10 research outputs found
DETERMINANTS OF DIET AND FLUID ADHERENCE AMONG END STAGE RENAL DISEASE PATIENTS UNDERGOING HAEMODIALYSIS AT MOI TEACHING AND REFERRAL HOSPITAL, UASIN GISHU COUNTY, KENYA
No full textPurpose: This study was conducted to establish determinants of diet and fluid adherence among ERSD patients undergoing hemodialysis at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital- Uasingishu county. Kenya.
Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study design was applied. Using Fisher\u27s formula, a sample size of 145 participants were conveniently recruited. Data collection was done by use of modified end stage renal disease adherence questionnaire (ESRD-AQ). Chi-square (χ2) was used to test statistical significance. Frequency tables and bar graphs were used for data presentation. SPSS version 22.0 was used for data analysis.
Results: The study revealed that knowledge on nutritional requirements for renal patients was marginally associated with dietary and fluid intake with a higher proportion of those with low nutritional knowledge (83.6%) adhering to diet and a relatively smaller proportion in the same category (58.9%) complying with fluid intake. A significant relationship with dietary adherence was observed where participants practiced fluid restrictions (p=0.003) and the frequency in which health staff talk about the importance of following proper diet (p <0.0001). On social support domain, a significant association was observed in patients who agreed that various social support aspects help improve depression, self-esteem, self-management, etc. and who adhered to diet scored a significantly higher mean of 5.6 (95% CI = 5.5 - 5.6) in contrast to non-adherent counterparts who had a mean of 5.5 (p = 0.0006). Among the economic factors with significant association with diet adherence were; use of bus for transport (p=0.02); income of less than KSH. 30,000 (p=0.006); treatment cost (p=0.007) and ability to access material support that helps in adherence (p=0.003). Those who claimed that lack of transport was the main reason for missing dialysis practiced fluid adherence (p=0.01) with a smaller proportion (44%) adhering to fluid restriction in comparison to 70.8% who had transport and were non- adherent.
Unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: The study findings are unique to the study site and it\u27s hoped that it can be used to inform hospital policy makers in addressing adherence challenges in ESRD patients on hemodialysis. The study recommends a holistic study on determinants of adherence to hemodialysis, medication use, dietary, and fluid compliance among patients undergoing HD at MTRH should be conducted in order to produce generalized results
A genetic variation map for chicken with 2.8 million single-nucleotide polymorphisms
No full textWe describe a genetic variation map for the chicken genome containing 2.8 million single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). This map is based on a comparison of the sequences of three domestic chicken breeds (a broiler, a layer and a Chinese silkie) with that of their wild ancestor, red jungle fowl. Subsequent experiments indicate that at least 90% of the variant sites are true SNPs, and at least 70% are common SNPs that segregate in many domestic breeds. Mean nucleotide diversity is about five SNPs per kilobase for almost every possible comparison between red jungle fowl and domestic lines, between two different domestic lines, and within domestic lines--in contrast to the notion that domestic animals are highly inbred relative to their wild ancestors. In fact, most of the SNPs originated before domestication, and there is little evidence of selective sweeps for adaptive alleles on length scales greater than 100 kilobases
Predicting Outcome in Malaria: Correlation between Rate of Exposure to Infected Mosquitoes and Level of Plasmodium falciparum Parasitemia
No full textPlasmodium falciparum Gametocytemia in Kenyan Children: Associations among Age, Intensity of Exposure to Transmission, and Prevalence and Density of Subsequent Gametocytemia
No full textProfiling humoral immune responses to P. falciparum infection with protein microarrays
No full textA complete description of the serological response following exposure of humans to complex pathogens is lacking and approaches suitable for accomplishing this are limited. Here we report, using malaria as a model, a method which elucidates the profile of antibodies that develop after natural or experimental infection or after vaccination with attenuated organisms, and which identifies immunoreactive antigens of interest for vaccine development or other applications. Expression vectors encoding 250 Plasmodium falciparum (Pf) proteins were generated by PCR/recombination cloning; the proteins were individually expressed with >90% efficiency in Escherichia coli cell-free in vitro transcription and translation reactions, and printed directly without purification onto microarray slides. The protein microarrays were probed with human sera from one of four groups which differed in immune status: sterile immunity or no immunity against experimental challenge following vaccination with radiation-attenuated Pf sporozoites, partial immunity acquired by natural exposure, and no previous exposure to Pf. Overall, 72 highly reactive Pf antigens were identified. Proteomic features associated with immunoreactivity were identified. Importantly, antibody profiles were distinct for each donor group. Information obtained from such analyses will facilitate identifying antigens for vaccine development, dissecting the molecular basis of immunity, monitoring the outcome of whole-organism vaccine trials, and identifying immune correlates of protection
Degenerate cytotoxic T cell epitopes from P. falciparum restricted by multiple HLA-A and HLA-B supertype alleles
No full textWe recently described human leukocyte antigen (HLA) A2, A3 and B7 supertypes, characterized by largely overlapping peptide-binding specificities and represented in a high percentage of different populations. Here, we identified 17 Plasmodium falciparum peptides capable of binding these supertypes and assessed antigenicity in both vaccinated and naturally exposed populations. Positive cytotoxic T lymphocyte recall and cytokine (interferon-γ and tumor necrosis factor α) responses were detected for all peptides; all were recognized in the context of more than one HLA class I molecule; and at least 12 of the 17 were recognized in the context of all HLA alleles studied. These data validate the concept of HLA supertypes at the biological level, show that highly degenerate peptides are almost always recognized as epitopes, and demonstrate the feasibility of developing a universally effective vaccine by focusing on a limited number of peptide specificities
Questioning modern time with Hannah Arendt and Walter Benjamin
No full textFour texts from Arendt and Benjamin are the scene of our thinking. We enact the question of time as a refusal to abide by the modern conception of time, where the present is the only ground of the real. We argue for a notion of time, in which all that-has-been is considered a site of real experience.
