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MKU, American universities plan exchange programme
No full textMount Kenya University has partnered with Unites States's Clarke University and Loras College in an exchange programme.
Chairman and founder Simon Gicharu said such partnerships are critical in nurturing students and giving them a career boost.
“I urge MKU and Loras College managements to develop a memorandum of understanding for signing as soon as possible. I also urge the staff and students of the three institutions to identify joint projects that they can undertake in collaboration,” he said.
Gicharu spoke during a meeting at the university's main campus in Thika on Wednesday.
He said some agreements signed with other universities have started bearing fruit. Gicharu said the institution has hosted students and faculty members from globally recognised universities while its students have attended institutions in other regions, including Europe.
Gicharu said the university has been receiving students from Leuphana University, Germany, between January and April for the last three years.
“This year Ms Hannah Schild is in MKU on this programme. In November 2019, two MKU students visited Leuphana University in Germany for 10 days. One student from the School of Pure and Applied Sciences was awarded a three-month internship in South Korea between October and December 2019 and a job with the United Nations," he said.
"In February 2020, four students will visit Vincent Pol University in Lublin, Poland, sponsored by Erasmus Programme for five months as a follow-up to two others who visited the same university two years ago for five months.
“Since 2018, MKU has received students from Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Germany for three weeks on exchange programmes. We expect them in March this year. Additionally, many members of staff have been away from MKU visiting various universities and we have also been receiving staff members from other universities.”
Last September, MKU signed an agreement with Manchester Metropolitan University.
Chancellor John Struthers said the partnership will allow the exchange of students at all levels of training, joint community outreach activities, consultancies and staff exchange, capacity building, joint research and publications among the staff
“We expect that through joint research and publications as well as international experience, our students will get the increased exposure for knowledge transfer,” he said
Knowledge, Attitude and Preventive Practice against risk factors of Diabetes Mellitus 2 amongst students of Mount Kenya And Gitwe Universities Rwanda.
No full textThe incidence of diabetes mellitus 2 among youths has increased. The specific objectives were to assess the level of knowledge regarding risk factor for Diabetes mellitus 2, to identity the attitude towards risk factors of Diabetes mellitus 2, to determine the prevention practice against risk factor of Diabetes mellitus 2, to determine the factors associated with adequate preventive practice to risk factor of Diabetes mellitus 2 prevention amongst students of Mount Kenya and Gitwe Universities Rwanda. Entire populations of 2780 students from Mount Kenya University and 978 from Gitwe University constituted the target population, Using Yamane formula, Sample size was calculated which was 268 and 94 students respectively. A close-ended questionnaire was designed to collect student’s data. A total of 384 students filled the questionnaire satisfactorily. Most of the respondents (61.5%) had moderate level of knowledge on risk factors of Diabetes mellitus 2. However, about a quarter (25.3%) had low level of knowledge and those with high level of knowledge on the same were 12.9%.The study revealed that most of the respondents (59.8%) had positive attitude on risk factors of Diabetes mellitus 2 followed by moderate (36.8%) while only 3.4% had low attitude. Most of the students (60.6%) scored adequate practice on risk factors of Diabetes mellitus 2 prevention while the remaining (39.4%) scored in-adequate practice towards risk factors of Diabetes mellitus 2 prevention. Students from Gitwe University were 2.1 times more likely to practice adequately on risk factor of Diabetes mellitus 2 prevention [OR=2.10; 95%CI=1.24 - 3.56; P=0.006] as opposed to those enrolled at Mount Kenya University. Female students were 1.71 times more likely to practice adequately on risk factor of Diabetes mellitus 2 prevention [OR=1.71; 95%CI=1.10 - 2.64; P=0.016] than their male counterparts. Moreover, employed students were significantly more likely to practice adequately on risk factor of Diabetes mellitus 2 prevention [OR=3.01; 95%CI=1.57 - 5.77; P=0.001] than those who were students. Students with high level of knowledge had about 3 times more adopt preventive practice against risk factor of Diabetes mellitus 2 [OR=3.33; 95%CI=1.44 - 7.74; P=0.005] as opposed to those with low level of knowledge. Similarly, students with positive attitude on the risk factors of Diabetes mellitus 2 were 5.5 times [OR=5.55; 95%CI=1.46 - 21.13; P=0.012] and with moderate level of attitude were 4 times [OR=3.98; 95%CI=1.03 - 15.40; P=0.045] more likely to adequately practice on risk factor of Diabetes mellitus 2 prevention compared to those with low attitude. The study recommended that the University should endeavor to inculcate healthy life style behavior through health education clubs, programs and workshops and instill good knowledge and attitude towards diabetes mellitus 2
