Search

Introduction: Highest proportion of most vulnerable Nigeria neonates are concentrated in hard-to-reach local villages without proper intervention devices owing to unavailable electric power. Hence, majority of needy neonates continue to lose their lives due to their inability to journey to urban cities where few inadequately equipped neonatal intervention centres are located. The Nigerian healthcare system requires the neonates to make the often-treacherous journeys, travelling into the cities in search of possible intervention. This system has continued to fail generations of precious neonates who could have survived otherwise. It is therefore imperative to device a technique that could enable the reversal of the patient traffic – by “taking our medicine to them right where they are" instead of waiting for them to come to our medicine right where we are at urban locations. Methods: Solar-based applicable devices and simplified neonatal intervention procedures operable by basic medical and nursing officers were developed. The technologies were fundamentally tailored for maintainability by the local people. This empowers the confidence of treating many of the regular neonatal emergencies at primary healthcare centre located within the villages. Uncomplicated treatable cases are believed to constitute over 65% of all cases and hence could be adequately supported. Appropriately remanufactured tricycle was modified to operate ambulatory services for referring the cases requiring specialist care in the city. Conclusion: Successful implementation of this concept and its scale-up could guarantee over 75% reduction of neonatal mortality within a controlled geographical region.

The study examined the effect of financial reforms on the performance of quoted manufacturing firms in Nigeria. The study used an expo-facto research design. The study population comprises 44 manufacturing companies quoted at [1], which include Agriculture, Conglomerates, Consumer goods, Healthcare / Pharmaceuticals, Industrial goods, and Natural Resources. Thus, using a study period of 10 years (2010 – 2019) data on financial sector reforms (financial deepening, domestic credit, liquidity, market capitalisation, exchange rate and interest rate) carried out in Nigeria, being the independent variable and on performance (capacity utilization). Panel structured secondary data were collected and analyzed using the Generalized Moment of Methods (GMM) in STATA 15. The financial reform indicators: financial deepening (FDP), domestic credit, market capitalization, liquidity and exchange rate have p-values less than 0.05 (5%) level of significance, thus implying that the financial reforms’ indicators affect the performance as proxied by the capacity utilization of the manufacturing firms in Nigeria. Although, the interest rate which is one of the indicators of financial reforms returns a p-value greater than 0.05 (5%) and thus not having significant effect on the performance of the firms. The study suggested that the manufacturing firms should put measures to optimize the use of accessible funds to ensure optimal capacity utilization, as this will translate into increased productivity, profitability, and financial stability. The government should vigorously pursue monetary policies to ensure the injection of funds into the financial sector, to enhance the capacity of deposit money banks to allocate more credit to the sector at affordable rates. This will enable the optimal operation of the manufacturing sector in Nigeria.

Background and objectives: The plant kingdom has proven to be the most useful in the treatment of diseases and they provide an important source of all the world’s pharmaceuticals. Balanites aegyptiaca is an evergreen plant containing large varieties of chemical substances which possess important therapeutic properties and can be utilized as food supplement. The aim of the study was to carry out proximate, phytochemicals and identification of chemical compounds using aqueous fruit extract of Balanites aegyptiaca. Methods: The proximate and phytochemicals analysis were carried out by standard protocols of AOAC, While The phyto-constitutes of Balanites aegyptiaca aqueous fruit extract were determined by Gas Chromatography (Agilent 6890 series) coupled with HP-5MS column mass spectrometer. The helium was used as carrier gas at a flow of 1.0ml/min. The identification of the constituents of aqueous fruit extract was performed by matching their mass spectra and retention indices with those obtained from authentic samples and/or NSIT/Wiley spectra libraries, using different types of search (PBM/NIST/AMDIS) and available literature data. Results: The phytochemical analysis reveals that the aqueous fruit extract of Balanites aegyptiaca contained flavonoids (288.33+3.01 mg/100g), tannins (20.50+0.4mg/100g) saponin (320.90+10.28mg/100g), Glycoside (163.92+0.33), steroids (36.40+0.80mg/100g), alkaloids (78.67+1.03mg/100g) and phenols (227.43+1.01mg/100g) while Terpenoids and Anthraquinones, Anthocyanines were found to be absent. The proximate analysis of the fruits of Balanites aegyptiaca; revealed that the moisture content was 2.3±0.2%, crude protein 3.2±0.08%, crude fibre 16.4±0.5%, lipid content 3.1±0.7, carbohydrates 72.6±1.6% and ash content 2.4±0.2%. The GC-MS Analysis shows the presents of many important organic compounds in which three were reported to have biological activity this includes Benzene, [(methoxymethoxy)m ethyl]-, Undecanoic acid Hexadecanoic acid, ....

In this study, TiO2 nanoparticles were synthesized by a sol–gel method involving the interaction of the titanium isopropoxide precursor and sodium hydroxide followed by calcination at a temperature of 450 °C. The effects of stirring time and solution pH on the morphology, phase types and crystallite sizes were investigated. The prepared TiO2 nanoparticles were characterized using X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), high resolution scanning electron microscopy (HRSEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), selective area electron diffraction (SAED), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The HRSEM/HRTEM micrograph showed the formation of well distinct TiO2 nanoparticles with spherical shapes except at pH 2. FTIR spectroscopy showed the presence of the Ti–O stretching modes and Ti–O–Ti vibration modes in the samples. Crystallite size and lattice strain at peak broadening of TiO2 nanoparticles were studied using Williamson–Hall analysis and Scherrer’s equation. It was found that W–H crystallite sizes were significantly different from the sizes obtained from Scherrer’s equation at basic medium (pH 8–12) under the applied conditions of stirring time and solution pH for TiO2 nanoparticles. XRD pattern demonstrated the formation of pure anatase phase of TiO2 irrespective of the solution pH and stirring time. XPS analysis showed the existence of the Ti 2p orbital in the oxidation states of + 4. The study demonstrated that stirring time and solution pH determined the crystallite sizes and not the phase types.

