Assessment of the impact of climate change on the occurrences of malaria,pneumonia,meningitis,and cholera in Lokoja City,Nigeria

This study examined the impact of climate change on the occurrence of malaria,pneumonia,meningitis,and cholera in Lokoja City,Nigeria,with the aim of investigating the spatial distribution and prevalence of the four kinds of diseases as well as the coping strategies of people in the area.We collected the rainfall and temperature data of Lokoja City during 2000-2020 from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration(NASA),and the medical records data of the four kinds of diseases from the Kogi State Ministry of Health.We also conducted a semi-structured questionnaire of 250 residents,who have experienced one of these diseases,to investigate their coping strategies with these diseases.The Pearson correlation and multiple regression analysis were used to research the relationship between the climate parameters and cases of diseases.The result showed annual variations in climatic parameters with R^(2)values of 0.0557,0.0009,and 0.4915 for rainfall,maximum temperature,and minimum temperature,respectively.A positive and significant relationship were observed between maximum temperature and malaria(r=0.80),rainfall and malaria(r=0.54),minimum temperature and meningitis(r=0.64),as well as rainfall and cholera(r=0.66)at P<0.05 level.For the regression analysis R^(2)=0.71,0.50,and 0.52 for malaria,cholera,and meningitis,respectively at P<0.05 level.During 2000-2020,cases of malaria were highest in Ward A with 15,422,while 715 cases of pneumonia were highest in Kupa North Ward.In Ward A,3787 cases of cholera were recorded to be the highest,while cases of meningitis were highest in Kupa North Ward with 2383 cases.Investigation revealed that malaria is more common in the wet season,while cholera and meningitis cases were highest in the dry season.The study revealed that the most practiced coping strategy is the use of medications by about 90%of the respondents.More studies are recommended in the study area to establish a causal link between climate change and disease occurrence,and intervention from government in form of prevention and control programmes should be vigorously implemented.

The Physico-Chemical Composition and Energy Recovery Potentials of Municipal Solid Waste Generated in Numan Town, North-Eastern Nigeria

Numan is an urban center in Adamawa State North-Eastern Nigeria. Its waste characteristics are similar to other places in sub-Saharan Africa. In this paper, the physico-chemical characterization of municipal solid waste generated in Numan Town was carried out to estimate the electrical power to be generated from it. The solid waste types were observed to comprise of polythene (27%), organic waste (24.1%), plastic (10.2%), textile (13.2%), paper (9.8%), glass (9.3%) and metals (6.4%). The moisture content as discarded and daily average solid waste generation rate are 16.49% and 0.583 kg/sec respectively. The chemical formula with and without water was determined as C923.28H1632.60O258.28N12.89S and C923.28H2099.70O494.16N12.89S respectively. The suitability of the municipal solid waste as a possible source of electrical power was also considered. The energy content of the solid waste on ash free dry-basis was determined as 20861.48 kJ/kg. The estimated power generation per day using incinerating plant at an assumed efficiency of 25% was 3031.5 kW.

Mathematical Model for the Transmission Dynamics of Zika Virus Infection with Combined Vaccination and Treatment Interventions

In this paper, we studied the transmission dynamics of ZIKV in the presence of a vector under the combined effects of treatment and vaccination in a hypothetical population. The disease-free εo and endemic ε1 equilibria were established with local stability on εo. We established the basic reproduction number Ro which served as a threshold for measuring the spread of the infection in the population using the next-generation matrix and computed its numerical value to be Ro = 0.0185903201 using the parameter values. It was established that the disease-free equilibrium εo is locally asymptotically stable since Ro < 1;meaning ZIKV infection would be eradicated from the population. The computational results of the study revealed that combining the two interventions of vaccination and treatment concomitantly proffers an optimal control strategy in taming the transmission of the virus than a single intervention strategy.

Modeling the Transmission Dynamics of the Monkeypox Virus Infection with Treatment and Vaccination Interventions

