Abstract Common beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) are widely grown throughout the world and provide valuable protein, vitamins and other nutrients. If the challenges related to its production are resolved, food security can be guaranteed for the growing population. Disease-causing pathogens are a major constraint in bean production. Curtobacterium flaccumfaciens pv. flaccumfaciens causes bacterial wilt of common bean disease. This pathogen causes high economic losses due to seedling death, yield lo...
Abstract Cyanobacteria are a phylum of blue-green algae in the domain bacteria that get their energy from sun light through photosynthesis. In anaerobic environments, photoautotrophic blue green algae derive electrons by reduction of sulphur. In the Kenyan soda lakes, cyanobacteria serve as the sole source of food for Lesser Flamingos. Also, detection of these blue green algae blooms, is evident in these environments. Due to this reason, it has been hypothesized that the blooms may lead to p...
Abstract Restaurant clientele have a task of making critical decisions concerning their choices of food and drinks. The decision-making process involves, firstly, the selection of the restaurant in which to have a meal and, secondly, the selection of food items from the menu to constitute their meals. Thus, it requires cognitive and physical effort for restaurant clientele to make decisions concerning their restaurant choices and ultimately a final purchase decision. This study applied the E...
Abstract In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), effective brucellosis control is limited, in part, by the lack of long-term commitments by governments to control the disease and the absence of reliable national human and livestock population-based data to inform policies. Therefore, we conducted a study to establish the national prevalence and develop a risk map for Brucella spp. in cattle to contribute to plans to eliminate the disease in Kenya by the year 2040. We randomly generated 268 geolocations...
Abstract Nematodes are a key component of the soil food web and they play an important role in the provision of ecosystem services. Rice cultivation in Mwea, Kenya involves the intensive use of fertilizers and pesticides which may affect the complexity of the nematode-based soil food web. This study examined the nematode diversity and food web structure in irrigated rice fields in Nyangati and Tebere in Mwea, Kirinyaga County, Kenya. Nematodes were identified up to the genus level and soil p...
Abstract Persistent low-level viremia (PLLV) of 200-999 copies/ml has been reported as a risk factor for HIV virologic failure (VF). This retrospective study was aimed at characterizing patients with PLLV, determining factors associated with VF, and determining the effect of regimen change. Data were extracted from electronic medical records for HIV care and treatment. Patients’ characteristics (N = 705) were as follows: a mean age of 42 years, majority female (55%), and 51% married. A maj...
Abstract Pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan L.) and maize (Zea mays L.) are important food crops in developing countries due to their multiple benefits. However, their production is constrained by plant-parasitic nematodes (PPN) which cause significant yield losses. Understanding the nematode-based soil food web structure in maize-pigeon pea agroecosystems will allow sustainable PPN management by improving soil health. This study explored nematode community assemblages, indices and metabolic footpr...
Abstract Milk is a nutritious food that plays a great role in the diets of a society largely dependent on livestock production. On the other hand, contaminants can enter milk naturally or intentionally, causing a negative impact on the health of consumers. Milk adulteration is a wide concern in the dairy industry in many countries, including Ethiopia, with a subsequent negative impact on its nutritive value and potentially affecting the health of consumers. This study was designed to assess ...
Abstract uclea divinorum Hern (Ebenaceae) has a long history of folkloric use in the treatment of different diseases. However, there are few reports on the responsible phytochemicals in its tender stems, leaves and root bark. The aim of this study was to compare the phytochemicals in E. divinorum leaves, tender stems and root bark. The plant materials were extracted serially by maceration with dichloromethane, hexane and ethanol. Alkaloids, phenols, saponins, flavonoids, steroids, cardiac gl...
Abstract/Overview In this paper, we have characterized big data fuzzy sets and shown that topological data points form singleton fuzzy sets which are closed. Besides, fuzzy sets of topological data points are compact and have at least one closed point. We have also shown that the fuzzy set of all condensation points of a fuzzy Hausdorff space is infinite and the cardinality of a topological data fuzzy set is also infinite and arbitrarily distributed in fuzzy Hausdorff spaces.
Abstract/Overview The reality that exists in a stock market situation is that assets do pay dividend to owners of assets or derivative securities. Dupire, Derman and Kani built an option pricing process with a dividend yielding diffusion process but lacked the jump diffusion component. Jump diffusion process that mostly been captured in modern stock market do exhibit discontinuous behavior on pricing of assets. Introduction of Black Scholes concept equation that assumes volatility is cons...
Abstract/Overview In this study, the fingerprint of the acid concentration during the hydrolysis process on the optical band gap of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) has been systematically studied. The CNCs have been prepared using hydrochloric acid at a hydrolysis temperature of 50°C and at a constant hydrolysis time of 4 hours but with varying hydrochloric acid concentrations of 5%, 10% and 15%. The crystalline structure and phase identification of the CNCs have been studied using XRD tec...
Abstract/Overview This study aimed at generating knowledge on the nutritional composition and sensory evaluation of biscuits fortified with sorghum flour and cricket powder. Four biscuits samples were formulated by substituting wheat flour with sorghum flour and cricket powder at 0, 20, 40, and 60%. The results showed that, the fortification improved some nutrient contents of biscuits significantly (p
Abstract/Overview In this study we developed a soliton model of an arterial pulse. The Korteweg-de Vries wave equation is our model of interest. It incorporates the aspect of modeling an arterial pulse which can potentially lead to development of better estimators of cardiac output. Accurate and continuous measurements of cardiac output are needed for severely ill COVID-19 patients but are often done using invasive methods. Another clinical importance is that the solitonic parameters infe...
Abstract/Overview The motivation of consuming edible insects, particularly lake flies, has the potential of improving the problem that results from the inability to sustainably meet the rising demand for animal-based protein as a result of increased population growth and urbanization. The aim of this study was to identify the selected socio-economic factors influencing consumption of lake flies and how they individually and collectively affect the consumption. A sample size of 385 respond...