Accelerating Discovery
Academic Journals accelerates the dissemination of knowledge through the publication of high quality research articles using the open access model.
November 2011
Effect of five medicinal plants used in Indian system of medicines on immune function in Wistar rats
Today, the use (which we can say ‘return to nature’) of traditional herbal medicines, herbal health products, pharmaceuticals food supplement, cosmetics, etc. is increasing due to the growing recognition that natural products are safe; have either no or negotiable side effects. The objective of this study was to investigate the immunomodulatory properties of five different medicinal plants used in Indian...
March 2012
Study on the chemical composition and extraction technology optimization of essential oil from Wedelia trilobata (L.) Hitchc.
The chemical composition of hydro-distilled oil from the ground aerial parts of Wedelia trilobata (L.) Hitchc. was analysed by gas chromatography/gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC/GC–MS). 18 compounds representing all the oils were identified. The main components were demonstrated to be α-phellandrene (28.84%),...
January 2011
Beekeeping sub sector challenges and constraints in Atsbi Wemberta District of eastern zone, Tigray Region, Ethiopia
Though beekeeping is a common farming enterprise and income generating activity in Atsbi Wemberta, and promotional efforts were made to improve it, no systematic study has been undertaken to evaluate the promotional efforts and people’s response to it. The objectives of the study were to identify beekeeping sub sector constraints; and to assess perception of beekeepers towards improved beekeeping practices....
February 2012
Biosafety systems in Eastern and Central Africa
This review examines the biosafety systems of selected countries in the Eastern and Central Africa. The biosafety systems are meant to safeguard human health, animal health and the environment against any possible risks posed by development and application of modern biotechnology. Though the focus is in the Eastern and Central African region, the study gives an overview of worldwide biosafety frameworks as...
August 2012
Unsupervised data mining technology based on research of stroke medication rules and discovery of prescription
For collecting and sorting literature on treatment of ancient and modern stroke at the entry point, frequency and charts analysis methods were applied. Modern computer technology and statistics were used to do in-depth study of stroke literature data, explore stroke differentiation of symptoms and signs and regular treatment by ancient physicians. On this basis, the unsupervised data mining technology was applied to...
February 2014
Isolation and classification of fungi associated with spoilage of post-harvest mango (Mangifera indica L.) in Saudi Arabia
A survey was conducted between May and July to assess the extent of loss in mangoes at wholesale and consumer levels caused by fungal spoilage during post-harvest. Mango fruits were purchased from different markets in Saudi Arabia, and the degree of losses due to fungal spoilage was assessed at the different levels of marketing. Fungal spoilage was found to be the highest at the consumer level and least at the wholesale...
November 2011
Academic staff knowledge sharing intentions and university innovation capability
Knowledge is originated from the intelligence of individuals and is visible in the tasks, systems, procedures, norm and customs and is really difficult to imitate. Knowledge economy has changed the theme of innovation management. Knowledge sharing not only reduces the cost of the production or service, but also contributes to the success of the organization because knowledge sharing helps in avoiding the...
July 2016
Instructional misconceptions of prospective chemistry teachers in chemical bonding
This paper is a report of an action research which attempts to detect and correct various misconceptions in chemical bonding retained by some pre-service chemistry teachers who were in their third and fourth year in the university. At systematic and elaborate instructional sessions, questioning approach, micro teaching, and structured essay test were employed to detect misconceptions while concept mapping blended with...
November 2009
Physical properties of Tylosemia esculentum and the effect of roasting on the functional properties of its flour
The physical properties of two varieties of morama beans and the effect of roasting on the functional properties of their flours were studied. Majority (65, 92.5, 79%) of the seeds has medium dimensions (17.0 - 19.99, 14.0 - 19.99, 12.0 - 14.99 mm) of length, width and thickness respectively. The size of the morama bean (MB) follows a normal distribution, being much heavier than most other oil seeds and legumes with...
January 2012
Medetomidine elicit variable effects on sedative indices, hematological and physiological parameters in domestic pigeons (Columba livia)
The effects of graded doses of medetomidine (100, 150, 200 and 250 µg/kg) on hematology as well as physiological and sedative indices were evaluated in this study using domestic pigeons. Sedation ranging from sternal to lateral recumbency, as well as adequate muscle relaxation was observed. The longest sedative effect was observed using the highest dose which was statistically significant (P < 0.05) from the...