Presently, an ongoing outbreak of the monkeypox virus infection that began in Bayelsa State of Nigeria has now spread to other parts of the country including mostly States in the South-South with the Nigerian Ministry of Health confirming 4 samples out of the 43 sent for testing at WHO Regional Laboratory in Dakar, Senegal. This reminds us that apart from the eradicated smallpox, there are other poxviruses that pose potential threat to people in West and Central Africa. In this paper, we developed a mathematical model for the dynamics of the transmission of monkeypox virus infection with control strategies of combined vaccine and treatment interventions. Using standard approaches, we established two equilibria for the model namely: disease-free and endemic. The disease-free equilibrium was proved to be both locally and globally asymptotically stable if R0 &#60 1 using the next-generation matrix and the comparison theorem. While the endemic equilibrium point existed only when R0 &#62 1, was proved to be locally asymptotically stable if R0 &#62 1 using the linearization plus row-reduction method. The basic reproduction numbers for the humans and the non-human primates of the model are computed using parameter values to be R0,h &#61 9.1304 x 10-6 and R0,n &#61 3.375 x 10-3 respectively. Numerical simulations carried out on the model revealed that the infectious individuals in the human and non-human primates’ populations will die out in the course of the proposed interventions in this paper during the time of the study. Sensitivity analysis carried out on the model parameters shows that the basic reproduction numbers of the model which served as a threshold for measuring new infections in the host populations decrease with increase in the control parameters of vaccination and treatment.

Realizing Low Carbon Emission in the University Campus towards Energy Sustainability

Energy consumption increases with intensity of human activities. People consume energy for movement and other activities and the more fossil-fuel based energy used, the more carbon dioxide (CO2) emission. Since carbon dioxide is the major element of the greenhouse gases (GHG), this phenomenon has a serious implication for global warming and consequent climate change—a scenario that calls for sustainable development. This research considers the emission of CO2 from energy use within the campus of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia. Two major sources of energy consumption were identified, namely: electricity and transport. The emission for electricity was estimated based on electricity meter reading and the conversion rate in accordance with the stand-ardized conversion factors for fuel mix of the purchased electric energy as given by PTM (Pusat Tenaga Malaysia), while the associated CO2 emission for transport was estimated based on the number of miles driven (VMT—Vehicle Miles Travel) within the campus, emissions produced per litre of gasoline, and fuel economy of vehicles plying the campus in line with the Code of Federal Regulations USEPA and consistent with the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) guidelines. It was observed that high CO2 emission resulted from electricity energy consumption, and the highest emission in the transport sector was produced by commuting vehicles while emission from service delivery for cooling, lighting and other equipment was similar to national average.

Genesis and magma fertility of gold associated high-K granites:LA-ICP-MS zircon trace element and REEs constraint from Bakoshi–Gadanya granites in NW Nigeria

High-K granites dominate the rock units in the Bakoshi and Gadanya areas located in the northwestern Nigerian subshield,part of the Trans-Saharan Belt,West Africa.In this contribution,the LA-ICP-MS zircon trace element revealed the fertility of magma responsible for the high-K granites that hosts the Bakoshi–Gadanya gold mineralization.Two likely metallogenic granites types are 1)Gadanya alkali granite,with high Ce^(4+)/Ce^(3+)(mean 1485)and limited range of Eu anomalies may likely be associated with the gold mineralization,and 2)Bakoshi porphyritic granite,Jaulere biotite granite,Shanono coarsegrained granite,and Yettiti granite,all have low Ce^(4+)/Ce^(3+) ratios(mean\100,except second Bakoshi granite D2-1)with wider ranges of Eu/Eu^(*) values,thus are considered reduced granites.These reduced granites have oxygen fugacity values and Eu anomalies comparable to reduced granites associated with tin belts in Myanmar and Zaaiplaats granites in Bushveld Complex,South Africa.Ti-inZircon thermometric study revealed two thermal regimes during the crystallization of the Bakoshi–Gadanya granites:the high temperature(746–724℃):Shanono coarsegrained granite,Bakoshi granite D2-1,and Jaulere biotite granite;and relatively low temperature(705–653℃):Bakoshi porphyritic granite D1-1,Yettiti medium-grained granite,and Gadanya alkali granite.Zircon trace elements including U,Yb,Y,Nb,and Sc ratios constraint the magma source of Bakoshi–Gadanya granites to an enriched mantle metasomatized during the subduction process before its melting.Except for Gadanya alkali granite,fractionation of titanite and apatite dominate the magma evolution with limited amphibole fractionation.Melt that crystallized Gadanya alkali granite is rather saturated in zircon without accessory titanite or apatite.

Five Steps Block Predictor-Block Corrector Method for the Solution of <i>y''</i>= <i>f</i>(<i>x</i>,<i>y</i>,<i>y'</i>)

Theory has it that increasing the step length improves the accuracy of a method. In order to affirm this we increased the step length of the concept in [1] by one to get k = 5. The technique of collocation and interpolation of the power series approximate solution at some selected grid points is considered so as to generate continuous linear multistep methods with constant step sizes. Two, three and four interpolation points are considered to generate the continuous predictor-corrector methods which are implemented in block method respectively. The proposed methods when tested on some numerical examples performed more efficiently than those of [1]. Interestingly the concept of self starting [2] and that of constant order are reaffirmed in our new methods.

