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Background: The fifth Millennium Development Goal seeks to improve maternal health. One of its targets is to reduce the maternal mortality ratio by three quarters between 1990 and 2015. The maternal mortality rate in Nigeria is amongst the highest in the world estimated at 704 per 100 000 live births. Antenatal care presents an opportunity for recognition and appropriate intervention for some of causes of maternal mortality in developing countries especially in rural areas. Method: the study was a cross sectional descriptive study. A structured interviewer administered questionnaire was used to collect information on awareness and utilization of antenatal care services amongst women in the reproductive age group including attendant at last delivery in Bomo village, North Western Nigeria. Results: Two hundred and sixty women in the reproductive age group participated in the study. More than half of the respondents (58%) were 29years and below. All the women were aware about ANC services while 83% had used the ANC services during their previous pregnancy. However only 8% of the women were attended to by a skilled attendant at last delivery. More than half (58%) of the women delivered at home unattended to by anyone. Conclusion: there is a high level of awareness of antenatal care but a lesser utilization compared to knowledge and very low skilled attendance at delivery.

Background: Antenatal care is one of the important keys in ensuring safe pregnancy and childbirth. The pattern of utilization of antenatal services however varies in different regions of the country as a result of certain factors such as socioeconomic and socio-cultural factors on the part of the consumers, and quality of service on the part of the providers. Objectives: To determine the pattern of utilization of antenatal care services and the services received by women in Panmadina rural community in north western Nigeria. Method: A cross sectional study that employed systematic random sampling method to interview 280 women of reproductive age group using structured interviewer administered questionnaire. The data collected was cleaned and validated and analyzed using SPSS version 15.0. Results: A total of 280 questionnaire out of the 300 administered were completely returned giving a response rate of 93.5 %. As shown in table 1 the mean age of the respondents was 26.8+8years. Almost all (98.6) were married; majority (83.2%) had only Qur'anic education. About one-quarter (26.1%) of the respondents were full time house wives. Almost two-third (61.8%) of the respondents married at the age of 10 to 14 and more than two-quarter (65.4%) of those that had been pregnant had their first pregnancies between the ages 15 to 19. With respect to parity level half (50.0%) had children between 1 and 4, more than a quarter (27.5%) had more than 8 children while less than a quarter (22.5%) had between 5 and 7 children. Less than two-third (59.3%) of the respondents attended ANC, of this figure more than four-fifth attended ANC in the primary health centre. Cultural factors accounted to almost half (45.5%) of why some do not attend ANC. The ANC services received revealed that more than 90% of the respondents received haematenics, weighing, blood pressure check and abdominal examinations, these are followed by Urine tests, tetanus Toxoid vaccination and blood tests the which accounted for more 80% each. Furthermore, more than, three-quarters (75.4%) had height measurement, while ITN provision and HIV screening accounted for the least services received accounting for 34.1% and 21.6% respectively. Conclusion: The result of the study shows that the rate of utilization of ANC services in this community is still low. The low utilization rate was significantly contributed to the cultural factors among other things. As to the ANC services received wide gaps exist in the area of ITN distribution and HIV screening. There is therefore the need to intensify health awareness campaign on ANC utilization through effective information, education and communication strategy. Furthermore, there is the need for proper integration of Roll Back Malaria and Prevention of Maternal and Child Transmission of HIV infections services in the ANC services at primary care level.

Abstract Neuroscientific research has consistently shown more extensive non-visual activity in the visual cortex of congenitally blind humans compared to sighted controls; a phenomenon known as crossmodal plasticity. Whether or not crossmodal activation of the visual cortex retracts if sight can be restored is still unknown. The present study, involving a rare group of sight-recovery individuals who were born pattern vision blind, employed visual event-related potentials to investigate persisting crossmodal modulation of the initial visual cortical processing stages. Here we report that the earliest, stimulus-driven retinotopic visual cortical activity (

The paper presents the results of studying the spatial and seasonal atmospheric temperature characteristics of Jalingo metropolis, Nigeria, with the aim of assessing seasonal temperature variations for thermal comfort planning. Temperature data for this study was collected across the local climate zones, otherwise known as thermal climate zones (TCZ), following the TZC classification of the area. Temperature data was collected for 30 days continuously and simultaneously across the TCZ. The collection of temperature data was done in the months of April and August 2021, and January 2022 – representing the dry season, the rainy season and the Harmattan period respectively. A Thermochron Ibutton sensor by Maxim Incorporation was used to collect temperature data, while the specific series used was DS1921. An improvised automated weather station was constructed to house the sensor. The result of the study indicates that air temperature varies considerably within Jalingo metropolis, as well as throughout the seasons, thus affecting human thermal comfort in the study area, as temperature is found to correlate well with both human morbidity and mortality, especially regarding cardiovascular diseases. The paper recommends increasing ventilation and nature-based solution to reduce high temperatures through tree planting in order to improve human thermal comfort in Jalingo metropolis area.

