DEVELOPMENT AND PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OF A RICE DE-STONING MACHINE USING VIBRATING SIEVES

A rice de-stoning machine using vibrating sieves was designed, fabricated with locally sourced materials and tested. The performance of the machine was evaluated and the results obtained showed that the feed regulator opening has significant effects on the de-stoning rate, de-stoning efficiency and rice losses. The best performance was obtained at feed regulator opening of 20 mm. Above 20 mm opening, the higher the feed regulator opening the higher the de-stoning rate and grain losses, and the lower the de-stoning efficiency. The average capacity of the machine was found to be 31.84 g/sec. and the average efficiency also was 98.3%.     &nbsp

Fatty Acids Composition of Three Different Vegetable Oils (Soybean Oil, Groundnut Oil and Coconut Oil) by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography

Edible vegetable oil were extracted from three sources; soyabean, groundnut and coconut. These oils were processed for fatty acid analysis using high performance liquid chromatography. Three saturated fatty acid were present. Palmitic acid; (C16;O) range from 2.092% in coconut oil to 4.756% in groundnut oil, stearic acid (C16;O) range from 1.496% in soya bean oil to 12.075% in groundnut oil. Monounsaturated fatty acid was also obtained. Oleric acid (C18:1) range from 8.584% in coconut oil to 12.722% in groundnut oil. Polyunsaturated (essential) fatty acid identified was linoleic acid (C18:2 Omega-6) at concentration ranges of 5.654% in soyabean oil to 9.198% in groundnut oil. The result showed that the three samples are good sources of two essential fatty acid (lauric and palmitric acid). The predominant component of soyabean oil and coconut oil was myristic acid (C14:O) (41.039% and 33.544% respectively). The highest fatty acid component of groundnut oil is lauric acid (C12:O) at 14.567%. Keywords: Soybean oil, Groundnut Oil, Coconut oil, Fatty acids, HPLC

Hear it From the Horses' Mouth: Listening to African Professionals in Australia

The study investigated the growing concern of the African professionals who arrived in Australia since 2007. The ongoing concern was based on the lack of job opportunity in their nominated skilled occupation in post arrival in Australia. The study used demographic questionnaire and semi-structured interview to elicit information from forty (40) participants from Western Australia and Northern Territory cities and regional areas. The data analysed provided the needed perspectives about the extreme frustration of the African skilled migrants lack job opportunities in the post arrival in Australia. Based on the findings, the study made some recommendations, including counselling implications on several pathways on how African professionals could gain recognition for opportunities in their professional areas

A Bibliometric Study of Authorship and Collaboration Trends Over the Past 30 Years in Four Major Musculoskeletal Science Journals

This study explored changes in bibliometric variables over the last 30 years for four major musculoskeletal science journals (BONE®), Calcified Tissue International® (CTI®), Journal of Bone and Mineral Research® (JBMR®), and Journal of Orthopaedic Research® (JOR®), with a specific focus on author gender. Bibliometric data were collected for all manuscripts in 1985 (BONE®, CTI®, JOR®), 1986 (JBMR®), 1995, 2005, and 2015; 2776 manuscripts met inclusion criteria. Manuscripts from Europe were more often published in BONE® or CTI®, while those from North America in JBMR® or JOR®. All journals demonstrated an increase over time in the number of authors (3.67–7.3), number of countries (1.1–1.4), number of institutions (1.4–3.1), and number of references (25.1–45.4). The number of manuscript pages increased (6.6–8.9) except for JOR® which showed a decline. CTI® had the lowest number of authors (4.9 vs. 5.6–6.8). There was a change in the corresponding author position from first to last for all journals; this change was highest for CTI® (35%) and lowest for BONE® (14.0%). All journals demonstrated an increase over time in female authors; however, CTI® was the highest amongst these four journals. The percentage of female first authors rose from 24.6 to 44.3% (CTI® 29.1–52.3%). The percentage of corresponding female authors rose from 17.5 to 33.6% (CTI® 22.9–40.0%). The proportion of female authors is increasing, likely reflecting the increasing number of women obtaining doctorates in science, medicine, and engineering

Factors Associated with Nutritional Practices of PregnantWomen Attending Antenatal Clinic of Selected Hospitals in Benin-City, Nigeria