Complementing Water Supply through Rainwater Harvesting in Some Selected Villages of Sahel Savannah Ecological Zone in Borno State Northeastern Nigeria

One of the greatest environmental challenges that confront rural communities in Nigeria especially in Borno state is scarcity of water supply. Rainwater harvesting can reduce over dependence on centralized piped water supply and checkmate climate change. This study in two rural communities determined the water per capita use, examined water sources and then estimated the amount of rainwater that can be harvested by households in these villages. The villages are Kukurpu and Yelwa Bam in Hawul local government area of Borno state Nigeria. The choice of the villages is justified on the basis of their location in the semi-arid region of the Sahel ecological zone with lesser rainfall compared to other parts in the region. Lack of adequate access to water supply is precursor to water related diseases and challenge to sustainable development. This study used scheduled interview with households and 100 household were surveyed using simple random sampling. In each of the village, 50 observations were made Results revealed that 87% of the households rely water from hand dug wells, ephemeral streams and boreholes equipped with manual hand pumps that are susceptible to drought and frequent breakdown. Borno state where the villages are located had a mean annual rainfall of 860 mm from 1980 to 2009;however, the annual rainwater harvesting potential was put at 51.21 m3. Although over 80% are aware of rainwater harvesting practices only 2% of households harvest rainwater due to the seasonality of rain-fall coupled with inadequate water storage facilities. There is therefore the need to embark on massive rainwater harvesting with corresponding water reservoir as a way to reduce the effects of the five months dry spell experienced in the region.

Approximate analytical solutions and mean energies of stationary Schrodinger equation for general molecular potential

The Schrodinger equation is solved with general molecular potential via the improved quantization rule.Expression for bound state energy eigenvalues,radial eigenfunctions,mean kinetic energy,and potential energy are obtained in compact form.In modeling the centrifugal term of the effective potential,a Pekeris-like approximation scheme is applied.Also,we use the Hellmann–Feynman theorem to derive the relation for expectation values.Bound state energy eigenvalues,wave functions and meanenergies of Woods–Saxon potential,Morse potential,Mobius squared and Tietz–Hua oscillators are deduced from the general molecular potential.In addition,we use our equations to compute the bound state energy eigenvalues and expectation values for four diatomic molecules viz.H_(2),CO,HF,and O_(2).Results obtained are in perfect agreement with the data available from the literature for the potentials and molecules.Studies also show that as the vibrational quantum number increases,the mean kinetic energy for the system in a Tietz–Hua potential increases slowly to a threshold value and then decreases.But in a Morse potential,the mean kinetic energy increases linearly with vibrational quantum number increasing.

Estimation of Land Surface Temperature of Yola, North Eastern Nigeria Using Landsat-7 ETM+ Satellite Image

The land surface temperature of Yola (latitude 9&deg11'N to 9&deg20'N and longitude 12&deg23'E to 12&deg33'E) North-eastern Nigeria was estimated using landsat-7 ETM+ satellite images. ENVI 4.5 software, and Thermal band 6.2 were used for the estimation, land surface temperature, from Landsat-7 ETM+ imagery sensors acquired as a digital number (DN) range from 0 - 255 in thermal band. DNs were first converted to radiance values in Wm-2·sr-1·μm-1, using the bias and gain values specific to an individual pixel, then the radiance was converted eventually to surface temperature (in Kelvin). The results indicate that there is a significant variation in land surface temperature between the two different seasons in Yola. The mean surface temperatures estimated are 307.9 K and 298.1 K during the dry and rainy seasons respectively. The result obtained was compared with data obtained from Meteorological Department. The estimated land surface temperature showed a good correlation, with a difference of 2 K to 3 K.

