International Journal of Science for Global Sustainability
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Application of Queuing Theory in a University Clinic
Get PDFInstitutions such as banks, airlines, hospitals and telecommunication industries employ queuing theory to help in assisting the capacity levels needed to experience demand in a more optimized way for service improvement. In this article, we studied and employed the queuing theory activities of the Federal University Gusau Health Services Clinic. The distributions of patients’ arrival and service times were identified. The system was treated as a single, time-independent arrival with multiple service points. Based on the data obtained on the arrival and service processes, appropriate distributions were fitted and tested using the Chi-squared goodness of fit-test
Suction/Injection Effects on Pulsating Poiseuille Basic Gaseous Fluctuating-Micro-Flows
Get PDFThe pulsating Poiseuille fluctuating-micro-flow where the fluid flow is initiated by sinusoidal pressure gradient is investigated in this study. The flow problem is modelled and the analytical solution is obtained. The effect of suction/injection and that of other leading flow parameters such as the frequency of the fluctuating driving force, the Knudsen number and the unsteadiness are analyzed. It is found from the study that the effect of suction and that of injection are observed to be opposite; suction leads to increase while injection leads to decrease in velocity of the moving fluid
Bacterial Evaluation of Different Nigerian Currency Notes in A Nigerian University
Get PDFA total of forty samples of Nigerian naira notes (N5, N10, N20, N50, N100, N200, N500, and N1000) in circulation at five different points at Federal University Gusau, Zamfara State were analyzed for microbial contamination. The currencies were processed for bacterial growth using nutrient agar. Streak plate technique was employed for the isolation and purification of the colonies. The viable count ranged between and colony forming unit /ml with N100.00 note having the highest viable count and #5.00 note having the least viable count. The survey revealed presence of bacteria such as: Staphylococcus aureus (23.6%), Escherichia coli (17.3%), Pseudomonas spp. (21.8%), Staphylococcus epidermidis (22.4%), Klebsiella spp. (7.3%) and Bacillus spp. (7.3%) Macroscopic and Microscopic examination revealed that N100 denomination was the most contaminated Naira note in Federal University Gusau, and samples from the cafeteria were also the most contaminated. Therefore, handling of banknotes should include but not limited to carrying currency notes in wallets, envelops and holding with clean hands. Routine disinfection of banknotes in the banking system and the promotion of a cashless economy are also advocated; Nigerian currency notes have been found in this study to be contaminated with bacteria and could serve as a vehicle for the transmission of diseases to man.
 
The Effects of Anthropogenic Activities on the Vegetation of Sokoto Metropolis, Sokoto State, Nigeria
Get PDFThe activities of man to sustain life include: the destruction of vegetation. This activity includes the clearing of vegetation for construction of houses and roads among others. As the importance of vegetation is overemphasizing, the cause of its depletion and measures to prevent the vegetation has to be identified. This study aimed at identifying the major cause of vegetation depletion in Sokoto metropolis using questionnaire and base-line interview methods to generate primary data. Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectro-radiometer (MODIS) sensor as Enhances Vegetation Index (EVI) was used to capture images. The data was converted into IDRISI Raster format from Hierarchical Data Format (HDF) all the geospatial analysis were conducted using IDRISI-Taiga. However, from the results obtained, vegetation in the study areas were depleted to 97% in area “A” 89% in area “D”, 87% in area “B” and 70% in area “C”. The most woody plant species affected is Azadirachta indica to 90% as the highest percentage and lowest percentage of 11%. Among the four most affected herb species among Trianthema monogyna, Ocimum gratissimum, Sida cordifolia and Digitaria debilis, the highest percentage was found with Ocimum gratissiumum with 43.87% while the least affected was found in Digitaria debilis with 12.62%. The researchers recommend to a call up duty to individuals to plant trees around their environs. People should protect the remaining vegetation to stop desert encroachment and fragmentation
