO source. Zinc acetate was used as the ZnO source while Tin Acetate was used as Sn2+ dopant source. Viscous electrospinning solutions of PVA/Zinc Acetate and three different compositions of Tin Acetate were prepared. The compositions of dopants used were 5, 7 and 9-wt. %. Samples of the depositions from the electrospinning process were annealed at 600o C at a rate of 4o C per minute for 6 hours. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was employed to reveal the morphology of the depositions. The structural analysis of the fibers was carried out using x-ray diffractometry (XRD) while the optical properties of the fibers were investigated using ultra violet visible spectrophotometry. The SEM results showed the depositions to be web of fibers. The XRD confirmed the crystallization of undoped and doped ZnO fibers from the acetates. The crystal sizes of the fibers were in the range of 5.566 to 7.202 nm. Furthermore, wide bandgap energy values ranging from 3.26 to 3.46 eV were obtained from the results of the optical properties of the fibers. The results showed that the average crystal sizes of Sn2+ doped ZnO fibers were larger than those of the undoped fibers. However, it was observed that the average crystal size decreases with increase in Sn2+ content. The results also showed that the bandgap energy values of the fibers increase with dopant concentration. The study established the viability of fabricating doped and undoped ZnO structure in form of fibers in order to enhance its performance in industrial applications. Also, the results showed that the optical properties of the fibers improved with increase in Sn2+ dopant concentration. Keywords: ZnO fibers; Electrospinning technique; Structural analysis; Optical properties;  Sn2+ Dopant; Band gap energy value; Crystal siz