Abstract: Publication year: 2020Source: Frontiers in Science, Volume 10, Number 1Samrawit Yilma, Heidi Busse, Derese Tamiru Desta, Fikadu Reta AlemayehuMalnutrition is one of the public health problems in Ethiopia. Households relying on fishing for their livelihoods are assumed to consume more fish than none fish producing households. Thus, fish producing households are expected to have better nutritional status compared to none fish producing households. However, this assumption is not well studied and there is limited evidence about the consumption and the nutritional outcomes of fishing in and around Hawassa city. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine and compare fish consumption, dietary diversity and nutritional status of reproductive aged women from fishing and non-fishing households in Hawassa. A comparative cross-sectional study was conducted among 804 reproductive age women both from fishing and non-fishing households. Women from fishing households were selected by purposive sampling technique and from non-fishing households’ simple random sampling were used. Data were collected by personal interview using structured and pre-tested questionnaire. Levels of fish consumption were determined from reported frequency by the participants. Household food security status was assessed using the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES). Minimum dietary diversity and Body Mass Index (BMI) were determined to assess nutritional status. Data were entered, cleaned and analyzed by using SPSS version 22. Statistical significance was declared at p=0.05. The result shows that women in fishing households were consuming fish more frequently than from none fishing households (p
Abstract: Publication year: 2020Source: Frontiers in Science, Volume 10, Number 1Rafeza Khatun, Mamunur Rashid, AHM Khurshid Alam, Young-Ik Lee, Md Aziz Abdur RahmanThis paper represents comparative phenolic contents and antioxidant activity of available Mikania species (family-Asteraceae) in Bangladesh with folkloric reputation. These species are Mikania cordata (MC), Mikania micrantha (MM) and Mikania scandens (MS). The ethanolic extract (70%) of the selected plants were tested for total phenolics (TPC), total flavonoids (TFC), total antioxidant capacity (TAC), ferrous reducing capacity (FRC), DPPH free radical scavenging assay (DRSA), hydroxyl radical scavenging activity (HRSA) and hydrogen peroxide Assay (HPSA). The TPC of MC, MM and MS were 456.3±0.08, 271.2±0.80 and 168.1±0.83 mg of gallic acid equivalent/g of dry extract and TFC were 672.8±0.76, 349.5±0.97 and 152.8±0.76 mg of catechin equivalent/g of dry extract, respectively. The data indicated that MC contained higher amount of TPC and TFC followed by MM and MS. The TAC and FRC were in the following order: MC> MM>MS. In DRSA, the IC50 of MC was 11.50 μg/mL which was comparable to standard ascorbic acid (10.01 μg/mL) followed by MM (19.76 μg/mL) and MS (36.39 µg/mL). Same results were observed for HRSA and HPA where MC showed the most potent inhibitory activity. The TPC of MC was also positively correlated (p< 0.001) with DFSA, HRSA and HPSA. The findings conclude that Mikania cordata possesses highest antioxidative phytochemicals compare to others available mikania species, justifying the frequency of use in traditional folk medicine in Bangladesh compared to other species.
Abstract: Publication year: 2019Source: Frontiers in Science, Volume 9, Number 2Hillary M. O. OtienoPotatoes are attacked by numerous pests and diseases in the farmer fields with high potential to cause low to high yield losses. The direct and indirect nature of impact and the ability to attack at the fields and stores make potato tuber moth the most important pest in the production of potatoes. Moreover, the capacity of pathogens to have a wide range of host plants and ability to live in the soil make diseases such as Bacterial wilt, Late blight, and Verticillium wilt difficult to offer effective and lasting management solutions. For farmers to sustainably manage these constraints, the control must begin right from the initial stage of selection of fields and planting materials- all these must be free of pests and diseases. During production, farmers should manage these pests and diseases through improved soil and nutrient management and chemical application. Use of chemicals should be done with much care to avoid pollution and effect on beneficial organisms that would otherwise cause ecological imbalance.
Abstract: Publication year: 2019Source: Frontiers in Science, Volume 9, Number 1Salah H. Abid, Saad S. Mahmood, Yaseen A. OraibiThe aim of this paper is to design a feed forward artificial neural network (Ann) to estimate one dimensional noisy Asymmetric dynamical map by selecting an appropriate network, transfer function and node weights to get noisy Asymmetric dynamical map estimation. The proposed network side by side with using Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) as transfer function is used. For different cases of the system, noisy Asymmetric Logistic noisy Asymmetric Logistic -Tent and noisy Asymmetric Tent-Logistic, the experimental results of proposed algorithm will compared empirically, by means of the mean square error (MSE) with the results of the same network but with traditional transfer functions, Logsig and Tagsig. The performance of proposed algorithm is best from others in all cases from Both sides, speed and accuracy.
