ABSTRACT The effect of the aqueous and methanol extracts of 12 Ghanaian plants belonging to 10 families on some aspects of the physiology of Sclerotium rolfsii, Helminthosporium sp., Aspergillus niger, A. flavus and Fusarium oxysporium were investigated in vitro in either liquid broth or agar medium amended with varying dilutions (undiluted, 1:1 - 1:5 v/v) of the extracts. Comparatively higher fungistasis against Sclerotium rolfsii and Helminthosporium sp. were found in both aqueous and metha...
ABSTRACT Plastics, though widely used, have low biodegradability and hence are persistent in the environment, becoming a major source of pollution. The study herein was conducted to isolate, from soils, isolates of microorganisms capable of biodegradation of plastics. The soils were sampled from Morogoro Municipality in Tanzania. The pH of the soils ranged between 6.46 and 8.91. Organic carbon ranged from 0.20 and 1.23%, which was very low to low. Total nitrogen ranged from 0.01 and 0.09%, wh...
ABSTRACT Dried, milled cassava and yam peels were inoculated separately with A. nigermidRhizopus sp in solid state. The changes in crude protein (CP), crude fibre (CF), neutral detergent fibre (NDF), acid detergent fibre (ADF) and hemiccllulose were evaluated til 0. 4. X, and 10 days after inoculation. At. the end of the 10th day of fermentation with A. niger the crude protein of cassava peel meal (CPM) increased from 3.5% to 7.0% while that inoculated with Rhizopus sp increased to 5.25%. Cru...
ABSTRACT Despite continued national and international efforts, access to improved water and sanitation remains limited in many developing countries. The health consequences of lacking access to clean water and proper sanitation are severe, and particularly among children. Sixty-two percent and thirty one percent of all deaths in Africa and Southeast Asia, respectively, are caused by infectious disease associated with WASH. Poor access to safe drinking water, inadequate sanitary conditions an...
ABSTRACT Non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are also referred to as mycobacteria other than tuberculosis (MOTT). These bacteria are ubiquitous in the environment and their distribution varies depending on environmental microbial distribution, climate and weather condition. Transmission occurs by aerosols for example during bathing and steaming. Over time the numbers of species and burden have been increasing. This includes saprophytes and emergence of species that cause diseases to human and ...
ABSTRACT The morphological characteristics of three isolates of Sclerotium rolfsii from Aburi (AB), East Legon (EL) and Legon campus (LC) were studied on PDA at an incubation temperature of 28ºC. Radial growth of mycelia and the production of sclerotia were more pronounced in the East Legon (EL) and Legon campus (LC) isolates. When the red and white cormels of cocoyam (Xanthosoma sagittifolium) were inoculated with the various isolates of Sclerotium rolfsii, the white cormels were more resi...
ABSTRACT Background: Exposure to pesticide and its associated health effects in farm children is a major global public health issue. Several studies published in the developed countries have associated pesticide exposure in farm children with acute respiratory infection. However, no data on this subject is available in farm children in Africa. Objectives: This study investigated the prevalence of acute respiratory infection (ARI) defined as acute lower respiratory tract infection (ALRI) and u...
ABSTRACT Aquaculture has been documented as the most developing food industry in Kenya with increased production since the Government initiated Economic Stimulus Programme (ESP) in 2009. However, the production has not been to a maximum level anticipated in the country, particularly in Nakuru County. This is due to the uncontrolled addition of inputs (Inorganic fertilizers, manure and fish feeds) that deteriorate pond water quality. Poor water quality is one of the most common challenges face...
Abstract: Diarrhoea caused by Cryptosporidium is usually mild in immune competent individuals but severe in the young and those with underlying disease leading to compromised immunity. The conventional diagnosis of Cryptosporidium requires observation of the infective oocysts however, their tiny size yields indistinct results, thus limiting the effectiveness of the conventional diagnostic technique, modified Ziehl-Neelsen (ZN) differential staining. Consequent to the abovementioned limitatio...
ABSTRACT This study was carried out to determine the antimicrobial activity of seed oil of Moringa oleifera and garlic against some selected food-borne microorganisms (Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) using disc diffusion method. The antibacterial assay results shows that the seed oil of Moringa oleifera was inactive against all the tested organisms, even at 100 % concentration. In contrast, garlic oil was found to be active against all the t...
Abstract: The root-burrowing nematode, Radopholus similis, is reputedly the most damaging nematode pest of banana and responsible for major production losses. In this study, the endophytic potential of 13 fungal isolates was assessed for the management of R. similis in East African Highland bananas (‘Ng’ombe’). All isolates successfully colonised tissue-cultured banana roots, with isolates from Trichoderma, Fusarium and Hypocrea producing the highest (⩾49.1%) and Beauveria isolates t...
ABSTRACT Infectious disease represents a major cause of death accounting for approximately one half of all deaths in tropical countries (Iwu et al., 1999). In particular, gastrointestinal disease is the most frequent cause of childhood morbidity and adult mortality in many parts of the developing world. The presence of enterobacteria in foodstuffs and water is a common cause of diarrhoea and dysentery among the infant population (Viera et al.,2001). The increase in antibiotic resistance causi...
Abstract Whipping ritual during Sudanese wedding ceremonies could be associated with blood-borne infection that results from viruses such as hepatitis B virus, HCV and HIV. This study was aimed to investigate hepatitis B virus infection among men whipped during Sudanese wedding ceremonies using enzyme-linked immunesorbant Assay (ELISA) for detection of HBs Ag. This was a comparative cross-sectional study which was carried out during the period from January to April 2017. A total of hundred r...
ABSTRACT Background: HIV, HBV, HCV and syphilis infections can be transmitted from person-to person through parenteral administration of blood or blood products. These infections among blood donors are of public health concern because of their prolonged viraemia and carrier of latent state. This study determined the prevalence of HIV, HBV, HCV, and Syphilis infections, and associated factors among blood donors in Koforidua. Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted at St Joseph hospit...
Abstract: Problem statement: Urinary schistosomiasis is highly endemic in Nigeria and for effective control measure, an efficient, quick and yet cheap diagnosis should be integrated. This will ensure the proper management of infection due to Schistosoma haematobium in low resource communities of Nigeria. Approach: This cross-sectional study recruited a total of 456 (252 males, 204 females) school children aged 3-20 years between November 2010 and June 2011. Urine samples were examined macrosc...