Biogenic Silver Nanoparticles from Stereospermum kunthianum Cham Stem Bark Extract: Synthesis, Characterization, In Vitro Antimicrobial Study and Cytotoxicity Effects Against Brine Shrimp Artemia
Get PDFMetal nanoparticles as a category of nanomaterial are receiving interest due to their wide range of applications including in biomedical fields. Among these nanoparticles, silver nanoparticles are the most extensively studied for medical applications because they have been proven to exhibit excellent activity against a wide range of medically significant pathogenic microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses, fungi, and yeasts. In this work, silver nanoparticles were biogenically synthesized using the stem bark extract of Stereospermum kunthianum Cham as capping agent. Physicochemical properties, antioxidant activity, antimicrobial properties and in vitro cytotoxicity of the synthesized AgNPs were studied following standard procedures. UV-Vis studies show broad absorbance peak of the nanoparticles between 430 and 450 nm, SEM image shows that some of the synthesized nanoparticles are near spherical shape with many of the particles appear to have irregular shapes while the material average crystalline size from the XRD analysis was 27.878 mm. The synthesized AgNPs exhibits moderate antioxidant activity with IC50 value of 124.84 μg/mL. Among the microorganism tested, the AgNPs shows more activity against Staphylococcus aureus than Salmonella typhi and Candida albicans. Brine shrimp lethality test of the synthesized AgNPs indicates some level of cytotoxicity with LC50 of 461.850 μg/mL. using biological materials as reducing agents remains best green approach for the synthesis of silver nanoparticles
Antimicrobial Activity of Neem (Azadirachta indica A. Juss.) Aqueous and Methanolic Extracts against Pathogenic Bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus) and Fungi (Candida albicans)
Get PDFPlants have many biologically active compounds which have latent for development as medicinal agents. Neem extracts and its different constituents play essential role in the inhibition of several microbes. Neem (Azadirachta indica), the versatile medicinal plant is the source of several compounds having diverse chemical structure and biological effects. The research aimed to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of neem tree aqueous and methanolic extracts against pathogenic fungi and bacteria. It was conducted in the month of August 2021 at Microbiology laboratory, Federal University Gusau. The neem plant samples were collected behind Department of Biological Sciences of Federal University Gusau, Zamfara State. The plant sample were identified and authenticated in the herbarium of the Department of Biological Sciences, Federal University Gusau. The samples were shade dried and grounded in to powder using mortar and pestle. The aqueous and methanolic extracts of the plant samples were prepared using Soxhlet apparatus. Concentrations of 50mg/ml, 100mg/ml and 150mg/ml were prepared and used against Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans. The results showed highest zone of inhibition in 150mg/ml and 100mg/ml and low zones of inhibition in 50mg/ml in aqueous and methanolic extracts of neem parts. It could be concluded that, neem parts of both aqueous and methanolic extracts showed effectiveness against Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans in the composite concentrations, therefore, the plant can be used as a source of crude drugs in the production of synthetic drugs that can be used in the treatment of fungal and bacterial diseases
Metal uptake efficacy and phytoremediation potential of plants grown around soil dumpsites in Anyigba, Kogi State, Nigeria
Get PDFPlant’s accumulation and translocation potentials were investigated for phytoremediation purposes, recovery of metals, potential for edibles/vegetables to cause harm to humans. Plant and soil were collected, prepared, digested in mixturesof H2O2-HNO3 and Li2B4O7-LiBO2 for plants and soils respectively. The concentrations of Co, Cd, Cr, and As, accumulation and translocation were determined. Data were evaluated using bioconcentration (BCF), translocation factor (TF), bioaccumulation coefficient (BAC), metal uptake efficiency (ME%), multivariate analyses to establish hyperaccumulators, phytoextractors, phytostabilizers, source of metals and theirtoxicity. