East African Journal of Biophysical and Computational Sciences
East African Journal of Biophysical and Computational Sciences (EAJBCS) whose ISSN (Online): 2789-3618 and ISSN (Print): 2789-360X is a double-blind peer-reviewed open-access journal published by Hawassa University, College of Natural & Computational Sciences. This Journal is a multi and interdisciplinary journal that is devoted to attracting high-quality, latest, and valuable advancements in the fields of natural sciences. The Journal invites publications from different geographical contexts and disciplines to advance the depths of knowledge related to physics, chemistry, geology, biology, & veterinary medicine. The manuscript originated from other sciences such as biotechnology, sport science, statistics, and mathematics can also be accepted based on their adjunct nature. The Journal encourages publications of both scholarly and industrial papers on various themes with the aim of giving innovative solutions to natural sciences. It encourages the publishing of open access academic journals on a regular basis (presumably biannual). The Journal publishes original research articles, critical reviews, mini-reviews, short communications, case reports related to the specific theme & a variety of special issues in English. The Journal, published under the Creative Commons open access license (CC BY-NC-ND), doesn't charge fees for publishing an article and hence offers an opportunity to all social classes regardless of their economic statuses. This helps to promote academic research published by resource-poor researchers as a mechanism to give back to society. The journal is already indexed on known databases like AJOL, DOAJ and CABI ABSTRACTS
Cattle Trypanosomosis and Associated Risk Factors in Abala Abaya District, Wolaita Zone, Southern Ethiopia
Cattle trypanosomosis is a unicellular protozoan disease that causes serious economic losses due to its impact on production and productivity. A cross sectional study was done in Abala Abaya district, Wolaita zone, southern Region of Ethiopia. The study was conducted from November 2023 to April 2024 with the objective of estimating the prevalence of cattle trypanosomosis and assessing the associated risk factors for the occurrence of the disease. Systemic random sampling technique was used to select 256 study cattle. Buffy coat technique was used to examine for the presence of Trypanosoma spp. and to measure PCV of each studied animal. The overall prevalence of cattle trypanosomosis was 18.8% (n=48, 95% CI=14.4-24.0). Two species of Trypanosoma were identified in area, namely: T. congolense (62.5%) and T. vivax (22.9%). The proportion of T. congolense was significantly higher (p< 0.05) than Trypanosoma vivax. The mean PCV of cattle infected by trypanosome significantly (p <0.05) lower than the non-infected cattle. Generally, this study revealed that the prevalence of trypanosomosis was higher in Abala Abaya. Further research to explore the prevailing lower overall mean PCV of cattle in the area and timely implementation of different feasible control measures are recommended.
Copyright (c) 2025 Hawassa University, CNCS https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
The Effect of CuO Nanoparticle Variation on the Green Synthesized ZnO/CuO Nanocomposites for Antibacterial Activities
Plant extracts play critical role in synthesizing nanomaterials for a wide range of applications in human health and managing environmental pollutions. The present work focuses on varying CuO NP’s concentration in ZnO/CuO nanocomposites (NC) synthesized with orange peel extracts (ZnO/CuO WE NC) for its antibacterial activities. The concentration of CuO with respect to ZnO NP fixed as 10:10, 10:20, 10:30, and 10:40 of CuO:ZnO. The as-synthesized NC was characterized using UV-Vis, FTIR, XRD, and SEM spectroscopes. Accordingly, the UV-Vis result reveals that the absorption spectra range from 312-328 nm confirming that the incorporation of orange peel extract provides strong absorption peaks along with the increasing concentration of CuO in the composite while it provides narrow energy band gap of ZnO/CuO WE NC from 3.97 to 3.78 eV. FTIR analysis revealed that the stretching vibration of Zn-O and Cu-O are observed around 480 cm-1 and 600 cm-1, respectively for all ratios of WE NC. XRD indicated that the formation of hexagonal wurtzite structure and the crystallite size ranges from 24.12 to 3.17 nm. The SEM image showed the morphology of 10:20, 10:30, and 10:40 are aggregated, smooth, polished, and smaller in size compared to 10:10 ZnO/CuO WE NC, which is a cluster and flake-like structure. The antibacterial activities of 10:10, 10:20, 10:30, and 10:40 ZnO/CuO WE NC were evaluated against two bacterial strains. Remarkably, 10:40 ZnO/CuO WE NC provided strong antibacterial action against P. aeruginosa. Thus, the as-synthesized 10:40 ZnO/CuO WE NC is so profound to combat bacterial infectious diseases.
The Influence of Vat Leach Reprocessed Tailings on Heavy Metals Levels around Sekenke Gold Mine, Iramba District, Tanzania
Soil pollution is a worldwide phenomenon which results from both natural and anthropogenic activities. This has resulted in several health and physiological problems in both plants and human. This study investigated the concentration of heavy metal contaminants at Senkenke gold mining areas in nine tailings samples before processing and in nine tailing samples after processing using XRF Rigaku Nex CG and arsenic was determined using AAS equipped with a continuous flow of VGA. Arsenic mean concentration in unprocessed samples was 32.873 ± 26.284 mg/kg, while in processed tailings was 24.390 ± 19.394 mg/kg. The mean concentration of Pb in unprocessed tailing was 44.012 ± 37.091mg/kg, while in processed tailing was 38.402 ± 28.270 mg/kg. The mean concentration of Cd in unprocessed tailing was 4.513 ± 1.022 mg/kg, while in processed tailing was 3.089 ± 1.329 mg/kg. Chromium mean concentration in unprocessed tailing was 194.526± 22.670 mg/kg while in processed tailing was 141.352 ± 30.726 mg/kg. The Igeo values found in the following increasing order in unprocessed tailing Zn < Fe < Pb < Cr < As < Cd while in processed tailing was in the following increasing order Zn < Fe < Cr < As < Pb < Cd. The PLI values calculated for tailing samples are found to 4.423 for unprocessed tailing and 2.807 for processed tailing which shows that the soils are polluted and the environment is deteriorated in their quality. The findings revealed that the soils and mine tailings in the study area were polluted with heavy metals, particularly As, Pb and Cr and mostly Cd. The heavy metal concentrations decrease from unprocessed tailing to processed tailings. This pollution poses significant environmental and health risks.