Background Geochemistry of Soil in Part of Girei District, Upper Benue Trough, N. E. Nigeria

Soil geochemical study aimed at determining the background levels of trace and major elements in soils of a relatively small part (MAUTECH Campus) of Girei District has been carried out. The results show that the contents of trace and major elements in the area are generally low and vary by factors ranging from about 3 times (As, V), about 4 times (Ni, W), about 6 times (Cd, Rb, Be), about 10 times (Cr, Ba, Br), about 7 times (Se), about 18 times (Mo), about 30 times (Co) and about 45 times (Pb). The low contents reflect the granites and migmatite gneisses bordering the study area and suggest that the soil was derived from these granites with little contribution from the mafic gneisses. Correlations amongst elements are significant at the probability level of 0.01. Among the major elements;Mg has a strong positive relationship with Ca (0.88), and Al (0.74) while Fe is also strongly related to Al (0.69). Several trace elements have very strong positive relationship with one another: Ba-As (0.91), Be-As (0.93), Be-Ba (0.91), Cs-Ba (0.91), As-Cs (0.85), Cr-Ba (0.85), Cr-Be (0.85), Cs-Be (0.88), As-Ce (0.94) and Cs-Cr (0.86). Mn and Mo are poorly related with most of the trace elements. Among the rare earth elements, Eu is strongly related to Dy (0.98), Gd (0.99) and Lu (0.96) just as Dy is strongly related to Er (0.99), Eu (0.98), Gd (0.98) and Lu (0.98). These strong positive correlations among elements suggest that chemical and physical factors control elements associations in parent materials and soil forming processes. Consequently, the data may serve as a reference standard in the assessment and monitoring of possible future environmental issues related to trace and/or major element contamination.

Analysis of Land Use/Cover Dynamics in a Rapidly Urbanizing City: The Case of Gombe Metropolitan Area, Nigeria

The study examines the dynamics of land use/cover in a rapidly urbanizing city of Gombe in Northeast Nigeria. The objective was to apply geospatial techniques in mapping and characterization of the pattern of land use changes in the metropolis that occurred between 1984 and 2015, and assess its’ implications on the socio-economic development of the city. The Landsat satellite images of the area were acquired and classified using maximum likelihood algorithm in identifying the historical trend in the land use changes. The application of Multi-Layer Perception (MLP) neutral network in the prediction of land use changes in the area reveals that Gombe metropolis has witnessed a phenomenal growth in size (133%) between 1991 and 2003. This growth was largely brought by changes in political status of the city that reflected in the socio-economic functions it performs. A 10-year trend in the growth forecast (2015-2055) reveals lack of abatement in the rapidity of this growth pattern. The consequences of this growth include the aggravation of the existing slumps, problems of infrastructure and housing among others. It is recommended that zonal-based planning approach be adopted within the framework of a master plan to tackle the existing and future development needs of the city. The implications of the findings are further discussed.

Influence of Heating Time of Shea Nuts (vitellariaparadoxa) on Some Chemical Properties of Shea Butter

The experiment was conducted in the laboratories of the Departments of Chemistry and Animal Health and Production Technology, Adamawa State University, Mubi, Nigeria. The experiment was replicated three times in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) and consisted of six heating time 30, 60 and 120 minutes boiling, 30, 60 and 120 minutes roasting and one control. Data were collected on acid value, free fatty acid, iodine value, peroxide value, saponification value and unsaponifiable matter. The data collected were analyzed statistically using Generalized Linear Model (GLM) procedure of statistical analysis system (SAS). The means that were significantly different were separated using Least Significant Difference (LSD). The results showed that there were highly significant differences (P ≤ 0.01) among the treatments. The highest Acid Value (AV) of 3.53 and 3.64 were recorded by heating time at 120 minutes of boiling and 120 minutes of roasting. Heating time at 30 minutes of boiling, 30 minutes roasting, 60 minutes boiling and 60 minutes roasting recorded lower Free Fatty Acid (FFA) values of 1.52, 1.55, 1.57 and 1.58, respectively. Heating time at 60 minutes of roasting and 60 minutes of boiling recorded the highest Iodine value (IV) of 43.80 and 43.53, respectively. Based on the results of this study, it can be concluded that heating time of 30 or 60 minutes by boiling or roasting are better than longer heating times for Shea butter extraction.

An Evaluation of the 11^thSeptember, 2009 Earthquake and Its Implication for Understanding the Seismotectonics of South Western Nigeria

The evaluation of an intra-plate earthquake that occurred on Friday, 11th September, 2009 and felt in parts of Abeokuta, Ago-Iwoye, Ajambata, Ajegunle, Imeko, Ijebu-Ode, Ilaro and Ibadan, all in south western Nigeria is presented. This event has been the largest inland earthquake recorded since the inception of digital seismological recording in Nigeria in 2008 was incepted. The event was recorded by three seismological stations operated by Centre for Geodesy and Geodynamics (CGG), Toro. Data obtained from the CGG stations and others distributed around the world were analysed to determine precise earthquake locations and focal mechanism and to assess the regional tectonic stress. The data recorded in MiniSEED format at a sampling rate of 40 samples per second (sps) were analyzed using the SEISAN earthquake analysis software. The resultshowed an epicentral location situated about 108 km west of Lagos, a focal depth of 10.0 km and an origin time of 03:10:21.60 GMT. The local and moment magnitudes were 4.5 and 4.2 respectively. The P-wave to S-wave velocity ratio was 1.72. The fault plane solutions obtained for the rupture process indicated that a normal dip-slip fault with median solution of strike 325°, dip 40° and rake?-90° was the probable trigger mechanism for this earthquake. It suggested that the event was a reactivation of a buried high-angle fault in the Precambrian basement represented by the contemporary northeast-southwest trending regional horizontal compressive stress. Generally, the seismotectonics of the region was linked to the fracture zones in the Atlantic Ocean.