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed data were significant at p <0.05. Correlation,factor and cluster analyses were employed to understand the accumulation and translocation of metals in soils and plants tissues.From this study, Colocasia asculenta, Corchorus aestuans and Laportea aestuans were hyperaccumulators of Co. Arsenic had only phytostabilizers. COA and LA were phytostabilizers and Sida acuta was phytoextractorof Cd respectively. Chromium, Co and Cd could be phytomined from some of the plants. Vegetables/edibles values in shoots and leaves were above permissible levels for Cr, Co and Cd. Only Sida acuta was not edible.Metal uptake efficacy (%) order were Co (28.99 to 89.08) > Cd (21.74 to 50.96) >Cr (22.90 to 49.06) > and As (9.65 to 39.19)
Hepatocurative Effect of Oral Administration of Aqueous Leaf Extract 0f Senna Occidentalis in CCL4 Induced Hepatotoxic Rats
Get PDFAwareness on the utilization of medicinal plants to curtail diseases is on the increase. This study is to evaluate the phytochemical contents and effect of aqueous leaf extract of Senna occidentalis on liver function indices in CCl4 induced hepatotoxic rats. A total of 32 male albino rats were used for this study. They were divided into six groups of 5 rats each. Group II-VI were induced with CCl4 at the dose of 150mg/kg for hepatotoxicity. Aqueous extract of Senna occidentalis orally administered to animals in groups III, IV and V at doses of 500mg/kg, 250mg/kg and 166mg/kg for four weeks respectively. Animals in group I were used as normal control, while those in group II were CCl4 induced hepatotoxic control. Group VI were orally administered with livolin at a dose of 100mg/kg for four weeks. At the end of fourth week, the animals were sacrificed and their serum activities of aspartate amino transferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and alanine amino transferase (ALT) as well as serum levels of total bilirubin, direct bilirubin, total protein (TP) and Albumin (Alb) were determined. Results of phytochemical screening revealed the presence of tannins, saponins, cardiac glycosides, resins and flavonoids. The results showed significant (p<0.05) increase in mean serum activities of AST, ALP, and ALT, serum total bilirubin and direct bilirubin levels, and decrease in mean serum TP and albumin levels in the group II when compared with group I. Results of the effect of oral administration of aqueous leaf extract of Senna occidentalis at the doses of 500mg/kg, 250mg/kg and 166mg/kg for four weeks showed a significant (p<0.05) decrease in the serum AST, ALP, ALT, total bilirubin, direct bilirubin, and significant increase (p<0.05) in TP and albumin when compared with group II. Thus, it could be suggested that, equeous leaf extract of Senna occidentalis could have a hepatocurative effect against CCl4 toxicity
Evaluating the Performance of Ordinary Least Square and Polynomial Regression with Respect to Sample Size
Get PDFThe evaluation of Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and polynomial regression (PR) on their predictive performance was studied. We used simulated data to evaluate the performance of estimators using small and large sample. However, the mean square error (MSE (); MSE and MSE) ware used to find out the most efficient among the estimated models. The results show that, for the OLS is efficient than the PR due to having the least MSE (); MSE and MSE on both normal and log-normal distributions. Whereas for the values of MSE (); MSE and MSE of PR are little bit lower than that of OLS which indicates the efficiency of PR over OLS on both distributions. Finally, For, the values of MSE (); MSE and MSE of PR are much lower than that of OLS which shows that PR is efficient than OLS on both distributions. Overall, the results suggest that OLS is more efficient than PR for smaller sample sizes and PR is more efficient for bigger sample sizes
Empirical Estimation of the Parameters of Stochastic Interest Rate Models Using Euler – Maruyama Maximum Likelihood Method
Get PDFIn this paper, we have considered an interest rate model that is driven by Stochastic Differential Equation (SDE) (stochastic interest rate). We employed Euler – Maruyama maximum likelihood method to solve for the unknown parameters analytically. Finally, we estimated the unknown parameters of the SDE from a sample of observations of the stochastic process at known uniformly distributed times using data obtained from Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) statistical bulletin