ABSTRACT Maize (Zea mays L.) is the most important cereal crop in Kenya with 90% of the total population relying on it as the main staple food. Post-harvest losses in maize is caused by insect pests such Sitophilus zeamais and Fungi such Aspergillus and Fusarium among others. Post harvest losses by insect pests can sometimes be up to 90 percent. Synthetic chemicals are used to manage weevil infestation and control mould development in maize. However, chemical residues have been detected on t...
ABSTRACT Banana (Musa spp.) is an important fruit and staple food crop globally. It is grown in over 140 countries on more than 11 million hectares, with current production of 145 million metric tons per annum, out of which about 30 % is produced in Africa. However, its production is limited by banana Xanthomonas wilt (BXW) disease caused by bacterium Xanthomonas campestris pathovar musacearum (Xcm) and Fusarium wilt disease (FWD) caused by Fusarium oxysporum subspecies cubense race 1 (Foc)....
ABSTRACT Antimicrobial resistance is reported to be on the increase due to gene mutations of the disease causing pathogens. It is believed that, new antibiotics with activities and structures different from those in current use could be found through ethnobotanical route. This requires a follow up of promising leads with attempts to isolate and identify the active principles from the medicinal plants. Two Kenyan plants Echinops hispidus Fresen. (Asteraceae) and Grewia similis K. Schum. (Tili...
ABSTRACT Kenya has prominent geographical features such as the Rift valley which gives rise to geothermal reservoirs which can be exploited to produce geothermal energy for power generation and heating; Lake Magadi, Suswa, Eburu, Menengai, Lake Bogoria as well as other areas are considered to have potential for power geothermal energy because of the geothermal manifestations. For above mentioned regions it is known that positive gravity anomalies within the Rift valley proper are superposed ...
ABSTRACT This thesis reports the results of a study aimed at optimizing pozzolanic activity of a blend of Rice Husks (RH), Spent Bleaching Earth (SBE) and Broken Bricks (BB) to form pozzolana that would have pozzolanic activity comparable to natural pozzolanas. Four ratios of RH, BB, and SBE were burnt in the Fixed Bed Kiln (FBK). The starting ratio had 20 kg of RH, 0 kg of BB and 4 kg of SBE. The amount of BB was increased by 2 kg each to a maximum of 6 kg as the mass of SBE was kept consta...
ABSTRACT Integration of robotic arms into working tasks has currently increased magnificently in performing the very repetitive, dangerous or difficult tasks. Typically, a robotic arm is a mechanical arm that is programmable to mimic the behavior of a human arm in terms of how it functions. Computers and microcontrollers have widely been used in the control of robotic arms with the help of sensors, levers, buttons, wireless devices, just to mention but a few. More advanced technology has lat...
ABSTRACT Due to industrialization and increase in population, there is need for clean, green and renewable source of electrical energy. Traditional sources of electrical energy like fossil fuels are getting depleted, on the other hand silicon based solar cells are expensive hence the need for low cost and reliable alternative source of energy. Photovoltaic is a reliable energy source which is renewable. Photovoltaic is a process of conversion of solar energy to electricity directly using sol...
ABSTRACT For over 18 years, there has been an increased use of genetically modified foods for both human and livestock and for this reason, there has been a large number of scientific feeding studies carried out to try to find out how safe the GM foods are. The evidence, however, is still far from proving whether long-term consumption of genetically modified foods possess negative effects for human or animal health. This present study was carried out to analyze the safety of Bacillus thurien...
Availability of quality water supply is essential for a healthy nation and development. Water resources in Kenya are threatened by overuse, misuse and pollution as a result of destruction of vegetation in the watersheds. It is recognized that water quality and quantity factors are strongly influenced by forests. Degradation of water resource therefore causes large chemical consignments for water treatment. This study analysed the performance of four vegetation types in south Kinangop for...
The greatest portion of radiation received by world‟s population comes from natural radioactive sources. Everyone on earth receives natural radiation; some get much more than others depending on where they live. Primordial radionuclide in building sand and gravels from quarries are some of the sources of radiation hazards common in dwellings and working places. In this study, activity concentrations of naturally occurring radionuclide in mineral sand used for construction collected in ...
Typhoid fever is a waterborne and foodborne disease caused by Salmonella enterica serotype Typhi (S. Typhi). Studies have established that some patients presenting with typhoid-like symptoms are usually inflicted by other bacteria pathogens, which may or may not be transmitted by fecal oral route. It is common belief that typhoid fever cases are high in Alupe and continue to cause significant morbidity among the people of Alupe, Busia County. The study focused on isolation and character...
ABSTRACT Infectious diseases account for approximately one-half of all deaths in tropical countries. In industrialized nations, despite the progress made in understanding of microbiology and their pathogenic control, incidences of epidemics due to drug resistant micro-organisms and the emergence of hitherto unknown disease causing microbes, pose enormous public health concerns. Thus, there is need to continue the search for appropriate drugs for anti-microbial treatment without much drawback...
ABSTRACT Avocado (Persea americana Mill) is a fruit commercially grown worldwide. Its production is affected by anthracnose disease which causes huge loss of avocado fruits both at farm level and in storage. Management of anthracnose disease worldwide has been mainly through use of fungicides. In Kenya, farmers use fungicides such as bayleton, milraz and Copper oxychloride which are not registered for controlling anthracnose in avocado. Despite this, the disease has continued to cause signif...
Groundwater contamination occurs when man-made products such as gasoline, oil, road salts and chemicals get into the groundwater and cause it to become unsafe and unfit for human use. Drinking contaminated groundwater can have serious health effects. Diseases such as hepatitis and dysentery may be caused by contamination from septic tank waste. Poisoning may be caused by toxins that have leached into well water supplies. Wildlife can also be harmed by contaminated groundwater. Other long...
ABSTRACT Lead and cadmium which are heavy metals may be used as paint pigments as they speed drying, increase durability, retain a fresh appearance and resist moisture that causes corrosion. Both lead and cadmium metals are toxic, poisonous and are carcinogen, lower IQ, cause hyper activity among other effect. Their presence in decorative paints can produce toxic effect to both painters and those who live in painted houses or painted product especially children who use painted toys can be i...