Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
African Traditional Education : A Viable Alternative for Peace Building Process in Modern Africa

Violent conflicts and war have taken its toll in t he world with Africa being the worst hit. This has created in the modern minds a mentality construct to accepting that war/conflict s an indispensable social phenomenon. Therefore, peace is considered a s inseparably intertwined with war. Hence peace is delineated int o two realms-negative and positive peaces. Interestingly, positive peace which emphasizes ‘peace building’ has attracted the attention of modern sch olarship as being a viable option for peace initiative in modern Africa . However, this paper underscores the fact that human greed and structura l ineptitude in addressing human needs have contributed immensely i n the exacerbation of conflict in modern Africa. The argument is that conflict is built into a particular society through the way it is organized. Thus this paper notes that social conflict is tied to the socio-political and economic arrangements within a particular society. Hence tra ditional African society was susceptible to violent conflict. Howev er it has an inbuilt mechanism to controlling it. This instrument was ed ucation. Notably, African education aimed at developing the total man and making him or her responsible member of the community. The curric ular includes physical, mental, spiritual and moral development o f the citizens. The thrust of the moral education was solidarity. This concept is defined in many African societies by different terms. Some of these terms are Ibuanyi danda,’ Ubuntu’’ Ujamaa, our survey of most African society reveals the fact that socio-political philosophy of traditiona l African society hinge on the concept of ‘social solidarity and belongingness ’, and such was ingrained in every citizen from cradle. Regrettably , this social philosophy has been neglected in the modern Africa. Therefore this paper submits that if peace must return to Africa, she must re-in troduce or incorporate her moral values into her educational system, with certain modifications to meet the contemporary demands. Okoro Kingsley, Ebonyi State University (Abakaliki, Nigeria)
Glucoregulation in acute liver failure

Abstract. Five patients with fatal acute liver failure, given 5 g h‐1 of glucose for the previous 12 h, were investigated by the hyper‐ and euglycaemic glucose ‘clamp’ technique, and the results compared with reported control values. Initial average blood glucose concentration was normal (6·0 mmol l‐1, range 5·0–8·8). Plasma insulin and C‐peptide concentrations were increased about tenfold (1450 pmol l‐1, range 330–4021, and 3000 pmol l‐1, range 670–7650, respectively). The whole body glucose metabolic rate was decreased to about half control values (21 μmol min‐1 kg‐1, range 6–28) and the insulin sensitivity of the glucose metabolism was decreased to about 15% (9·4 m3 min‐1 kg‐1, range 3·6–14·4). The calculated metabolic clearance of insulin was normal (520 ml min‐1 (m2)‐1, range 305–1027) and the calculated systemic delivery rate of insulin was about sixfold increased (1135 pmol min‐1 (m2)‐1, range 474–2010). The initial glucagon concentrations were fifty‐fold increased (550 pmol l, range 72–1309) and not suppressible by glucose and insulin. The patients thus exhibited pronounced insulin insensitivity and hyperinsulinaemia, attributable primarily to pancreatic hypersecretion. The reason for the relation between, and the pathogenetic importance of, these findings is not known.
The Impact of Mutual Health Insurance Scheme on Access and Quality of Health Care in Northern Ghana: The Case of Kassena-Nankana East Scheme

This study examines the Impact of Mutual Health Insurance on Access and Quality of Health Care for the Rural Poor in Northern Ghana. Using household surveys and focused group discussions, the study establishes that Mutual Health Insurance improves the poor access to health care as the insured use nearly 3 times of health facilities more than the uninsured. The insured equally pay relatively lower out-of-pocket fees than the uninsured at the point of demanding health care. Households with higher incomes generally enrol in health insurance while the poorest segment of the community risk being excluded because they cannot afford the insurance premiums. It is recommended that since the flat rate nature of insurance premiums is what prevents majority of households from enrolling in health insurance, the premiums could be made more flexible for the rural poor.
Increasing incidence of enteropathy‐associated T‐cell lymphoma in the United States, 1973‐2008