Maize is an economically important cereal crop cultivated worldwide depending on suitable climate condition. maize production is hindered by biotic and abiotic factors. Salinity is one of the major factors that affect maize yield. Plant respond to salinity by changes in their antioxidant enzymes activities which include Catalase (CAT), Superoxide dismutase (SOD), Peroxidase (POX), ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and glutathione reductase (GR). In the present study, maize seedlings were subjected to salinity stress at a different concentrations of 50 mM, 100 mM and 150 mM NaCl and were watered regularly with normal pure water. Root, mature leaves and young leaves were collected after 21 days of sowing and antioxidant enzyme activities in the collected samples were assayed using enzymatic method. A significant (P

Lubricating oil producers are shifting attention toward the use of renewable and biodegradable energy sources for the production of lubricating oils. This is necessitated by the depleting mineral based energy sources and the negative impact of continuous usage of engine oils from fossil sources. Biomass sources are cheap, environmentally friendly, and offer a good alternative to the conventional mineral oil sources. Biolubricants provide lubricity for two moving-surfaces in contact. They are essential for heat transfers, power transmissions, lubrication, and corrosion inhibition in machinery. However, the use of biolubricating oils are associated with challenges such as poorer low temperature properties and poor oxidative stability during usage. Chemical modification of vegetable oils with polyols has been explored as a potential source for biolubricant synthesis and production. This paper provides a concise review of the use of trimethylolpropane (TMP) as the polyol used for chemically-modified biolubricants using vegetable oils as base stocks. TMP improves the physicochemical properties of biolubricants and enhances the thermo-oxidative stability of the biolubricants. Keywords: Chemical modification, Biolubricant, Lubricating oils, Vegetable oils, Trimethylolpropane

Background: Tuberculosis is one of the most important infectious diseases of humans and cattle in Africa. This study aimed at reporting a transmission of zoonotic Mycobacterium africanum between human and cattle. Methods: A bull was tested positive for Mycobacterium infection based on single caudal fold intradermal tuberculin test, but showed no gross TB pathological lesions after post-mortem meat inspection. The cattle rearer was also diagnosed with active pulmonary TB in a hospital. The cattle rearer’s sputum and the bull’s bronchial, retropharyngeal and mediasternal lymph nodes were obtained, processed and cultured, where tubercle bacilli was isolated. The isolates were subjected to SD Bioline TB Ag MPT64 as well as Genotype MTBC. Results: Both the rearer’s sputum as well as the bull’s lymph nodes yielded Mycobacterium africanum which is primarily a human pathogen and has rarely been isolated from cattle. Based on our knowledge, this is a first case of possible human to cattle transmission of Mycobacterium africanum in the study area. Conclusions: The isolation and identification of M. africanum species from both human and cattle is of epidemiological and public health importance especially to abattoir workers and cattle rearers. An animal attendant with active pulmonary TB may represent an important source of the disease for animals, spreading the bacilli via sputum, urine or faeces. The report highlight the importance of M. africanum and it zoonotic public health implications between humans and cattle transmission. Measures for control should be instituted.

Background: In Nigeria, neonatal jaundice is commonly treated by overhead phototherapy with neonates lying supine, often with effective exposure of less than one half of the body surface. Total body exposure in phototherapy has been in use for less than 2 years in Nigeria, but is available in only five neonatal centres.Aim: To compare the effectiveness of total body exposure (TBPE) with the conventional partial exposure (COPT) for treatment of hyperbilirubinaemia.Methods: Eleven datasets from 10 neonatal units across Nigeria were retrieved. They included neonates with severe hyperbilirubinaemia treated with TBPE using the Firefly® device (MTTS Asia) as a test group. The remainder of the patients, the controls, were treated with COPT. Any requirement for exchange blood transfusion (EBT) in either group was documented. Total serum bilirubin (TSB) >213.8 μmol/L (12.5 mg/dL) was treated as severe hyperbilirubinaemia. The efficiency of the intervention was determined according to the time taken for a severe case to be downgraded to mild at ≤213.8 μmol/L.Results: A total of 486 patients were studied, 343 controls and 143 cases. Mean (SD) postnatal age was 6 days (0.7) for cases and 5 (0.9) for controls, for gestational age (GA) in completed weeks was 36 (0.5) for cases and 37 (0.7) for controls and for birthweight was 2.7 kg (0.25) for cases and 2.7 (0.22) for controls. Mean (SD) pre-intervention TSB was 299.3 (35.7) μmol/L for cases and 327.3 (13.9) for controls. Severity downgrade day was Day 2 (0.4) for cases and Day 5 (1.1) for controls. Overall relative EBT rate was 6% for cases and 55% for controls (p= 0.0001), and early preterm relative EBT rate was 0% for cases and 68% for controls (p < 0.01).Conclusion: TBPE was quicker and safer for reduction of hyperbilirubinaemia and patients rarely required EBT. TBPE is recommended for rapid reduction of serum bilirubin levels and the reduction of treatment costs, morbidity and mortality in low- and middle-income countries.Abbreviations: EBT, exchange blood transfusion; TBPE, total body exposure technique; COPT, conventional partial exposure; TSB, total serum bilirubin; SB, serum bilirubin; NNJ, neonatal jaundice; SCNU, special care neonatal unit; LMIC, low- and middle-income countries; HIC, high-income countries; LED, light-emitting diode.