December 2012
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) seroprevalence and pregnancy outcome among obstetric population in Abakaliki, Southeast Nigeria
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection has become a pandemic worldwide especially among the obstetric population where prevention of mother to child transmission (PMTCT) of the infection is still a major challenge. The objective of this study is to determine the prevalence of HIV seropositivity and pregnancy outcome among obstetric patients in Abakaliki, Southeast Nigeria. A retrospective review of all deliveries...
November 2012
Process optimization and mechanistic studies of lead (II): Aspergillus caespitosus interaction for industrial effluent treatment
The lead (II) accumulation potential of various biosorbent had been widely studied in the last few years, but an outstanding Pb(II) accumulating biomass still seems crucial for bringing the process to a successful application stage. This investigation describes the use of non-living biomass of Aspergillus caespitosus for removal of Pb from Pb(NO3)2 solution in a batch system under different experimental...
October 2013
Energy savings, cogeneration of electricity and water use in rural areas: Case study of Algarrobo irrigation community
This study analyzed the effects of irrigation modernization on energy savings, cogeneration of electricity and water conservation, using the Algarrobo irrigation community (Spain) as a case study. Traditional surface irrigation systems and modern sprinkler systems occupy 73 and 27% of the irrigated area, respectively. Virtually all the irrigated area is devoted to field crops. Nowadays, farmers are investing...
February 2011
The relationship between savings and investment in Iran: Testing Feldstein's and Horioka's theory
This paper focuses on the relationship between savings and investment in Iran's economy. Based on the results of this study, there is a long-run equilibrium relationship between savings and gross domestic investment, and direct significant effect of savings on investment in the long run is stronger than that in the short run. Thus, considering Feldstein's and Horioka's theory, a hypothesis of complete...
July 2017
Application of sequence specific amplified polymorphism (SSAP) and simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers for variability and molecular assisted selection (MAS) studies of the Mexican guava
Molecular markers have proven to be powerful tools in research related with diversity, variability, and improvement of economically important tropical crops. This study analyzed eight physiological and morphological fruit characters of economic interest in the cultivated Mexican guava (Psidium guajava L.), and assessed the suitability of two sequence specific amplified polymorphism (SSAP) and simple sequence repeat...
February 2012
Bioactivity of two extracts from Alpinia officinarum rhizome against Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) adults
The bioactivities of two solvent plant extracts prepared from Alpinia officinarum Hance rhizome, a traditional Chinese herbal plant were investigated against Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) adults in the laboratory. The rhizome extracts were prepared byn-hexane and methylene chloride extraction. Both extracts had significant repellent activity against T....
July 2011
Biological remediation of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) in the soil and sediments by microorganisms and plants
It is a known fact that the environment is suffering from severe contamination as a result of various uncontrolled activities of man and chemicals in the biosphere. This acute and diffuse contamination of air, soil and water by metals, chemicals and metalloids causes wide environmental concerns, which if left unchecked will be detrimental to man and organisms. Biological methods for cleaning of the environment...
December 2014
Natural resource use conflict in Bale Mountains National Park, Southeast Ethiopia
Conflict over natural resources including wildlife, forest, land and water is common particularly in developing countries. It is extremely difficult to sustainably manage a resource if it is under conflict. This study aimed to assess the causes of resource use conflict in Bale Mountains National Park and attitudes of local community towards the Park. Finally, to find measures to reduce resource use conflict. This study...
December 2011
Participatory wildlife management in Serengeti, Tanzania: Lessons and challenges from community based conservation outreach project
Participation in natural resources management is a recent development in the modern biodiversity conservation. However it is challenged by the designing of community conservation outreach projects, socio-economic factors, and the cultural contexts of the communities. This paper addresses the participation of local people in wildlife management in the west of Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. It is based on...
February 2010
Modification of gravitational field equation and rational solution to cosmological puzzles
The present article has systematically solved the problem of galaxy formation and some significant cosmological puzzles. First a mistake with Einstein’s equation of gravitational field is corrected, next space-time is proved to be infinite, cosmic expansion and contraction are proved to be in circles, the singular point of big bang is eliminated naturally, celestial bodies and galaxies are proved growing up with...
