Rivers State University of Science and Technology

About: Rivers State University of Science and Technology is a education organization based out in Port Harcourt, Rivers, Nigeria. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Threatened species. The organization has 1826 authors who have published 1833 publications receiving 15183 citations.

Xylopia aethiopica ethanol seed extract suppresses Cadmium chloride-induced ovary and gonadotropins toxicity in adult female Wistar rats.

Abstract: OBJECTIVE Xylopia aethiopica is a common plant in West Africa, with wide applications in trado-medical management of several diseases. Thus, our study aimed to analyze the histology and hormonal effects of ethanol extracts of Xylopia aethiopica seeds on cadmium chloride-induced reproductive dysfunction in female Wistar rats. METHODS We used twenty-five rats weighing 120-150g for this study. The rats were divided into five groups (n=5). Group 1: received only distilled water orally; Group 2: received 2 mg/kg cadmium chloride orally; Group 3: received 2 mg/kg cadmium chloride plus 50 mg/kg Xylopia aethiopica seeds orally; Group 4: received 2 mg/kg cadmium chloride plus 100 mg/kg Xylopia aethiopica seeds orally, and Group 5: received 100 mg/kg Xylopia aethiopica seeds only, orally. We administered the extracts for 14 days, after which we slaughtered the animals following chloroform anesthesia. We took the blood samples by cardiac puncture for hormonal assay. The ovaries and uterus were harvested for histology. We analyzed the data using ANOVA, and the differences in mean values were considered significant at p<0.05. RESULTS The body weight of the rats showed a dose-dependent reduction (p<0.05), compared with the controls. Xylopia aethiopica seeds significantly (p<0.05) reversed the detrimental effects of Cadmium on LH and FSH. The histological analysis of the ovary showed significant improvement upon treatment with Xylopia aethiopica extract in a dose-dependent manner. CONCLUSIONS The ameliorative effects of Xylopia aethiopica against cadmium chloride-induced reproductive toxicity in female Wistar rats may be attributed to its antioxidant properties.

Development of lcds-based interactive electronic school book on blackbody radiation as self-instructional materials for fostering student’s critical thinking

Abstract: This study aims to develop an LCDS- based the interactive electronic school book on blackbody radiation that is valid as self-instructional materials to foster students' critical thinking skills. The method used was research and development. The stages of the research were determining the existing potentials and problems, information gathering, product design, product validation, the final revision of the product, and feasibility tests and practicality of operation. The research instrument used was a questionnaire. Interactive electronic school book has supporting contents, namely user manual, user learning process, video, animation, simulations, and interactive tests. Expert test for product consists of content validation with the score of 3,36 (very appropriate) and design validation with the score of 3,45 (very appropriate). Readability of LCDS- based interactive electronic school book on blackbody radiation got the score of 3, 23 which belongs to the good quality. The practicality aspects got a score of 3.28 which means it can be operated independently

Effect of Social Media Marketing on The Conversion Rate of Deposit Money Banks in Nigeria

Abstract: The study examined the effect of social media marketing on the conversion rate of deposit money banks in Nigeria. Blog, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn were used as the dimensions of social media marketing. The study revealed a gap from the literature that social media marketing and organizational efficiency of banks in Nigeria has not been extebsively studied in Nigeria. The study used the conversion rate as a dependent variable. The study adopted descriptive and inferential statistical tools to analyze the data and test the hypotheses. A questionnaire was used to elicit information from the respondents. The population of the study consisted of all the 22 banks approved by CBN. The study sampled 159 respondents from 22 banks in Nigeria and validly used 133 respondents representing 83.65% response rate for data analysis. The study found that banks use a blog, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn to conduct their marketing activities for brand promotion and persuasion of customers to patronize them. The study revealed that Blog has a positive but insignificant effect on conversion rate. The study discovered that Facebook has a positive and significant effect on conversion rate. The study revealed that Twitter has a positive and significant effect on conversion rate. The study found that LinkedIn has a positive and insignificant effect on conversion rate. The study concludes that as banks use blogs, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn to create awareness about their products and services on the internet. The study recommends that bank managers should use Blog, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn by encouraging all the bank staff to participate in social media marketing which in turn covers more ground for the enhancement of conversion rate leading to the conversion rate of banks.

Functional Properties of Tigernut and Cowpea Flour Blends

Abstract: The pH and functional properties: water and oil absorption capacity, bulk density, solubility, swelling power and foaming capacity of tigernut and cowpea flour blends were determined. The flour blends were coded with the letters B, C, D, E, F, G and H for cowpea flour substitutions of 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 40 and 50 % respectively. For comparison sample A1, A2 and A3 representing 100 % of wheat, tigernut and cowpea respectively, were also evaluated. Standard methods were used for all the analysis. pH of the flour samples varied significantly (P ≤ 0.05) from 5.60-6.23 for sample B (5 % cowpea flour substitution) and A2 (100% tiger nut flour) respectively. Water and oil absorption capacity varied significantly (P ≤ 0.05) from 1.00-2.90 ml/g and 0.39-1.38 ml/g respectively. Sample A1 (100% wheat flour) and Sample B (5% Cowpea: 95% tigernut flour) was significantly (P ≤ 0.05) the highest in water absorption capacity while sample A1 (% wheat flour) had the highest oil absorption capacity. Bulk density varied from 0.58 - 0.84 g/cm3. Although Cowpea flour (sample A3) had the highest bulk density, there was significant (P ≤ 0.05) decrease with increase in cowpea substitution. Swelling power and solubility ranged from 0.08-6.74 g/g and 8.00–67.35 % respectively. Sample A1 (% wheat flour) had significantly (P ≤ 0.05) the highest solubility and swelling power while Sample A3 (% cowpea flour) had the least. The functional properties of the tigernut-cowpea composite flour were comparable with that of the wheat flour, except for the swelling power that was significantly (P ≤ 0.05) higher for the wheat flour. The result showed that the composite tigernut-cowpea flour can be good alternative in the production of bakery products that would not require much swelling.