The aim of this research was to synthesize and characterize pure and magnesium chloride(MgCl2) doped L–alanine cadmium chloride (LACC) single crystals. Pure and MgCl2doped LACC single crystals were synthesized by solution method with slow evaporation solution growth technique at room temperature. The single crystal X-ray diffraction studies of pure, 1 and 2 mol% MgCl2doped LACC single crystals revealed monocliniccrystal structure with C2 space group. The optical properties of pure and MgCl2dopedLACC single crystals investigated by UV–VIS/NIR spectrometer confirmed that the crystals were transparent in the wavelength range of 230-1100nm. The optical band gap energy of pure and doped LACC single crystals were found to have the same value of 5.4eV. The energy-dispersive X-ray analysis indicated the incorporation of magnesium and chlorine atoms in an LACC single crystal. The second harmonic generation efficiency of 1 and 2 mol% MgCl2doped LACC crystals were analyzed by Kurtz-Perry powder technique and found to be 1.75 and 2 times greater than that of the standard potassium dihydrogen phosphate crystal,respectively

Persistent visual impairments after congenital blindness due to dense bilateral cataracts have been attributed to altered visual cortex development within a sensitive period. Occipital alpha (8–14 Hz) oscillations were found to be reduced after congenital cataract reversal, while participants performed visual motion tasks. However, it has been unclear whether reduced alpha oscillations were task-specific, or linked to impaired visual behavior in cataract-reversed individuals. Here, we compared resting-state and stimulus-evoked alpha activity between individuals who had been treated for dense bilateral congenital cataracts (CC, n = 13, mean duration of blindness = 11.0 years) and age-matched, normally sighted individuals (SC, n = 13). We employed the visual impulse response function, adapted from VanRullen and MacDonald (2012), to test for the characteristic alpha response to visual white noise. Participants observed white noise stimuli changing in luminance with equal power at frequencies between 0 and 30 Hz. Compared to SC individuals, CC individuals demonstrated a reduced likelihood of exhibiting an evoked alpha response. Moreover, stimulus-evoked alpha power was reduced and correlated with a corresponding reduction of resting-state alpha power in the same CC individuals. Finally, CC individuals with an above-threshold evoked alpha peak had better visual acuity than CC individual without an evoked alpha peak. Since alpha oscillations have been linked to feedback communication, we suggest that the concurrent impairment in resting-state and stimulus-evoked alpha oscillations indicates an altered interaction of top-down and bottom-up processing in the visual hierarchy, which likely contributes to incomplete behavioral recovery in individuals who experienced transient congenital blindness.

Liposomes are the most attractive and well-known nanoparticles due to their high biocompatibility and biodegradability features which make them display less toxic effects for employing in vivo. Encapsulation of antibiotics within liposomes can provide a promising strategy for the effective treatment of resistant bacterial pathogens. This research was performed to prepare, characterize and evaluate the in vitro cytotoxicity effect of free and liposomal tylosin. Liposomal tylosin was produced by the thin-film hydration method. The characterization was performed by dynamic light scattering and high resolution transmission electron microscopy. Methylthiazol tetrazolium (MTT) assay was applied to evaluate the cytotoxicity of free and liposome-encapsulated tylosin against the NIH3T3 and NHDF. The obtained findings indicated well-formed liposome with ideal characteristics that efficiently encapsulated tylosin. The cytotoxicity data revealed cell viability of above 70% for liposomal tylosin and below 70% for free tylosin towards both NIH3T3 and NHDF at concentration of 1024 µg/mL. Therefore, liposome is a promising vehicle for an antibiotic delivery system with appropriate physicochemical, drug loading, release characteristics, and ideal biocompatibility properties.

