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An ethno botanical survey was carried out in Kano metropolis to investigate medicinal plants used locally for the treatment of diabetes in the area.  The respondents for the study included herbalists and herb sellers. Oral interview was used to obtain information from the respondents using their local language and the information was recorded in a semi structured questionnaire. A total of 39 medicinal plant species belonging to 21 families were recorded in the study area. Family Fabaceae had the highest number of plant species and most of the plants were sourced from the wild. The plants were prepared mostly in their dried form and decoction was the most commonly used method of preparation. Moreover, combination of different plants or their parts in the preparation of the recipes for the treatment of diabetes was common among the respondents. Annisopus manii, Laptadenia hastata and Moringa oleifera were the most cited medicinal plants in the preparation of recipes for the treatment of diabetes mellitus in the study area Keywords: Diabetes management, folkloric, medicinal, plants

Studies on writing, thus, become crucial because when students make the transition from Secondary School to a Tertiary Institution, they encounter many challenges. One of them is the writing of B.A projects. Most of these undergraduate students both in L1 (English as a first language) and L2 (English as a second language) still find it difficult to argue, discuss or evaluate competently as well as persuasively in English essay writing. The present study aimed at exploring metadiscoursal choice and its influence on the success of students’ academic writing. The study was conducted within the framework of Appraisal Theory. The data was randomly generated from the written essays by thirty selected Level 400 students both from Umaru Musa Yar’adua University and Al-Qalam University Katsina. Also, the data was descriptively alaysed and presented. It was discovered that six (6) of the essays do not contain the relevant elements for this study, thus excluded from the analysis. To achieve the main objective of this study, the first six categories of the most successful essays and the least successful ones were taken for in-depth analysis. They were analysed paragraph by paragraph and then each interactional metadiscourse element was separately discussed as a whole. The findings showed that many of the students were not exposed to these elements, thus, they write academic essay the way they speak. It is against these findings that the present study unravels that embedding the teaching of metadiscourse in cumulative learning practices could consequently empower students to develop both linguistically and intellectually.

Background: Serum proteins designated as liver function biomarkers are used to evaluate patients for hepatic dysfunction. Hepatic effect of Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) needs further studies in HIV mono-infected patients. In this study, clinically defined patient datasets were analysed for protein levels in HIV-1 mono-infected seropositive patients with and without ART. Materials and Methods: Data were collected for the study groups, consisting of the control group and HIV-1 mono-infected seropositive patients with and without ART and were analysed statistically for differences among the groups. All subjects in the patient groups attended University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital, Nigeria for a period of 5 years. Result: The protein levels on initiation of ART were significantly higher than baseline levels (prior to ART). However, continuous use of ART for 5-year period did not induce any further significant change in protein levels. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves shows that both Albumin (ALB) and Total protein (TP) levels discriminated among the study groups. The baseline levels of ALB in seropositive patients are significantly lower to levels on initiation of ART. Conclusion: Continuous ART did not cause any further significant change in levels of liver function proteins than was observed on ART initiation. Hence, liver damage on continuous ART is not implied. Both ALB and TP levels could be important in HIV management of patients. Initiation of ART appears to elevate the low ALB level via a yet unknown mechanism and indicates possible role of ALB in ART mechanism of action.