The use of vegetable oils as a renewable source for the production of ecofriendly biolubricant is gaining the attention of the renewable energy researchers and lubricating oil producers. This study evaluates the quality assessment parameters of ecofriendly biolubricant from waste cooking palm oil (WCPO). The crude WCPO was filtered, centrifuged at 500 rpm, and dried over Na2SO4 crystals overnight. The quality assessment parameters of the pretreated WCPO (PWCPO) were determined to authenticate its potential for the production of multigrade lubricating oils. Kinematic viscosities at 100°C (8.26±0.03 cSt) and 40°C (36.98±0.01 cSt) were determined according to ASTMD-446 method, while the viscosity index (208±0.11) was determined according to ASTMD-2270 method. A design of experiment (Mixture Design Method using Minitab 17) was used to determine the proportion of PWCPO (68.75%), SN 500 (23.75%), and additives (7.50%) that gave the mixture with the optimum quality parameters of the produced biolubricant. The produced biolubricant had kinematic viscosities at 100oC (10.72±0.13 cSt) and 40°C (59.32±0.20 cSt) respectively, a viscosity index of 173±0.10, flash point of 234±1.13°C, pour point of -31±0.10°C, acid value of 21.04±1.21 mg KOH g-1, and iodine value of 1.28±1.40 mg I2 g-1. The produced biolubricant has quality parameters that are comparable to available ecofriendly lubricating oil and was also found within standards for engine oils.

Many countries have promoted biofuels to address energy security, environmental concerns as well as to improve the socio-economic well-being of rural people. This paper evaluates lifecycle net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, energy consumption and energy balances in the production chain of sugarcane molasses-based bioethanol in Kenya. Sugarcane molasses-based bioethanol production involves sugarcane cultivation, cane milling, bioethanol conversion, co-generation and wastewater treatment. The study used economic allocation to partition GHG emissions and energy inputs between sugar and molasses. The lifecycle GHG emissions were estimated at 270.87 gCO2eq per litre of bioethanol produced. The total energy consumption was evaluated to be 22.39 MJ per litre of bioethanol produced. The energy balances calculated values per litre of bioethanol were; net energy value (NEV) = -1.19 MJ, net renewable energy value (NREV) = 19.75MJ and net energy ratio (NER) = 14.62. The negative value of NEV indicates that to produce a litre of bioethanol require greater energy than its energy content. The high positive values of NREV and NER indicate a low amount of fossil fuels are required to produce a litre of bioethanol. Sensitivity analysis on the effects of bioethanol yield and price of molasses on GHG emissions and NER was performed. The study found GHG emissions and NER to be sensitive to bioethanol yield and price of molasses. The results of this study were compared to results of molasses based bioethanol obtained in other countries.

Biofuels have been promoted in many countries for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and fossil fuel consumption. Sweet sorghum has gained traction as a viable bioethanol feedstock due to its short maturity period as well as being drought resistance. This study evaluates greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and energy inputs in the production of sweet sorghum stalk juice-based bioethanol in Kenya. The bioethanol production stages include cultivation, milling, bioethanol conversion and co-generation. The study estimated the GHG emissions to be 424.19 gCO2eq per litre of bioethanol produced. The total energy consumption was calculated to be 10.08 MJ per litre of bioethanol produced. For energy balances per litre of bioethanol, the study obtained; net energy value (NEV) = 11.12 MJ, net renewable energy value (NREV) = 19.68 MJ and net energy ratio (NER) = 13.6. The positive value of NEV indicates that the total energy consumption to produce a litre of bioethanol is less than its energy content. The high positive values of NREV and NER indicate low amount of fossil fuels are required to produce a litre of bioethanol. The study used mass allocation to partition GHG emissions and energy inputs at each stage/operation of the sweet sorghum lifecycle. Sensitivity analysis on the effects of stalk, juice and bioethanol yields on GHG emissions and NEV was performed. The study found GHG emissions to be sensitive to stalk yield and NER to be sensitive to bioethanol yield.

Background: The bubble continuous positive airway pressure (bCPAP) technique is widely applied in neonatal respiratory support. Commercial bCPAP brands are expensive in Nigeria and this has driven ...

Evaluation of 15 F1 hybrids and six parents obtained from partial diallel crosses was carried out during 2011 rainy season at Institute of Agricultural Research (IAR) Samaru, Zaria Striga infested field and Striga free field (2 environments). Interrelationships of grain yield and its components under Striga infestation revealed that character ear height had positive and highly significant phenotypic correlation with grain yield (rph = 0.55)**. While the remaining six characters recorded no significant correlation with grain yield. Similarly, Striga related parameters with Striga affected traits indicated high and highly significant positive correlation between Striga count one with Striga count two (rg= 0.79, rph = 0.92 and re = 0.96)** and Striga rating (rg = 0.84, rph = 0.71 and re = 0.77)** and also had highly significant positive genotypic correlation with number of leaves per plant (rg = 0.79**) Striga count two exihibited high and highly significant positive phenotypic and environmental correlation with the traits Striga rating (rph = 0.78**and re = 0.71**) and number of leaves per plant (rph = 0.64** and re = 0.55**). While Striga rating recorded highly significant positive genotypic correlation (rg = 0.89**) coefficient rph = 0.78** and rph= 0.97** respectively. At Striga free environment grain yield was positively significantly correlated with 1000 grain weight (rph = 0.43* and re = 0.45*), highly significantly positively correlated at genotypic level (rg= 0.69)**, phenotypic level (rph = 0.52)* and environmental level (re = 0.43)* with number of leaves per plant. Furthermore, plant height with grain yield recorded highly significant positive correlation genotypically, phenotypically and environmentally with the following coefficients (rg = 0.86, rph= 0.67 and re = 0.58)**, and likewise ear height and grain yield revealed significantly positive correlation with the following coefficients rg = 0.45*, rph = 0.48* and re = 0.49*. Thus characters such as ear height, plant height, number of leaves per plant and 1000 grain weight should be taken into cognizance when selecting high yielding genotypes. Hybrids TZEEI 11 x TZEEI 3, TZEEI 11 x TZEEI 7 are outstanding in performance, especially grain yield and TZEEI 11 is good for hybrid formation. Key words: correlation, Striga parameters, grain yield and Striga affected traits.

