Natural & Applied Sciences

Research Papers/Topics Natural & Applied Sciences

Polypyrrole Based Biofunctional Composite Layer for Bioelectrocatalytic Device System

The involvement and development of intelligent polymers in enzymes as a catalyst have been interesting to develop processes that are environmentally benign, energy efficient, and selective towards their specific molecular applications. Polypyrrole based enzyme nanocomposites represents a continuous considerable redox organic polymer  that have been increased in electromechanical devices in advance  for  surface  functionalization. This review addresses the fundamental concepts of poly...

Biosynthesis and Optimization of ZnO Nanoparticles Using Ocimum lamifolium Leaf Extract for Electrochemical Sensor and Antibacterial Activity

In this study, zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) were synthesized using an aqueous extract of the Ocimum lamifolium (O.lamifolium) plant. The I optimal coordinate exchange random response surface methodology (RSM) was used to optimize the effect of the zinc acetate precursor, temperature, and time on ZnO NPs by designing nine runs. From ANOVA analysis, the significance and validity of the designed models showed that the optimal values of the zinc acetate precursor, temperature, and time d...

A Review on Advancements of Nanocomposites as Efficient Anode Modifier Catalyst for Microbial Fuel Cell Performance Improvement

Non-renewable energy sources produced from natural coal and oil may result in climate change and global warming as greenhouse gases are to the environment. This is why the main utilization of energy sources on renewable and alternate green energy  to deliver power. Thus, a microbial fuel cell device is one of the cost-effective and environmentally friendly energy conversion devices that uses renewable organic wastes as fuel source and converts this stored chemical energy in to useful b...

Latent Fingerprint Enhancement Techniques

Fingerprint (FP) is a global mark used for personal identification. This study reviews recent latent fingerprint (LFP) enhancement techniques  including metal oxides, multi-metal deposition (MMD-I/II/SMD/Au-ASP), optical, chemical, physical, and physicochemical. Furthermore, analytical techniques involved in identification, evaluation, and determination of pieces of evidence, and perpetrators including the SEM, TEM, UV-Vis, IR/NIR, SERS, SKP, DLS, MALDI-MSI, and TD analysis were also dis...

Single nucleotide polymorphisms in LCAT may contribute to dyslipidaemia in HIV‑infected individuals on HAART in aGhanaian population

Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) is known to cause lipid abnormalities such as dyslipidaemia in HIV-infected individuals. Yet, dyslipidaemia may not independently occur as it may be worsened by single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in lecithin cholesterol acyltransferase (LCAT) and lipoprotein lipase (LPL). This case–control study was conducted in three-selected hospitals in the Northern part of Ghana. The study constituted a total of 118 HIV-infected participants aged 19–71 ...

Models for predicting height from percutaneous lengths of the ulna and femur in a Ghanaian population

This study aimed to develop predictive models from percutaneous femoral (PFL) and ulna (PUL) lengths for estimating height among a living Ghanaian population. This was a cross-sectional study involving 99 adults (males=52, females=47) between the ages of 19–31yrs. The height, femoral and ulnar lengths of all participants were measured twice using standard anthropometric methods. Regression predictive equation models were developed based on PFL, PUL, age and the combined PFL+PUL. p < 0.05 wa...

Second to fourth (2D:4D) digit ratio and their relationships among a mother and child population in Ghana

The study aimed to determine the relationship between digit ratios among a mother–child population in Ghana. This was a cross-sectional study from December 2020 to April 2021 involving 272 mothers, their daughters (n= 132) and their sons (n= 140). The right (2D:4DR) and the left (2D:4DL) digit ratios were measured using computer-assisted analysis. The data were analysed in SPSS (v23) and GraphPad Prism (v8) at an alpha value of 0.05. The mean±SD age of the mothers was 23.9 ± 3.67 years wh...