Firstly we discuss Arendt's book On Revolution. Through issues such as history, the eventful and revolt we show the usefulness of the question of time to further our understanding. Secondly in Arendt's 'What is Freedom', freedom is discussed beyond the private individual, as a matter of plurality, of living together. The question of time shows freedom grounded beyond the individual's present, in the historical time of plurality.
With Benjamin's essay 'On some motifs in Baudelaire' we show poetry as a challenge to the symbolic environment of the commodity world. Poetry appears as a keeper of our relation to the time of memory and language that precedes us. In Benjamin's 'The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility', we distinguish art from technology through the question of time. Art's experience
involves an active relation with what-has-been, with past generations; it challenges the technological way of relating to the world that destroys the depth of human expenence.
Finally, Arendt and Benjamin are presented together, stressing their use of history and tradition to address the problems of modernity. Their effort to think the eventful is related to their negation of historical progression. From the question of time, their thinking teaches us a form of critique that denies the preconception of presence as being the totality of the real. Under their gaze presence is revealed as a changing surface under the sway of history, of time
Content and Editorials
No full textEditorial The articles in this current issue of Lagos Notes and Records cut across various academic disciplines and together the authors bring to the fore refreshing perspectives in the fields of music, history, linguistics, philosophy and literature. The first paper is Olaoluwa Senayon’s insightful analysis of the background to Wole Soyinka’s activism. He argues that childhood experience and the revolutionary tendencies of personalities such as Mr and Mrs Kuti had a profound influence on Soyinka’s activism during his adult years. O. O. Badejo’s paper is a critique of the principle of Bivalence challenging the submissions of scholars such as Aristotle and Lukaseiewicz noting that Bivalence is not limited in scope since it can accommodate contingent statements. In a similar vein, Richard Taye Oyelakin challenges Grice-Strawson/Putman’s defence of the Analytic-Synthetic distinctions. The author is convinced that the grounds of arguments presented by both scholars are insufficient to justify the distinction. From a philosophical perspective, Babatunde Jegede analyses the problem of political instability in Africa. While he accepts that there have been efforts to address the problem in the past, he insists that there is a need to understand their nature, sources and causes. The literary section of this issue begins with Jonas Akung and Azubike Iloeje’s analysis of Kaine Agary’s Yellow-Yellow showing the interface between ecology, crime and poor leadership on the quality of life among the Niger Delta communities. The analysis also examines how the women have been affected by these three variables. Women remain the major focus in Adedeji Omoteso’s article as she analyses the demonization of black women and the myth of their sexuality as portrayed in several works of prose by Jose Lins De Regos. She argues that the portrayal of women in these works is stereotypical and racist and more importantly, reflects the prevalence of racial antagonism in Brazil. Olakunbi Olasope and Sola Adeyemi focus on Moria Buffini’s Welcome to Thebes using this to investigate how war and the efforts to resolve them demythologizes the global state exposing the insularity and complacency of the ruling powers. Onuora Nweke continues the focus on human behaviour by using psychoanalytical principles to identify the behavioural traits that establish the protagonists as victims of melancholia in Gloria Naylor’s Mama Day. In the analysis, the author is able to establish that social and unconscious factors are both responsible for behavioural traits. Olujide Gbadegesin reviews the traditional Yoruba concepts of morality and how these relate to abundant life, highlighting how these conceptions have been altered by modern influences. He then advocates a return to traditional concepts of morality among the Yoruba. From the Egyptian conception of the Ma’at and as depicted by Ayi kwei Armah in Osiris Rising and KMT, Fouad Mami believes that Africans can advance the concept to foster cultural understanding and reverse dysfunctional issues such as violent conflicts. The language and linguistic section starts with Kofo Adedeji’s analysis of the phonetic and phonological variation between RP and Nigerian English accent. Her research which involves students from British and Nigerian universities concludes that intelligibility is a phenomenon which can be explored from a non-native speaker perspective. Lendzemo Yuka and Oby Okolocha explore the theme of ‘lexical starvation’ in the field of linguistics. They both note that the ‘lexical starvation’ of African Children is partly a consequence of colonial interference in the natural affairs of Africans indicating the dynamic nature of lexicons. Ijeoma Forchu contends that there is a correlation between age and musical preference and such preferences influence behavioural patterns. The author focuses on adolescents in Enugu