Abstract Medicinal plants are widely used by the traditional healers to prevent or treat various human diseases since time immemorial due to the chemical substances found in them. The phytochemical constituents of most of these plants has not been determined hence the present study conducted at Kaptumo Division in Nandi County seeks to profile the phytochemicals found in medicinal plants namely: Kigelia africana (Lam.) and Benth, Ekebergia capensis Sparrm and Fagaropsis angolensis (Engl.) Da...
Abstract Utilization of herbal products is a major concern due to the possibility of contamination by toxigenic fungi that are mycotoxin producers such as Aspergillus species during processing and packaging. Research was carried out to determine the presence of aflatoxins and fumonisins in herbal medicinal products sold in Eldoret and Mombasa towns in Kenya. The study employed both exploratory and laboratory experimental design. The herbal products were purchased from the market and transpor...
Abstract Background. Giardia duodenalis causes sporadic or epidemic infections in humans. The parasite comprises assemblages A-H with A and B subdivided further into AI-IV and BI-IV subassemblages. Attempts aimed at linking these genotypes with sources and gastrointestinal manifestations of the infection are largely unexplored in rural communities. Methods. In this cross-sectional study, G. duodenalis infection was genotyped and associated with sources, and gastrointestinal signs and symptom...
Abstract In this paper, an application of the updated vector autoregresive model incorporating new information or measurements is considered. We consider secondary data obtained from the Kenya National Bureau of statistics, Statistical Abstract reports from 2000-2021 which is on monetary value marketed at current prices from crops, horticulture, livestock and related products, fisheries and forestry. A VAR(1) model is fitted to the data and then the model updated to incorporate the measureme...
Abstract Plasmodium falciparum infections remain among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in holoendemic transmission areas. Located within region 5q31.1, the colony-stimulating factor 2 gene (CSF2) encodes granulocyte–macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), a hematopoietic growth factor that mediates host immune responses. Since the effect of CSF2 variation on malaria pathogenesis remains unreported, we investigated the impact of two genetic variants in the 5q31.1 gene r...
Abstract Over the last decade major global efforts mounted to address the HIV epidemic has realized notable successes in combating the pandemic. Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) still remains a global epicenter of the disease, accounting for more than 70% of the global burden of infections. Despite wide spread use of various intervention strategies that act as mediation factors in Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) prevention, HIV prevalence still remains a challenge especially in some geographic ar...
Abstract Odor from preferred/non-preferred tsetse fly vertebrate hosts have been exploited in R&D of attractants/repellents of the fly for human and livestock protection. Odors from vertebrate hosts of Glossina austeni and Glossina pallidipes tsetse flies can facilitate formulation of novel attractants effective against G. austeni or improvement of existing attractant blends for G. pallidipes. We compared vertebrate blood meal sources of both fly species at Shimba Hills National Reserve, Ken...
Abstract Changes in climate have led to shifts in weather patterns outside the normal range of variation over a given time period, attributed to either human action or natural causes. This has led to reduced precipitation, which consequently results in reduced water availability for farming in some seasons, hence the seasonal agricultural drought. This has greatly impacted smallholder farmers, lowering their agricultural productivity. This study was undertaken in Kakamega South Sub-County in...
Abstract The emergence of Covid-19 posed a great health challenge worldwide. Health care facilitieswere stretched beyond limit, with no space to admit new critical patients. This motivated thisstudy, which sought to understand the dynamics around queues, particularly in hospitals. Themain objective was to analyze the queuing process between the Emergency Department (ED)and Internal Wards (IW) at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital, in order to understand patientflow with the view to minimizin...
Abstract Background: Malaria remains one of the leading global causes of childhood morbidity and mortality. In holoendemic Plasmodium falciparum transmission regions, such as western Kenya, severe malarial anemia [SMA, hemoglobin (Hb) < 6.0 g/dl] is the primary form of severe disease. Ubiquitination is essential for regulating intracellular processes involved in innate and adaptive immunity. Although dysregulation in ubiquitin molecular processes is central to the pathogenesis of multiple hu...
Abstract Background: To assess the implementation of a pilot interprofessional train-the-trainer workshop (TTT) on sickle cell anemia (SCA) for feasibility, capacity building, and program sustainment. Methods: The TTT was used to enhance the capacity for community education about SCA in Kenya. An interprofessional team from the USA and Kenya developed the TTT and participants were recruited in Kenya. Participants evaluated the TTT at three and six months after training. Results: The TTT wa...
Abstract Background: Growing of trees on-farms has contributed significantly in easing pressure on the Kakamega–Nandi Forest Ecosystem. There are however concerns that Eucalyptus species is becoming the dominant tree in this landscape and may have adverse effects on the environment. Objectives: To determine the trade-offs in tree species selection and carbon offsets on farms in the margins of the Kakamega - Nandi Forest Ecosystem. Methodology: It employed a nested experimental design where...
Abstract Effects of high stocking densities (HSDs) were evaluated for Nile tilapia fish (Oreochromis niloticus) under culture to determine its influence on plasma cortisol and whole blood glucose concentration. Plasma cortisol levels (ng/ml) were assayed by Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). Whole blood glucose levels were determined using a hand-held one touch ultraglucose meter (MD-300) and test strips. Plasma cortisol and whole blood glucose level determinations were replicated th...
Abstract The world is currently battling the triple burden of malnutrition across all age groups including children. In Kenya, household socio-demographic and economic characteristics have been shown to contribute to malnutrition among children, but there is little known about the magnitude of their contribution at the sub-county level. This study aimed at determining the association between socio-demographic and economic characteristics of mothers and the nutritional status of their childre...
Abstract Background Nile tilapia has a variety of phenotypes suitable for aquaculture farming, yet its entire gene pool with potential for breeding climate ready strains in resource-limited settings remains scanty and poorly documented. SNP calling has become increasingly popular in molecular genetic studies due to their abundance and precision in estimating and identifying an organism’s genetic makeup. SNPs are versatile in trait-specific breeding, which, in contrast to pedigree breeding,...