Refine
H-BRS Bibliography
- no (1295) (remove)
Departments, institutes and facilities
Document Type
- Article (628)
- Conference Object (508)
- Part of a Book (59)
- Report (22)
- Lecture (16)
- Book (monograph, edited volume) (14)
- Doctoral Thesis (12)
- Patent (7)
- Conference Proceedings (6)
- Master's Thesis (6)
Year of publication
Language
- English (1295) (remove)
Keywords
- ENaC (9)
- Entrepreneurship (7)
- Malus domestica (7)
- Culture (6)
- E-Learning (6)
- apoptosis (6)
- sustainability (6)
- Mal d 1 (5)
- OER (5)
- Cloud (4)
There is severe clinical vitamin A deficiency (VAD) prevalence among Ghanaians and many African countries. Foodbased diets has been suggested as a more sustainable approach to solving the VAD situation in Africa. In this study, A participatory action research between orange flesh sweet potato farmers, gari processors within central region and academia was adopted to develop gari containing provitamin A beta-carotene. Gari is a major staple for Ghanaians and people in the West African subregion due to its affordability and swelling capacity. It is mainly eaten raw with water, sugar, groundnut and milk as gari-soakings or with hot water to prepare gelatinized food called gari-kai in Ghana or “eba” among Nigerians. However, gari is limited in provitamin A carotenoids. Orange fleshed sweet potato (OFSP) is known to contain large amount of vitamin A precursor. Therefore, addition of OFSP to gari would have the potential to fight the high prevalence rate of vitamin A deficiency amongst less developed regions of Africa. To develop this, different proportions of orange fleshed sweet potatoes (OFSP) was used to substitute cassava mash and fermented spontaneously to produce composite gari - a gritty-crispy ready-to-eat food product. Both the amount of OFSP and the fermentation duration caused significant increases in the β-carotene content of the composite gari. OFSP addition reduced the luminance while roasting made the composite gari yellower when compared with the cake used. Addition of OFSP negatively affected the swelling capacity of the gari although not significant. The taste, texture, flavour and the overall preferences for the composite gari decreased due to the addition of the OFSP but fermentation duration (FD) improved them. The sample with 10% OFSP and FD of 1.81 days was found to produce the optimal gari. One-portion of the optimal gari would contribute to 34.75, 23.2, 23.2, 27, 17 and 16% of vitamin A requirements amongst children, adolescent, adult males, adult females, pregnant women and lactating mothers respectively. The study demonstrated that partial substitution of cassava with OFSP for gari production would have the potential to fight the high prevalence rate of vitamin A deficiency amongst less developed regions of Africa while involvement of farmers and processors prior to the design of research phase enhanced the adoption of intervention strategies.
ICT integration by universities teaching professionals is emerging as a major concern, this study demonstrate the need to address the integration problem by encouraging existing metrics use in indexing ICT integration as an ICT governance strategy. Quality of integration depends on quality indexing which also depend on quality of existing metrics and their use. Considering the role that University Information Technology Teaching Professionals’ (UITTPs) continuous improvement indexing can offer, towards autonomic governance of the continuous emerging ICTs in the university teaching, this study examined extent in use of existing ICT integration metrics to index ICT integration by the UITTPs. Six metrics for ICT integration were investigated; time, workshop course content relevance, technical malfunctions, support conditions, support services, and motivation and commitment to student learning and staff professional development metrics. Descriptive survey design was used in which interviews were conducted to UITTPs in three (3) public and three (3) private purposively selected universities in Kenya. The findings were analyzed descriptively and inferentially using Kendall’s correlation of concordance and tested using Chi-square on the extent of concordance and presented with help of frequency tables, figures and percentages. The findings revealed that all the metrics are rarely used for indexing ICT integration (32.8%), and most UITTPs were in discordance on this level of all the six metrics use except for support condition. This implied that the use of metrics for indexing integration has not been formalized across the Kenyan universities. Universities need to be encouraged to identify suitable metrics, formalize them and improve their frequency in use. Secondly, socio based metrics such as content relevance are used more frequently for indexing integration as compared to Technical metrics, socio-technical metrics balance therefore need to be emphasized by the universities management when determining and using metrics for indexing ICT integration.
