Preliminary Studies on Piliostigma thonningii seeds: Proximate analysis, mineral composition and phytochemical screening

Qualitative determination of chemical and nutritional composition of Piliostigma thonningii, an underexploited crop seed in Nigeria, was carried out. Seeds of P. thonningii were found to be rich in crude protein, carbohydrate, and mineral elements. Mineral analysis of P. thonningii showed the seed as good source of antioxidant micronutrients such as iron, calcium, selenium, zinc and manganese. The phytochemical screening of the seed showed the presence of saponins, flavonoids, phenolics, glycosides, anthraquinones as well as cardiac glycosides while tannins, steroids, phylobatannins and triterpenes were absent. Although the oil has a very low peroxide value and high iodine value, it cannotbe recommended for consumption because of the low yield as well as its repulsive odour. The seed, however, can serve as a cheap source of protein, energy, as well as antioxidant micronutrients supplements in both man and animal

Some haematological and biochemical profile of blood of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) fed on diets containing watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) seedmeal

The haematological and biochemical profile of blood of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) fed on diets  containing watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) seedmeal were evaluated using packed cell volume (PCV);  haemoglobin content (Hb), white blood cell count (WBC), red blood cell count (RBC), mean corpuscular  haemoglobin (MCH), mean corpuscular volume (MCV), mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration (MCHC), blood glucose, cholesterol, total protein, albumin and globulin as indices. 150 tilapia fingerlings of average  weight 6.12±0.05g were acclimatized for a week, weighed and allotted into five dietary treatments; DT1, DT2, DT3, DT4 and DT5 containing 0, 15, 30, 45 and 60% Citrullus lanatus replacement levels with soybean meal, respectively. The diets were isonitrogenous and isolipidic. Each treatment was replicated three times with ten fish per replicate. Fish were fed 5% body weight on two equal proportion per day. The results from the study indicated that there was no significant difference (p>0.05) in the haematological and biochemical parameters of the blood of fish fed on the various dietary treatments.Keywords: Blood biochemistry, Citrullus lanatus, haematology, tilapia, watermelo

Ivermectin treatment of Loa loa hyper-microfilaraemic baboons (Papio anubis): Assessment of microfilarial loads, haematological and biochemical parameters and histopathological changes following treatment.

Individuals with high intensity of Loa loa are at risk of developing serious adverse events (SAEs) post treatment with ivermectin. These SAEs have remained unclear and a programmatic impediment to the advancement of community directed treatment with ivermectin. The pathogenesis of these SAEs following ivermectin has never been investigated experimentally. The Loa/baboon (Papio anubis) model can be used to investigate the pathogenesis of Loa-associated encephalopathy following ivermectin treatment in humans. 12 baboons with microfilarial loads > 8,000mf/mL of blood were randomised into four groups: Group 1 (control group receiving no drug), Group 2 receiving ivermectin (IVM) alone, Group 3 receiving ivermectin plus aspirin (IVM + ASA), and Group 4 receiving ivermectin plus prednisone (IVM + PSE). Blood samples collected before treatment and at Day 5, 7 or 10 post treatment, were analysed for parasitological, hematological and biochemical parameters using standard techniques. Clinical monitoring of animals for side effects took place every 6 hours post treatment until autopsy. At autopsy free fluids and a large number of standard organs were collected, examined and tissues fixed in 10% buffered formalin and processed for standard haematoxylin-eosin staining and specific immunocytochemical staining. Mf counts dropped significantly (p0.05). All animals became withdrawn 48 hours after IVM administration. All treated animals recorded clinical manifestations including rashes, itching, diarrhoea, conjunctival haemorrhages, lymph node enlargement, pinkish ears, swollen face and restlessness; one animal died 5 hours after IVM administration. Macroscopic changes in post-mortem tissues observed comprised haemorrhages in the brain, lungs, heart, which seen in all groups given ivermectin but not in the untreated animals. Microscopically, the major cellular changes seen, which were present in all the ivermectin treated animals included microfilariae in varying degrees of degeneration in small vessels. These were frequently associated with fibrin deposition, endothelial changes including damage to the integrity of the blood vessel and the presence of extravascular erythrocytes (haemorrhages). There was an increased presence of eosinophils and other chronic inflammatory types in certain tissues and organs, often in large numbers and associated with microfilarial destruction. Highly vascularized organs like the brain, heart, lungs and kidneys were observed to have more microfilariae in tissue sections. The number of mf seen in the brain and kidneys of animals administered IVM alone tripled that of control animals. Co-administration of IVM + PSE caused a greater increase in mf in the brain and kidneys while the reverse was noticed with the co-administration of IVM + ASA. The treatment of Loa hyper-microfilaraemic individuals with ivermectin produces a clinical spectrum that parallels that seen in Loa hyper-microfilaraemic humans treated with ivermectin. The utilization of this experimental model can contribute to the improved management of the adverse responses in humans

Omics-based molecular techniques in oral pathology centred cancer: Prospect and challenges in Africa

: The completion of the human genome project and the accomplished milestones in the human proteome project; as well as the progress made so far in computational bioinformatics and “big data” processing have contributed immensely to individualized/personalized medicine in the developed world.At the dawn of precision medicine, various omics-based therapies and bioengineering can now be applied accurately for the diagnosis, prognosis, treatment, and risk stratifcation of cancer in a manner that was hitherto not thought possible. The widespread introduction of genomics and other omics-based approaches into the postgraduate training curriculum of diverse medical and dental specialties, including pathology has improved the profciency of practitioners in the use of novel molecular signatures in patient management. In addition, intricate details about disease disparity among diferent human populations are beginning to emerge. This would facilitate the use of tailor-made novel theranostic methods based on emerging molecular evidences

Printing education and poverty eradication in Nigeria

One of the key goals of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger. In the Nigerian context,  unemployment is a major cause of poverty which can be eradicated through empowerment and wealth creation. Printing technology, a technical based  course offers benefits in this regards. Today, digital technologies have  brought a paradigm shift to the business models used in the printing industry. For this reason, an analysis of the printing curriculum being currently used in the polytechnics offering courses in printing technology is undertaken to find out how responsive the curriculum is to the needs of the contemporary printing industry. The findings show that the printing technology curriculum, although digital technology focused, is hugely production-based, requiring diversity to meet the current thinking in today’s printing and graphic communication industry. To this end a number of recommendations are made to strengthen printing education in Nigeria.Keywords: Poverty, printing education, curriculum, digital technolog

Safety evaluation of the extract from the shoots of Arctotis arctotoides in rats and mice

The aqueous extract from the shoot of Arctotis arctotoides (L.f.) O. Hoffm (Asteraceae) was evaluated for its acute toxicity by the oral route in mice and for the sub-acute effect on haematological,biochemical, and histological parameters in rats. In the acute toxicity test, A. arctotoides caused no death even up to 3200 mg/kg dose. Oral treatments with this extract at 500, 1,000 and 2,000 mg/kg didnot cause any significant change in the red blood cell count, packed cell volume, haemoglobin concentration, mean corpuscular volume, mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration, and mean corpuscular haemoglobin. It did cause a significance increase in white blood cell count and its differentials. The extract caused a significant decrease in the levels of some liver enzymes, blood urea nitrogen, potassium, total and conjugated bilirubin. Changes were noted in the body and organ weights while variable changes were observed in the levels of some electrolytes. No significant lesions were observed in the organs examined. The result indicated that the plant may be relatively safe for medicinal uses