ABSTRACT Infectious bursal disease (IBD) is a highly contagious disease of young chickens between 3 and 6 weeks of age. It is caused by infectious bursal disease virus(IBDV) which occursworldwide affecting livelihoods of resource - compromised poor communities. In Zambia, there is scantily documented information on the epidemiology of IBD. In-depth knowledge on the epidemiology of IBD is needed for effective control measures. This study aimed at molecular detection of circulating IBDV strain...
ABSTRACT The development of resistance to insecticides by Anopheles mosquitoes continues to threaten the success of malaria control programmes in West Africa. Local data on mechanisms and factors causing resistance in the region are scanty. This study was designed to investigate the environmental factors and mechanisms implicated in resistance to pyrethroids by Anopheles gambiae in southwestern Nigeria and southern Benin Republic. Larvae of Anopheles mosquito were collected in 2007 from...
ABSTRACT Mosquito-borne viruses primarily infect animals and humans causing significant public and veterinary health threat. Transmitted by hematophagous mosquitoes, dengue virus and Rift Valley fever virus are the most common outbreaks that occurred in parts of Tanzania especially in malaria endemic areas. Several studies reported the presence of the viruses in circulation in animals and humans. Therefore, this study sought to investigate the diversity of mosquito-borne virus vectors and to...
ABSTRACT Sardines in Tanzania are small pelagic fish eaten in a dried form mainly by the poor and middle-income groups. The main objective of this research was to assess the influence of postharvest handling of sardines from Lake Victoria and its effects on the quality and sensory attributes of the final product. Cross-sectional and factorial designs were used to collect data for field survey and laboratory analyses, respectively. Ninety three respondents were involved in the survey to asses...
EXTENDED ABSTRACT The natural occurrence of aflatoxins and fumonisins in maize and beans at harvest, during storage and along the value chain, including processed, feed and marketed products in three villages of Long, Sabilo and Seloto in Babati District, Manyara region, Tanzania, was investigated in the year 2013/14. The villages were chosen as they represents three different climatic zone. Total aflatoxins and fumonisins contamination in 440 at harvest maize samples had levels up to 26.2 �...
ABSTRACT This is the first study done in Tanzania concerning with parasites of octopus, aimed to investigate parasites in Octopus cyanea along the Indian Ocean of Tanga region in Tanzania. Information from fishermen was required so as to determine their awareness on parasitic infections in octopus. Twenty five per cent (25.3%) agreed on the presence of parasites in octopus skin and muscles but these were not observed during laboratory investigation. Gamogony and sporogony of Aggregata sp (Ap...
ABSTRACT Chikungunya is a viral disease caused by Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) that is transmitted to humans by infected Aedes aegypti and Ae. albopictus mosquitoes. The objective of this study was to determine the seroprevalence of Chikungunya infection among febrile patients seeking healthcare in Mzuzu City, Malawi. Blood samples were collected during 2019 from outpatients attending Mzuzu Central Hospital who presented with fever but who were malaria and sepsis negative. Sera from outpatients...
ABSTRACT The present study was conducted to investigate the presence of Arenaviruses from rodents, shrews and elephant shrews captured in selected wildlife-human interfaces in Tanzania. The study involved six sites with high potential for contact between wildlife and humans namely; Ruaha, Kilombero, Mtwara, Mbeya, Mbinga and Mikumi. A total of 121 animals comprising 111 rodents, 3 shrews and 7 elephant shrews were screened for Arenaviruses using conventional Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)....
ABSTRACT Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz), an edible crop that is renowned out of its growth advantages over other crops, carries cyanide which is potentially poisonous to humans. The threat is intensified by human habit of consuming raw cassava tubers whose toxicological status is not established. Cases and indicators of cyanide poisoning due to cassava consumption are evident in Tanzania, particularly in Kagera and Morogoro regions. This study was launched to quantify cyanide in tubers o...
ABSTRACT Compliance by street fruit salad and juice vendors with national food safety and quality requirements was evaluated. Evaluation was based on good manufacturing practices (GMP), good hygienic practices (GHP), selected heavy metals, physicochemical properties and microbiological quality parameters. Compliance by street vendors was also compared to vendors in university cafeterias and town restaurants. Among the fruit salad and fruit juice vendors, 71.4% and 54.3%, respectively, had no ...
ABSTRACT Speed is paramount in the diagnosis of highly infectious Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD). Recent developments in molecular biology have enabled specific detection of FMD virus by real-time RT-qPCR and sequencing in endemic settings in Africa. In this study, a laboratory-based experimental design was used to standardize real-time RT-qPCR assay for detection and typing of FMDV in selected regions of Tanzania. The optimized conditions for both pan-serotypic and serotype-specific real-time ...
ABSTRACT Post-harvest management during handling and storage of maize are crucial for ensuring food security. This study was carried out to assess farmers handling practices and effectiveness of different post-harvest technologies of maize in Kilosa district. A household survey on farmers handling practices and post-harvest technologies used by the farmers to store maize was conducted in Mabwerebwere and Ulaya wards of Kilosa district. The study recorded farmers habits on maize handling pract...
ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to assess compliance of cassava flour processed by Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) from Mwanza, Tanga and Coast regions. Flour samples were collected randomly from 22 SMEs in the mentioned Regions. Processing technologies as well as factors that influenced product standardization based on Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), Good Hygienic Practices (GHP) and storage practices were assessed using pretested structured questionnaire. Chemical composition (...
ABSTRACT Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious viral vesicular disease of cloven hoofed animals and poses major constraints to international trade in livestock production. Methods available for detection of FMD virus (FMDV) require specialized laboratory facilities and equipment. In this study, targeted laboratorybased experiments studies were conducted using reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) for detection and serotyping of FMDV under field ...