Cancer is one of the leading causes of death worldwide [183], with lung tumors being the most frequent cause of cancer deaths in men as well as one of the most common cancers diagnosed in woman [40]. As symptoms often arise in advanced stages, an early diagnosis is especially important to ensure the best and earliest possible treatment. In order to achieve this, Computed Tomography (CT) scans are frequently used for tumor detection and diagnosis. We will present examples of publicly available CT image data of lung cancer patients and discuss possible methods to realize an automatic system for automated cancer diagnosis. We will also look at the recent SPIE-AAPM Lung CT Challenge [10] data set in detail and describe possible methods and challenges for image segmentation and classification based on this data set.
With trainings and research oriented towards sustainable development since 2006 (Water and Sanitation, Infrastructure, Renewable Energies and Energy Processes), Foundation 2iE is positioning itself as a reference institute that trains innovative engineers-entrepreneurs for the needs and challenges of Africa’s development. Center of Excellence of the UEMOA and the World Bank, CSR is at the heart of the Strategy of the institute which aims to be a showcase in this field in Africa.
The nature of the program was an exchange program between Hochschule Bonn-Rhein-Sieg, University of Applied Sciences and the University of Cape Coast. The program was advertised and we applied. We were shortlisted for interview and we were selected as the candidates for the exchange program. The program took a period of five months. We set off from Accra, Ghana to Germany on 7th September 2015, and returned to Ghana on 25th January 2016.
The role of tourism entrepreneurship in rural development continues to be a subject of interest and debate among academia and practitioners. Theoretically, it is anticipated that tourism entrepreneurship will lead to livelihood diversification, enhancement and ultimately a revitalization of the rural economy. While tourism is posited as an accessible entrepreneurship pathway, there is a dearth of information regarding rural dwellers’ actual experiences with it, especially within the Ghanaian context. Using a case study approach and qualitative data from Wli; a rural tourism destination in Ghana, this paper delves into the opportunities and concerns associated with tourism entrepreneurship in rural areas. Data was obtained between November and December 2016 from 27 persons who were either tourism enterprise owners or employees. Findings from the study showed that entrepreneurial activities centred on the provision of accommodation, food and beverage, souvenir and guiding services. The nature of the activities enabled easy transfer of existing skills and knowledge. Further, entry into tourism entrepreneurship was perceived to be easy by the majority of study participants. These findings confirm the potential for tourism to be employed in boosting entrepreneurial activities in rural areas. Nevertheless, there were concerns regarding access to credit, institutional support, unhealthy competitions, low incomes, unguaranteed pensions, and seasonality and skewness of demand. These concerns threatened the growth and sustainability of tourism entrepreneurship within the community. From a policy perspective, there is a need for institutional recognition and support for tourism entrepreneurial intentions and activities in rural areas. Practice-wise, credit facilities need to be designed specifically for tourism-related rural enterprises. Further, periodic skills and knowledge augmentation programmes must be initiated to help expand the skill sets for the rural entrepreneurs. Finally, there is a need for the formation of traderelated networks to provide a platform for knowledge and experience sharing among the entrepreneurs.