Cassava is grown by small-scale farmers and consumed by over 200 million people in sub-Saharan Africa mainly as staple food. An emerging viral disease Cassava brown streak disease (CBSD) caused by Cassava brown streak virus (CBSV) and Ugandan cassava brown streak virus (UCBSV), has severely affected cassava production and resulted in poor quality tubers. The disease severely affecting root quality both for domestic use and marketing and has become a real threat to the livelihoods of the millions of poor in both eastern and southern African countries. There is also increase in the number of CBSV and UCBSV sequences available now, and a need to have primers that would detect all isolates of CBSV and UCBSV is required, particularly for field surveys. Two sets of virus-specific primers, CBSVF2 & CBSVR7 and CBSVF2 & CBSVR8, were developed to specifically detect CBSV and UCBSV respectively on six glass house maintained isolates and field collected samples from coastal Kenya. Positive samples produced expected PCR products of 345 bp and 441 bp using CBSVF2 & CBSVR7 and CBSVF2 & CBSVR8, respectively. In addition, our study further confirmed the genetic diversity of these viruses by sequencing over 41 new samples from Kenya as well as Tanzania and Zanzibar. The coat protein, partial HAM1 and 3' UTR regions of CBSV and UCBSV were amplified using CBSVF2 & CBSVR1 and CBSVF2 & CBSVR2, respectively. The PCR products of ~1.6 Kb obtained were extracted from gel, cloned and sequenced. The sequences of the UCBSV and CBSV isolates varied in length; 1678 nucleotide for UCBSV isolates and 1615 nucleotide for CBSV isolates. CBSV and UCBSV sequences were used to the construct phylogenetic trees by comparing with other sequences from GenBank. The phylogenetic tree clustered the CBSD isolates in two groups reflecting the two virus species causing CBSD. Based on the available sequences (~1600 bases), the CBSV group shared 93.7% nucleotide identities, UCBSV 93.1%, and there was ~70% identity between the two groups. However, the percentage nucleotide identities for coat protein nucleotide sequences were slightly greater than those observed for the sequences involving partial HAM1 and 3'UTR region. CBSV group shared 94.4% nucleotide identity, UCBSV 93.5% and ~74% identity between the two groups. In conclusion, this study has shown the genetic diversity between CBSV and UCBSV isolates collected from Kenya with those from Tanzania and Zanzibar.Keywords: Brown streak virus, cassava, Kenya