The aim of this research was to synthesize and characterize pure and magnesium chloride (MgCl2) doped L–alanine cadmium chloride (LACC) single crystals. Pure and MgCl2 doped LACC single crystals were synthesized by solution method with slow evaporation solution growth technique at room temperature. The single crystal X-ray diffraction studies of pure, 1 and 2 mol% MgCl2 doped LACC single crystals revealed monoclinic crystal structure with C2 space group. The optical properties of pure and MgCl2 doped LACC single crystals investigated by UV–VIS/NIR spectrometer confirmed that the crystals were transparent in the wavelength range of 230-1100 nm. The optical band gap energy of pure and doped LACC single crystals were found to have the same value of 5.4 eV. The energy-dispersive X-ray analysis indicated the incorporation of magnesium and chlorine atoms in LACC single crystal. The second harmonic generation efficiency of 1 and 2 mol% MgCl2 doped LACC crystals were analyzed by Kurtz-Perry powder technique and found to be 1.75 and 2 times greater than that of the standard potassium dihydrogen phosphate crystal, respectively.

Abstract Visual deprivation in childhood can lead to lifelong impairments in multisensory processing. Here, the Size-Weight Illusion (SWI) was used to test whether visuo-haptic integration recovers after early visual deprivation. Normally sighted individuals perceive larger objects to be lighter than smaller objects of the same weight. In Experiment 1, individuals treated for dense bilateral congenital cataracts (who had no patterned visual experience at birth), individuals treated for developmental cataracts (who had patterned visual experience at birth, but were visually impaired), congenitally blind individuals and normally sighted individuals had to rate the weight of manually explored cubes that differed in size (Small, Medium, Large) across two possible weights (350 g, 700 g). In Experiment 2, individuals treated for dense bilateral congenital cataracts were compared to sighted individuals in a similar task using a string set-up, which removed haptic size cues. In both experiments, indistinguishable SWI effects were observed across all groups. These results provide evidence that early aberrant vision does not interfere with the development of the SWI, and suggest a recovery of the integration of size and weight cues provided by the visual and haptic modality.

Abstract The upper Benue River watershed is undergoing remarkable modifications due to man-made and natural phenomena. Hence, an evaluation is required to understand the hydrological process of the watershed for planning and management strategies. This study aimed to assess the morphometric characteristics and prioritize the upper Benue River watershed. The boundary of the watershed and sub-watersheds, as well as stream networks, was extracted from the digital elevation model (DEM) coupled with hydrological and topographic maps. Twenty-eight morphometric parameters under three categories, i.e. linear, areal, and relief aspects were computed and mapped. Findings from the study revealed that the watershed is a seventh stream order system characterized by a dendritic drainage pattern. The result also showed that 4821 streams were extracted with a cumulative length of 30,232.84 km. The hypsometric integral of the watershed was estimated to be 0.22, indicating that it is in the old stage. In the prioritization of the watershed, the morphometric variables were utilized to calculate and classify the compound factor. The result showed that sub-watersheds 12, 16, 18, 24, 26, and 27 were ranked as very high priority for which conservation measures are required to mitigate the risk of flood and erosion. The outcome of this study can be used by decision-makers for sustainable watershed management and planning.

Summary: To clarify the role of sensory experience during early development for adult multisensory learning capabilities, we probed audiovisual spatial processing in human individuals who had been born blind because of dense congenital cataracts (CCs) and who subsequently had received cataract removal surgery, some not before adolescence or adulthood. Their ability to integrate audio-visual input and to recalibrate multisensory spatial representations was compared to normally sighted control participants and individuals with a history of developmental (later onset) cataracts. Results in CC individuals revealed both normal multisensory integration in audiovisual trials (ventriloquism effect) and normal recalibration of unimodal auditory localization following audiovisual discrepant exposure (ventriloquism aftereffect) as observed in the control groups. In addition, only the CC group recalibrated unimodal visual localization after audiovisual exposure. Thus, in parallel to typical multisensory integration and learning, atypical crossmodal mechanisms coexisted in CC individuals, suggesting that multisensory recalibration capabilities are defined during a sensitive period in development.