Competency-Based Teaching Using Simulation Exercises: Evidence of the University of Cape Coast
(2018)
Tertiary institutions exist to train manpower to solve local, national, and international problems. Products from such institutions should not be a problem to countries as in the case of some Sub-Saharan African countries including Ghana which has a high level of graduate unemployment. Among the causes of the problem is the nature of teaching or the syllabus or the programs students pursue while in such institutions. The paper discusses one of the teaching strategies used to make a course relevant for a program and for the working world. In this course, students are introduced to practice-oriented learning through simulation exercises. The project activities specifically seek to assess the students’ understanding of business formation; examine students’ understanding of sustainability, creativity and innovation of business ideas; assess their understanding of the functional areas of business including marketing & sales, finance, human resource management, operations, and accounting, among others. Feedback from students who have participated indicates the exercise gave much more exposure and meaning to the concepts they learned in class. In this exercise, students build teams, develop a product, learn to set up a business, and design organogram, business vision, mission, and core values. The exercise empowers students to learn by doing. It accords students the opportunity to review their own knowledge and skills with respect to the concepts they have learned in the course. More than 3000 students have participated in this project since its inception in the academic year 2013/2014. It is estimated that 1000 students will participate in this project in the academic year 2017/2018.
The gasotransmitter hydrogen sulphide decreases Na⁺ transport across pulmonary epithelial cells
(2012)
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The transepithelial absorption of Na(+) in the lungs is crucial for the maintenance of the volume and composition of epithelial lining fluid. The regulation of Na(+) transport is essential, because hypo- or hyperabsorption of Na(+) is associated with lung diseases such as pulmonary oedema or cystic fibrosis. This study investigated the effects of the gaseous signalling molecule hydrogen sulphide (H(2) S) on Na(+) absorption across pulmonary epithelial cells. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH Ion transport processes were electrophysiologically assessed in Ussing chambers on H441 cells grown on permeable supports at air/liquid interface and on native tracheal preparations of pigs and mice. The effects of H(2)S were further investigated on Na(+) channels expressed in Xenopus oocytes and Na(+) /K(+)-ATPase activity in vitro. Membrane abundance of Na(+) /K(+)-ATPase was determined by surface biotinylation and Western blot. Cellular ATP concentrations were measured colorimetrically, and cytosolic Ca(2+) concentrations were measured with Fura-2. KEY RESULTS H(2)S rapidly and reversibly inhibited Na(+) transport in all the models employed. H(2)S had no effect on Na(+) channels, whereas it decreased Na(+) /K(+)-ATPase currents. H(2)S did not affect the membrane abundance of Na(+) /K(+)-ATPase, its metabolic or calcium-dependent regulation, or its direct activity. However, H(2)S inhibited basolateral calcium-dependent K(+) channels, which consequently decreased Na(+) absorption by H441 monolayers. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS H(2) S impairs pulmonary transepithelial Na(+) absorption, mainly by inhibiting basolateral Ca(2+)-dependent K(+) channels. These data suggest that the H(2)S signalling system might represent a novel pharmacological target for modifying pulmonary transepithelial Na(+) transport.
The vectorial transport of Na+ across epithelia is crucial for the maintenance of Na+ and water homeostasis in organs such as the kidneys, lung, or intestine. Dysregulated Na+ transport processes are associated with various human diseases such as hypertension, the salt-wasting syndrome pseudohypoaldosteronism type 1, pulmonary edema, cystic fibrosis, or intestinal disorders, which indicate that a precise regulation of epithelial Na+ transport is essential. Novel regulatory signaling molecules are gasotransmitters. There are currently three known gasotransmitters: nitric oxide (NO), carbon monoxide (CO), and hydrogen sulfide (H2S). These molecules are endogenously produced in mammalian cells by specific enzymes and have been shown to regulate various physiological processes. There is a growing body of evidence which indicates that gasotransmitters may also regulate Na+ transport across epithelia. This review will summarize the available data concerning NO, CO, and H2S dependent regulation of epithelial Na+ transport processes and will discuss whether or not these mediators can be considered as true physiological regulators of epithelial Na+ transport biology.