Effect of Land Use Activities on Water Quality and Vegetation Cover Change in Nsooba - Lubigi Wetland System, Kampala City
An assessment of the effect of land use activities on water quality and vegetation cover change in Nsooba - Lubingi Wetland System in Kampala city was conducted between July and October 2020. In order to achieve the set objectives, twelve locations were selected from the Nsooba - Lubingi Catchment. The physico-chemical characteristics of water along the catchment area were determined by standard analytical methods. The average values for Total Dissolved Solids across all the land-use types of wetland, built up areas and agriculture were lower than the National Standard (750 mg/l). A similar pattern of the land-use was observed for the parameters Total phosphorous, Biological oxygen demand, Chemical oxygen demand, Total suspended solids and Total organic carbon, where the observed average values were all below the National Standards of 10 mg/l, 50mg/l, 70mg/l, 50mg/l and 50mg/l, respectively. The Total Nitrogen average value for built-up areas (11.27 mg/l) was higher than the national standard of 10 mg/l while the remaining land use types of wetland (8.05mg/l) and agriculture (5.96mg/l) were below that of the recommended standard. GIS and remote sensing techniques were used to analyze high-resolution satellite imagery captured during 1998, 2008, and 2018. Wetland coverage declined by approximately 5 hectares (47.2% to 14.58%) from 1998 to 2018. Although most of the measured parameters were below the National standard specified by the Uganda National Environmental Management Authority apart from Total Nitrogen for built-up areas, there is need for close monitoring of the water quality in Nsooba - Lubingi catchment to ensure public health safety. The increased built-up environment in the Nsooba - Lubigi wetland affects ecosystems services of the wetland. The buffer zones for flood control and sewage treatment have been turned into a built-up environment. The results from this study suggest a need to protect the Nsooba - Lubingi catchment for its important ecosystems services of flood control and sewage treatment.
Agriculture Deforestation; Heavy metals; Human health and environment; Pollution; Wetland
Copyright (c) 2024 Hawassa University, CNCS https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
Penalized Intuitionistic Fuzzy Goal Programming Method for Solving Multi-Objective Decision-Making Problems
Many applicable problems have multi-goals that optimize simultaneously, and decision-makers set imprecise aspiration levels for each goal. Although such types of problems solved by fuzzy optimization are common in the literature, intuitionistic fuzzy optimization techniques are more efficient to handle than fuzzy and classical optimization. This research study focused on establishing a novel method by combining the penalty function method with an interactive goal programming methodology for addressing multi-objective decision-making problems in an intuitionistic fuzzy environment. One of the challenge that exists in the literature of the optimization method under an imprecise decision environment is that it is not guaranteed to generate a Pareto-optimal solution for the introduced problem. Therefore, in order to ensure the Pareto-optimality of the obtained solution, the suggested method has developed a new aggregation operator, an appropriate relaxation of the constraint set, and a well-structured extended Yager membership function. In addition, unlike other methods in the literature, the suggested method gives decision-makers the option to penalize the most unsatisfied objective function at a specific attained solution instead of starting from scratch and working their way through the problem. To illustrate the proposed method, we used a numerical example.
Multiobjective decision-making problem; Intuitionistic fuzzy decision sets; Goal programming; Interactive penalty function method; Intuitionistic fuzzy triangular numbers.
An Ethnobotanical Study of a Medicinal Plant Justicia Schimperiana (Sensel) in Adaba and Shashemene Districts West Arsi Zone, Southern Ethiopia
Justicia schimperiana is an evergreen shrub growing in the wet part of Ethiopia. The plant is known by different names among the localities and is commonly termed Sensel. It is usually used for medicinal purposes for various communicable and non-communicable diseases. However, the extent of the ethnobotany of this plant has not been studied well before, so the aim of this study is to assess the palaeobotanical knowledge of the Sensel plant (Justicia schimperiana). Parallel to the sample plant collection, a total of 30 informants (21 male and 9 female) were selected to collect ethnobotanical information from two districts. Among the informants, 7 key informants who are known as traditional healers were selected purposefully. Ethnobotanical data were collected through semi-structured interviews and group discussions were analyzed. The study indicates that the community, mainly those of low economic status and people who have failed to be healed by modern medication from their health problems, depend on an indigenous herbal remedy medication like sensel. Hence, the sensel plant is used to prepare a remedy for human and animal diseases like rabies, hepatitis, skin diseases, communicable diseases, asthma, malaria, abdominal disorders, livestock diseases, and other human-related ritual problems.