The relationship between 2D:4D ratio and postpartum adult female variables in a Ghanaian population

Objectives: Postpartum hematological and anthropometric assessment is a requirement for optimal maternal and child health. The study aimed to determine the relationship between the 2D:4D ratio and postpartum hematological and anthropometric variables in adult females. Methods: The study was cross-sectional from December 2020 to April 2021 involving 272 postpartum adult females, aged between 18 and 36 years. The right (2D:4DR) and the left (2D:4DL) digit ratios were measured using computer-ass...

The relationship between offspring's 2D:4D ratio and postpartum maternal circulating testosterone, estradiol, and their indices in a Ghanaian population

Objectives: The 2D:4D ratio is influenced by prenatal testosterone (PT) and estrogen (PE) exposure in utero. This study sought to determine whether evidence of Manning's hypothesis can still be observed even in the postpartum period. We hypothesize that the offspring 2D:4D ratios will be inversely correlated with maternal postpartum circulating testosterone but positively correlated with estradiol. Methods: This study was conducted between December 2020 and April 2021 and was cross-sectional ...

Fire Incident Statistics in the Tamale Metropolitan Area in the Northern Region of Ghana: A Retrospective Study

The effect of a fire disaster is greater in developing countries due to inadequate 'firefighting preventive and support systems. There is therefore the need to analyze fire incident data to enable better fire safety and prevention strategies. The study was a retrospective cross-sectional study from January to June 2021. In all, 130 fire incident reports from 2017 to 2020 were collected. The data, consisting of 32 variables were analyzed using binary logistic regression. It was observed that f...

Sex estimation from the percutaneous lengths of the femur and the ulna in a Ghanaian population using discriminant function analysis

Sex estimation models form a vital part in Forensic human identification but they are usually population-specific. This study aimed to develop and test sex estimation models for a Ghanaian population using percutaneous lengths of the femur (FL) and ulna (UL). The study was cross-sectional from June to July 2020, involving 99 adults (male: 52, females: 47), aged between 19 and 31years. The lengths of the femur and ulna were measured using standard anthropometric techniques. All measurements we...

The association between the 2D:4D ratio and offspring sex at birth: A cross-sectional study in Ghana

Objectives: The 2D:4D ratio is the putative marker of prenatal androgen exposure. Low maternal 2D:4D ratio has been associated with high or male-biased secondary sex ratio. Hitherto, there has not been any study in Ghana regarding the maternal 2D:4D ratio and sex ratio at birth. This study sought to investigate this observation in a Ghanaian population. Method: The study was cross-sectional from December 2020 to April 2021 involving 272 first-time mothers. The mean ± SD age of the mothers wa...

Models for estimating age and sex from variables of the proximal femur in a Ghanaian population

Age and sex estimation models from the proximal femur are population-specific due to genetic and environmental variabilities. Extrapolating a femur-based age or sex estimating model from one population to another will be problematic. Proximal femur-specific age and sex estimation models are limited in Ghana. The study aimed to estimate the age and sex of an adult Ghanaian population using osteometric measurements from the proximal femur. The study was cross-sectional from January to June 2019...

The relationship between the 2D:4D ratio and lateral preference in a Ghanaian population

Prenatal androgen exposure has suggested to be associated with lateral preferences in humans as per the Geschwind-Behan-Galaburda (GBG) theory, the Sexual Differentiation Hypothesis (SDH) and the Callosal Hypothesis (CH). The 2D:4D ratio is the putative marker of prenatal androgen exposure. The study aimed to determine the relationship between the 2D:4D ratio and lateral preferences. The study was cross-sectional from May to June 2021 that involved 206 participants (females = 112, males = 94)...

Sex estimation accuracies from variables of the index and ring fingers in a Ghanaian population: Absolute lengths versus length ratios

There are variabilities in the sex and height estimation accuracies using variables of the index and ring fingers. This study sought to compare the performance of the absolute length and the length ratio variables of the index and ring fingers in sex and height estimation. The study was cross-sectional from January to June 2021 at the University for Development Studies. The participants were 216 (males=96, females=120) between 18 and 32 years. The index (IF), the ring (RF) finger lengths and ...


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