October 2013
Differential transform method for solving non-linear systems of partial differential equations
The differential transform method (DTM) has been applied to solve many functional equations so far. In this paper, we propose this method (DTM), for solving nonlinear Jaulent-Miodek and the Hirota-Satsuma equation. Numerical solutions obtained by differential transform method are compared with the exact solutions and that obtained by Adomian decomposition methods. The results for some values of the variables are shown...
November 2017
Pain as 5th vital sign: impact of pain assessment training program on Nigerian nurses’ knowledge of pain management
Pain is subjective and it can only be described by the individual experiencing it. It is the main reason why people seek medical help. Nurses play a major role in the management of pain; hence they must be highly knowledgeable to ensure their practices are of high quality. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of Nurses’ Pain Educational Program (NPEP) on nurses’ knowledge of pain management. The...
August 2012
Investigation of temperature-induced physical instability of preserved coenzyme Q10-loaded (NLC): A comparative study at different temperatures
In this work, physical stability of coenzyme Q10 nanostructured lipid carriers (NLC) with and without selected preservatives was investigated at 4 and 40°C and compared to those obtained at 25°C. The NLC dispersions were produced using the hot high pressure homogenization, and physical stability was evaluated in terms of particle size and zeta potential analysis. At 40°C, six preserved coenzyme Q10 NLC were...
October 2011
Key role of strategic human resource management (SHRM) in advancing the degree of team learning
Strategic human resource management (SHRM) is the main concern of the managers who are expanding their business at global level. It provides new avenues for the promotion of team learning in the organization. The significance of SHRM in advancement of team learning behaviour is still to be emphasized by scholars and academicians. Less emphasis is laid on the analysis of key role of SHRM in advancing degree of...
March 2017
Determinants of Adoption of Improved Technologies in Rice Production in Imo State, Nigeria
In Imo State, an increasing number of improved rice production technologies and management techniques have been introduced to rice farmers across the State. Despite the introduction of the rice production technologies, rice production continues to be low. This study therefore analyzed factors associated with adoption of improved rice production technologies in Imo State of Nigeria. Random sampling technique was used in...
October 2012
Assessment of spatio-temporal variations in surface water quality of Ghaggar River (North-Western, India) utilized for drinking and agricultural purposes
In the present study, statistical analyses (descriptive and principal component analysis) were applied to Ghaggar River surface water data set monitored in the month of June 2006 and 2007 to check spatio-temporal variations in water quality. From these, two summer observations were taken into consideration because in summer season, high concentrations are observed for different water constituents. The various...
November 2011
Some morphological changes on the kidney of adult Wistar rats following administration of crude extract of Ocimum gratissimum
This study assessed the effect of leaf juice of Ocimum gratissimum used in the treatment of convulsion, epilepsy, malaria and stomach pain on the morphology of the kidney of Wistar rats. Thirty adult Wistar rats of both sexes were separated into 5 groups; A, B, C, D and E (n = 6 per group). The Wistar rats were subjected to different doses of aqueous extract of O. gratissimum leaves in order to...
November 2012
Theoretical background of 1/f fluctuations of energy partition among harmonic oscillators in equilibrium
A physical background is derived for the generation of 1/f fluctuations that are observed ubiquitously in energy partition in quasi-harmonic oscillators that exchange energy through weak nonlinear interactions. Weak three-mode coupling terms in the unperturbed Hamiltonian bring no net transfer of energy between oscillators, but four-mode coupling terms bring about irreversible energy transfer between unperturbed...
January 2012
Misalignment between policy and practice: Introducing environmental education in school curricula in Botswana
Botswana introduced environmental education (EE) in its school curricula in 1995 to be infused in all subjects as part of an overall improvement of the school curricula. The actual infusion in practice was left to the classroom teachers offering a unique opportunity to compare what they taught and perceived as being important in environmental education with the official programme and policy. A questionnaire was...
February 2015
Comparative study on some egg quality traits of exotic chickens in different production systems in East Shewa, Ethiopia
A total of 227 eggs were collected during summer 2013 from Isa Brown (IB), Bovan Brown (BB) and Potchefstroom Koekoek (PK) chickens for comparative study of internal and external egg quality traits under intensive and village production systems in East Shewa, Ethiopia. The data collected was analyzed using SPSS and significant differences in egg quality traits were compared using post hoc multiple comparisons. Average...