It is acknowledged that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) may encounter different ethical issues and pressures that could affect the way in which they strategize or make decisions concerning the outcome of their business. Therefore, this research aimed at assessing entrepreneurial ethics in the business of SMEs in Nigeria. Secondary data were adopted as source of corpus for the analysis. The findings conclude that a sound entrepreneurial ethics system has a significant effect on the level of performance of SMEs in Nigeria. The Nigerian Government needs to provide both guiding and physical structures; as well as learning systems that could inculcate these entrepreneurial ethics., {"references":["S. Bayraktaroğlu and S. E. Yilmaz, \"The Relationship between Business Ethics Practices and Organizational Performance in Human Resource Management: The Case of the Fortune 500 Turkey,\" Turkish Journal of Business Ethics, 2012, Vol. 5, Issue 2","M. E. Ogbari1, A. O. Oke, A. A. Ibukunoluwa, M. A. Ajagbe, & A. C. Ologbo, \"Entrepreneurship and Business Ethics: Implications on Corporate Performance,\" International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, 2016, Vol. 6 issue S3, pp. 50-58.","R.S. Kaplan and D.P. Norton, \"The Strategy-Focused Organization,\" Harvard Business Review Press, 2000.","J. W. Creswell, \"Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research.\" Pearson Education Inc. 2012","J. A. Hanekom, \"Technological Ethics, Social Ethic.\" NG: Kerkboekhandel. 1984.","M. E Guy, \"Ethical Decision Making in Everyday Work Stations.\" New York: Quorum Books. 1990","R. Charak \"Entrepreneurship-Concept\" Published on Dec 15, 2012 https://www.slideshare.net/libracharak/entrepreneurship-concept","S. Shane, and S. Venkataraman, \"The Promise of Entrepreneurship as a Field of Research,\" The Academy of Management Review. 2000, vol. 25, No. 1, pp. 217-226.","C. Álvaro, R. Domingo and R. Salvador (Eds.) \"Entrepreneurship: Concepts, Theory and Perspective\" Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, NewYork. 2007, pp. 1-20\n[10]\tM. Simpson, J. Padmore & N. Newman, \"Towards a new model of success and performance in SMEs,\" International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, 2012, Vol. 18, No. 3, pp. 264-285.\n[11]\tM. A. Memon, and I. M. Tahir, \"Size and operational performance of manufacturing companies in Pakistan using data envelopment analysis.\" Journal of Information Engineering and Applications, 2012, Vol. 2, No. 4, pp. 39-49.\n[12]\tN. Mirela, M. Costel, \"Key Performance Indicators in Small and Medium Sized Enterprises\" TEHNOMUS -New Technologies and Products in Machine Manufacturing Technologies, pp. 46-53. Available from http://www.allresearchjournal.com/archives/2016/vol2issue3/PartI/2-2-131.pdf\n[13]\tA. DeGroff, M. Schooley, T. Chapel, and T. H. Poister, \"Challenges and strategies in applying performance measurement to federal public health programs.\" Evaluation and program planning, 2010, Nov; Vol. 33, No. 4, pp. 365-372.\n[14]\tT. G. Yirgalem and P. Viswanadham \"Performance measurement of small scale enterprises: Review of theoretical and empirical literature\" International Journal of Applied Research 2016, Vol. 2, No. 3, pp. 531-535\n[15]\tM. Franco-Santos, M. Kennerley, P. Micheli, V. Martinez, S. Mason, B. Marr, D. Gray and A. Neely, \"Towards a definition of a business performance measurement system\". International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 2007, Vol. 27, pp. 784-801.\n[16]\tS. N. Zulkiffli and N. Perera. \"A Literature Analysis on Business Performance for SME's: Subjective or Objective Measurers\" Society of Interdisciplinary Business Research. 2011, pp. 1-9 \n[17]\tT. D. Wall, J. Michie, M. Patterson, S. J. Wood, S. Maura, C. W. Clegg, and M. West, \"On the validity of subjective measures of company performance.\" Personnel Psychology, 2004, Vol. 57, pp. 95–118.\n[18]\tE. T. Ebitu & S. B. Beredugo, \"Business Ethics and the Performance of Service Firms in Calabar, Coroos River State, Nigeria.\" European Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Research, 2015, Vol 2, No 2, pp. 28-38\n[19]\tJ. Withey and B. N. Schwartz. \"The Ethical orientation of Aspiring Entrepreneuers\". Journal of Academic and Business Ethics. 2014, Vol. 8, \n[20]\tD. H. Jared, J. S. Harry, and E. B. Norman. \"Ethics and Entrepreneurship\" Journal of Ethics and Entrepreneurship. 2011, Vol. 1, No. 1, pp. 7 – 26 \n[21]\tR.A. Buchholz, and S.B. Rosenthal, \"Toward a Contemporary Conceptual Framework for Stakeholder Theory\" J Bus Ethics 2005, Vol: 58 No. 1, pp. 137- 148. doi:10.1007/s10551-005-1393-8\n[22]\tK. Odubajo, and A. Usman \"Relevance of small scale enterprises in development of Nigerian economy,\" Journal of Banking, 2001, pp. 14-19.\n[23]\tA.S. Abubakar, and Z.A., Yahya \"Strengthening small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as a strategy for poverty reduction in North Western Nigeria,\" American Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences. 2013, Vol.1 (3).\n[24]\tB. Oyelaran-Oyeyinka, M. Adelaja, and B. Abiolo, \"Small and medium enterprises cluster in Nigeria,\" Ibadan Mosuro Press, 2007.\n[25]\tJ. Sanusi, \"Welcome address by the Central Bank of Nigeria at the Launching of Small and Medium Equity Investment scheme NICON Sauser,\" LI. Starting your own Business. SAM Management in practice 31, 2001.\n[26]\tNational Population Commission (NPC), ICF International Workshop on Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey, Abuja, Nigeria, 2014.\n[27]\tR. O. Akingunola, \"Small and Medium Scale Enterprises and Economic Growth in Nigeria: An Assessment of Financing Options\" Pakistan Journal of Business and Economic Review 2011, Vol. 2, No. 1.\n[28]\tD. Snagdross, and T. Briggs, \"Industrialization and Small Firms Pattern and Policies,\" 1996. In A.M. Safiriyu and B.O. Njogo, \"Impact of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises in the Generation of Employment In Lagos State.\" Arabian Journal of Business and Management Review. 2012, Vol. 1(11): 107-141\n[29]\tM. D. Little, D. Mazumdar, and J. M. Page, \"Small Manufacturing Enterprises: A Comparative Analysis of India and Other Economies.\" New York: Oxford University Press. 1987.\n[30]\tS. Park, \"Supply Management in Small and Medium-sized Enterprises: Role of SME size,\" International Journal of Supply Chain Forum. 2011, Vol.\n[31]\tS.S. Pingle, \"A Comparative study of the HRM Practices in small and Medium Enterprises, Journal of Management Research. 2014, Vol.xiii(1)\n[32]\tJ. Lombardo, \"Organizational Ethical Climate: Definition, Issues & Improvement\" Instructor: study.com/academy, Chapter 8, lesson 1. http://study.com/academy/lesson/organizational-ethical-climate-definition-issues-improvement.html#lesson\t\n[33]\tK. D. Martin, J. B. Cullen, \"Continuities and Extensions of Ethical Climate Theory: A Meta-Analytic Review\". Journal of Business Ethics, 2006, vol. 69, No 2, pp. 175-194."]}