Enteropathy‐associated T‐cell lymphoma (EATL) is a rare lymphoma subtype that is strongly associated with celiac disease (CD), an autoimmune disease triggered by the ingestion of gluten. Because CD rates are increasing in the United States, the authors sought to determine whether the incidence rates of EATL also are increasing.
Co-localisation of non-cartilaginous articular pathology increases risk of cartilage loss in the tibiofemoral joint—the MOST study

Purpose To assess risk of cartilage loss in the tibiofemoral joint in relation to baseline damage severity, and to analyse the association of nearby pathologic findings on the risk of subsequent cartilage loss. Methods The Multicenter Osteoarthritis Study is a longitudinal study of individuals with or at high risk for knee osteoarthritis. MRI examinations were assessed according to the Whole Organ MRI Score. Included were all knees with available baseline and 30 months MRIs. Ordinal logistic regression was used to estimate risk of cartilage loss in each subregion in relation to the number of associated articular features including bone marrow lesions, meniscal damage and extrusion and also in regard to baseline damage severity, respectively. Results 13 524 subregions of 1365 knees were included. 3777 (27.9%) subregions exhibited prevalent cartilage damage at baseline and 1119 (8.3%) subregions showed cartilage loss at 30-month follow-up. Risk of cartilage loss was increased for subregions with associated features (OR 2.53, 95% CI 2.03 to 3.15 for one, 4.32 95% CI 3.42 to 5.47 for two and 5.30 95% CI 3.95 to 7.12 for three associated features; p for trend <0.0001). Subregions with prevalent cartilage damage showed increased risk for further cartilage loss compared to subregions with intact cartilage at baseline with small superficial defects exhibiting highest risk. Conclusions Risk of cartilage loss is increased for subregions with associated pathology and further increased when more than one type of associated feature is present. In addition, prevalent cartilage damage increases risk for subsequent cartilage loss.
Interactions among amphotericin B, 5-fluorocytosine, ketoconazole, and miconazole against pathogenic fungi in vitro

Interactions among amphotericin B, 5-fluorocytosine, ketoconazole, and micoconazole were tested for all possible paired and triple drug combinations and all four drugs combined against three isolates of Candida albicans, three Candida spp. , two isolates of Cryptococcus neoformans, and three isolates Aspergillus fumigatus. An assay for inhibitory activity was developed in which growth in the presence of an antifungal agent was expressed as a percentage of the growth in drug-free cultures. For nearly all of the antifungal combinations, the interaction was additive against most fungal isolates. Drug combinations that included amphotericin B and ketoconazole were most often synergistic, i.e., amphotericin plus ketoconazole, amphotericin plus 5-fluorocytosine plus ketoconazole, and amphotericin plus 5-fluorocytosine plus ketoconazole plus miconazole, whereas the combination of ketoconazole plus miconazole showed the strongest tendency towards antagonism. The data in this screening survey provide a basis for further studies of drug interactions in vivo and in vitro.
An Evolving Genetic Architecture Interacts with Hill–Robertson Interference to Determine the Benefit of Sex

Sex is ubiquitous in the natural world, but the nature of its benefits remains controversial. Previous studies have suggested that a major advantage of sex is its ability to eliminate interference between selection on linked mutations, a phenomenon known as Hill–Robertson interference. However, those studies may have missed both important advantages and important disadvantages of sexual reproduction because they did not allow the distributions of mutational effects and interactions (i.e., the genetic architecture) to evolve. Here we investigate how Hill–Robertson interference interacts with an evolving genetic architecture to affect the evolutionary origin and maintenance of sex by simulating evolution in populations of artificial gene networks. We observed a long-term advantage of sex—equilibrium mean fitness of sexual populations exceeded that of asexual populations—that did not depend on population size. We also observed a short-term advantage of sex—sexual modifier mutations readily invaded asexual populations—that increased with population size, as was observed in previous studies. We show that the long- and short-term advantages of sex were both determined by differences between sexual and asexual populations in the evolutionary dynamics of two properties of the genetic architecture: the deleterious mutation rate (Ud) and recombination load (LR). These differences resulted from a combination of selection to minimize LR, which is experienced only by sexuals, and Hill–Robertson interference experienced primarily by asexuals. In contrast to the previous studies, in which Hill–Robertson interference had only a direct impact on the fitness advantages of sex, the impact of Hill–Robertson interference in our simulations was mediated additionally by an indirect impact on the efficiency with which selection acted to reduce Ud.
Gene Therapy in Peripheral Blood Lymphocytes and Bone Marrow for ADA− Immunodeficient Patients

