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The families Lamiaceae and Verbenaceae comprise several closely related species that possess high morphological synapomorphic traits. Hence, there is a tendency of species misidentification using only the morphological characters. Herein, we evaluated the discriminatory power of the universal DNA barcodes (matK and rbcL) for 53 species spanning the two families. Using these markers, we inferred phylogenetic relationships and conducted species delimitation analysis using four delimitation methods: Automated Barcode Gap Discovery (ABGD), TaxonDNA, Bayesian Poisson Tree Processes (bPTP) and General Mixed Yule Coalescent (GMYC). The phylogenetic reconstruction based on the matK gene resolved the relationships between the families and further suggested the expansion of the Lamiaceae to include some core Verbanaceae genus, e.g., Gmelina . The rbcL marker using the TaxonDNA method displayed high species delimitation resolutions, while the ABGD, GMYC, and bPTP generated different number of Operational Taxonomic Units/genetic clusters. Our results underscored the efficiency of the matK and rbcL genes as reliable markers for resolving phylogenetic relationships and species delimitation of both families, respectively. The current study provides insights into the DNA barcode applications in these families, at the same time contributing to the current understanding of genetic divergence patterns in angiosperms.

The use of standardized nursing languages helps nurses understand patients' needs with precision and speed. This study assessed the knowledge of standardized nursing languages (SNL); how nurses perceive SNL and nurses utilization of SNL. The study adopted a cross sectional research design. Participants were recruited using convenience sampling technique. Data was collected using 5-sectioned self-structured questionnaires whose validity and reliability had been previously ascertained. Data collected was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20. Results showed that majority of the nurses that participated in the study are female (83.8%). Only 60.0% of the nurses know the number of steps in nursing process while very few (5.4%) can correctly define what SNLs is. Knowledge of SNLs shows that 26.2% have high knowledge; 44.6% moderate knowledge while 29.2% had low knowledge. Utilization of SNL by nurses showed that Majority (83.8%) of the nurses in the study agreed that utilization of SNL help nurses to deliver quality nursing care; 67.7% of nurses agreed that the use of SNL makes nursing practice unique, 55.4% opined that the use of SNL can be cumbersome while only 24.6% often use nursing process for patients' care. Although, participants in this study agreed that the use of SNL is crucial to quality nursing care, with poor utilization., (© 2018 NANDA International, Inc.)

Background: The reported health and socioeconomic consequences of ear piercing, especially in modern day society, underscore the need to further research into this subject. In this study, we determine the trends and complications of ear piercing among selected Nigerian population., Aim and Objectives: The aim and objective of this study was to draw attention to the trends and complications of ear piercing with a view to prevent its associated complications., Methodology: It is a descriptive cross-sectional study carried out between February and May 2015 among selected Nigerian population from two of its six geo-political zones. A self-administered semi-structured questionnaire which had been pretested was used to collect data from 458 respondents who consented using multistage sampling technique., Results: Of 480 respondents enumerated, 458 completed the questionnaires and gave their biodata. The male:female ratio was 1:6.2. Their ages ranged from 18 to 75 years with a mean of 35.56 ± 10.16. About 35.4% of the respondents were within the age group of 31-40 years. Majority of the respondents, i.e.,79.3% practiced ear piercing on their children. Most of them (86.8%) preferred single piercing. Ear piercing was performed within the 1 st week of birth in 37.2% of the respondents. Large percentage (93.2%) of the respondents will not encourage ear piercing in male children. Nearly 20.5% of the respondents observed complications., Conclusion: Ear piercing remained a common practice in Nigeria, with respondents preferring it on females. Majority of the piercings are done in childhood and by untrained personnel. Keloid formation was the notable complication observed by the respondents. There is a need to increase awareness about the hazards of ear piercings and to enact laws that regulate ear piercings particularly in children which is hereby stretched., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.