Ethnobotany; Justicia Schimperiana; Medicinal plant; Sensel; Southern Ethiopia
Assessment of community knowledge, attitude and practices toward bovine tuberculosis in Jinka Town, Southern Ethiopia
Bovine tuberculosis is yet a major public health problem throughout the world, including African countries like Ethiopia. This is due to the lower knowledge, attitude, and practice of the people about the disease. A cross-sectional study was carried out from March 2023 to July 2023 to assess the community knowledge, attitude, and practice on Bovine Tuberculosis in Jinka Town. Questionnaire survey and retrospective data were used as tools for data collection. Among 382 respondents, 254 (66.5%) knew about Bovine tuberculosis, whereas 128 (33.5%) respondents did not have any idea about the disease. Except sex, other predictors like age, marital status, educational level, and occupation were significantly associated with knowledge and preventive practices towards Bovine tuberculosis. Respondents had misconceptions on zoonotic importance of the disease, and 95 (24.87%) respondents consume raw milk. Regarding the retrospective data result, among 1278 patients examined for Tuberculosis, 316 (24.7%) and 5 (0.39%) were positive for pulmonary and extrapulmonary Tuberculosis in 2020 G.C. During 2021 G.C, among 1066 patients examined for Tuberculosis, 190 (17.8%) and 12 (1.12%) patients were positive for pulmonary and extrapulmonary Tuberculosis respectively. Number of patients for pulmonary and extrapulmonary was increased to 18.25% and 4% respectively, in 2022 G.C. Since there were misconceptions among the respondents, awareness creation and detailed investigation on the status of Bovine and human Tuberculosis were recommended.
Attitude, Bovine Tuberculosis, Jinka town, Knowledge, Practice
Mixed Effects Analysis of Height Growth in Ethiopian Children Aged 1-12 Years: A Cohort Study
Modelling physical growth is a key component to examine and identify defining characteristics in the growth process. The goal of this study was to model and capture known features of height growth in Ethiopian children aged 1–12 years. Height measurements of 1760 children followed from 1 to 12 years at Young Lives Ethiopia, a younger cohort, used in the study. The mixed effects method was used to estimate the rate of change within and between subjects over time and to identify defining covariates. Adult height and rate of change over time were individual-specific resulting individual-level growth differences. There was a negative relationship between individual-specific adult height and rate of change over time. The decelerated rate of change was observed from childhood to the onset of puberty in both sexes. Boys were taller than girls between the ages of 3 and 7 years. Mother’s educational status, access to quality drinking water, age, and sex had a significant effect on height growth. Children who had a decelerated rate of growth change during the childhood period become taller later in life. Adult height could be determined by an individual-specific rate of change over time.
Bovine Mastitis: Staphylococcus aureus isolation and identification from Small holder Dairy Farms located in and around Hawassa town, Southern Ethiopia
Mastitis is a widely distributed disease of dairy cattle in most countries, including Ethiopia. The most commonly recovered bacterial pathogen during mastitis is Staphylococcus aureus in dairy cows worldwide. With this, a cross-sectional study was conducted from March 2021 to August 2021 on dairy farms in and around Hawassa town to isolate and identify Staphylococcus aureus from bovine mastitis milk and to determine risk factors associated with the occurrence of mastitis. A total of 250 lactating cows were randomly selected for clinical and subclinical mastitis from 29 smallholder dairy farms. Clinical signs and the California Mastitis Test (CMT) were used to identify clinical and subclinical mastitis, respectively. Accordingly, a standard bacteriological study targeting Staphylococcus aureus was conducted with all (n=127) milk samples collected from clinical and subclinical mastitis cows. Data generated from these methods were analyzed using STATA Corp. Version 12. Association between the risk factors and mastitis were determined with p<0.05 to be a statistically significant one. During the study period, 50.8% of cows had mastitis, of which 4.8% and 46% showed clinical and subclinical mastitis, respectively. The quarter-level proportion was 27.4%; of which the clinical form was 2.9%, while the subclinical mastitis was 24.5%. Logistic regression analysis showed a significant association among cows of different age groups, lactation stages, and frequency of farm cleaning status per day with the occurrence of mastitis (p < 0.05). Bacterial identification targeting S. aureus was done, and this agent was identified in 60 (47.2%) milk samples. This pathogen was found to be higher (47.8%) in subclinical than in clinical (41.6%) mastitis. In conclusion, this study showed that mastitis was prevalent in dairy cattle of the study area, with a higher case of S. aureus in subclinical mastitis. However, the detection of S. aureus in nearly half of the milk sample collected from mastitic cows indicated the possible presence of other pathogens. Therefore, further study to recover other potential pathogens commonly causing mastitis can be a good approach.
California Mastitis Test (CMT), Dairy cows, Hawassa town, Isolation, Identification, Mastitis, Risk factor, Staphylococcus aureus
Length-based estimates of growth parameters and mortality rates of Nile Tilapia (Oreochromisniloticus, L. 1758) in Lake Abaya, Southern Ethiopia
The Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus, is one of the most commercially important fish species in Ethiopia. Effective management is essential to sustaining their fisheries and providing benefits for the local communities. The study was aimed at determining the basic population characteristics (growth, mortality rates, and recruitment), size at first maturity, length at first capture, and stock status of O. niloticus in Lake Abaya. These basic quantitative population characteristics enable a fisheries manager to identify population changes resulting from fishing. The parameters were determined using length frequency data collected from 4089 samples of O. niloticus ranging from 23 to 47 cm in total length. The total length (TL) and total weight (TW) of O. niloticus samples were gathered between September 2021 and August 2022. The length-weight relationship parameters were (TW = 0.0157TL3.0192, R2 = 0.9603) and the condition factor K=1.69. The population parameters were determined using the ELEFAN I routine in FiSAT software. Estimated von Bertalanffy growth parameters were (L∞) = 49.35 cm, growth curvature (k) = 0.36 yr-1, age at length zero (to) = -0.40, and growth performance index (Փ') = 3.0.The estimated values of total natural and fishing mortalities were Z= 1.34 yr-1, M =0.34 yr-1,and F= 1.0 yr-1, respectively. The current exploitation rate (E) was0.74, which is higher than the optimal (E = 0.5) and indicates that O. niloticus in Lake Abaya was overexploited. In order to maintain the sustainability of the fish population, it is advised that the local authorities establish regulations for the management of O. noloticus in Lake Abaya. These regulations should include protecting the use of small fishing gear and safeguarding fish that are caught smaller than their length at first maturity.
