Biodiesel Fuel from Differently Sourced Local Seed Oils: Characterization, Effects of Catalysts, Total Glycerol Content and Flow Rates

The recently observed depletion in the petroleum resources, which also mainly constituted carbon dioxide emission and global warming problems call for renewable and sustainable alternative fuels. Oils were extracted from various seeds: Jatropha curcas (Botuje), Pentaclethra macrophylla (Apara) and soybean, using petroleum ether (40-60℃). Alkali catalyzed transesterification of the oils (biodiesel pro-duction) in the presence of different kinds of alcohol (methanol, ethanol and propanol) were carried out using sodium hydroxide as catalyst. In the case of Jatropha oil, potassium hydroxide served as catalyst. Effect of catalysts to obtain optimum biofuel was established. In the case of soybean oil, fatty acid methyl ester, FAME, (96%), fatty acid ethyl ester, FAEE, (84%) and fatty acid propyl ester, FAPE, (37.50%) were pro-duced. In waste palm kernel oil, methyl ester (72.92%) and ethyl ester (46.25%) were obtained. In refined palm kernel oil, methyl ester (70.83%), ethyl ester (66.67%) and (14.17%) propyl ester were produced. However, only methyl ester conversion (20.83%) was possible in Pen-taclethra macrophylla oil. In Jatropha curcas using KOH catalyst, only methyl ester (80%) formation was possible. Moreover, yields were af-fected as the alcohol alkyl became bulkier giving relatively lower value of biodiesel. Sulphur content (0.01) obtained for each of the biofuel was satisfactory when compared with ASTM standard (0.05 maximum). The cetane value of soybean oil (45.5), refined palm kernel oil (46) and used oil (44.6) were quite reasonable compared with the special standard (47). The combustion energy of the fuels from refined palm kernel oil, waste palm kernel oil and soybean are 39, 36 and 45.5 respectively. The total glycerol content (Gc) of the methyl and ethyl esters emanat-ed from soybean are quite reasonable and fell within standard. Keywords: biodiesel, flow rates, local seed oils, total glycerol content, transesterificatio

Ubiquinone binding sites of mitochondrial bc1 complex

The cytochrome bc1 complex is a central component of the electron-transfer respiratory chain in mitochondria. It couples electron transfer to proton translocation across the membrane by a Q-cycle mechanism. It contains two ubiquinone-binding sites (Qo, ubiquinol oxidation and Qi, ubiquinone reduction) which are good targets for pesticides. Although the mechanism of the Qo oxidation reaction has been much studied, the details remain controversial, in particular, the way in which electrons are bifurcated along two separate routes and whether the Qo site has to bind one or two ubiquinones in order to be catalytically active. Resolving these issues is essential for understanding the chemistry of this unique reaction and useful in the development of pesticides. This thesis describes studies of the occupancy state of the Qo site, redox-linked changes in amino acids and protein conformation and characterisation of the binding site of new inhibitors using steady state kinetics, redox potentiometry, and optical, EPR and FTIR spectroscopy. To address the question of the occupancy state of the Qo site, steady state kinetics was used to characterise the binding mode of the Qo site inhibitor MOA- stilbene in relation to the substrate decylubiquinol. This revealed a mixed type of inhibition, which shows that the previous conclusion of separate binding sites for MOA-stilbene and ubiquinone is questionable. A more direct method, EPR spectroscopy, which has proved to be highly sensitive to the degree and nature of the Qo site occupants (Q/QH2 or inhibitors), was also used. The results were consistent with a single occupancy model of the Qo site. To complement these studies, molecular modelling studies with the available crystal structure and data from mutagenesis studies to identify residues conferring resistance to inhibitors were used. In addition, an attempt was made to model two ubiquinone molecules into the Qo site. Finally, competition between two classes of Qo site inhibitors was also investigated. These studies were consistent with a single occupancy model of the Qo site as suggested from kinetic and EPR studies. FTIR difference spectroscopy in combination with selective photochemical reduction is a powerful technique for studying redox-linked changes in amino acids and protein conformation. The FTIR redox difference spectra of the components of bovine bc1 complex in native and inhibitor bound states were resolved. Signal assignments were aided by comparison to FTIR redox difference spectra of soluble domains of individual redox centres and model compounds. Inhibitors of the bc1 complex have been an important tool in the elucidation of the mechanism of this multi-protein complex and are of great commercial interest as pesticides. Characterisation of new inhibitors revealed that eight were Qo site inhibitors and the other two were Qi site inhibitors