Social Media as a Battleground for Electoral Violence among Netizens in Africa: The Case of Kenyan Youth
No full textThere is a rise in unprecedented political infractions, disturbances and electoral violence in Africa with the youth playing a significant role. Thus, the study broadly investigated social media use and electoral violence among the youth in Kenya using two objectives that were to assess the use of social media platforms among the youth and to investigate the relationship between social media use and electoral violence among the youth. Guided by the Dependency Theory and the Social Responsibility Theory, the study was carried out in Mathare Constituency, Nairobi County, Kenya. Data collection involved questionnaires, key informant interviews and focus group discussions. Analysis of quantitative data was by descriptive statistics and regression while qualitative data was analyzed through transcription. The study findings showed that the use of social media platforms in communication has been growing with WhatsApp becoming the most ‘preferred’ platform in Kenya. The study outcome exposed the fact that social media had an important and positive effect on electoral violence among the Kenyan youth in Mathare (R = .812). On the other hand, social media (Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram) had a strong explanatory strength on electoral violence among the Kenyan youth in Mathare (R2 = .659). This means that social media accounts for 65.9 percent of electoral violence among the Kenyan youth in Mathare Constituency, Nairobi County. The study, therefore, concluded that there is a relationship between social media and electoral violence among the Kenyan youth in Mathare. The study finally recommends that the government should embrace and enforce self-regulation mechanisms by Internet service providers to deter incitement. In addition, there should be increased efforts to educate and inform Internet users on the importance of assessing the credibility of information. Promotion of productive engagement as an effective instrument of dealing with online hatred is key
Improve Post-Harvest Practices for Food Security
Get PDFThe agricultural sector is a key pillar of Kenya’s economy. According to the recent Food Security Report by Kenya Agricultural Research Institute, the sector directly contributes 24% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 27% of GDP indirectly through manufacturing and distribution. Around 45% of Government income comes from the agricultural sector and it contributes more than 75% of raw materials and over 50% of the export gains. The sector is the leading employer contributing about 60 per cent of the total employment. Above 80% of the population, largely those living in rural areas, mostly obtain their livelihoods from agricultural related activitie
Fractionation of the phytexponent polyherbal formulation by column chromatography and qualitative antioxidant screening
No full textMedicinal plants are a rich source of natural healthcare products for alleviating various diseases. They have been reported to be of great importance due to their endless therapeutic properties that are useful in curing many chronic diseases. Their usage in the management of many profound compared with synthetic drugs that have been associated with side effects. Many natural products including polyherbal formulations are derived from plants. Various synthetic products presently in the market are arguably costly and associated with adverse side effects, therefore warranting a need for viable alternatives. Medicinal plants have various bioactive compounds, which exhibit diverse pharmacological properties. However, many of the bioactive compounds present in these plants have not been separated making their isolation and characterization a challenge. Phytexponent, a polyherbal formulation, is composed of alcoholic extracts of Viola Tricolor, Echinacea purpurea, Allium sativum, Triticum repens, and Matricaria chamomilla. Phytexponent has been widely used in the complementary medicine to treat inflammatory disorders, mange stress, boost the body immunity, manage blood pressure and many more other conditions. However, the components present in the phytexponent have not been separated and the pure compounds isolated and characterized. Hence this study, evaluated the column chromatographic fractionation and qualitative antioxidant evaluation of the phytexponent. The phytexponent was fractionated by adopting the normal phase column chromatography. Column was packed with the silica gel slurry prepared in the petroleum ether, followed by loading of the phytexponent mixed in few grams of silica and then eluted with various organic solvents starting with those of lower polarity to high. The collected fraction that were pooled together based on their properties and then qualitatively evaluated for the antioxidant activity using 1,1-diphenyl-2- picryhydrazyl