Background: Untreated congenital blindness through cataracts leads to lasting visual brain system changes, including substantial alterations of extrastriate visual areas. Consequently, late-treated individuals (> 5 months of age) with dense congenital bilateral cataracts (CC) exhibit poorer visual function recovery compared to individuals with bilateral developmental cataracts (DC). Reliable methods to differentiate between patients with congenital and developmental cataracts are often lacking, impeding efficient rehabilitation management and introducing confounds in clinical and basic research on recovery prognosis and optimal timing of surgery. A persistent reduction of the P1 wave of visual event-related potentials (VERPs), associated with extrastriate visual cortical activity, has been reported in CC but not in DC individuals. Using two experiments, this study developed and validated P1-based biomarkers for diagnosing a history of congenital blindness in cataract-reversal individuals. Methods: Congenital and developmental cataract-reversal individuals as well as typically sighted matched controls took part in a first experiment used for exploring an electrophysiological biomarker (NCC = 13, NDC = 13, NControl = 26). Circular stimuli containing gratings were presented in one of the visual field quadrants while visual event-related potentials (VERPs) were recorded. Two biomarkers were derived from the P1 wave of the VERP: (1) The mean of the normalized P1 amplitude at posterior electrodes, and (2) a classifier obtained from a linear support vector machine (SVM). A second experiment with partially new CC/DC individuals and their matched controls (NCC = 14, NDC = 15, NControl = 29) was consecutively used to validate the classification based on both biomarkers. Performance of the classifiers were evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses. All cataract-reversal individuals were tested after at least one year of vision recovery. Findings: The normalized P1 amplitude over posterior electrodes allowed a successful classification of the CC from the DC individuals and typically sighted controls (area under ROC curve, AUC = 0.803 and 0.929 for the normalized P1 amplitude and the SVM-based biomarker, respectively). The validation for both biomarkers in experiment 2 again resulted in a high classification success (AUC = 0.800 and 0.883, respectively for the normalized P1 amplitude and the SVM-based biomarker). In the most conservative scenario involving classification of CC from DC individuals in a group of only cataract-reversal individuals, excluding typically sighted controls, the SVM-based biomarker was found to be superior to the mean P1 amplitude based biomarker (AUC = 0.852 compared to 0.757 for the mean P1 based biomarker in validation). Minimum specificity obtained was 80% across all biomarkers. Interpretation: A persistent reduction of the P1 wave provides a highly specific method for classifying cataract patients post-surgically as having suffered from bilateral congenital vs. bilateral developmental cataracts. We suggest that using the P1 based non-invasive electrophysiological biomarker will augment existing clinical classification criteria for individuals with a history of bilateral congenital cataracts, aiding clinical and basic research, recovery prognosis, and rehabilitation efforts. Funding: German Research Foundation (DFG) and the European Research Council (ERC).

Typical human perception features stable biases such as perceiving visual events as later than synchronous auditory events. The origin of such perceptual biases is unknown. To investigate the role of early sensory experience, we tested whether a congenital, transient loss of pattern vision, caused by bilateral dense cataracts, has sustained effects on audio-visual and tactile-visual temporal biases and resolution. Participants judged the temporal order of successively presented, spatially separated events within and across modalities. Individuals with reversed congenital cataracts showed a bias towards perceiving visual stimuli as occurring earlier than auditory (Expt. 1) and tactile (Expt. 2) stimuli. This finding stood in stark contrast to normally sighted controls and sight-recovery individuals who had developed cataracts later in childhood: both groups exhibited the typical bias of perceiving vision as delayed compared to audition. These findings provide strong evidence that cross-modal temporal biases depend on sensory experience during an early sensitive period.

Objective: To evaluate the ameliorative effect of melatonin on sub-chronic chlorpyrifos (CPF) and cypermethrin (CYP)-evoked cognitive changes in male Wistar rats. Methods: Fifty adult male Wistar rats, divided into five groups of ten rats each, were used for the study. Groups 1 and II were given distilled water and soya oil (2 mL/kg) respectively. Group III was administered with melatonin at 0.5 mg/kg only. Group IV was administered with CPF [7.96 mg/kg (1/10th LD50)] and CYP [29.6 mg/kg (1/10th LD50)], and Group V was administered with CPF [7.96 mg/kg (1/10th LD50)] and CYP [29.6 mg/kg (1/10th LD50)] 30 min after melatonin (0.5 mg/kg). The regimens were administered by gavage once daily for 12 weeks. Thereafter, cognitive performances were determined and the brain was evaluated for malonaldehyde concentration. Results: CPF and CYP induced cognitive deficits and increased brain malonaldehyde concentration, which were all ameliorated by melatonin. Conclusion: Cognitive deficits elicited by CPF and CYP was mitigated by melatonin due to its antioxidant property.