Abstract: Publication year: 2019Source: Frontiers in Science, Volume 9, Number 1E. C. Merem, Y. Twumasi, J. Wesley, M. Alsarari, S. Fageir, M. Crisler, C. Romorno, D. Olagbegi, A. Hines, G. S. Ochai, E. Nwagboso, S. Leggett, D. Foster, V. Purry, J. WashingtonIn the last several years, the degradation of natural areas has been occurring at an alarming proportion. Open spaces that provide habitats to different life forms are being degraded because of improper management practices, contamination, and the desire to sustain societal needs for housing, transportation etc. In the process, habitat loss stands as one of the most significant threats to biodiversity and a major environmental problem facing society. In the literature, the loss, degradation and alteration of habitats are the primary factors responsible for the global disappearance of rare species of wild animals and plants. While some may assume that habitat destruction and loss of biodiversity are problems of species rich developing nations, it has become a serious problem in the United States (US). In the state of Mississippi, most of the bottomland hardwood forests and significant portions of thousands of acres of wetlands and streams have been degraded because of sedimentation and agricultural runoff fueled by intense farming activities. Notwithstanding previous mitigation measures, there has not been a substantial effort to examine these issues alongside current initiatives in habitat conservation in Mississippi. To fill that void, the paper examines the issues in wildlife habitat conservation as well as current initiatives with emphasis on the trends and factors using mixscale methods built on integrated Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and descriptive statistics. On the one hand, the temporal profile from the results point to changes in the form of gains and declines in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) land areas with the Central and Northeast region outpacing the Southwest zones of the state coupled with degradation. On the other, GIS mapping of change, not only showed the concentration of vast natural areas dispersed statewide, but pinpointed clusters of habitats slated for restoration and mitigation. With changes attributed to unsustainable land use practices, policy lapses, limited education and poor monitoring, community efforts remain in high gear among stakeholders to ensure habitat protection. Accordingly, the paper proffered solutions based on the need for conservation, adherence to best management practices, education and support for local participation.
Abstract: Publication year: 2019Source: Frontiers in Science, Volume 9, Number 1Mario Everaldo de SouzaTaking into account a very solid quark compositeness model, based on the electrical charge densities of the nucleons found by R. Hofstadter, R. Herman, L. Durand and R. R. Wilson in the early 1960s, from which a new quantum number is deduced, and the experimental data on the Higgs boson obtained by the ATLAS and CMS Collaborations, this article shows that these collaborations have already seen the charged Higgs-like bosons by means of the WW channel. The data also imply that the charged and neutral Higgs-like bosons have similar masses, and that the Higgs-like bosons have odd parity like the other fundamental bosons of Nature. The ratio between the productions of charged to neutral Higgs-like bosons is calculated.
Abstract: Publication year: 2018Source: Frontiers in Science, Volume 8, Number 2Rehab Bader, Adel A. Guirgis, Hany KhalilHepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common disorder of liver tumor which often leads to death. Indeed the incidence of HCC has been increased worldwide particularly in developing countries. The serious risk factors associated with HCC development are hepatitis C and B virus infection. Other considered risk factors include alcohol consumption, exposure to environmental toxins such as aflatoxins, hemochromatosis, cirrhosis, diabetes and obesity. A variety of cellular signaling pathways are implicated in HCC such as vascular endothelial growth factor signaling (VEGF), fibroblast growth factor signaling (FGF) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK). Thus, in the current study we were interested to investigate one of MAPK signals, RAF/MEK/ERK pathway in HCC using HepG2 cells compared with normal hepatocytes cells. The relative gene expression of MAPK and production level of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) during cells growth have been `assessed using quantitative real time PCR and quantitative 'sandwich' ELISA assay, respectively. Our results indicate that the growth of HepG2 cells require time-dependent RAF/MEK signaling pathway; the relative expression of RAF and MEK genes are positively associated with cell growth. Further, the production level of TNF-α was increased during HepG2 cells growth in comparison with normal cells. Interestingly, both RAF/MEK pathway and production level of TNF-α are sufficiently regulated in HepG2 cells that were subjected to Raf-1 inhibitor. These data firstly reveal the important clue for exploiting the relative gene expression of RAF/MEK and production level of TNF-α in diagnosis of HCC development. Secondary, our findings provide the potential anti-cancer effect of Raf-1 inhibitor via regulation of RAF/MEK signaling and prevent TNF-α production.