free radical assay. The silica gel pre-coated thin layer chromatography plates were spotted with the collected fractions and then developed in the mobile phase and then air dried followed by spraying with 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryhydrazyl methanolic solution. Chromatographic separation of the Phytexponent yielded 285 fractions which were further separated by thin layer chromatography. Based on their thin layer results, they were combined in 13 fractions. Visualization was achieved under Ultraviolet light at 254 nm and 365 nm, respectively, whereby various colours were observed. The minerals could be barite, calcites, corundum and halite that fluorescents red, pectolite and margarite that fluorescents blue and apatite that fluorescents purple. Under short ultraviolet albite, bentonite and calcite that fluorescents blue was present. The antioxidant activity was only present in the petroleum ether: Dichloromethane (50:50) and Dichloromethane (100 %) fractions in which yellow spots on the purple background was noted. Therefore, the phytexponent polyherbal formulation contain various compounds that are non-polar in nature as most of the isolated compounds were from the non-polar solvent. Similarly, the phytexponent has antioxidant compounds and can be used as a natural source of free radical scavenger
The rate of substitution from η6-arene ruthenium(II) complexes
No full textThe rate and mechanism of substitution in the Ru(II) complexes (C1–C6) by thiourea nucleophiles was studied at pH 2 and rate constants measured as a function of nucleophile concentrations and temperature using spectrometric methods. There is increased electron density at the Ru metal atom of C2 as a result of inductive donation by substituents on the arene ligand, making it less positive and therefore less reactive than C1. For the complexes C3–C6 bearing the 2,2′-bipyridyl ligand, the aqua ligands are located trans to the arene ligands, and hence, their reactivity increases in accordance to the number and type of alkyl substituents on the η6-arene ligands which donate inductively into the π-molecular orbitals, causing increased trans labialisation of the coordinated aquo co-ligand. Compared to the reactivity of triaquo complex (C1), the auxiliary bipyridyl ligand of (C3) complex lowers the rate of substitution for the later complex by a factor of about 100, possibly due to its steric hindrance at the Ru(II) metal centre. The significantly negative activation entropies and positive activation enthalpies suggest an associative mode of substitution. The reactivity of the nucleophiles follow the order DMTU > TU > TMTU.Funding was provided by South African Agency for Science and Technology Advancement and University of KwaZulu-Natal (Inyuvesi Yakwazulu-Natali)
Association Between Haematological Parameters and Sickle Cell Genotypes in Children With Plasmodium Falciparum Malaria Residents in Kisumu County in Western Kenya
No full textBackground: Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a monogenic disorder due to point mutation in the β-globin gene resulting in substitution of Valine for Glutamic acid. The SCD is prevalent in P. falciparum endemic regions such as western Kenya. Carriage of different sickle cell genotypes may influence haematological parameter during malaria. Children resident in malaria holoendemic regions suffer more from malaria-related complications and this is moderated by the presence of the SCD. In the current study, we determined the association between sickle cell genotypes and haematological parameters in children with P. falciparum malaria resident in Kisumu County in Western Kenya.
Methodology: Children (n=217, aged 1-192 months) with acute febrile condition were recruited at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital. Chi-square (2) analysis was used to determine differences between proportions. Differences in haematological parameters were compared across groups using Kruskal Wallis test and between groups using Mann Whitney U test. Multivariate logistic regression analysis controlling for infection status was used to determine the association between sickle cell genotypes and haematological parameters.
Results: Using HbAA as the reference group, multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that carriage of HbSS was associated with reduced haemoglobin [OR=0.310, 95% CI=0.101-0.956, P=0.041], reduced haematocrit [OR=0.318, 95% CI=0.128-0.793, P=0.014], reduced RBC count [OR=0.124, 95% CI=0.045-0.337, P=0.001], reduced MCHC [OR=0.325, 95% CI=0.118-0.892, P=0.029], increased leucocytosis [OR=9.283, 95% CI=3.167-27.210, P=0.001] and reduced monocytosis [OR=0.319, 95% CI=0.123-0.830, P=0.019]. However, carriage of HbAS was only associated with increased micro-platelets [OR=3.629, 95% CI=1.291-8.276, P=0.012].
Conclusion: Results show that carriage of HbSS in children influence the levels of haemoglobin, haematocrit, RBC, MCHC, WBC and Monocytes. Therefore prior knowledge of HbSS should be considered to improve clinical management of haematological alterations during malaria in children
Cognitive enhancing and ex-vivo antioxidant effects of the Phytexponent of selected medicinal plant preparation.