Exploitation rate; Growth parameters; Lake Abaya; Length at maturity; Mortality rates; Recruitment
Contribution of the informal market of village chickens to sustainable livelihoods in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
The aim of the study was to determine the contribution of the informal market of village chickens to sustainable livelihoods. The study was conducted in Durban and Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, Central Business District (CBD). A questionnaire was administered to village chicken vendors in the CBD. A total of 50 village chicken vendors were selected and interviewed. In both Durban (100%) and Pietermaritzburg (77%), the majority of village chicken vendors were women (P<0.05). The primary source of income was the selling of chickens and vending in both areas (P>0.05) and the purpose was income generation (100%). None (0 %) of the village chicken vendors were exposed to chicken farming training on village chickens in Durban and 11% in Pietermaritzburg have been exposed to training (P<0.05). Over 85% were interested in attending chicken farming training in both areas. There was a significant difference (P<0.05) between the main source of income and the uses of chickens. It was concluded that the informal market for village chickens contributes to sustaining livelihoods through income, consumption and its driven by culture. It is recommended that training and resources to grow the informal market is suggested.
Contribution, income, livelihoods, sustainability, training, vending
Isolation and Characterization of Antibiotic Producing Actinomycetes from Soils of Hawassa, Southern Ethiopia
Antimicrobial resistance has increased drastically in recent years in developing countries, and it has leading public health concern. With almost all organisms becoming multidrug-resistant to the commonly used antibiotics, there is a need to search for more drugs that are novel in order to address this challenge. Actinomycetes are considered as one of the most diverse groups of filamentous bacteria capable of thriving into different types of ecological niches due to their bioactive potential. Therefore, this study was aimed at isolation and characterization of Actinomycetes from 20 soil samples that were collected from different sites in Hawassa city, Southern Ethiopia. The Actinomycetes were isolated using serial dilution followed by spread plate techniques and antimicrobial activity screening done using modified agar disc diffusion method. Actinomycete Isolation Agar (AIA) was used to isolate Actinomycetes. A total of twenty-nine different Actinomycetes, identified as AB1-AB29, were isolated. They were differentiated based on the difference in appearance of the colony morphology and mycelial structure. Their metabolites were tested for antibiotic activities through the primary screening using modified agar disk diffusion methods. Test bacteria were; E.coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Shigella boydii and Salmonella typhi. Actinoycete isolates with broad-spectrum activity were further tested against Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus(MRSA) using modified agar disk diffusion methods. Out of 29 isolates, 19(65.5%) Actinomycetes showed antimicrobial activity against selected bacterial pathogens. Most of the isolates (84.2%) showed good antimicrobial activity against Salmonella typhi though significantly lower than the control drug Ciprofloxacin. Maximum zone of inhibition was 29.2mm observed against S.typhi. As the result indicates the Actinomycetes isolates showed higher inhibition zone against Gram-negative bacteria than Gram-positive bacteria. The study indicated that soils of Hawassa may have potential group of Actinomycetes with broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity. It is therefore suggested that a combination of several molecular analysis methods such as DNA re-association and PCR-based fingerprinting techniques may extremely help to provide broader information about the total genetic diversity of soil Actinomycetes obtained in this study.
Actinomycetes, antibacterial activity, disc diffusion methods, pathogens
Theoretical Model Predictions for Production of Medically Used Radionuclides on Alpha Induced with Cobalt-59 At Energies of 25 - 172 MeV
This study used the theoretical nuclear model codes COMPLET and TALYS-1.95 to make theoretical predictions of the medically important production cross-sections for Chromium-51, Manganese-54, Iron-59, Cobalt-59 and Cobalt-60 radionuclides produced in the interaction of alpha- projectile with Cobalt-59 target ≈ 25 – 172 MeV alpha-energies. The results were compared with the measured values in the EXFOR data library. Pearson's correlation coefficient indicates a strong and positive correlation between the predicted and the previously measured medically important production cross-sections for Chromium-51, Manganese-54, Iron-59, Cobalt-59, and Cobalt-60 radionuclides. Further, the results showed that except for Chromium-51, the COMPLET code predicts more successful outcomes than the TALYS-1.95.
COMPLET code; Excitation function; Radionuclide production; Reaction cross section; TALYS-1.95 code
Copyright (c) 2023 Hawassa University, CNCS https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
Evaluation of Toxicological Risks and Effects of Microplastics on Nile Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) under in Vitro Laboratory Conditions
Microplastics have been reported by many literatures as contaminants of environmental water bodies and are ingested by aquatic organisms due to their small sizes. Knowing the effects of microplastics to freshwater fish that are kept in ponds helps in managing fish-keeping practices. The objective of the research was to determine the toxicity of microplastics to Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). The Experiment was done in 80 fish samples. Microplastics that were prepared for the batch experiment were introduced in the aquarium followed with observation for 21 days. The digestion of fish gills and intestines involved 10 mL of 10% (w/v) KOH solution and incubation at 65oC for 24 hours. Engulfed microplastics were determined using a stereo microscope and At-IR spectrophotometer for confirmation. Engulfed microplastics were observed to be in the mean range of 3.37 x 102±4.04 x 102 to 2.32 x 103 ± 3.57 x 103 particles/kg in gills and 4.68 x 104 ± 3.02 x 104 to4.40 x 104 ± 5.34 x 104 particles/kg in intestines. The observed responses were loss of equilibrium for 35% of fish, abnormal swimming for 49% of fish, abnormal ventilator behavior for 59% of fish, abnormal appearance for 39% of fish and average growth weight increase in control experiment fish was 6.10±2.62 g compared to 1.7 ± 3.62 g in test fish. There was no mortality of Nile tilapia. The responses of fish to the presence of microplastics in aquariums indicated that microplastics had adverse effects to Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). More researches have to be done on fish physiological changes caused by microplastics.