Adenosine deaminase (ADA) deficiency results in severe combined immunodeficiency, the first genetic disorder treated by gene therapy. Two different retroviral vectors were used to transfer ex vivo the human ADA minigene into bone marrow cells and peripheral blood lymphocytes from two patients undergoing exogenous enzyme replacement therapy. After 2 years of treatment, long-term survival of T and B lymphocytes, marrow cells, and granulocytes expressing the transferred ADA gene was demonstrated and resulted in normalization of the immune repertoire and restoration of cellular and humoral immunity. After discontinuation of treatment, T lymphocytes, derived from transduced peripheral blood lymphocytes, were progressively replaced by marrow-derived T cells in both patients. These results indicate successful gene transfer into long-lasting progenitor cells, producing a functional multilineage progeny.
Six-Month Prospective Cross-Over Study to Determine the Effects of 1.1% Amino Acid Dialysate on Lipid Metabolism in Patients on Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis

Objective To evaluate the effect of 1.1% amino acid dialysate (A AD) (Nutrineal, Baxter, Castlebar, Ireland) on lipid metabolism in hyperlipidemic patients on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD). Design Patients were alternately assigned to receive AAD in the first (group A), or the second (group B), 6 months of a prospective cross-over study. Setting University teaching hospital. Patients Eighteen stable CAPD patients with a serum cholesterol 5.5 mmol/L or greater. Interventions One post prandial exchange of AAD during a 24-hour period for 6 months. Main Outcome Measures A significant change in serum lipid levels. Results Patients in group A (n = 10) received a single daily exchange of AAD in place of their post prandial dextrose exchange for the first 6 months, and then crossed over to the dextrose phase. Patients in group B (n = 8) continued their usual dextrose dialysis for the first 6 months and then crossed over to receive AAD in the latter 6 months. Measurements of serum lipids and lipoproteins along with other biochemical parameters were made at regular intervals. Although a downward trend in mean serum total cholesterol was seen on AAD in group A, no significant change in total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, or high-density lipoprotein cholesterol was observed in any group. Mean serum triglycerides fell on AAD in both groups, but were not statistically significant. Serum lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] and apolipoprotein B were elevated in both groups but did not change on AAD or with time. No change was observed in serum apoprotein A1 levels. Serum Lp(a) was not correlated to dialysate protein excretion. No change in mean serum albumin was observed, in either group, on AAD. KT/V urea, total weekly creatinine clearance, net ultrafiltration, and dialysate protein excretion remained unchanged on AAD. Conclusions The use of A AD, although clinically safe and without side effects, had no effect on the dyslipidem ia in our group of CAPD patients.
Ribotyping patterns and emergence of metronidazole resistance in paired clinical samples of Helicobacter pylori

Metronidazole-susceptible pretreatment isolates and metronidazole-resistant posttreatment isolates of Helicobacter pylori from 11 patients before and after unsuccessful triple therapy consisting of metronidazole, amoxicillin, and colloidal bismuth subcitrate were studied. Ribotyping (rRNA gene restriction pattern analysis) of the isolates demonstrated that all patients except one had identical digest patterns for pre- and posttreatment isolates.
Building Change Detection Using Old Aerial Images and New LiDAR Data

