Aim:The study is targeted at the sickle cell disease. It has been discovered that some drugs or medications taken for certain ailments are either pro-sickling or anti-sickling in nature. In this study, acorticosteroid by the name of prednisolone was investigated to determineits possible effects on human haemoglobin-S gelation, erythrocyte fragility and Fe 2+ and Fe 3+ concentrations. Materials and Method: The blood sample of 5ml was collected from adult male and female donors by vein puncture using a 5 ml syringe and needle. The blood samples were confirmed as HbSS using standard haemoglobin electrophoresis. Various concentrations of the drug (0.05, 0.1, 0.3, 0.5 and 1 mg/ml) were used to determine the effects on human haemoglobin-S, gelation rate, erythrocyte fragility, Fe 2+ & Fe 3+ concentrations. Absorbance reading was taken at 540 nm using a spectrophotometer. Results: The results showed that Prednisolone increased haemoglobin S gelation at all concentrations (p< 0.05) when compared to the control. The Fe 2+ /Fe 3+ ratio showed a reduction in Okoye et al.; JAMPS, 20(4): 1-7, 2019; Article no.JAMPS.47855 2 haemoglobin values at 0.3, 0.5 and 1.0 mg/ml concentrations when compared to the control and a slight increase at 0.05 and 0.1 mg/ml. For Erythrocyte Fragility, there was destabilization of red cell in all concentrations. Conclusion: This study suggests that this drug could have some undesirable effects on sickle cell subjects. Original Research Article

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The effect of weaning diets formulated locally were assessed on weanling wistar rats and compared with a commercial brand to ascertain its use as weaning diets for infants in resource-poor nations. The raw ingredients were processed using local methods into different diets and fed to weanling rats weighing between 45-60 g. Thirty weanling wistar rats were divided into six groups of five animals each and were allowed access to food and water ad-libitum for 28 days following standard procedures. Results of the antinutritive components of the diets revealed that phytate recorded the least amount of 0.29±0.00 mg/110g while oxalate was highest (18.12±0.07) in diet formulated majorly with plant materials. Organ weights of the experimental animals showed that animals fed the locally formulated diets compared favourably with the commercial diet while the least weights observed in animals fed protein-free diets. The Biochemical and hematological assessment of the serum of experimental animals did not show any marked difference in all the experimental groups. From the result, it can be deduced that the locally formulated diets did not pose any adverse health effect on rats and therefore is safe for use as infant diets.