Microplastics; toxicological risks; Oreochromis niloticus; Aquatic organisms; Biological effects; In vitro condition
Assessment of Healthcare Solid Waste Composition, Generation and its Management: the case of Two Hospitals of Shashemene Town, Oromiya Regional State, Ethiopia
Hazardous wastes from Hospitals could pose threat to the health of healthcare workers, the general public, and the environment unless managed properly. The study aimed to appraise the healthcare waste (HCW) composition, generation rate and the prevailing management practices in two Hospitals (a Private and a Government-owned) of Shashemene Town, Ethiopia. A cross-sectional study involving Direct Observation, Key Informant Interview, Questionnaire survey, and weighing scale was conducted to evaluate the current HCW management practices and to quantify the HCW generation rate. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 20. The mean generation rates of HCW were 45.2 ± 5.8kg day–1 (0.20kg bed‒1day‒1) and 20 ± 2.4 kg day–1 (0.19kg bed‒1day‒1) from Government Hospital (GH) and Private Hospital (PH), respectively. Of the total solid waste generated, over half (GH: 53.3%; PH: 57.1%) constituted general waste (GW), and the remaining (GH: 46.7%; PH: 42.9%) comprised hazardous waste (HW), which exceeded the WHO threshold (10‒25%) intimates the lack of poor waste segregation. There were significant variations between the hospital wards regarding GW (GH: χ2 = 31; P < 0.001; PH:χ2 = 13; P < 0.01), HW (GH: χ2 = 25; P < 0.001; PH: χ2 = 10; P < 0.01), and total HCW (GH: χ2 = 46; P < 0.01; PH: χ2 = 22; P < 0.01). Besides, significant differences were observed between the mean total HCW (χ2 = 9.016; P < 0.01), GW (χ2 = 9.8; P < 0.01), and the HW (χ2 = 5.011, P < 0.05) of the hospitals. Segregation of wastes and pre-treatment of infectious wastes were not properly practiced, and single-chamber incinerators were the most utilized treatment method indicating poor management of the HCW. The study establishes that little attention is given to medical waste management which primarily proceeds from a lack of due implementation of the national healthcare wastes management guideline/directive at the healthcare facility level. If the poor healthcare solid waste management is not properly addressed at the study hospitals, human (healthcare workers, waste handlers, patients, and nearby community) and environmental health risk will be within the bounds of possibility.
Fuzzy Programming Approach to Solve Multi-Objective Fully Fuzzy Transportation Problem
The aim this study is presenting the solution methodology of multiobjective fuzzy transportation problem with fuzzy decision variables, where all the input parameters and decisions variables of the programming problems are assumed to be triangular fuzzy number and triangular fuzzy decision variables respectively. Moreover the objectives under consideration are minimization of cost of transportation and minimization of shipping time under fuzzy environment. The fuzziness of the objective functions and the fuzzy constraints of the programming problem are defuzzified using the ranking function and the equality property between two fuzzy numbers, respectively. The consequent crisp multi-objective fuzzy transportation problem is tackled by employing fuzzy mathematical programming approach. Finally fuzzy decision is made after solving the resultant mathematical programming problem using LINGO(Schrage and LINDO Systems (1997)) software. Illustrative numerical example is presented in support of the proposed methodology.
Multi-Objective Programming; Triangular Fuzzy Number; Fuzzy Transportation Problem; Fuzzy Decision Variables; Ranking Function; Fuzzy Programming Method
Sero-epidemiologyof Foot and Mouth Disease and Farmers Perception on Vaccinating Cattleagainst the Disease in Sidama Region, SouthernEthiopia
Foot and mouth disease (FMD) is a severe, highly contagious viral disease of livestock that has a significant economic impact. A cross-sectional study was conducted from September 2019 to June 2020 in three selected districts of Sidama region, Southern Ethiopia with the objectives of determining the sero-prevalence of cattle against foot and mouth disease virus (FMDV), identifying potential risk factors and assessing farmers’ perception on vaccination against FMD. Purposive and systematic random sampling techniques were employed to select the districts and study animals, respectively. A total of 510 cattle were tested for FMDV antibodies using 3ABC-ELISA. The overall cattle and herd level sero-prevalence were 15.5% and 24.7%, respectively. Among the considered risk factors age, herd size, and season were significantly associated with the sero-positivity of FMDV (P<0.05). Out of 120 farmers interviewed, 84.2% had never vaccinated their cattle against FMDV. Inaccessibility (83.7%) and unaffordable cost (72.1%) of the vaccine were mentioned as leading causes for the low vaccination practice in the current study areas. The majority of the respondents (68.3%) don’t perceive vaccinating cattle against FMDV as one of the preventive measures. In districts with lower perception of farmers on vaccinating their cattle against FMDV, higher sero-prevalence of the disease were recorded. The present serological and questionnaire survey indicated that the presence of FMD sero-positive animals in the current study areas. Therefore, an integrated strategy for disease control has to be designed and implemented which could include enhancing farmers’ perception about use of vaccination in preventing FMD and government provision of vaccines at an affordable cost to the farmers.
