https://ir-library.mmust.ac.ke/xmlui/handle/123456789/1526 Sun, 19 Apr 2026 11:58:40 GMT 2026-04-19T11:58:40Z https://ir-library.mmust.ac.ke/xmlui/handle/123456789/3315 Examination of the Effects of Imprisonment on Recidivism: A Review of Kisumu County, Kenya Wanyama, Timothy Vitalis; Oruta, Evans M.; Onyango, Erick Ater High rates of recidivism continue to challenge the effectiveness of CZimprisonment as a tool for criminal rehabilitation and public safety in Kenya. In Kisumu County, a growing number of former inmates find themselves re-entering the prison system, raising questions about the role of incarceration in breaking the cycle of crime. This study examines the effects of imprisonment on recidivism rates. This study employed a mixed-methods research design, which enabled the integration of quantitative and qualitative data to comprehensively examine the effects of imprisonment on recidivism in Kisumu County. Data were collected from 700 ex-convicts, 85 prison officers, and 15 probation officers using structured questionnaires, interviews, and document analysis. Quantitative findings revealed that 62% of ex-prisoners were re-arrested within three years, while only 18% had access to consistent rehabilitation programmes during incarceration. Additionally, 76% of recidivists cited unemployment and social stigma as major barriers to reintegration. The qualitative data supported these findings, highlighting overcrowded prison conditions, limited vocational training, and insufficient post-release support as key contributors to reoffending. The study concludes that imprisonment in its current form often fails to rehabilitate offenders and instead contributes to a cycle of repeat offending. It recommends increased investment in community-based rehabilitation, expansion of vocational programmes within prisons, and the establishment of structured reintegration frameworks to reduce recidivism and promote social reintegration. Fri, 21 Nov 2025 00:00:00 GMT https://ir-library.mmust.ac.ke/xmlui/handle/123456789/3315 2025-11-21T00:00:00Z https://ir-library.mmust.ac.ke/xmlui/handle/123456789/3314 Utilization of Cuscuta japonica powder as a novel affordable adsorbent for removing disperse dyes from water Shiyoya, Nebert; Kamau, Rahab; Mutua, Gershom Textile industrial activities have become major contributors of water pollution through the release of dyes into water systems. Disperse red 13 and disperse orange 3 dyes are still heavily used in the industry despite having been reported to be carcinogenic. Adsorption using locally available materials has recently emerged as an effective technology for the removal of pollutants from water. In this study, the potential of Cuscuta japonica powder was investigated for the removal of disperse red 13 and disperse orange 3 dyes from water. The C. japonica powder’s functional groups and the surface chemistry were examined using FTIR spectroscopy and SEM, respectively. TG-DTG analyses were employed to study the thermal characteristics of the powder while EDS was used to determine the elemental composition profile of the powder. Experiments were performed to determine the effect of contact time, pH, initial adsorbate concentration and reaction temperature on the removal of the two dyes from aqueous solution. After 120 min of reaction at 25 ℃, the removal efficiencies recorded were 87.77% and 79.16% for disperse red 13 and disperse orange 3, respectively. The corresponding sorption capacities were 11.10 mg/g for disperse red 13 and 10.61 mg/g for disperse orange 3. The adsorption of the two dyes onto the C. japonica powder followed the pseudo-second order kinetic model. This indicates that the adsorption of the two dyes is largely chemisorption. The Sips isothermal model provided the most appropriate fit for the two dyes. The adsorption of the two dyes onto the powder occur mainly through π–π stacking, hydrophobic interactions, and hydrogen bonding. The adsorption reaction of two dyes onto the adsorbent was exothermic and spontaneous. It was also established that the powder can be used more than three times without significantly losing its adsorptive capacity. These findings demonstrate that C. japonica vines can serve as an affordable source for adsorbent materials for the remediation of water polluted with industrial dyes. Sun, 09 Nov 2025 00:00:00 GMT https://ir-library.mmust.ac.ke/xmlui/handle/123456789/3314 2025-11-09T00:00:00Z https://ir-library.mmust.ac.ke/xmlui/handle/123456789/3313 Reactivity of [(arene)(chloro)(phosphino)ruthenium(II)]+ complexes towards thiourea nucleophiles Sitati, Meshack Kituyi; Mutua, Gershom Kyalo; Onunga, Daniel O.; Jaganyi, Deogratius; Mambanda, Allen Arene Ru(II) complexes; (η6-Benzene)chloro-bis(triphenylphosphino)ruthenium(II) chloride, C1, (η5-cyclopentadienyl)chloro-bis(triphenylphosphino)ruthenium(II) Chloride, C2, (η6-Benzene)chloro{bis(diphenylphosphino)methane}ruthenium(II) Chloride, C3, η5-cyclopentadienyl)[bis(diphenylphosphino)methane]ruthenium(II), C4 (η6-Benzene)chloro{1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)ethane}ruthenium(II) Chloride, C5 