Plant information are vital to assess and develop nutrition, food security policies, traditional medicine and its significance in the distribution of these chemical constituents, as a result, the nutritional and phytochemical composition of Gardenia sokotensis pulp and seeds were analyzed. The moisture content, ash content, crude lipid, crude protein, crude fibre, calorific energy value and available carbohydrate were analyzed on dry weight bases. All the determinants were carried out in triplicates. The pulp had high value of ash (17.88 ± 0.41%), moisture (21.71 ± 0.00%) and crude lipid (53.96 ± 1.59%) while the seeds had high value of crude protein (13.04 ± 0.47%), crude fibre (17.65 ± 0.14%), carbohydrate (9.67%) and energy value (1445.87Kcal). The anti-nutritional factors for pulp and seeds were phytate (0.14 ± 0.00), (2.30 ± 0.00), oxalate (1.10 ± 0.00), (1.10 ± 0.00), nitrate (0.04 ±0.00), (0.14 ± 0.00), cyanide (0.12 ± 0.00), (0.21 ± 0.00) and tannins (0.21 ± 0.00), (0.27 ± 0.00) respectively and all were within the tolerable level. The results of mineral analysis of the seeds and pulp showed different concentration of the element, Na (106.67 and 85.83), K (5700 and 7666.67), Ca (0.6833 and 0.4333), Mg (0.2500 and 0.8266), Fe (4.2914 and 6.7959), Zn (1.3639 and 0.1522), Cu (1.5298 and 2.1755), Cr (0.0096 and 0.0163), Mn (0.2615 and 0.3101), Pb (0.0594 and 0.0657), Co (0.0447 and 0.1195) and for phosphorus (3.4700 and 10.3000). Phytochemical screening indicated the presence of alkaloid, saponins, steroids, tannins, cardiac glycosides and flavonoids. Based on these results, seeds and pulp of Gardenia sokotensis contains appreciable amount of nutrients and secondary metabolite which could serve as a supplementary source of food and new drug discovery for the benefit of humans and livestock.

The Strychnos innocua (monkey orange) fruits were randomly collected from various locations in Zuru town of Kebbi State, Nigeria. The seeds of mature fruits were separated manually from the pulp and analysed for proximate, minerals, anti-nutritional compositions and physico-chemical analysis. The results showed that, the seed on dry weight basis (DW) contained crude protein (9.36±0.29%), crude lipid (25.0±0.82%), ash (6.0± 0.14%), available carbohydrates (56.31± 0.50%) and calorific value (487.67± 67.55 kcal/100g). The mineral elements (mg/100g DW) analysed showed that, the seed is rich in potassium (383.33±12.47), sodium (203.33±20.55), magnesium (23.67±1.25), iron (5.97 ±0.05), zinc (21.47±0.05), and manganese (3.67±0.05). Results of anti-nutritional analysis in the samples indicates high content of total oxalate (26.25±5.30mg/100gDW) and phytic acid (858.95±13.14mg/100gDW) respectively. With corresponding low concentration of cyanogenic glycosides, nitrate and saponins. Prediction of minerals bioavailability indicated that calcium and iron are not bioavailable due to oxalate and phytate content of the fruit. The oil had Saponification, Iodine, acid and Peroxide value of 151.20±0.16mgKOH/g oil, 14.53±0.06g/100g, 14.55±0.26mgKOH/g oil and 8.06±0.49meq/kg oil respectively.

This study investigated the socio-economic factors influencing adoption of dual-purpose cowpea production (DPC) technologies among farmers in Bichi Local Government Area of Kano State, Nigeria. Data were collected with the use of questionnaire administered to 200 farmers selected randomly. Descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and step-wise multiple regression were used to analyze the data. Findings indicated that 35.7% of the farmers were within 41-50 years. The largest percentage (24.5%) had a family size within the range of 11-15, with a mean of 8. Majority of the farmers had formal education, ranging from primary to post-secondary. They had more than 1ha of land, with a mean of 2.2ha. They all participated in one form of farmers’ organization or the other. The mean adoption rate was 77.5%. The use of improved seeds and insecticides had the highest adoption score (100%). Result of the correlation analysis indicated that level of education, household size, farming experience; number of ruminants owned, social participation and

This study was design to identify the causal agent of Horsegram yellow mosaic disease and to investigate the pathogenicity of Horsegram yellow mosaic viruses (HgYMV) infective clones. The samples were obtained using standard method from the two main horsegram growing areas of Bangalore, Karnataka State of India. The viral DNA from horsegram plants exhibiting severe symptoms was amplified by PCR. An isolate of HgYMV1 and HgYMV2 were associated with severe symptom phenotype from HgYMV. Full-length clones of DNA-A and DNA-B genomic components were constructed and attempts were made to introduce homologous (HgYMV1/HgYMV2) combinations of DNA-A and DNA-B genomic components into Nicotiana benthamiana plants. Inoculation of linearized constructs containing full-length clones or partial head-to-tail dimers of DNA-A and DNAB genomic components resulted in the introduction of DNA-A genomic components into the host plant. However, these combinations of genomic DNA component were not detected in the inoculated plants bombarded using the gene gun. Thus, this study was unable to confirm the pathogenicity of HgYMV infective clones using N. benthamiana as model plant. Keywords: Horsegram, Begomovirus, yellow mosaic viruses , Particle bombardment, Gene gun

The molecular diversity of Begomovirus infecting Horsegram yellow Mosaic viruses (HgYMV1 and HgYMV2), from two main horsegram growing farms near Bangalore, Karnataka State, South India was investigated. The viral DNA was amplified from horsegram plants exhibiting mild and severe symptoms by polymerase chain reaction, and complete genome of the HgYMV were identified by their sequence analysis. Isolates of HgYMV1 and HgYMV2 were found to be associated with severe symptom phenotype from HgYMV. HgYMV was most closely related to Mungbean yellow mosaic indian viruse (MYMIV) and Mungbean yellow mosaic virus (MYMV) at 81.8 to 84.8 % nucleotide identity, based on DNA-A and DNA-B component sequences. HgYMV was distantly related to Dolicos yellow mosaic virus from Asia (DoYMV-Ban and DoYMV-DB) and partially to Cowpea golden mosaic virus from Nigeria (CPGMV-[NG]) at 64 and 62 % DNA nucleotide identity. Analysis of the DNA-B sequence of HgYMV revealed a DNA-B component identical to those of Bean golden yellow mosaic virus BGYMV isolates described. Furthermore, the DNA-B component for extant BGYMV isolates and strains were also the closest relatives for the HgYMV1 DNA-B components at 48.7 % nucleotide identity. Therefore, HgYMV could be considered to be a new species of the genus Begomovirus (family Geminiviridae). Keywords: Begomovirus, Horsegram, yellow Mosaic viruses , DNA sequencing