More than 25 years ago, it was a big surprise for physiologists that nitric oxide (NO) was identified as the endothelium derived relaxing factor which is responsible for endothelium-induced smooth muscle relaxation (Ignarro et al., 1987). Until then, small gaseous molecules were simply regarded as byproducts of cellular metabolism which were unlikely to be of any physiological relevance. The discovery that NO was synthesized by specific enzymes (NO-synthases), upon stimulation by specific, physiologically relevant stimuli (e.g., acetylcholine stimulation of endothelial cells), as well as the fact that it acted on specific cellular targets (e.g., soluble guanylate cyclase), set the course for numerous studies which investigated the physiological roles of gaseous signaling molecules—in other words, gasotransmitters (Wang, 2002).
The development of pulmonary edema can be considered as a combination of alveolar flooding via increased fluid filtration, impaired alveolar-capillary barrier integrity, and disturbed resolution due to decreased alveolar fluid clearance. An important mechanism regulating alveolar fluid clearance is sodium transport across the alveolar epithelium. Transepithelial sodium transport is largely dependent on the activity of sodium channels in alveolar epithelial cells. This paper describes how sodium channels contribute to alveolar fluid clearance under physiological conditions and how deregulation of sodium channel activity might contribute to the pathogenesis of lung diseases associated with pulmonary edema. Furthermore, sodium channels as putative molecular targets for the treatment of pulmonary edema are discussed.
Carbon Monoxide Rapidly Impairs Alveolar Fluid Clearance by Inhibiting Epithelial Sodium Channels
(2009)
RELA haploinsufficiency is a recently described autoinflammatory condition presenting with intermittent fevers and mucocutaneous ulcerations. The RELA gene encodes the p65 protein, one of five NF-κB family transcription factors. As RELA is an essential regulator of mucosal homeostasis, haploinsufficiency leads to decreased NF-κB signaling which promotes TNF-driven mucosal apoptosis with impaired epithelial recovery. Thus far, only eight cases have been reported in the literature. Here, we report four families with three novel and one previously described pathogenic variant in RELA. These four families included 23 affected individuals for which genetic testing was available in 16. Almost half of these patients had been previously diagnosed with more common rheumatologic entities (such as Behcet's Disease; BD) prior to the discovery of their pathogenic RELA variants. The most common clinical features were orogenital ulcers, rash, joint inflammation, and fever. The least common were conjunctivitis and recurrent infections. Clinical variability was remarkable even among familial cases, and incomplete penetrance was observed. Patients in our series were treated with a variety of medications, and benefit was observed with glucocorticoids, colchicine, and TNF inhibitors. Altogether, our work adds to the current literature and doubles the number of reported cases with RELA-Associated Inflammatory Disease (RAID). It reaffirms the central importance of the NF-κB pathway in immunity and inflammation, as well as the important regulatory role of RELA in mucosal homeostasis. RELA associated inflammatory disease should be considered in all patients with BD, particularly those with early onset and/or with a strong family history.
The invention relates to compounds that include peptide and peptidomimetics that inhibit estrogen receptor dependent cell proliferation. The compounds of the invention are useful for treating cell proliferative disorders or physiological conditions characterized by undesirable or unwanted estrogen induced cell proliferation, including breast cancer.
This study presents the findings of a quantitative study on the use of Open Educational Resources (OER) and Open Educational Practices (OEP) in Higher Education and Adult Learning Institutions. The study is based on the results of an online survey targeted at four educational roles: educational policy makers; institutional policy makers/managers; educational professionals; and learners. The report encompasses five chapters and four annexes. Chapter I presents the survey and Chapter II discloses the main research questions and models. Chapter III characterises the universe of respondents. Chapter IV advances with a detailed survey analysis including an overview of key statistical data. Finally, Chapter V provides an exploratory in-depth analysis of some key issues: representations, attitudes and uses of OEP. The table of contents and the complete list of diagrams and tables can be found at the end of the report.