and (η6-Benzene)chloro{1,3-bis(diphenylphosphino)propane}ruthenium(II) Chloride, C6 were successfully synthesized by modified literature methods. The rates of chloro substitution and mechanism of reactions of the arene Ru(II) complexes by thiourea nucleophiles were studied under pseudo first order conditions in 0.1 M NaClO4/LiCl methanol solution as a function of nucleophile concentration and temperature. The reactions were monitored using the UV–vis absorption spectrophotometer or stopped flow spectrophotometer for fast reactions. The coordinated arene ligand donates electrons towards the Ru metal ion centre and its π -electron cloud presents an electrostatic repulsive effect onto and around the Ru centre as measured by the projected cone angle. The bidentate bis(diphenylphosphino)methane ligand hinders the approach of nucleophiles during the substitution process. When the bis(diphenylphosphino)methane chelate is expanded through the introduction of a methylene carbon within the bridge, the steric hindrance to the approach of nucleophiles is reduced because of the trough like conformation of the alkyl chain which traps the nucleophiles within the coordination sphere. This enhances the reactivity by a factor of 103. The observed reactivity trends are supported by DFT calculations. The entropy of activation values are positive indicating that the mechanism of substitution has interchange dissociative (ID) character. Mon, 15 Dec 2025 00:00:00 GMT https://ir-library.mmust.ac.ke/xmlui/handle/123456789/3313 2025-12-15T00:00:00Z https://ir-library.mmust.ac.ke/xmlui/handle/123456789/3312 In vitro antioxidant activity of haloalkaliphilic fungal extracts from lake Magadi, Kenya Kiboi, Nathan; Abonyo, Collins; Ouko, Nahashon; Kimani, James; Ngugi, Mathew Piero; Marera, Domnic; Were, Tom The wide-ranging saline-alkaline ecological setting is steadily acquiring appreciation as a rich source harbouring a repertoire of extremophilic fungal diversity exerting exclusive biological activities ranging from anti-inflammatory, antipyretic, analgesic among other varied medicinal capacities. However, studies characterizing biochemical functionalities from structurally unique haloalkaliphilic fungal biota remain scanty and undocumented. Importantly, saline emitting hot-springs situated in Rift valley soda lakes are gaining recognition as natural reservoirs with enormous fungal microbial community bearing potential for antioxidation capacity. Therefore, we conducted a cross-sectional laboratory based experimental study through random sampling aimed at characterizing in vitro antioxidant activity from haloalkaliphilic fungal strains of Lake Magadi in Kenya. Sample types comprising wet sediments, soils and surface water were cultured in sabouraud’s dextrose agar (SDA), potato dextrose agar (PDA) and malt extract agar (MEA) plates at temperatures of 250c and 410c respectively, for 1-3 weeks. Resulting pure isolates underwent molecular identification. PCR proceeded using ITS-1 & 4 universal primers followed by Sanger sequencing. NCBI’s nBLAST supported molecular identification with ≥90% identity cut-off values. Fermentation and extracts production progressed for 28 days at 250c accompanied by lyophilisation. Yielded freeze-dried extracts were profiled for antioxidant activity through hydroxyl, superoxide, DPPH, hydrogen peroxide, FRAP and lipid peroxidation inhibition assays. Extracts’ total phenolics and flavonoids content were also estimated. IC50 was tabulated based on dose-response curves against standards through linear regression. One-way ANOVA compared means across treatments and Tukey’s post hoc used for pairwise group comparisons. Statistical significance was considered at P≤0.05. Genera Cladosporium exhibited dominance (n=4) among sampled fungal biota. Samples P1, P6, P9 and P5 extracts exhibited maximal scavenging activity at higher concentrations against hydroxyl (76.53% ± 1.27), superoxide (78.90% ± 1.29), H202 (76.19% ± 0.40) and DPPH (80.19% ± 0.94) radicals, respectively. Ferric reductive (0.583 ± 0.005) and lipid peroxidation inhibitive (80.95% ± 1.07) activities for isolate P5 was statistically higher relative to other profiled extracts. Radical scavenging capacity of respective antioxidant standards was substantially higher against assayed extracts. Profound IC50 scavenging effect occurred at extract concentrations between 2.5 - 3.5 mg/ml. P7 extracts revealed peak total phenolic content of 3.61 ± 0.05 mg gallic acid equivalents/mg crude extract at 4mg/ml, while P6 expressed comparable total flavonoid content of 3.32 ± 0.04 mg quercetin equivalents/mg crude extract. Overally, fungi extracts showcased free radicals scavenging ability against reactive species in assorted antioxidant assays. Besides safety profile validation, our extracts demonstrate applicability for antioxidative potential that may further be discerned via comparative in vivo and ex vivo murine experimentation models. Sat, 04 Oct 2025 00:00:00 GMT https://ir-library.mmust.ac.ke/xmlui/handle/123456789/3312 2025-10-04T00:00:00Z