Parasitic leiomyoma is a rare, benign smooth muscle tumor occurring in an extrauterine location. Their unusual growth pattern may mimic malignancy and, hence, could pose diagnostic and management challenges. Myxoid degeneration is further rarer finding in leiomyoma. There are few published cases of parasitic leiomyoma in our setting, hence, this report. A 52-year-old female presented with 4-year history of painless, progressive abdominal swelling with associated anorexia, weight loss, and body weakness. Abdominal examination revealed non-tender, nodular mass of 24 weeks size. Ultrasound scan showed a large well-defined heterogeneously hyperechoic right pelvic tumor crossing the midline. She had exploratory laparotomy; however, the histology confirmed parasitic leiomyoma with myxoid degeneration. Parasitic leiomyoma is an uncommon extrauterine benign tumor that mimics abdominopelvic malignancies. Meticulous clinical evaluation with radiologic and pathologic findings is the key to the otherwise challenging diagnosis.

Genotype x environment interaction was determined from a field experiment conducted to evaluate sorghum landraces of North Western Nigeria during the 2010 rainy season at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, teaching and research farm, Sokoto, Sokoto State and during 2011 rainy season at Bubuche, Augie Local Government Area, Kebbi State, North-Western Nigeria. The materials used in the study consisted of ten indigenous grain sorghum genotypes representing the types widely grown in North-Western Nigeria. The treatments were laid out in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) and replicated three times. Data were collected on sorghum traits in accordance with the procedure outlined in the IBPGR/ICRISAT sorghum descriptor. The study revealed that genotype by environment interaction had significant influence on only plant height (6804.4**), leaf area index (0.86*) and flag leaf length (67.99*). Indicating that selection for plant height, flag leaf length and leaf area index is environment dependent. However, leaf number (8.68), leaf length (96.44), flag leaf area (3131.93), straw weight (3.8), 100-seed weight (34.68), and total grain yield (1233080) recorded non significant G x E influence. Selection for these traits can therefore be carried out across the two environments. Key words: Biomass, environment, genotype, influence, sorghum.

This study aimed at evaluating the fermentative performance of Saccharomyces cerevisiae isolated from palm wine on honey slurry and dates palm fruit juice blend for wine production. The yeast was isolated from palm wine on saboraud dextrose agar (SDA) using pour plate technique and was identified using microscopic and standard biochemical techniques. Physicochemical parameters were determined during 21 days fermentation using standard procedures. The proximate composition of the blend before fermentation and the produced wine was evaluated. The microbiological and sensory evaluations of the produced wine was investigated. The yeast strain was identified as Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The fermentation recorded total viable yeast count from 2.5x106 to 13.0 x 106 CFU/mL. The physicochemical parameters revealed that during the fermentation, the pH values ranged from 4.3 to 5.4, percentage titratable acidity (TTA) ranged from 5.2 to 9.4. The temperature of the fermentation ranged from 24 to 29°C and the specific gravity values decreased steadily from 1.100 to1.010. Proximate composition of the date fruit revealed low protein content between 1.00 and 1.05, but high moisture content (82.43%). The produced wine contained reasonable amount of total carbohydrate A (19.59%), B (25.28%), C (22.7%) and D (21.88%). There were variations on other proximate compositions observed. The produced wine was not contaminated with bacteria and fungi. Sensory evaluation of the wine revealed acceptable aroma/flavor and taste. This study indicates that Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain from the palm wine have good fermentative performance which suggested that it could be used for fruit wine production and other industrial applications preceded by further experiments.

Bridelia ferruginea is extensively used in Nigeria traditional and folk medicines to cure various human ailments. The preliminary phytochemical screening of the plant parts revealed the presence of tannins, saponins, flavonoids and alkaloids. The in vitro antibacterial studies were carried out on both crude extracts and fractions obtained after column chromatography against medically important bacterial strains including; Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Micrococcus species and Pseudomonas aeruginosa for different concentrations of 30mg/ml, 60mg/ml, 90mg/ml, and 120mg/ml. The results of antibacterial assay revealed that both crude extracts and fractions showed good inhibitory activity against all the tested bacteria compared with standard antibiotics. The active fractions gave four spots on the Thin Layer Chromatogram. The detection of other metabolites coupled with antibacterial activities of the plant calls for further work on the plant and its active compound towards development of new drugs for the benefit of humanity. Keywords : Bridelia ferruginea, phytochemical, crude extract, antimicrobial activity, zone of inhibition