January 2015
Prosperity, penury and polarization: Disaggregating the peasantry in the historiography of colonial Zimbabwe
Underdevelopment and modernization theorists have long agreed that peasant agriculture was not universally damaged and curtailed, but the two schools remain very much at odds over the general trajectory of peasant agriculture during the colonial period. This dichotomy, however, is unwarranted. In the canonical literature there is a pervasive ambiguity surrounding the term “peasant,” an ambiguity that allows...
April 2014
Productive performance and carcass characteristics of lori-bakhtiari finishing lambs supplemented with sodium bicarbonate or magnesium oxide
Effect of sodium bicarbonate (SB) and magnesium oxide (MgO) in high concentrate fed Lori-Bakhtiari lambs was studied on productive performance and carcass characteristics. Eighteen weaned (90 days old) Lori-Bakhtiari male lambs divided into three equal groups were fed basal diet. Each group received a basal diet for 75 days with one of the following three treatments: (1) no additives (NA); (2) 0.05% magnesium oxide and...
February 2012
The relationship between strategic processes of knowledge management and organizational intelligence
This paper aims to discuss the strategic processes of knowledge management in order to study the impact of these processes on organizational intelligence in 3 public organizations in Shiraz, Iran. This paper has identified strategic processes of knowledge management based on research done in the literature. For this purpose, a comprehensive questionnaire based on American productivity and quality center(APQC)...
September 2014
Concept of family among Kyrgyz and Native American tribes
The growth of technology in the world is the highest achievement of present-day civilization, but it is bringing us into a type of life and unifying our style of living, clothes, behavior and even language. Technology has replaced live communication, and this seems to be marring the borderline between diverse cultures as people become more and more technologically dependent. Smaller nations in this globalized world are...
November 2011
Palynological investigation of haze dust in Ayetoro-Itele Ota, Southwest Nigeria
The biological contents of the March 2010 hazy dust in Nigeria deserve verification due to the attendant panic it brought to the public. 3 g of dust deposited on the car bonnet of one of the authors was treated chemo-palynologically and microscopic study of the residue was carried out. The study reveals that the dust was rich in pollen grains, fungal spores and hyphae. No pteridophyte spore was recovered....
July 2017
Characterization of cassava starch films plasticized with glycerol and strengthened with nanocellulose from green coconut fibers
The aim of this study was to obtain and characterize biodegradable films of cassava starch plasticized with glycerol and reinforced with nanocellulose from coconut fibers. The mechanical and physical-chemical properties of the nano-biocomposites films obtained were evaluated. The method used to investigate the viability of incorporating coconut nanocellulose in films was applied through a statistical design of the...
October 2011
Product lifecycle management (PLM) methodology for product tracking based on radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology
Existing product lifecycle management (PLM) software solutions today do not support product tracking. These solutions only support data exchange in company about products. Recent investigations indicate growing need to trace and manage data on products even when they leave the original production system, covering other product lifecycle stages such as exploitation, servicing, EoL (End of Life) warehousing,...
April 2013
Overview of commonly used Chinese herbs
There are several Chinese herbs used as food supplement or as an alternative medicine.Fructus lycii, Panax ginseng, Cervi cornu pantotrichum, Herba epimedii and Angelica sinensis are among the most commonly prescribed. All of them have been claimed for various indications which are mainly due to their variety of active ingredients or chemical compositions. Even though Chinese herbs have...
July 2013
Antifungal effects of essential oils of three medicinal plants on post-harvest rot of Valencia oranges at normal and storage temperatures
Post-harvest rots are the main limiting factors in storing horticultural products. Currently, control of postharvest citrus diseases relies mainly on synthetic fungicides. Biologicalcontrol using naturally occurring substances has been recently explored for managing postharvest decay of citrus fruit. Essential oils of three medicinal plants (Ocimum basilicum, Mentha...
October 2011
Computation of shoreline change: A transient cross-shore sediment transport approach
It has been well understood that almost all coasts experience permanent and transient changes due to water waves and other causes in different times. Build-up and erosion of the dunes in the vicinity of the shoreline is a morphodynamic process made by the cycle of windblown fine sediments and wave surges. This phenomenon has been investigated and the beach profile change has been represented by a mathematical...
April 2009
Constraints to the delivery of clean seed yams in the lowland sub-humid tropics of Nigeria: The supply chain approach
An investigation into the seed yam supply chain was carried out to identify the components of commercial seed yam supply systems, which affect the supply of clean seed yams by smallholder farmers in Nigeria. Up to 108 respondents were used to generate data for the analysis. Data were analyzed using simple descriptive statistics. A one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to capture the mean ratings across the...
