Termite Mound Clay as Material for Grain Silo Construction

Rosana G. Moreira, Editor-in-Chief; Texas A&M UniversityThis is a paper from International Commission of Agricultural Engineering (CIGR, Commission Internationale du Genie Rural) E-Journal Volume 9 (2007): Termite Mound Clay as Material for Grain Silo Construction. Manuscript BC 07 002. Vol. IX. July, 2007

Effect of Pottasium supplementation and a potassium sparing agent-spironolactone on blood pressure and vascular responses of salt loaded rats

No Abstract. NQJHM Vol. 8 (4) 1998: pp. 298-30

Temperature fluctuations within and outside a silo with treated termite mound clay as construction material

Elevated temperatures and excessive fluctuations -within a grain silo result in condensation of moisture on the inner wall surfaces and its migration within the grain bulk, leading to moulding and caking. There is the need to identify appropriate materials for silo construction that will minimize temperature fluctuations and reduce grain spoilage on storage. A 5.6m3 grain silo construction from 15mm-thick treated termite mould clay bricks tested for temperature fluctuations. Morning, afternoon and evening temperatures, and the maximum and minimum temperatures recorded over a 24hr period within and outside the silo were monitored for 60 days. The walls were physically examined for possible moisture condensation. The maximum and minimum temperatures recorded within the silo were 20°C and 30°C, respectively as against 21°C and 36°C for the ambient. The average temperature fluctuation within the silo was 9.5°C as against 10.3°C for the ambient. The temperature within and outside the silo were quite distinct without any overlap. There was no sign of moisture condensation on the wall surfaces. Grain silo constructed from termite mound clay have the potential to reduce the temperature fluctuations within the silo, eliminate moisture condensation and reduce grain spoilage

Microbial Fermentation of Water Melon (Citurullus lanatus) Seeds for Bioethanol Production

Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) is a vine-like flowering originally from Southern Africa. The microbial fermentation of watermelon seeds for me production of bioethanol was investigated. The seeds were washed dried and grounded into powder. The seed powder was then fermented for bioethanol production and the microorganisms responsible for the fermentation were isolated and characterized. Bioethanol was distilled from the fermentation. The distilled bioethanol was subjected to comparative analysis with ’the conventional ethanol. Proximate analysis of the grinded seed was carried out before and after fermentation. The organisms responsible for fermentation were identified as Lactobacillus bulgaricus, Bacillus cereus, Streptococcus lactis, Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus sp, Micrococcus spp, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Fusarium oxysporium, Mucor mucedo, Penicillium notatum, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Aspergillus fumigatus and Aspergillus niger. There was an increase in the protein content of the seed from 4.269% in the unfermented to 10.031% in the fermented. While carbohydrate reduced from 70.523% in the unfermented to 50.149% in the fermented seed. Fat content increased as well as crude fibre content. The distilled bioethanol boils at 78.4% and as a melting point of -112°C at 15°C. The refractive index was 1.360 and the flash point was 12°C. It burns with blue flame. Considering the comparison between the bioethanol produced from Citrullus lanatus seeds with the conventional ethanol, it can be used as an alternative source of biofuel.</jats:p

Detecting child psychiatric disorders during routine clinic work: A pre-interventional study of primary care physicians in Ilorin, Nigeria

Back-ground Primary care physicians (PCP) are accessible health care provider for most patients and are gatekeepers to specialist care. The extent to which they can identify children with mental health problems need to be explored. Objective: To explore the extent to which primary care physicians can identify children with mental health problems. Study setting The study was carried out at the Paediatric Clinic of the department of Family Medicine, University of Ilorin teaching Hospital, Ilorin, Nigeria. Method: A 2 staged study in which 350 children aged 7-14 years were screened with child behaviour questionnaire (Rutter Scale A2). A stratified sub-sample of 157 (all high scorers and about 30% of low scorers) were further interviewed with children version of Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia (K-SADS) by the psychiatrists. They were also evaluated by primary care physicians for the presence of mental health problems. Results: Out of the 157 children interviewed in the second stage, primary care doctors identified 12 children as having mental health problems. K-SADS identified 40 as cases, this includes 8 of the 12 identified by primary care doctors; that is, they identified 8 cases. They were poor in discriminating between cases and non- cases (P=0.012). Poor school attendance (P=0.001), frequent hospital visit (P=0.009) and long standing illness (P=0.039) were associated with case-ness. Conclusion: This study suggests that primary care physicians had difficulties in identifying mental health problems in the children. Interventions such as guideline protocols, primary care physician education and educational programmes to increase mental health literacy, may be effective in improving detection by primary care physicians

Membrane-Mediated Sars-cov-2 Host Cell Entry: Potential Inhibitory Roles of Terpenoids in Silico

Abstract Targeting viral cell entry proteins is an emerging therapeutic strategy for inhibiting the first stage of SARS-CoV-2 infection. In this study, 106 bioactive terpenoids from African medicinal plants were screened through molecular docking analysis against human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (hACE2), human transmembrane protease serine 2 (TMPRSS2) and the S proteins of SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV. In silico ADMET and drug-likeness prediction, molecular dynamics simulation (MDS), binding free energy calculations and clustering analysis of MDS trajectories were performed on the top docked compounds to respective targets. The results revealed eight terpenoids with high binding tendencies to the catalytic residues of different targets. Pentacyclic terpenoids: 24-methylene cycloartenol and isoiguesterin interacted with the hACE2 binding hotspots for the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein. 11-hydroxy-2 - (3,4-dihydroxybenzoyloxy) abieta -5,7,9 (11),13-tetraene-12-one, 11-hydroxy-2 -(4-hydroxybenzoyloxy)-abieta- 5,7,9(11),13-tetraene-12-one and other abietane diterpenes interacted strongly with the S1-specificy pocket of TMPRSS2. 3-benzoylhosloppone and cucurbitacin interacted with the RBD and S2 subunit of SARS-CoV-2 spike protein respectively. The predicted druggable and ADMET favourable terpenoids formed structurally stable complexes in the simulated dynamics environment. These terpenoids provides core structure that can be exploited for further lead optimization to design drugs against SARS-CoV-2 cell mediated entry, subject to further in vitro and in vivo studies.</jats:p