The health of a pregnant mother and her nutritional status can influence the health and survival of the growing foetus because of the biological link between her and her child. This study assessed the knowledge and practice of healthy nutrition among pregnant women attending antenatal clinics in two selected hospitals in Benin City. A descriptive cross-sectional research design was used in this study. A sample size of 284 was sampled for the target population of 972 pregnant women attending antenatal clinics in tertiary and Mission hospitals using a selfstructured questionnaire with a split-half reliability test of Cronbachs alpha value of 0.886, 0.768, and 0.851. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequency and percentages). The result revealed that 157(55.3%) had good knowledge, 79(27.8%) had average knowledge while 48(16.9%) had poor knowledge. 81(28.5%) had poor practice while the majority 203(71.5%) had good practice of healthy nutrition. Ignorance (2.86±0.423), Religion (2.73±0.430), Cultural belief (2.88±0.422), were reported to be factors affecting the practice of healthy nutrition. Conclusion: Although knowledge and practices of healthy nutrition were high, the cultural belief still affects pregnant women’s practice of healthy nutrition and health talk should be encouraged on each antenatal day with an emphasis on healthy nutrition

Analyses of the Leaf, Fruit and Seed of Thaumatococcus tktniellii (Benth.): Exploring Potential Uses

Thaumatococcus daniellii is an economic plant with versatile uses in Southern Nigeria. The arils attached to the seeds contain thawnatin, a non-sugar sweetener and taste modifier. This study examined the chemical constituents of the leaf, fruit and seed ofT. daniellii. The fresh fruit, on weight basis, consists of 4.8% aril, 22.8% seed and 72.4% fleshy part The leaf contained (per 100 g): 10.67 g moisture, 8.95 gash, 17.21 g fat, 21.06 g protein, 24.61 g crude fiber 17.50 g carbohydrate, 0.10 g calcium, 0.08 g magnesium, 0.01 g iron and 0.37 g phosphorus. The fruit (fleshy part) contained 10.04 g moisture, 21.08 gash, 0.93 g fat 11.53 g protein, 18.43 g crude fiber, 37.27 g carbohydrate, 0.34 g calcium, 0.30 g magnesium, 0.01 g iron and 0.21 g phosphorus. The seed contained 15.15 g moisture, 11.30 g ash, 0.21 g fat, 10.36 g protein, 20.52 g crude fiber and 42.46 g carbohydrate. Terpenoids, flavonoids, alkaloids and cardiac glycosoides were significantly present in both the leaf and fruit whereas phlobatani:n, saponin, steroids, anthraquinones and ascorbic acid were absent. Tannin was present only in the leaf. The leaf and fruit ofT. daniellii have significant nutritional and medicinal benefits. The leaf is rich in protein and fat. The fruit is a good source of minerals, particularly, calciwn and magnesiwn; the leaf is also rich in phosphoru

Case report of bullous pemphigoid in a 65 year old woman

The unique thing about this case is that it is the first reported case of bullous pemphigoid in the elderly that has been clinically diagnosed with histologic findings highly suggestive of this blistering disorder although an immunofluorescence could not be done due to unavailability in the centre. Patient was managed successfully and discharged home with improvement on subsequent hospital visits. This case report shows how diagnosis of an immunobullous disease was made and managed in a resource poor setting. A descriptive summary of 65-year old black Nigerian woman with bullous pemphigoid covering history, physical examination and management. The main diagnosis was bullous pemphigoid in a recently diagnosed type 2 diabetic. Patient was placed on corticosteroids as well as immunosuppressive agents and diabetes was managed with subcutaneous insulin and oral hypoglycemics with appropriate wound care. Patient showed remarkable improvement after management and was discharged home with subsequent follow up in the clinics. Bullous Pemphigoid (BP) can be diagnosed clinically with a high index of suspicion with the aid of skin biopsy and histology, and can be managed successfully even in a resource poor centre where immunofluorescence facilities are lacking

Analyses of the Leaf, Fruit and Seed of Thaumatococcus tktniellii (Benth.): Exploring Potential Uses