Building change detection is important for urban area monitoring, disaster assessment and updating geo-database. 3D information derived from image dense matching or airborne light detection and ranging (LiDAR) is very effective for building change detection. However, combining 3D data from different sources is challenging, and so far few studies have focused on building change detection using both images and LiDAR data. This study proposes an automatic method to detect building changes in urban areas using aerial images and LiDAR data. First, dense image matching is carried out to obtain dense point clouds and then co-registered LiDAR point clouds using the iterative closest point (ICP) algorithm. The registered point clouds are further resampled to a raster DSM (Digital Surface Models). In a second step, height difference and grey-scale similarity are calculated as change indicators and the graph cuts method is employed to determine changes considering the contexture information. Finally, the detected results are refined by removing the non-building changes, in which a novel method based on variance of normal direction of LiDAR points is proposed to remove vegetated areas for positive building changes (newly building or taller) and nEGI (normalized Excessive Green Index) is used for negative building changes (demolish building or lower). To evaluate the proposed method, a test area covering approximately 2.1 km2 and consisting of many different types of buildings is used for the experiment. Results indicate 93% completeness with correctness of 90.2% for positive changes, while 94% completeness with correctness of 94.1% for negative changes, which demonstrate the promising performance of the proposed method.
Evolution of the Drosophila Nuclear Pore Complex Results in Multiple Hybrid Incompatibilities

Speciation often involves the evolution of incompatible gene interactions that cause sterility or lethality in hybrids between populations. These so-called hybrid incompatibilities occur between two or more functionally divergent loci. We show that the nucleoporin 160kDa (Nup160) gene of the fruitfly Drosophila simulans is incompatible with one or more factors on the D. melanogaster X chromosome, causing hybrid lethality. Nup160 encodes a nuclear pore complex protein and shows evidence of adaptive evolution. Furthermore, the protein encoded by Nup160 directly interacts with that of another hybrid lethality gene, Nup96, indicating that at least two lethal hybrid incompatibility genes have evolved as byproducts of divergent coevolution among interacting components of the Drosophila nuclear pore complex.
Follow‐up of Patients with Gynaecological Cancer

EDITORIAL COMMENT: In the editor's private practice the follow‐up of survivors of treatment of invasive cancer is favoured by both practitioner and patient ‐ we have become friends and are dependent upon each other ‐ our annual meeting allows mutual documentation of survival and morbidity as each assesses the effects of the ageing process on the other. The brief annual meeting is surely cost‐effective in terms of mutual morale ‐ and occasionally an unsuspected local recurrence or metastasis is detected and managed effectively after referral and discussion of treatment strategies with the appropriate oncologist. Nonetheless the questions asked by the authors after their analysis of our colleagues' regimens of follow‐up require answers, although the woman's wishes for continued surveillance should be heeded.
Improvement of anaerobic production of hydrogen in the dark by genetic mutation strains of Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803

The anaerobic H 2 production in the dark by bidirectional hydrogenase of unicellular cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. strain PCC 6803 has been studied. D-glucose addition to cell suspension has been known to enhance H 2 production, and the two mutants, glucose tolerant strain and its mutant lacking L-lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) gene, were introduced to improve H 2 production with D-glucose. Higher D-glucose uptake rate of glucose tolerant strain resulted in higher H 2 production rate comparing with the wild type strain. The LDH mutant showed higher initial H 2 production rate and H 2 yield from D-glucose than the other strains because the NADH which should be consumed originally by LDH can be redistributed to the H 2 production reaction.
A Coupled Resonator Decoupling Network for Two-Element Compact Antenna Arrays in Mobile Terminals

A new concept for decoupling two coupled antenna elements in a broad band using a coupled resonator decoupling network (CRDN) is proposed for the first time. A synthesis and design theory of a CRDN is presented. Based on the admittance parameters of a given antenna array, a set of required rational functions and, consequently, the coupling matrix for a second-order decoupling network is obtained analytically. To prove the concept, two prototypes using microstrip resonators are designed and experimentally studied. Measurement results have demonstrated that an isolation improvement of more than 10 dB can be achieved within more than 15% bandwidth in both examples. The benefits of using a CRDN for different levels of isolation in a MIMO terminal are investigated through experiments and simulations. The results have shown that, as compared to the existing decoupling scheme using a lumped element, the proposed CRDN scheme can significantly increase the radiation efficiency, reduce the correlation, improve the channel capacity, and above all enhance the throughput of a MIMO terminal. The technique is general and can be applied to both symmetric and asymmetric arrays.
Remote memory for public figures in Alzheimer's disease: Relationships to regional cortical and limbic brain volumes

