Abstract Background:Viral hepatitis is a major concern worldwide, with hepatitis A (HAV) and E (HEV) viruses showing sporadic outbreaks while hepatitis B (HBV) and C (HCV) viruses are associated with chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. The present study determined the proportion, geographic distribution and molecular characterization of hepatitis viruses among patients seeking medical services at hospitals throughout Kenya. Methods:Patients presenting with jaundice at ...
Abstract Infectious agents such as SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2 have emerged in recent years causing epidemics with high mortality rates. The quick development of novel therapeutic compounds is required in the fight against such pathogenic agents. Unfortunately, the traditional drug development methods are time-consuming and expensive. In this study, computational algorithms were utilized for virtual screening of a library of natural compounds in the ZINC database for their affinity to...
ABSTRACT This study explores the perceived impact of mass media campaigns in communicating information on HIV/AIDS prevention to in-school (ISY) and out-of-school youth (OOSY) in Oshana Region, northern Namibia. Mass media campaigns have become one of the acknowledged means for stemming the rapid spread of HIV/AIDS in Africa. Since the first case of HIV/AIDS was diagnosed in Namibia in 1986, HIV/AIDS has become the number one cause of hospitalisation and death among people of all ages and of...
ABSTRACT The risks of humans contracting bovine tuberculosis (BTB) and other mycobacterial infections abound in Nigeria. This could be attributed to the close association between farmers and cattle, unhealthy meat processing practices by butchers, consumption of unpasteurized milk and milk products, and poor knowledge of the disease. The circulating Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex and non-tuberculous mycobacteria in livestock workers and animals are largely unknown. Confirming the sources...
ABSTRACT Rift Valley fever (RVF) is an acute, zoonotic viral disease, caused by a Phlebovirus belonging to the Bunyaviridae family. RVF virus (RVFV) historically has been responsible for large explosive outbreaks of severe human and animal disease throughout Africa and recently in the Arabian Peninsula. In animals, it mainly affects domestic ruminants such as sheep, goats and cattle. RVFV outbreaks among livestock are economically devastating and often characterized by large sweeping abortion...
ABSTRACT This study explores the perceived impact of mass media campaigns in communicating information on HIV/AIDS prevention to in-school (ISY) and out-of-school youth (OOSY) in Oshana Region, northern Namibia. Mass media campaigns have become one of the acknowledged means for stemming the rapid spread of HIV/AIDS in Africa. Since the first case of HIV/AIDS was diagnosed in Namibia in 1986, HIV/AIDS has become the number one cause of hospitalisation and death among people of all ages and of...
ABSTRACT Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most important and studies gram positive bacterial strains, which have a great potential to infect human being as well as other mammals. Staphylococcus aureus is a major cause of infections responsible for much life threatening diseases like toxic-shock syndrome, staphylococcal scarlet fever, meningitis, osteomyelitis etc. infection due to these strains are difficult to treat. This research work focused on the id...
ABSTRACT Interventions adopted for the eradication of dracunculiasis in Borno State were evaluated between July 2003 and June 2004 to assess the feasibility of the 2009 target date set for the eradication of guinea worm. Data on cases in Nigeria; North east zone, and Borno State from 1995 - 2007 were obtained from Nigeria Guinea Worm Eradication Programme. Primary data on the cases occurring during the 2003/2004 were obtained through active surveillance. The various intervention strategies ...
ABSTRACT Interventions adopted for the eradication of dracunculiasis in Borno State were evaluated between July 2003 and June 2004 to assess the feasibility of the 2009 target date set for the eradication of guinea worm. Data on cases in Nigeria; North east zone, and Borno State from 1995 - 2007 were obtained from Nigeria Guinea Worm Eradication Programme. Primary data on the cases occurring during the 2003/2004 were obtained through active surveillance. The various intervention strategies...
ABSTRACT The prevalence of viral hepatitis B among patients in National Orthopedic Hospital Enugu was studied. The samples comprised that of men , woman and children 200 in numbers, all patient of orthopedic Hospital Enugu. Laboratory investigation done were this HBs tested which 110 patient out of the 200 patients tested positive, and liver function tests found abnormal in almost all the patients that tested positive to HBsAG routine test. The commonest clinical presentations were fever ...
Abstract Malaria remains a major parasitic disease in Africa, with 300–500 million new infections each year. There is therefore an urgent need for the development of new effective measures, including vaccines. Plasmodium falciparum merozoite surface protein-119 (MSP-119) is a prime candidate for a blood-stage malaria vaccine. Blood samples were collected from children aged 10 days to 15 years in the months of January–March (N = 351) and October–November (N = 369) corresponding to the d...
Abstract: In South Africa, white grubs are important pests of sugarcane and wattle. There is need for a sustainable management alternative since their control has mainly been through the use of chemical insecticides. Such alternatives can include the use of entomopathogenic nematodes, EPNs. A review of the available literature revealed that EPNs can potentially provide a higher percentage control of white grubs, when compared to chemical insecticides. However, this control efficacy is charac...
Abstract/Overview Brucellosis is a common bacterial zoonotic infection but data on the prevalence among humans and animals is limited in Kenya. A cross-sectional survey was conducted in three counties practicing different livestock production systems to simultaneously assess the seroprevalence of, and risk factors for brucellosis among humans and their livestock (cattle, sheep, camels, and goats). A two-stage cluster sampling method with random selection of sublocations and households was...
Abstract Background: The absence of antibodies specific for the 19 kDa C-terminal domain of merozoite surface protein 1 (MSP119) has been associated with high-density malaria parasitaemia in African populations. The hypothesis that a high prevalence and/or level of anti-MSP119 antibodies that may inhibit erythrocyte invasion would be present in apparently healthy individuals who harbour a sub-microscopic malaria infection was tested in this study. Methods: Plasma samples were collected from...
A design of experiment was used to create oil rim models from a wider range of reservoir, operational andreservoir architecture parameters. A response surface model was generated based on a concurrent oil and gasproduction and a Pareto analysis was conducted to ascertain the significance of the parameters. The models wereclassified based on the Pareto analysis and due to the low oil recoveries arising from the complexity of oil rims, aseries of secondary injection schemes were instigated. The...