and reveals that rhythm is a major determinant for choice of music among them. Focusing on another dimension of music, Femi Adedeji identifies the various forms of traditional African music including the religious, classical, ethnic and neo-traditional categories. He shows in his analysis of African traditional music that dance is the closest of all the arts to music. Stephen Olusoji’s paper explores the contemporary Nigerian music scene and suggests how the Nigerian music industry can be made more culturally relevant and economically viable in line with global standards. The section on historical reviews opens with Aduke Ekundayo’s article on O’kunland. He posits that intergroup relations were largely disrupted in O’kunland during the Nupe times and under the British Administration owing to reforms, which tended to ignore the existing nature of power relations between the various segments of the communities. The factors leading to the emergence of the educated elite in Sierra Leone and how Western education changed the lifestyle of the returnee African slaves in the colony is the focus in Faiza Senouci-Meberbeche’s article. She notes that Western education brought with it European culture and this allowed the Africans in the Sierra Leone colony to cope with the challenges that accompanied colonial rule. In a related theme, the author shows the influence of intellectual and missionaries on West African nationalism by examining the education and missionary exploits of the James Emman Kwegyir Aggrey in the Gold Coast. The author shows that although Africans acquired western education and supported missionary work, they eventually developed a strong sense of cultural nationalism and were capable of making civic decisions. The collection of articles in this issue demonstrates the tradition of excellence that previous issues represent.Various issues of human interest are explored by scholars in the French Language. The first is Sule Lawani’s article, which emphasizes that literary works are additional dimensions that foster the phenomenon of globalization. He argues that comparative literature and efforts by scholars to provide translations of literary works in different languages has helped to promote globalization. Such translations allow for a greater understanding and appreciation of one another’s value and literature. Victor Ariole demonstrates in his article factors that engender integration in Franco-phone Africa that can serve as a platform for better integration process in Africa. Gregory osas Simire’s article explores the relationship between language and culture and investigates the transmission of the didactics of culture within the context of French teaching and learning as a foreign language. The journal’s editorial board will continue to encourage academic discourse from a multiplicity of disciplines that will contribute to knowledge. I hereby express my appreciation to all contributors and those who assisted with the review of articles. Duro Oni, Ph.D.
Professor of Theatre Arts Editor-in-Chief  
Fiction and film : the influence of cinema on writers from Trinidad and Jamaica 1950-1985
No full textThis thesis considers the relationship between film and novels that were published by writers from Trinidad and Jamaica between the years 1950 - 1985. Through close textual analysis and by utilising a combination of cinematic and literary theories, the thesis examines the extent to which filmic references have been absorbed into
fictional writing and reflects upon the implications for such cultural transformations. The thesis also provides a detailed, historical background to the development of cinema in both islands, with a further analysis of the specific role played by the Hindi film in Trinidad. The interdisciplinary nature of the literary analysis and the detailed historical data contained herein should be considered an original contribution to knowledge within the field of Caribbean studies
Impact of transmission intensity and age on Plasmodium falciparum density and associated fever: implications for malaria vaccine trial design
No full textTo facilitate design of vaccine trials, malaria was studied in 6-month- to 6-year-old Kenyans during high (HI) and low intensity transmission seasons. During 84 days after cure, exposure to infected mosquitoes was 9-fold greater in the HI group, yet incidence of P. jalciparum infection was increased only 2-fold, with no age effect. The density of recurrent P. jalciparum was 14-fold greater in the HI group, and there was a striking association between age and parasitemia ~5000/f.l,L. Fever was the only clinical manifestation attributable to parasitemia and only when the parasite density was ~5000/IlL Sixty-four percent of children with ~20,000 parasites/ILL versus 10 % with 1-4999/ ILL were febrile when parasitemic. Recurrent P. jalciparum infection as a vaccine trial end point can be studied year-round among children ~6 years in western Kenya. However, high-grade parasitemia (~5000 or 20,000/ILL) with or without elevated temperature will be optimally studied in the high transmission season among children <2 years. To provide a foundation for developing optimal methods for conducting malaria vaccine trials, we evaluated the epidemiol-ogy of Plasmodium falciparum infection in children ~ 6 years of age in western Kenya over a 2 l-month period. Initial report