Population dynamics and yieldestimation of Common Carp(Cyprinus carpio, Linnaeus, 1758)in Ayalew reservoir, Gamo Zone, Southern Ethiopia
Common carp (Cyprinus carpio) is an introduced fish species in Ayalew reservoir. This study provides the first results on fishery dynamics of the species in the reservoir. The study was aimed at estimating important population dynamics parameters and production potential. Total length (TL) and total weight (TW) data were collected from a total of 276 fish samples (141 females and 135 males). The obtained data were analyzed using FiSAT II software. Jones length-based cohort analysis model and length-based Thompson and Bell yield prediction models were employed to estimate the population and production potential. The mean total length was 26 cm and the dominant length groups ranged from 17 to 33 cm were 87%. The length-weight relationship parameters were (TW = 0.0565TL2.53, R2 = 0.95) and the condition factor K = 1.29. The parameters of von Vertalanffy growth curve were L∞ = 41 cm, k = 0.52, to = -2.29, θ = 2.9, and A0.95 = 5.5 years. The estimated values of the total, natural and fishing mortalities were Z = 1.23, M = 0.55, and F = 0.68, respectively. The current exploitation rate was 0.55 which indicates slightly overexploitation. The estimated fish population and the annual fish yield were 59,304 and 1.5 tons, respectively. However, investigation on reproductive biology, limnolocal aspects and stock enhancements should be required for the sustainability of these resources.
Ayalew reservoir; Cohort analysis; Condition factor; Cyprinus carpio; Length-weight relationship; Population dynamics parameters
A Mathematical Model for the Transmission Dynamics of COVID-19 Pandemic Considering Protected and Hospitalized with Optimal Control
In this paper, we propose a mathematical model to investigate coronavirus diseases (COVID-19) transmission in the presence of protected and hospitalized classes. We demonstrate the positivity and boundedness of the solution of the dynamical system. We compute the disease free equilibrium point and analyze the stability behavior of the steady state solutions. We compute the basic reproduction number (R0) and show that for R < 1 the disease dies out and for R > 1 the disease is endemic. The local stability of the endemic equilibrium point is determined using center manifold theory. The model exhibits a forward bifurcation and the sensitivity analysis is performed. The sensitivity analysis we establish that R0 is most sensitive to the rate of protection and that a high level of protection needs to be maintained as well as hospitalization to control the disease. Based on this we devise optimal protection and hospitalization strategies. Characterization of the optimal control is established using Pontryagin’s Maximum Principle. Numerical results for the COVID-19 outbreak dynamics and its optimal control revealed that a combination of protection and hospitalization is the best strategy to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in the population.
COVID-19, Protection, Stability analysis, Forward bifurcation, Sensitivity analysis, Optimal control
COVID-19; Protection; Stability analysis; Forward bifurcation; Sensitivity analysis; Optimal control
Challenging students’ performance through Practical Skills Assessment in Elective Football coaching in Hawassa University: An action research study
Complaints from the university students enrolled in sport science fields or their hiring employers have been heard to practical assessment in sports science. On top of that, long years ofexperience in teaching taught us the problem of practical skills assessment has existed in sports science. This problem emanates primarily from the activities of gross motor parts of the organism while doing sport; leading to a highly subjective assessment. Furthermore, the absences of safe and secured facilities for practice, large class sizes, as well as the absence of video materials, to track students’ progress, are among the other factors. This study used the process of action research: identify-plan-act-reflect, in order to improve 3rd year, sports science students' practical assessment skills in Elective football coaching at Hawassa University. The study participants included 25 randomly selected students from a population of 50 students. Football's basic skill first was taught theoretically and practically for the betterment of easy to conduct assessment skills. To do so, the researcher allotted three sessions in consecutive days; after conducting the pre-test assessment. The study has shown that there was a statistically significant increase of difficulty dribbling and trapping the ball from pre-test (M= 1.24, SD= .43) to post-test (M=1.64, SD=.49), t(24)= -4, P<0.005). The eta squared statistics (.4) indicated a large effect size. There was a statistically significance increase of the control ball with both feet from pre-test (M=2.44, SD= .5) to post-test (M=3.72, SD= .45), t(24)= -8.6, P<0.005). The eta squared statistics (.75) indicated a large effect size. There was statistically significance increase of ability to dribble either direction with token pressure from pre-test (M=2.56, SD= .5) to post-test (M=4.76, SD= .43), t(24)= -17, P<0.005). The eta squared statistics (.92) indicated a large effect size. Therefore, from the five parameters of football skill practical assessments, all skill parameters are significant to apply in assessing the psychomotor domain of football in the Elective coaching course at Hawassa University. The findings revealed that, participation of students in educational assessments are resulted an alteration of training performance in academics
Football coaching; Practical skill assessment; Student’s performance
Copyright (c) 2022 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
Numerical Solutions of Advection Diffusion Equations Using Finite Element Method
In this paper, we have implemented the finite element method for the numerical solution of a boundary and initial value problems. In doing so, the basic idea is to first rewrite the problem as a variational equation, and then seek a solution approximation from the space of continuous piece-wise linear’s. This discretization procedure results in a linear system that can be solved by using a numerical algorithm for systems of these equations. The paper aims to develop numerical techniques for solving the one and two-dimensional advection-diffusion equation with constant parameters. These techniques are based on the finite element approximations using Galerkin’s method in space resulting system of the first order ODE’s and then solving this first order ODE’s using backward Euler descritization in time. For the two-dimensional problems, we use the ODE solver ODE15I to descritize time. The validity of the numerical model is verified using different test examples. The computed results showed that the use of the current method is very applicable for the solution of the advection-diffusion equation.
