Month: August 2024

Abstract

Garcinia kola Heckel seed is widely used in the African traditional medicine as a aphrodisiac and male fertility enhancer. Probiotics can reestablish glucose homeostasis and improve blood lipid profiles by altering the composition of the intestinal flora. The study was planned to assess the efficacy of co-administration of Garcinia kola seed aqueous infusion and probiotic yoghurt in the management of diabetes and associated male fertility-stimulating hormones abnormalities. G. kola seed infusion was prepared, assessed for radical scavenging capacity, total phenolic content and phenolic profile using HPLC. Fermented yoghurt was prepared and inoculated with probiotic mixture. Rats were given a high-fat diet for four weeks and received an intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (30 mg/kg) to induce type 2 diabetes. Diabetic rats were received 200 mg/kg freeze-dried infusion of G. kola seed, probiotics yoghurt, and probiotic yoghurt mixed with G. kola once a day for four weeks. The levels of glucose, insulin, testosterone, follicle-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, inflammatory indicators, oxidative markers, lipid profiles and liver as well as kidney biochemical indicators were measured. The administration of G. kola seed, probiotic yoghurt, or their combination to diabetic rats demonstrated potential anti-diabetic effects as evidenced by the down-regulation in glucose, insulin, lipid profile, oxidative markers, and inflammatory markers simultaneously with an up-regulation in testosterone, FSH, and LH levels compared to diabetic rats. G. kola seed, probiotic yoghurt, or their combination increased testosterone, FSH, and LH levels and are thought to have therapeutic promise for T2DM and its related oxidative stress.

Graphical Abstract

Abstract

Rationale

Trauma from child abuse and neglect requires specialised assessment and intervention, especially for those experiencing complex trauma. Unfortunately, what constitutes complex trauma is contentious, alongside growing criticisms of diagnostic categories and labels. Recent literature critiques the symptom clusters and diagnostic categories/labels approach compared to focusing on the concrete impacts and functional nature of behavioural responses to trauma in context.

Aims

This research aimed to assess the conceptual maturity of complex trauma for children and young people who have experienced abuse and neglect by discussing the concept with Australian experts. The research aimed to conceptualise complex trauma through a dimensional lens and impacts-based approach. The overall aim was to increase understanding of the development and maintenance of complex trauma and its distinctiveness from other types of trauma.

Method

Group interviews were conducted, and reflexive thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. A member-checking survey helped review and improve the findings.

Results

Findings suggest a vast array of impacts from complex trauma, that diagnostic boxes may not be right for complex trauma, and that the potentially chaotic cycle of complex trauma perpetuates issues. Results from this pilot indicate that complex trauma may be an immature concept for expert clinicians and researchers alike.

Conclusions

Despite assessing complex trauma as an emerging or even immature concept, the discussion generates direction forward and suggests further research avenues. Associated ideas and emerging concepts begin a conceptual discussion of complex trauma.

Abstract

Shenzhen, a bustling metropolis in China, is currently grappling with the delicate balance between urban expansion and environmental preservation. This study finds that the disintegration of habitats due to urban development in Shenzhen city significantly impacts the ecosystem of animals and plants, detrimentally altering their living conditions. The study results reveal that the expansion of construction land in China has surged by an impressive 84.39% between 2000 and 2020, which has come at the cost of diminishing wetlands, farmland, and woodlands by 57.24%, 16.58%, and 1.86%, respectively. Between 1980–2020, the urban expanse of Shenzhen expanded dramatically, growing from 16.0 square kilometres to 850.2 square kilometres. This transformation was primarily driven by the rapid conversion of forested areas, which saw a staggering decrease of approximately 300% to 780 km² by 2020. Additionally, half of Shenzhen’s expansion can be attributed to the transformation of agricultural land, with an additional 40% stemming from the clearing of forests and approximately 9% resulting from the decrease in water resources. Furthermore, non-urban green spaces, particularly built-up areas, have significantly expanded, now encompassing approximately 60% of the city in 2018. Therefore, based on the existing literature and authoritative legal texts, this study aims to examine the legal frameworks of the Shenzhen government and, along with China’s national legislation, to make room for wildlife and biodiversity conservation in a metropolis like Shenzhen.