Over the years, entrepreneurship has proven to be one of the key roles towards development. The cycle of business start-ups and growth are linked to the socio-economic benefits of the global world at large. With a growing world population of over 7billion people, the existence of universities (both public &private) as well as enterprises has increased globally in the 21st century. The mission and purpose behind Universities, Entrepreneurship and Enterprises thrive on development in the areas of capacity building, skill acquisition, training and knowledge amongst others. Africa alone has a population of over 1.2billion people with about 650 recognized universities and over 140,000 registered businesses (enterprises) in Ghana alone. A case study in Ghana reveals three key drivers towards entrepreneurship and the role university education has played in various business establishments. The drivers are problem statements, resources and research findings. Some of these notions to business include the management of risk, research findings and customer relationship. These are major features that need critical attention and play a role in business and entrepreneurship in Africa. A major success in business and entrepreneurship is the utilization of the human resource population and the lifeline support given to households in terms of income, while a barrier being the limited access to credit support from the financial companies at the inception stages. In conclusion, this conference should develop a practical book guide on business start-ups and entrepreneurship knowledge to be used at the various universities in Africa to enhance development.
The human MPV17-related mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome is an inherited autosomal recessive disease caused by mutations in the inner mitochondrial membrane protein MPV17. Although more than 30 MPV17 gene mutations were shown to be associated with mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome, the function of MPV17 is still unknown. Mice deficient in Mpv17 show signs of premature aging. In the present study, we used electrophysiological measurements with recombinant MPV17 to reveal that this protein forms a non-selective channel with a pore diameter of 1.8 nm and located the channel's selectivity filter. The channel was weakly cation-selective and showed several subconductance states. Voltage-dependent gating of the channel was regulated by redox conditions and pH and was affected also in mutants mimicking a phosphorylated state. Likewise, the mitochondrial membrane potential (Δψm) and the cellular production of reactive oxygen species were higher in embryonic fibroblasts from Mpv17−/− mice. However, despite the elevated Δψm, the Mpv17-deficient mitochondria showed signs of accelerated fission. Together, these observations uncover the role of MPV17 as a Δψm-modulating channel that apparently contributes to mitochondrial homeostasis under different conditions.
This study sought to examine the relationship between the components of SMEs social capital and firm performance. Using the social capital theory and the resource-based view as the theoretical foundations and census, 1,532 SMEs were selected in the Accra Metropolis for the study. Empirical results from 717 SMEs, utilising the hierarchical linear regression model, revealed that owner/manger’s network relationships are beneficial to the firm depending on when the relationships are closed or opened. Moreover, the study found that social capital has a significant impact on the sales and market performance of small and medium-sized enterprises. The results also brought to the fore the fact that most social networks of SME entrepreneurs are family, friends and relatives, which most times can only be used for expressive purposes and not for instrumental gain. The practical implications of the results are also discussed.
Ghanaian tertiary graduates' perception of entrepreneurship education on employment opportunities
(2017)
This study focuses on whether entrepreneurship education increases entrepreneurial interest in students to set up new businesses. Entrepreneurship is a core course taken in the third year by all students of Ho Technical University. Out of the 1329 population of level 300 students of the 2016/2017 academic year, data were collected by convenience sampling from 325 (217 males and 108 females) with mean age of 24.75 years from 14 departments of four faculties. The students responded to 43-survey items derived from reviewed literature on a 5-Point Likert-Scale. It is concluded that more than 84% of the respondents agreed that entrepreneurship education informed students about entrepreneurship through the acquisition of practical skills, knowledge about acquisition of personal orientation, knowledge about business management principles and the availability of entrepreneurial support agencies. This shows that the students are highly confident of setting up their own businesses through the knowledge acquired. The study therefore has important implications for policy makers, management of tertiary institutions, students and educational evaluators on how to ensure that tertiary graduates set up entrepreneurship ventures in order to partially solve the unemployment problem in Ghana.
We present a model checking algorithm for ∀CTL (and full CTL) which uses an iterative abstraction refinement strategy.
It terminates at least for all transition systems M that have a finite simulation or bisimulation quotient. In contrast to other abstraction refinement algorithms, we always work with abstract models whose sizes depend only on the length of the formula θ (but not on the size of the system, which might be infinite).