A prototype mobile money implementation in Nigeria

Researchers have shown that majority of the populace in the developing nations are rural dwellers that do not have access to basic financial services and are poor. This class of people are peasant farmers and petty traders who rely mostly on remittances from their wards and relations in major cities and abroad to meet their financial obligations at home. The methods of remittances are encumbered with challenges. Mobile money is a tool that allows individuals to make financial transactions using mobile cell phones. Nigeria is one of the fastest growing telecoms nations of the world and the adoption of mobile money will help a great deal to solve the problems associated with remittances. In this paper, we present a short messages services (SMS) and unstructured supplementary service data (USSD) implementation of mobile money implementation in Nigeria modelled using Django and Python as the programming language, MySQL as the data store and Apache hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) as the Web server. The system made comparative analysis with M-PESA implementation in Kenya: the first mobile money implantation in Africa. Furthermore, the system was tested among a selected few of the populace to evaluate the usability of the design. Findings revealed that the prototype implementation is user-friendly and can be used by all without many problems except for the illiterate populace; hence, the need to have a combined bank and agent-based implementation. This approach will help with time to reduce the number of unbanked populace, which is currently at 80%

Comparison of fried and baked fish Oreochromis niloticus cakes

Oreochromis niloticus fish-in-cake were made to improve its food value as well as create new menu. Fried fish-in-cake was 66.2% appealing in its colour, taste, texture and odour to assessors than the 64% rating for baked fish-in-cake

GREEN SYNTHESIS OF CAPPED SILVER NANOPARTICLES AND THEIR HYBRIDS: ANTIMICROBIAL AND OPTICAL PROPERTIES

Unique properties of silver (Ag) and its allied nanoparticles are of great interest in the fields of chemistry and technology. However, the widespread applications of nanoparticles call for synthesis routes involving eco-friendly procedures. Silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) and their hybrids nanoparticles (Ag-Ni and Ag-Co) were synthesized using locally available biodiversity plants as alternative method to the expensive and toxic chemicals previously used. Fresh plants were collected and extracted in water by cold extraction. Phytochemical screening was carried out on the plant extracts and green plant-mediated reduction method was employed. Nanoparticles formation and growth were monitored with UV-Vis spectrophotometer at time intervals. The nanoclusters were further characterized using photoluminescence (PL), scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), fourier transmission infra-red (FTIR), x-ray diffraction (XRD) and selected electron area diffraction (SAED). Antimicrobial activity of the nanoparticles was investigated on clinically isolated pathogens. Formation of nanoparticles was indicated by colour change in the reaction medium when nucleation and growth commenced as early as 2 minutes in the reaction at 70°C, compared to the syntheses carried out at room temperature. Optical properties were displayed with surface plasmon resonance bands (SPR) above 400 nm in Ag NPs and their hybrids. The high intensities of absorption were characterized with red-shifted wavelengths, except the Ag NPs and the corresponding nanohybrids formed using the extract of S. occidentalis (327-350 nm). However, near uniform emission of fluorophores was exhibited by Ag NPs (438-466 nm) and Ag allied nanoparticles (581-778 nm) irrespective of the excitation wavelengths. The morphological characterization of Ag-Co nanohybrid using SEM and TEM revealed novel alloy structure in which Ag atoms were attached to the vertices of cobalt in a planar arrangement. Other morphologies obtained using C. indica leaf extract were cluster-in-cluster spherical arrangement, nanorod, nanocube with truncated edges, rectangle and quasi-spheres; all caged, thereby providing stability for the newly formed nanoparticles. Cubic structures with truncated/irregular edges and quasi-spherical morphologies were formed by monometallic Ag NPs using other plant extracts. However, the corresponding Ag-Ni and Ag-Co nanobimetallic derived from these plant extracts resulted in nanohybrid with Ag core and Ni shell arrangement, nanocubes with truncated edges and multiply-twinned nanoparticles. Evidence of capping of the newly formed nanoparticles by the biomolecules was demonstrated by the diagonal orientation of Agnanoparticles through mapping. Hexagonal shaped nanoparticles with truncated edges were observed in the Ag NPs obtained from L. inermis leaf extract. The formation of highly crystalline Ag dominated by face-centre cubic (FCC) was supported by p-XRD. SAED also supported formation of hybrid nanoparticles as crystallinity decreased when compared with the equivalent Ag monometallic nanoparticles. The antimicrobial activity of nanoparticles against clinical isolates was highly significant (6.25 mg/mL MIC, and 12.5 mg/mL MBC) in the hybrid nanoparticles which demonstrated higher growth inhibition of the test organisms as revealed in one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) using SPSS statistical tool (p < 0.05). The outcome of these findings suggests the application of Canna indica-influenced Ag NPs as antibacterial against E. coli, S. pyogenes and antifungus against C. albicans. Ag-Co nanoparticles formed using the extract of C. indica is a potential material in optical devices. The use of Ag NPs with narrow size distribution can serve as conductive fillers in electronically conductive adhesives (ECA)