No full textAlzheimer’s disease, characterized by the dysfunction in cognitive function of the brain such
as loss of memory accounts for the largest disease in the dementia condition. The
management of this disease involves the use of the conventional drugs that inhibit the activity
of the acetylcholine esterase enzyme or some antagonists of an N-methyl D-aspartate
(NMDA). On addition to the high cost, the side effects and toxic effects have been associated
with these drugs. Also, these drugs have been reported to only manage the symptoms since
the cure for the Alzheimer’s disease is not yet known. Alzheimer’s disease (AD) has been
linked with aberrant extracellular proteins misfolding oxidative stress, acetylcholine
deficiency in the brain, and inflammatory processes. Some attention has been laid on plants
as source of the natural antioxidants that have the ability to reduce the effects of oxidative
stress and in increase antioxidant defense levels. In this study the cognitive enhancing and exvivo
antioxidant effects of the phytexponent preparation in the scopolamine induced memory
impairment in swiss albino mice was investigated. The passive avoidance task was used to
evaluate the cognitive enhancing activity while the standard biochemical protocols were
adopted for determination of the antioxidant enzymes activity. Donepezil was used as the
standard drug. The results showed that administration of the scopolamine (1mg/kg bw)
significantly affected learning in the swiss albino mice reducing the latency time for entering
the shock stimuli compartment. The phytoexponent preparation reduced the effect of
scopolamine in a dose depended manner with the higher dose (50 mg/kg) restoring the
learning in the swiss albino mice more among the treatment dose levels. The normal control
recorded the highest learning ability as compared to all the other groups. The administration
of the scopolamine significantly affected the activity of catalase in the brain tissues of the
mice in the negative control by reducing the activity of the catalase to degrade hydrogen
peroxide (p<0.05). The administration of the phytoexponent at the three study dose levels
significantly reduced the concentration of the hydrogen peroxide in the brain tissues of the
swiss albino mice in a dose depended manner. The phytoexponent preparation at dose level
50 mg/kg bw significantly increased the catalase activity by recording the least concentration
of hydrogen peroxide in the brain tissues (p<0.05). Similarly, the administration of the
phytexponent at the different study dose levels increased the glutathione levels in the brain
tissues of the swiss albino mice in a dose depended manner. The phytexponent at the higher
dose (50 mg/kg bw) significantly recorded higher levels of glutathione (p<0.05). The
administration of the scopolamine significantly reduced the glutathione levels in the brain
tissues. In conclusion the phytexponent can be used as a potential cognitive enhancer and as
well as an antioxidant agent
Cognitive-enhancing and antioxidant activities of the aqueous root extract of hypericum revolutum subspecies keniense (schweinf.)
No full textCognitive deficit is linked to the brain dysfunction mostly manifested by loss or distortion of
Learning, memory, attention and many other symptoms. These cognitive functions are normally
Controlled by acetylcholine a neurotransmitter present in the amagdala, hippocampus and striatal
Parts of the brain. Therefore, any damage to these parts or the inefficient activity of
Acetylcholine results into cognitive deficit. Oxidative damage of the brain occurs due to the
Imbalance between the reactive oxygen species and the antioxidants and has been implicated in
The development of cognitive impairment. The management of cognitive deficits in Alzheimer’s
Disease involves the use of conventional drugs such as rivastigmine, donezepil, tacrine and
Galantamine. However, these drugs only relief symptoms without curing the impairment. In
Addition, they are associated with adverse effects, are less efficacious and though not costly, the
Cost of managing patients with cognitive impairment and related conditions is high. Therefore,
There is an urgent need for an alternative that is potent, efficacious, safe, accessible, affordable in
Terms of cost and curative. Plants are a potential source for such drugs with the desired
Properties. Various plants including Hypericum revolutum subspecies keniense have been used
In traditional medicine to manage cognitive deficits and related disorders. However, the efficacy
Of such plants have not been scientifically investigated. Therefore, this present study was
Designed to investigate the cognitive – enhancing and antioxidant activities of the aqueous root
Extract of Hypericum revolutum subspecies keniense (Schweinf) as a potential alternative source
Of cognitive deficit curing agent. In this study, the Morris water maze technique was adopted to
Investigate the cognitive enhancing activities of the aqueous root extract of Hypericum
Revolutum subspecies keniense (Schweinf) in the scopolamine induced cognitively impaired
Mice. In addition, ex-vivo antioxidant efficacy in the brain tissue of the cognitively impaired
Mice was determined following the MWM test. The mice which were treated with hrkaq
250mg/kg bwt took a significantly shorter latency time compared to the negative control
(p<0.05) in the MWM test. Similarly, the mice treated with hrkaq 250mg/kg bwt showed
Increased % activity of SOD and Glutathione antioxidants as compared to all the other groups
(p<0.05). Moreover, the mice treated with hrkaq 10mg/kg bwt showed significantly low
Concentration of hydrogen peroxide (catalase enzyme activity increased) as compared to all the
Other groups (p<0.05). From the results, it is evident that the aqueous root extract of Hypericum
Revolutum subspecies keniense has both the cognitive enhancing and antioxidant properties. The
Cognitive enhancing effects of this plant could be attributed to the presence of antioxidant
Phytochemicals which quench oxidative stress and promote health. Further studies aimed at
Investigating agents that; inhibits fast iron accumulation in the brain in oxidative stress,
Inhibitors of tau plaques, inhibitors of mediators of neuroinflammation and anti-Parkinson’s
Disease should be done