Abstract: Publication year: 2018Source: Frontiers in Science, Volume 8, Number 1Musa Yakubu Tula, Grace Amara Onyeje, Ayuba JohnThe presence of bacteria indicative of faecal pollution or potential pathogen in water meant for drinking or other domestic activities is of public health significance. The problem is further complicated when these organisms exhibit multiple antibiotic resistant phenotype in addition to other virulent factors like biofilm. A total of 72 water samples were analysed for the presence of Escherichia coli and Salmonella spp by standard bacteriological methods, antibiotic susceptibility, curing and biofilm production. These include 30 from 10 brands of sachet water and 42 from 21 boreholes in seven different wards of Mubi. Thirty (41.7%) E. coli and 13 (18.1%) Salmonella spp were isolated in all the 72 water samples analysed. From these, 2 (6.7%) and 28 (66.7%) E. coli were isolated from sachet and borehole water samples respectively. All Salmonella spp were isolated from borehole water samples. Both Escherichia coli and Salmonella spp exhibit high and variable antimicrobial resistance to most of the tested antimicrobials especially amoxicillin-clavulanic acid (AMC), cotrimoxazole (SXT) and chloramphenicol (CHL). Resistant to all the antibiotics was not statistically different (P=0.172) between E. coli and Salmonella spp. Resistant markers in both E. coli and Salmonella spp were cured variably. Biofilm was produced by 76.7% and 53.8% E. coli and Salmonella spp respectively. There was significant correlation in antibiotic resistance between biofilm and non-biofilm producing strains of E. coli (P=0.044) and Salmonella spp (P=0.015). The results indicate the presence of bacteria spp of public health significance in two sources of water in Mubi which possibly exhibit plasmid mediated resistance in addition to biofilm production.
Abstract: Publication year: 2018Source: Frontiers in Science, Volume 8, Number 1Somina Braide, Elsie I. HamadinaThe absorption of Fluridone (an abscisic acid biosynthesis inhibitor), prior to yam tuber formation has been shown to induce precocious sprouting on the new tubers that form. However, the use of hydroponics system to achieve root absorption of Fluridone requires high skills and capital, and the effect of pre-tuber application of Fluridone on sprouting of yam tubers produced in a soil medium is not known. Thus, the objectives of this study were to: (1) determine the effect of 30µM Fluridone on sprouting of soil produced yam tubers, and (2) to determine the effect of different methods of applying (root and foliar application) 30µM Fluridone on the timing of sprouting of soil produced yam tubers. The treatments were: (1) nutrient solution medium (Control 1) (2) nutrient solution medium + 30µM Fluridone (root absorbed) (3) soil medium irrigated with distilled water (Control 2) (4) soil medium+ 30µM Fluridone (foliar absorbed) (5) soil medium + 30µM Fluridone (root absorbed). The study was a completely randomized design with five treatments. Results showed that Fluridone treatments induced sprouting on both aerial and new underground tubers while the controls did not. Soil + 30µM Fluridone (foliar absorbed) treatment yielded 36% less sprouting underground tubers but over 50% more sprouting aerial tubers compared to the nutrient solution + 30µM Fluridone treatment. Both treatments however, produced sprouts at 5 weeks after treatment application. Soil + 30µM Fluridone (foliar absorption) treatment induced significantly (P
Abstract: Publication year: 2018Source: Frontiers in Science, Volume 8, Number 1F. M. Maingi, H. M. Mbuvi, M. M. Ng’ang’aOne major global challenge is the existing disparity in water distribution resulting to millions of people lacking access to safe clean water. This will certainly be exacerbated by the impending climate change and increased pollution threats posed by industrialization and population growth. Therefore pursuing sustainable materials and technologies for water remediation is crucial. Adsorbents use for water treatment is preferable owing to its simplicity and cheap materials involved. Aluminophosphates molecular sieves have open-framework structures that possess a wide range of pore openings and large surface area for use as adsorbents that can be synthesized hydrothermally using alumina and phosphates. Literature reports indicate that accumulation of aluminum in tea leaves correlates positively with leaf age. The EDXRF analysis showed that tea leaves ash used contained 30.09% of Al2O3. Similarly, literature findings indicate that pumpkin seeds contain relatively large amounts of phosphorous with the pumpkin seed ash used containing 37.01% of P2O5. Consequently, aluminophosphate APA and APB were synthesized using tea leaves to pumpkin seeds ash ratios of 1:1 and 1:2 respectively. XRD characterization and lead ions batch sorption experiments were done. Turbidity column experiment was done. Data for adsorption of Pb (II) ions data on the adsorbents best fitted into the Langmuir isotherm model. Adsorption capacities obtained from the linearized graphs were 90.91 and 50.0 mg/g for APA and APB respectively. This shows that tea leaves and pumpkin waste can synthesize aluminophosphate adsorbents. Aluminophosphates have shown good potential of removing Pb (II) ions from wastewaters.
Open Access journal