THE ROLE OF MYOCARDIN IN THE PROGRESSION OF NON-SMALL CELL LUNG CANCER

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related mortality in the world and NSCLC accounts for 85% of all lung cancer cases. The mainstay of treatment for patients with stage I, II and IIIA NSCLC is surgery, followed by post-operative cisplatin-based chemotherapy. Additional adjuvant therapy involving targeted tyrosine kinase inhibitors has been in use, however even for the targeted therapy, resistance eventually develops. Therefore, there is a need for identifying novel targets for this life-threatening disease. Given that preliminary studies in Ikebe lab revealed that myocardin knockdown significantly promoted caspase-3 degradation, in this study, using myocardin siRNA, we investigated the effect of the knockdown (KD) of myocardin gene on important apoptotic biomarkers such as PARP, caspase-3, and Bax; and on mitochondrial dysfunction involving respiration, and ROS formation. Our results indicated changes in the expression of multiple important apoptotic markers by myocardin knockdown in A549 NSCLC cells and myocardin knockdown was found to significantly decrease cell viability in A549 cells. Myocardin KD also showed a large, significant decrease in the maximal respiration of the cells and was found to significantly induce higher levels of ROS formation compared to the control. In summary, this study highlights myocardin as an important target in NSCLC progression and presents an interesting insight on the potential role of myocardin as a druggable target in lung adenocarcinoma. It also provides the basis for further investigation on its mechanism of apoptosis induction

STRATEGIES FOR HOUSING AFFORDABILITY IN NIGERIA

Population in urban areas are growing at a rapid rate, thus recycling of land becomes necessary despite that fact that land is a finite resource. The gap between supply and demand for housing is an issue for the government to address in order to provide housing at a cheaper rate which is the basic need of man. The purpose of this study is to assess the strategies for affordable housing in Nigeria. Research design was used and the population of the study was Architects, Quantity Surveyors, Engineers, Contractors and project managers. Random sampling technique was adopted for this study. A total of 70 questionnaires were distributed and 51 were returned. This represents a response rate of 73%. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used for analysis via descriptive and inferential statistics. The study showed that problem of land inaccessibility, stunted financial and mortgage system were the factors affecting housing delivery. Challenges of housing delivery were high cost of acquiring land, social miscreants (“Omo Onile”) and affordability. Anti-corruption measures and a responsive judiciary, Cost – saving house design, Land reforms/reviews of land use act and review of fiscal and monetary&nbsp; policies to reduce inflation and interest rate were the strategies to be used to ensure affordable housing. In conclusion, the Government should create an enabling environment for private sector by reducing the interest rate, taxes collected and creation of a viable housing mortgage sector to cater for the need of interested mortgage loan applicants. The use of the land should be constrained to affordable housing

In-silico investigation of CREB-binding protein on castration-resistant prostrate cancer: insight from molecular dynamic simulations and computer aided drug discovery.