This study examined the relationships between regional cortical and hippocampal brain volumes and components of remote memory (recall, recognition, sequencing, and photo naming of presidential candidates) in 13 individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Recognition and sequencing of remote memory for public figures were associated with regional cortical volumes. Specifically, lower recognition and sequencing scores were associated with smaller parietal–occipital cortical volumes; poorer sequencing was also associated with smaller prefrontal cortical volumes. By contrast, poorer anterograde but not remote memory scores were correlated with smaller hippocampal volumes. Within the constraints of the brain regions measured, these findings highlight the importance of the posterior cortical areas for selective remote memory processes and provide support for the dissociation between cortically mediated remote memory and hippocampally mediated anterograde memory. (JINS, 2001, 7, 384–390.)
Electroencephalographic and clinical aspects of cerebral palsy.

The motor defects of cerebral palsy, and the mental retardation that so commonly accompanies it, are chiefly clue to destruction of cerebral neurons. Such disorder is not as clearly indicated in the electroencephalogram as nondestructive, nonlethal, irritative injuries. Certain nonparoxysmal forms of electroencephalographic abnormality, for example, focal slowing, asymmetry, and altered sleep patterns, correlate fairly well with the structural damage and with the specific motor defects of cerebral palsy. The electroencephalogram is a sensitive indicator of less than lethal injury in damaged but surviving neurons, whose function is not abolished but is unstabilized. Such disorder commonly manifests itself in epileptic seizures. Although cerebral dysrhythmia and epilepsy are not the main problems in cerebral palsy, they should not be overlooked. They are related to the motor and intellectual manifestations and they are part of the total problem. Electroencephalography adds another dimension to our view of cerebral palsy. In combination with other parameters of evaluation is useful for diagnosis and prognosis and as a guide to treatment.
Childhood nephrotic syndrome in tropical Africa: then and now

Abstract This descriptive and comparative review examines the changing epidemiology, treatment, renal and patient outcome of childhood nephrotic syndrome (NS) in tropical Africa (TpAfr). In the 1960s to 1980s, corticosteroid-resistant non-minimal change disease (nMCD) including quartan malaria nephropathy (QMN) was the dominant renal histopathology type. The overall incidence of NS was 0.35–1.34% of hospital admissions. Median age at onset of NS ranged between 4.0 and 12.0 years while the mean (SD) age range was 5.8 (3.8) to 10.3 (4.8) years across studies. The male: female ratio was 1.6:1.0. The overall mean (SD) incidence of idiopathic minimal change disease (MCD) [21.6 (18.6%)] compared with idiopathic nMCD [59.1 (25.7%)] demonstrates significant dominance of the latter (p = 0.0001). Post-1989, the following mean (SD) incidences of histopathological types were: MCD 20.4 (17.7%), focal segmental glomerulosclerosis 39.0 (26.3%), membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis 25.4 (16.8%), proliferative glomerulonephritis 16.7 (27.0%) and membranous nephropathy 7.4 (4.5%). While the mean (SD) proportion of steroid resistance (SR) [73.5 (19.2%)] was significantly greater than the mean complete remission (CR) [26.5 (19.2%)] during 1960-1989 (p=0.005), mean (SD) SR [27.4 (25.3%)] was significantly lower than mean (SD) CR [66.1 (28.0%)] post-1989 (p < 0.001). Unlike QMN, hepatitis B virus, HIV infection, sickle cell disease and systemic lupus erythematosus are now increasingly being associated with NS in TpAfr. Mean (SD) renal survival post-1989 was 58.3 (37.0%) while all-cause mortality was 9.8%. Children with NS now survive better than before, reflecting improved access to healthcare and transition to a clinical pattern favouring idiopathic NS and increased sensitivity to corticosteroids.