Effect of 17α-methyl testosterone on sex reversal and growth performance of Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus
The present study aimed at developing all-male Nile tilapia using 17α-methyl testosterone (17α-MT) along with its growth and feed utilization performances. Three days old Nile tilapia fry were stocked in plastic jars with 5 L capacity installed in four fiber glass tanks. The fry were fed with 0, 30, 60, and 100 mg MT/kg diets for 30 days. Later, the fry were shifted to hapas installed in a pond and then, reared for four months separately. The fish were fed with the control diet. The results showed that the highest male population (93.6%) was observed in the fish treated with a 60 mg MT/kg diet, while the lowest (82.6%) was observed in the fish treated with a 30 mg MT/kg diet. The results also showed that the fish fed with a 60 mg MT/kg diet had significantly higher mean body weight (24.1±1.40 g), specific growth rate (2.5±0.10%), feed conversion ratio (1.3±0.10), and protein efficiency ratio (0.63±0.11) than the untreated fish treated (control) group. In conclusion, a 60 mg MT/kg diet can be considered as an optimal and economically viable dose for Nile tilapia sex reversal along with its optimum growth and feed utilization performances.
Sex-reversal; Methyl testosterone; Mono-sex production; Hapa; Nile tilapia
Synthesis, Characterization and Antibacterial activity of Benzimidazole Derivatives and their Cu (ii), Ni (ii) and Co (ii) complexes
Benzimidazole is one of the privileged nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compounds, which is found in many bioactive compounds, benzimidazole and its derivatives have evolved as an important heterocyclic system due to their potency in a wide range of biologically active compounds like anthelmintic, antibacterial, antifungals, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, and so on. Derivatives of 1-arylsulfonylbenzimidazole and their respective Cu (II), Ni (II) and Co (II) complexes were successfully synthesized. The structures of all the synthesized ligands were confirmed by using IR, UV-Visible, 1H NMR, and 13C NMR spectroscopy. The Cu (II), Ni (II) and Co (II) complexes were confirmed by using IR and VU-Visible spectra. The IR spectra of ligands and its metal complexes imply that the benzimidazol derivative ligands behave as basic bidentate ligands coordination through the azomethine nitrogen and oxygen atom. In-vitro antibacterial activity of all the synthesized ligands and their metal complexes were evaluated by using disc diffusion method against K. pneumoniae, E. coli, and S. aureus bacterial species .The tested compounds and metal complexes exhibited from good to excellent activity (zone of inhibition (ZI) ranged 10 mm to 23 mm). Compound BIL1 exhibited better activity than the standard drug against E. coli (ZI of 15 mm) and K. pneumoniae (ZI of 5 mm)compared with gentamycin ((ZI of 15mm). Complex CoC exhibited better activity against S. aureus (ZI of 23 mm) compared with gentamicine (ZI value of 21 mm). This compound is a good starting point to develop new drug for treating pathogenic diseases. Therefore, synthesis of more analogue were recommended for further discovery of a new drug candidate.
Beef handling practices at Abattoirs and Butcher shops in Uganda: implications for meat safety and health of consumers
Proper beef handling contributes to achieving sustainable development goals 3 (good health and well-being) and 12 (sustainable consumption and production patterns). This is because it ensures the safety of meat and consumers’ health. However, the meat sector is still underdeveloped in most African countries. In addition, there is limited research addressing meat safety challenges. In Uganda particularly, in the recent past, there was whistle-blowing over contaminated beef on the market, indicating a loophole in food safety. Despite this, studies focusing on beef handling practices have remained scanty. Thus, this study aimed to examine beef handling practices at the abattoirs and butcher shops in Uganda's Central, Western and Eastern regions. A mixed-methods approach was employed to collect data through a survey, in-depth interviews and on-site observations. Findings revealed that beef handling practices were poor at abattoirs and butcher shops and that most facilities for safety measures were lacking or inadequate. Only 3% of the respondents had cold room storage facilities, and meat spoilage was relatively high (85.3%). Appropriate knowledge of meat safety among abattoir and butcher operators was inadequate, contributing to low compliance with food safety guidelines. Inappropriate handling practices and poor handling facilities may put consumers at a health risk. The study recommends that responsible authorities should ensure compliance mechanisms and sensitization initiatives are prioritized.
Phenotypic and Allelic Distribution of the ABO and Rhesus Blood Groups among students at Hawassa University, Ethiopia
The prior information on the distribution of ABO and Rh groups is important for management of blood bank and transfusion, genetic counseling, anthropological studies, to study the association of blood groups and diet; to investigate the association between blood and diseases. This study aimed to determine the frequency of ABO and Rh bloods and investigate gene diversity at both loci among students in Ethiopia. A descriptive cross-sectional survey was employed involving randomly selected two thousand thirty-nine (2039) university students (1054 males and 985 females) with an age range of 18–29 years. Blood groups were determined based on agglutination reaction. The most common blood group was found to be O (42.47%), followed by A (27.86%), B (21.87%), and AB (7.80 %). The frequency of Rh+ and Rh- was 90.88% and 9.12 %, respectively. The combination of blood types showed O+, A+, B+ and AB+ were: 38.60 %, 25.20%, 20.10% and 7.00%, respectively. A slightly varied distribution pattern of ABO blood group of females from the Amhara region was observed (O> B> A>AB). The distribution of ABO phenotypes from Addis Ababa and Amhara did not differ significantly from those expected under the Hardy Weinberg Equilibrium. A high level of gene diversity was observed for both loci. In general, the O blood type is most frequent and followed by A, B, and AB. A similar pattern of distribution of the ABO and Rh blood groups was found in male and female study subjects. The present study will generate a baseline data that could be used in blood bank management and transfusion, genetic counseling, population genetic and anthropological studies, and for disease management.