Thaumatococcus daniellii is an economic plant with versatile uses in Southern Nigeria. The arils attached to the seeds contain thawnatin, a non-sugar sweetener and taste modifier. This study examined the chemical constituents of the leaf, fruit and seed ofT. daniellii. The fresh fruit, on weight basis, consists of 4.8% aril, 22.8% seed and 72.4% fleshy part The leaf contained (per 100 g): 10.67 g moisture, 8.95 gash, 17.21 g fat, 21.06 g protein, 24.61 g crude fiber 17.50 g carbohydrate, 0.10 g calcium, 0.08 g magnesium, 0.01 g iron and 0.37 g phosphorus. The fruit (fleshy part) contained 10.04 g moisture, 21.08 gash, 0.93 g fat 11.53 g protein, 18.43 g crude fiber, 37.27 g carbohydrate, 0.34 g calcium, 0.30 g magnesium, 0.01 g iron and 0.21 g phosphorus. The seed contained 15.15 g moisture, 11.30 g ash, 0.21 g fat, 10.36 g protein, 20.52 g crude fiber and 42.46 g carbohydrate. Terpenoids, flavonoids, alkaloids and cardiac glycosoides were significantly present in both the leaf and fruit whereas phlobatani:n, saponin, steroids, anthraquinones and ascorbic acid were absent. Tannin was present only in the leaf. The leaf and fruit ofT. daniellii have significant nutritional and medicinal benefits. The leaf is rich in protein and fat. The fruit is a good source of minerals, particularly, calciwn and magnesiwn; the leaf is also rich in phosphoru

The prevalence of peripheral arterial disease in diabetic subjects in south-west Nigeria

Background: Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is rarely sought for and generally underdiagnosed even in diabetics in developing countries like Nigeria. PAD is easily detected and diagnosed by the ankle-brachial index, a simple and reliable test. Objectives: To determine the prevalence of PAD in diabetic subjects aged 50–89 years and the value of ankle-brachial index measurement in the detection of PAD. Method: A cross-sectional descriptive study of 219 diabetic subjects aged 50–89 years was carried out. The participants were administered a pre-tested questionnaire and measurement of ankle-brachial index (ABI) was done. The ankle-brachial index < 0.90 was considered equivalent to peripheral arterial disease. Results: The overall prevalence of PAD was 52.5%. The prevalence of symptomatic PAD was 28.7% whilst that of asymptomatic PAD was 71.3%. There were a number of associations with PAD which included, age (p < 0.05), sex (p < 0.05), and marital status (p < 0.05). The use of the ankle-brachial index in the detection of PAD was clearly more reliable than the clinical methods like history of intermittent claudication and absence or presence of pedal pulses. Conclusion: The prevalence of PAD is relatively high in diabetic subjects in the southwestern region of Nigeria. Notable is the fact that a higher proportion was asymptomatic. Also the use of ABI is of great value in the detection of PAD as evidenced by a clearly more objective assessment of PAD compared to both intermittent claudication and absent pedal pulses

Spatial variability of solar quiet fields along 96° magnetic meridian in Africa:results from MAGDAS

We have used chains of Magnetic Data Acquisition System (MAGDAS) magnetometer records of the horizontal (H) and vertical (Z) magnetic field intensities during September 2008 to August 2009 (year of deep minimum) across Africa to study their variability during the quietest international days, which coincidently associated with the sudden stratospheric warming (SSW) event in January 2009. This selection of the most international quiet days is indicative of 80% that are strongly associated with days when unusually strong and prolonged sudden SSW event occurs in January 2009. Interestingly, in January, a significant magnitude depletion of solar quiet (Sq) equivalent current was observed near noon hours around the magnetic equator (Addis Ababa, ABB) compared to any other months along with a consistent significantly reduced value across the Northern Hemisphere and moderate decrease at the Southern Hemisphere. Also, we found that Nairobi and Dar es Salaam at the Southern Hemisphere, which are close to ABB (dip equator), are strongly prone to westward electric field compared to the magnetic equator and Khartoum at the Northern Hemisphere. Significant negative values of MSq(Z) magnitudes observed near noon hours at Hermanus indicate the presence of induced currents that suggest ocean effects along with reversal to significant positive values in the afternoon, which subsided before 1800 LT in almost all the months, indicate stronger influence of ionospheric currents. On seasonal variability of Sq(H), a slight depression at ABB during September equinox is one of the evidences of seasonal Sq focus shift. Latitudinal variability of Sq near-noon hours was also investigated