Abstract

While there is a body of literature monitoring Indigenous Australian post-secondary school experiences, research investigating aspirational development in this life stage and Indigenous youth success as defined by Indigenous youth is severely lacking. Too often academic, government and public discourses portray Indigenous youth experiences through deficit frames of representation, completion and performance. By sharing the insights, reflections and aspirations of 15 young Indigenous Australian participants this paper calls for Indigeneity to be centred in ideations and indicators of Indigenous youth success. Findings confront institutionalised and hierarchical ideals of Indigenous Australian success premised on dominant neoliberal ideation and the accumulation of White cultural and social capital. Through an Indigenist Research lens this paper presents aspirational development and achievement as a complex and raced space where Indigenous Australian secondary school leavers articulate ambition and agency in developing successful careers, rich in cultural wealth and with their identity intact.

Abstract

Before the last century, societies around the globe, including Indigenous Peoples and early settlers to Canada’s west coast, relied on local procurement and preservation of seasonal food to support their food security and food sovereignty. In some instances, Indigenous Peoples and settlers shared and adopted each other’s food provisioning and preservation practices and associated values. Such cross-cultural knowledge exchanges provided wide-ranging food provisioning options for those living in the region. In this paper, we conceptualize such exchanges and varieties of provisioning options as part of Indigenous and local food systems that have been co-created through mutual interdependence, support, and food-related values. Using data from interviews and document analysis, we show that current residents of the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Region have maintained traditional food procurement and preservation techniques, although with some new methods that have emerged in response to new technologies, innovation, and need. Indigenous and non-Indigenous residents who share food and exchange food provisioning practices simultaneously support their food needs, wellbeing, and cultural maintenance. In contrast to research that examines and conceptualizes local food systems and Indigenous food systems separately, this paper highlights the existence of an interrelated Indigenous and local food system, characterized by historical and contemporary shared food provisioning practices and cross-cultural food knowledge exchanges on Canada’s west coast. The advantage of the joint conceptualization lies in acknowledging how food systems can and do evolve to co-exist over time, and how they create opportunities for people living in remote, sometimes marginalized communities to strengthen food security and food sovereignty through shared food provisioning practices that resonate with their values.

Abstract

Background

An ethnozoological study of medicinal animals in the Kucha district, Gamo zone, Southern Ethiopia, was conducted to investigate and document the use of traditional medicinal animals and the associated indigenous knowledge. Tribal people still make abundant use of animals and their parts to manage diseases in humans and even livestock.

Method

A cross sectional study design and purposively sampling techniques were used. Data were collected from 132 respondents based on semi structured questionnaires. Focus group discussions (FGD) and Key informant interviews (KII) were conducted; Fidelity level (FL), Relative frequency of citation (RFC) and Informants’ consensus factor (ICF) were used to analyze species preference and importance.

Results

A total of 24 medicinal animals were identified with 13 species (54.2%) being mammals of which 5 species (20.8%) dominated. They were followed by arthropods, reptiles and fishes. Seven out of the total were domestic species (29%) and 17 (70%) were wild animals. The majority of these animals, i.e. 22 (91.7%), were used to treat human ailments; whereas 2 (8.3%) were used to treat livestock ailments. The ICF values varied from 0.8 to 1.The highest FL value (98%) was linked to the cow (cattle), the lowest (1.5%) to the scorpion. The RFC value (1.0) was highest for the cow and lowest (0.02) for the scorpion. Honey, milk, and butter were the most commonly used therapeutic animal products, but regarding direct uses, fresh/raw meat dominated. Out of ten ailment categories, headaches had the lowest ICF value (0.8). All others scored at least 0.9.

Conclusions

In rural areas, sick people often do not only have limited access to modern medical facilities, they actually prefer traditional treatments considering them to be more reliable and effective. It is therefore important to focus on documenting, conserving, and safeguarding the indigenous knowledge so that strategies to manage the traditional wisdom can be implemented in the future. To achieve these goals, it is important to make sure that medicinal animal species are available in sufficient numbers and neither threatened by habitat changes or overexploitation.

Abstract

This article takes a linguistic approach to the construction of group identities in relation to climate imaginaries, which condition what climate futures are considered possible. It employs social identity theory along with methods from Sociolinguistics and Discourse Linguistics to analyse patterns of positioning and stance-taking in social media discourse (Twitter/X, Instagram). By identifying typical multimodal practices at a micro level, as well as introducing five functional meta categories (›awareness, advice, and agitation‹, ›ritualised appreciation‹, ›solidarity and allyship, ›voice and advocacy‹, and ›community demarcation‹), the research investigates how digital discourse reflects and shapes group identities related to climate change topics. It thereby offers insights into the role of language in co-producing climate imaginaries in digitally shared environments.