ABO blood; Allele frequency; Ethiopia; Phenotypic frequency; Rh blood
Copyright (c) 2022 East African Journal of Biophysical and Computational Sciences https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
Study of Reaction Mechanisms in α + 69Ga reaction at ≈10 – 50 MeV
The excitation functions of 69Ga(α, n)72As, 69Ga(α, 2n)71As, 69Ga(α, 3n)70As, 69Ga(α, x)69Ge, 69Ga(α, x)68Ga and 69Ga(α, x)67Ga reactions produced in the interaction of α-projectile with 69Ga-target were studied at ≈ 10-50 MeV. The produced nuclei were different isotopes of As, Ge, and Ga, some of which have important medical applications. The theoretical model predictions were based on the statistical code COMPLETE, and the predicted results were compared and discussed with existing experimental data. Good agreement between the theoretical predictions and experimental results were obtained. Pearson's relational statistics showed moderate to strong positive correlations between the theoretically predicted and experimentally measured reaction cross-sections. Furthermore, the present investigation revealed significant pre-compound contributions in the studied energy range. Therefore, it is important to consider the admixture of pre-equilibrium and equilibrium modes of reactions when predicting the reaction cross-sections.
Ovine Eimeria infection, OPG and determinants in and around Gondar town, Ethiopia
The study aimed to estimate the prevalence of ovine Eimeria infection, assess the associated risk factors, and the intensity of infection. A cross-sectional study design was employed and the study was conducted from November 2017 to May 2018. A total of 422 sheep were selected by systematic random sampling technique, and from these animals, fecal samples were collected and examined for Eimeria oocysts. Of the selected and examined sheep 132 (31.3%, 95% CI=26.8-35.7) were found infected by Eimeria species. The prevalence of Eimeria infection was significant (P <0.05) higher in lambs/young than the adult, in females than males, and in poor body condition than in medium body condition sheep. Moreover, the prevalence of Eimeria infection was significantly (P <0.05) higher in sheep with soft feces than in normal feces sheep and semi-intensive than extensive sheep production. The intensity of Eimeria species infection was influenced by the age, sex, body condition, fecal consistency, and production system of sheep (P< 0.05). The overall mean Oocysts per gram of feces was 2390.6 (95% CI=2007.5-2773.8). The mean OPG was significantly higher in lambs, with poor body conditions and female sheep. In addition, it was higher in sheep with soft feces and an extensive production system. In conclusion, Eimeria species infection was an important problem in sheep production in the study area. Generally, this study's results provided useful information to design and implement appropriate control strategies. Finally, it is recommended that further studies identify the species of Eimeria circulating in the areas.
Synthesis, growth and characterization of magnesium chloride doped L-alanine cadmium chloride single crystal: For nonlinear optical application
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.
Solution method; Doping; crystal Growth; Harmonic Generation; Nonlinear optics
Effect of Pressure on Carbon monoxide Oxidation on Titania Supported Platinum Nanoparticles Catalyst
Thermographic testing methodology was developed to facilitate measurements of particle dimension and substrate influence in heterogeneous catalysts. A screening chip with several areas of less stress silicon nitride membranes which display less heat conductivity and heat capacity was used. Heat produced during the reaction on catalysts deposited on membranes was established through an IR camera which gave the value of the turnover frequency. The effect of pressure on CO conversion on titania-supported Pt particles of different dimensions was measured on 120 catalysts concurrently. The reaction was studied at various O2 and CO pressures at 170 ℃ and 240 ℃. At these temperature conditions, activity increased with the increase of O2 and CO pressure, in agreement with previous reports.
Activity; CO conversion; Particles; Platinum and Titania
Determination of the levels of some selected metals in ocimum lamiifolium in Wolaita Zone, Southern Ethiopia
Medicinal plants have worldwide applications in the treatment of different types of human diseases. Among the medicinal plants of Ethiopia, Ocimum lamiifolium Hochst. Ex Benth (Damakese, in Amharic) is one of the well celebrated and most widely used home remedy for the treatment of a disease locally known as “Mitch” which is characterized by headache, fever, inflammation, joint pain, sweat, loss of appetite, etc. The aim of the present study on this medicinal plant was to determine the levels of heavy and trace metals in the leaves using the flame atomic absorption spectrometer (FAAS), which is nov AA model. The sampling technique used to carry out the analysis was purposive for the community in the selected area use the plant widely to treat different diseases. In addition, for each of three kebeles, selected from Duguna Fango District, three sites were selected to homogenize the samples. The concentrations or levels of heavy and trace metals, Cd, Co, Pb, Cr, Cu and Zn, in the leaves of the selected medicinal plant were found to be (in mg/L) 0.0489, 0.0579, 0.0936, 0.153, 0.214 and 0.847, respectively. The results revealed that the selected medicinal plant accumulated these metals at different concentration levels in different sites. The results also confirmed that the concentration levels of the metals in the leaves of the selected medicinal plant were not higher than the internationally accepted permissible limits. Thus, the results indicated that the medicinal plant under the study is safe for medicinal uses. Furthermore, monitoring such medicinal plants for heavy and trace metals concentrations is of great importance in protecting the community from the adverse effects of heavy metals.
Adverse effects; FAAS; Medicinal plants; Herbal remedies; Permissible limits