Effect of Mechanical and Chemical Scarification on Germination of Dodder (Cuscuta campestris Yunck.) Seed

Experiments were carried out to evaluate the effect of seed treatment on germination of Cuscuta campestris. This may provide the possible ways to overcome the problem of dormancy in Cuscuta campestris. The experiments were conducted in the Laboratory of Crop Production and Horticulture, Modibbo Adama University of Technology, Yola, Adamawa State, Nigeria, using mechanical scarification and tetraoxosulphate (VI) acid (H2SO4). For the mechanical scarification the treatments were unscarified, scarified using sandpaper and scarified using gravel arranged in a completely randomized design (CRD) and replicated four times. For the tetraoxosulphate (VI) acid (H2SO4) scarification, the treatment of control, 9:1, 7:3, 1:1, 4:6, 3:7, 2:8 and 1:9 H2SO4 were laid out in a Split plot design and replicated three times. The mechanical scarification was not significant (P ≤ 0.05), a rapid increase of germination from day 3 to day 9 was observed, and the highest rate of germination percentage (14% - 22%) obtained on day 9. Tetraoxosulphate (VI) acid treatment of 4:6 concentrations significantly gave the highest C. campestris seeds germination percentage (40.07%) compared with the rest of the treatments, while the time of soaking the seeds in the tetraoxosulphate (VI) acid showed that soaking the seeds for 1 minute significantly gave the highest percentage germination (39.98%) of C. campestris compared with the 3 and 5 minutes soaking treatments. It can be concluded that sulphuric acid of 4:6 concentrations treatments has the potentiality to break dormancy of C. campestris seeds.

Mathematical Model of the Dynamics of Rumor Propagation

In this study, we proposed a deterministic mathematical model that attempts to explain the propagation of a rumor using epidemiological models approach. The population is divided into four classes which consist of ignorant individuals, I(t), spreaders targeting community through media, M(t), spreaders targeting community through verbal communication, G(t) and stiflers, R(t). We explored existence of the equilibria and analyzed its stability. It was established that rumour-free equilibrium E0 is locally asymptotically stable if R0<1;meaning rumor can seize spreading in a population, and unstable if R0>1 leads to new rumor spreading in the population. Numerical simulations of the dynamic model are carried out on the system to confirm the analytical results. We see that the dynamics of rumor spreading show similar behavior to that found in the dynamics of infectious diseases except that the spread depends on the classes of spreader.

Functions and Implications of Circular RNAs in Antiviral Immunity

In addition to mature mRNAs, splicing of pol II transcripts generates numerous other RNAs including circular RNAs (circRNAs). circRNAs are a group of transcripts generated by non-sequential back splicing or forward splicing of exons, introns or a combination of both from a donor to an acceptor target. This forms covalently closed RNA molecule i.e. without free 5’ end caps or 3’ Poly (A) tails thereby making them more stable than their linear counterparts. Though they are recognized as part of non-coding RNAs, long noncoding precisely;evidence of translations has been reported from these molecules. circRNAs are considered emerging new members of the gene regulatory family. These circRNAs have several potential modes of action, some of which serve as microRNAs sponges shown in Table 1, protein binding RNAs, cellular transports, transcriptional regulators and modulating immune system. Viral circRNAs may evade immune recognition by many proposed mechanisms. These include undergoing slicing by host splicing machinery, being single stranded lacking free 5’ and 3’ ends, having miRNA sponge function, convenient regulatory functions which include initiating lytic replication, etc. Pattern of expression of these circRNAs differs from healthy individuals to different stages of viral infectious diseases. Thus, their use as potential biomarkers for diagnostics and future therapeutics targets have been proposed, especially with regards to viral infections that seem impossible for the human immune system to totally eliminate like the Epstein- Barr viral infection. So, this review summarizes the functions and implications of circRNAs regarding antiviral immunity.