September 2010
An experimental study on vandalism: Trabzon Parks
Vandalism is an action with social, psychological, spatial and economical aspects that have negative impacts on the environment. Although it seems impossible to eliminate vandalism completely, it is thought that it may be alleviated by some spatial measures. This study is aimed at paradigm of presence and impacts of act of vandalism in open public spaces in the cities and interrogation of the measures that can be taken...
October 2010
Analysis of glutathione S-transferase (M1, T1 and P1) gene polymorphisms in Iranian prostate cancer subjects
Glutathione S-transferase enzymes are active in detoxifying a wide number of endogenous and exogenous chemical carcinogens and subsequently, are crucial in protecting the DNA. Several studies show some differences in association of glutathione S-transferase M1, T1 and P1 genetic polymorphisms with the risk of prostate cancer in various populations. The current study was done with Iranian subjects to evaluate the...
October 2013
Antimycotoxigenic and antifungal activities of Citrullus colocynthis seeds against Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus ochraceus contaminating wheat stored
Plant extracts and their constituents have a long history as antifungal agents, but their use in biotechnology as preservatives, due to the increasing resistance of fungi to fungicides, has been rarely reported. The aim of this study was to assess in vitro antifungal and antimycotoxigenic power of methanolic and aqueous extracts of Citrullus colocynthis seeds, an aromatic and medicinal plant, of Algerian flora, against...
January 2011
Protective effect of Morinda officinalis polysaccharides on bone degeneration in the aged rats
In the current study, we examined the effect of Morinda officinalis polysaccharides (MOP) on bone quality in aged rats. Rats were given orally by daily gavage at 200 and 400 mg/kg/day for 3 months, respectively. The results showed that there was a significant decrease in serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP), Interleukin 6 (IL-6) content and a significant increase in density and strength of femur and lumbar...
July 2009
Hydrogenation impairs the hypolipidemic and antioxidant effects of palm oil in rats
The effect of hydrogenated palm oil on lipid profiles and on activities of selected glutathione-dependent enzymes in rats was investigated. Male albino wistar rats were randomly divided into 2 groups, fed on fresh palm oil (control) and hydrogenated palm oil (HPO) supplemented (5% by weight) diets respectively for 10 weeks. Serum cholesterol, liver lipid peroxidation and daily excretion of triacyl glycerol (TAG) and...
May 2007
Single-strand-specific nuclease from Basidiobolus haptosporus (Nuclease Bh1)
Nuclease Bh1 is a multifunctional enzyme and catalyses the hydrolysis of ssDNA, 3’AMP and RNA in a ratio of approximately 1:1:0.05. It is a single polypeptide chain of 30 kDa and contains 15% carbohydrate. All three activities of the enzyme showed the same pI, indicating that they are associated with the same protein. The ssDNase, 3’AMPase and RNase activities of nuclease Bh1 showed the same pH and...
April 2010
Rapid diagnosis of ETEC and HPI-harboring Escherichia coli infection in newborn piglets with diarrhea
Diarrhea is a common and important disease in industrial pig farms and the pathogenic Escherichia coli infection is the main cause of morbidity and mortality in newborn piglets. The preliminary diagnoses on this disease are mainly depending on clinical symptom and detailed body dissection. To further shorten the diagnosis time and increase the determination efficiency for newborn piglet diarrhea...
September 2014
Assessment of genetic diversity analysis in contrasting sugarcane varieties using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers
Sugarcane is an important crop in the country economically, politically and sociologically. It is the second largest agro-industry next to textiles. The selection and combination of parents for crossing rely on an understanding of their genetic structures and molecular diversity. In the present study, 28 sugarcane genotypes were used for genomic diversity analyses based on 30 randomly amplified polymorphic DNA markers...
March 2012
Protection against heat stress in wheat involves change in cell membrane stability, antioxidant enzymes, osmolyte, H2O2 and transcript of heat shock protein
Terminal heat stress causes an array of physiological, biochemical and morphological changes in plants, which affect plant growth and development. In present investigation, real time quantitative expression analysis of HSP90 gene in root showed a maximum of 2.5 fold increase in the transcript level during seed hardening stage. Similarly, in flag leaf 4.5, 4.3 and 6.5 fold increases in the transcript level were observed...
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