Masters degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban.Prostate cancer has evolved over the years despite various treatment and therapy. One recent threat of the prostate cancer is the Castration- Resistant Prostate Cancer (CRPC). The CRPC is an advanced form of prostate cancer. Despite therapies involving chemical, surgical or hormonal treatment, the cancer cells in CRPC have been discovered to continue growth and development at an alarming rate. This forms the basis for this research. One novel drug (Y08197) aimed towards CBRB-binding protein was reported to have anti- cancer properties and therapeutic effect on CRPC. Their research based on in vivo and in vitro experiments, revealed CREB-binding protein as a therapeutic target. This study majored in a search for the culprit behind this miracle. We used molecular dynamics simulation to gain insights into the mechanistic and selective targeting of the novel drug as well as its similar inhibitory effect to an FDA drug (CPI-637). Also, since little is known about the structural and inhibitory properties of CREB-binding protein, we also commenced a review study to look into its inhibitory history. The use of computational techniques such as molecular modeling, molecular docking, virtual screening protocols and molecular dynamics allows the evaluation and assessment of potential leads compounds. These in-silico techniques as stated above are cost-effective and efficient in research and pivot to fast track drug discovery process. Herein, we used molecular dynamics simulation to gain insights into the mechanistic and selective targeting of Y08197 at the bromodomain active site. Molecular Mechanics/ Poisson-Boltzmann Surface Area (MM/PBSA) analysis revealed a similar inhibitory effect between Y08197 and CPI-637. Furthermore, in exploring the selective affinity of Y08197 towards CBP in combination with Bromodomain and PHD finger-containing protein 1(BRPF1), our result highlighted Asp1116 as the ‘culprit’ residue responsible for this selective targeting. Conclusively, the implementation of the information extracted in this study, can be replicated in future structure based CBP inhibitors and pharmacological research implicated in carcinogenesis

Adsorption properties of Azadirachta indica extract on corrosion of Aluminium in 1.85 M Hydrochloric acid

The crude extract of Azadirachta indica was used in the corrosion inhibition study of aluminium metal coupons in 1.85 M hydrochloric acid environment by gasometric technique. The coupons were immersed in test solutions of uninhibited 1.85 M HCl and those containing extract concentrations of 10%, 20%, 30%, 40% and 50% (v/v) at room temperature. The rate of the reaction was captured by monitoring the volume of hydrogen gas evolved as a result of the interaction. The inhibition efficiency of the extracts and the adsorption isotherm of the process were calculated using Frumkin, Freundlich, Langmuir and Temkin adsorption theories and the surface morphology studied using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). It was observed that the plant extract retarded the acid induced corrosion of aluminium and the volume of hydrogen gas evolved reduced with increasing extract concentration. The adsorption studies revealed that Langmuir isotherm is the best model for the adsorption of Azadirachta indica (R2 = 0.999) on aluminium surface. This implied that the Azadirachta indica extracts with aluminium metal undergoes chemisorption

Exploration of the Chemistry and Biological Properties of Pyrimidine as a Privilege Pharmacophore in Therapeutics

The pyrimidine moiety is one of the most widespread heterocycles in biologically occurring compounds, such as nucleic acids components (uracil, thymine and cytosine) and vitamin B1. Due to its prebiotic nature to living cells in biodiversity, it is an highly privileged motif for the development of molecules of biological and pharmaceutical interest. This present work deals with the exploration of chemistry and medicinal diversity of pyrimidine which might pave way to long await discovery in therapeutic medicine for future drug design