The present study developed a PCR protocol using designed sequence virus-specific sets of primers (HYMV-A1500F & HYMV-A1500R and D-HYMV-B2200F & D-HYMV-B2200R) for the amplification of the complete DNA-A and DNA-B components of lima bean isolate of Horsegram yellow mosaic virus (HgYMV-Lb). The PCR products were cloned and sequenced. The nucleotide sequences of HgYMV-Lb was determined and compared with those of other whitefly-transmitted geminiviruses. The length of the single-stranded DNA-A and DNA-B components of HgYMV-Lb were 2735 and 2670 nucleotide, respectively. The DNA-A sequences were found most similar to the corresponding sequences of begomovirus species infecting legumes by up to 97% nucleotide identity. The DNA-B sequences were most similar to isolates of both Mungbean yellow mosaic virus and Mungbean yellow mosaic India virus at approximately 70% nucleotide identity. The genome organisation of HgYMV-Lb was also similar to that of a typical begomovirus bipartite genome. The DNA-A component has six Open Reading Frames (AV1/CP, AV2, AC1/REP, AC2/TrAP, AC3/REn, and AC4) and DNA-B has two (BC1 and BV2). The number, size and arrangement of the Open Reading Frames in the genome were similar to the Old world begomoviruses. In addition, phylogenetic analysis of DNA-A sequence clustered HgYMV-Lb into a group of legume-infecting begomoviruses from the Indian sub-continent, particularly with Mungbean yellow mosaic virus. Based on DNA-B sequences, HgYMV-Lb was clustered into the group with Mungbean yellow mosaic virus infecting soybean in Madurai (MYMV-Sb:Mad) and Mungbean yellow mosaic India virus in Bangladesh (MYMIV-BD:Yb). Thus, based on the PCR and sequence analysis, the association of a bipartite begomovirus with lima bean showing symptoms yellow mosaic disease in India was confirmed. Also, it was identified that the begomovirus was a novel isolate of previously described Horsegram yellow mosaic virus . Keywords : Horsegram, Lima bean, Yellow mosaic virus , Begomovirus

Thirty five local sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) accessions were collected in an expedition in North-Western Nigeria, covering Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna, Kano and Jigawa States in September 2011. The germplasm accessions were maintained at Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto. Data on leaf colour, leaf sheath colour, thrashability, ligular process, spines (pubescence), stem colour and bud groove were collected. The study indicate that shape of the accessions could be used either directly or indirectly as a selection tool for pest resistance and mechanical cultivation in sugarcane. Leaf sheath colour and number of green leaves per plant could form additional selection tools for high photosynthesis efficiency to the already existing ones. Key words : Evaluation, Sugarcane, Germplasm, Characters, Accessions

Five onion cultivars Red Creole, Kaharda, Koumassa, Sokoto local and ori were selected on the basis of diverse genetic backgrounds with respect to resistance to Alternaria porri (Ellis.) Cif. The cultivars were crossed in a complete diallel, the 25 F1s generated and their parents were evaluated in replicated yield trials at Sokoto in Sokoto State and Talata Mafara in Zamfara State, Nigeria, during the 2004/2005 and 2005/2006 dry seasons. The experiments were laid out in a randomised complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. Analysis of the variance component for the combined seasons and locations indicate that genotypic variance was greater than the environmental variance for all characters under consideration with exception of bulb weight. Disease incidence recorded 31.20%, 30.58% and 5.42% as phenotypic, genotypic and environmental coefficients of variability. Disease severity recorded 34.96%, 32.84% and 11.00% as phenotypic, genotypic and environmental coefficients of variability. With respect to fresh bulb yield 94.90%, 93.53% and 15.78% were observed as phenotypic, genotypic and environmental coefficients of variability for the genotypes. Cured bulb yield recorded 103.47%, 102.27% and 14.96% respectively as phenotypic, genotypic and environmental coefficients of variability. Similarly 29.43%, 24.79% and 17.91% were observed for days to maturity, as phenotypic, genotypic and environmental coefficients of variability. Variability was found to exist among the genotypes for the various characters they were evaluated for.

Five empirical models for the prediction of root depth developed with time under four combinations of crop and tillage management systems have been developed by the method of polynomial regression. Root depth predictions by a general model were severally correlated with root depth predictions by the combination-specific models and measured root depth data from five grown under four combinations of crop and tillage management. Root depth development with time assumed a curvilinear trend and was best described by polynomial equations, of order four, with correlation coefficient(r) between 0.961 and 0.974. Root depth predictions by the general model correlated well with both the root depth predicted by the combination-specific models (0.996≤ r ≤1.00) and the measured root depth data (0.849≤ r ≤0.996), thus indicating that the general and combination-specific models can be used interchangeably in predicting root depths under any of the four crop and tillage management combination studied. JARD Vol. 1 2001: pp. 51-66

Myomectomy at the time of cesarean section has traditionally been discouraged due to the risks of hemorrhage and increased postoperative morbidity. However with the new frontiers in surgical practice, successfully performed cesarean myomectomies in selected patients has continuously been reported. Two cases of multiple uterine leiomyoma coexisting with pregnancy were selected, counseled, and had elective cesarean myomectomy. The first patient was a 38-year-old primigravida with 22 years history of subfertility. Her antenatal period was largely uneventful. Her evaluation revealed a singleton pregnancy coexisting with multiple uterine fibroid. At 38 weeks of gestation, she had cesarean section and myomectomy. Thirty-six seedlings were removed. The largest was 12 Χ 8 cm and she lost 1 L of blood. She was discharged home on the 8 th postoperative day in good condition. The second case was a 33-year-old primigravida who was diagnosed with uterine fibroid in pregnancy. She also had an uneventful antenatal care and at 38 weeks gestational age, she had the removal of a huge intramural leiomyoma from the lower uterine segment (12 Χ 14 cm) during cesarean section to get access to the baby. She lost 1.2 L of blood and was transfused two pints of blood. Her postoperative condition was satisfactory. She was discharged home on the 7 th postoperative day. Cesarean myomectomy can be successfully performed with careful planning, patient selection, and skillful surgery. However, blood transfusion services should be available.