Prevalence of intestinal parasitic protozoan infections among female HIV/Aids patients attending Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, Kano, Kano State, Nigeria

Intestinal protozoan parasites are the major cause of morbidity and mortality killing millions of patients with HIV/AIDS each year; causing diarrhea especially in infants and immunocompromised people worldwide. HIV infection has been modifying both the epidemiology and outcome of parasitic infections. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of intestinal parasitic protozoan infections among women patients with HIV/AIDS attending Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital (AKTH), Kano from October - December, 2016. Stool samples from 82 HIV/AIDS women patients were analyzed for protozoan parasite using direct wet mount, formol-ether concentration techniques and modified Ziehl-Neelson staining techniques whereas the blood samples collected were analyzed for CD4+ T-cell estimation using flow cytometry. Sociodemographic variables were collected by using questionnaire. Chi-square test was used to test the associations between CD4+ T-cell count and protozoan infections. A total of three (3) protozoan parasites were encountered among the HIV- positive individuals. These include Giardia intestinalis (33.4%), Entamoeba histolytica (27.8%) and E. coli (22.2%). The result indicated that the parasitic infection with Giardiaintestinalis was significantly higher among HIV-positive women (P>0.05). The age group with the highest prevalence was that of 40-49 years (29.2%). There was no significant difference in the prevalence of intestinal parasitic protozoan infection with regard to age, CD4+ count, job type of the patients (P>0.05) but there was a significant association between the residence area, pregnancy status and intestinal parasitic protozoan infection (P<0.05). Prevalence was also significantly higher in the rural areas (39.1%) than in the urban areas (11.4%). Routine screening for intestinal parasites in HIV-positive patients among others are advocated in the study area.Keywords: AKTH; CD4+ count; HIV/AIDS; Immunocompromised; Intestinal Protozoa; Prevalenc

A survey of avifauna and vegetation communities in Hadejia-Nguru Wetlands, Nigeria

An understanding of the ecological relationship between birds and vegetation is important for management and conservation of any wetland ecosystem. Despite the significant importance of the Hadejia-Nguru Ramsar site and an Important Bird Area, little is known about the ecological relationship between bird and vegetation communities. Bird diversity and density were examined and compared between Protected Areas (PAs) and Unprotected Areas (UPAs) with attention to vegetation diversity and density. Data were collected from October to December, 2015. A total of 14 wetland sites were surveyed (seven in PAs and seven in UPAs), and point count method was emp oyed. In total, 42, 255 bird individuals, 148 species, 23 orders, and 50 families were identified. Two globally threatened species namely, European Turtle Dove (Streptopelia turtur) and Pallid harrier (Circus macrourus) were also recorded. Results showed that neither vegetation diversity nor density correlated with bird diversity nor density in both PAs and UPAs (p > 0.05), suggesting that there could be other factors that influence the bird diversity and density in both areas. PAs and UPAs of the Hadejia-Nguru Wetlands are rich in avifaunal species, thus management of these areas will preserve large species diversity. Increase public awareness in the wetland on the importance of conserving birds and vegetation, as they play a vital role in the ecosystem is strongly recommended. The results presented here provide an overview of the relationship between bird and vegetation communities of the Hadeji -Nguru Wetlands, an important input for better understanding of its conservation.Keywords: Bird diversity, Density, Hadejia- Nguru Wetlands, Protected and unprotected areas, Vegetatio

Prevalence of Cryptosporidium species and Giardia intestinalis among patients in a secondary health facility, Dutse, Jigawa State, Nigeria

Cryptosporidium species and Giardia intestinalis cause diarrheal infections in humans and other vertebrate animals globally and are considered to be of great public health importance. The study was conducted to determine the prevalence Cryptosporidium species and G. intestinalis infections among patients attending General Hospital Dutse, Jigawa State, Nigeria. Fresh stool specimens uncontaminated with urine were collected from a total of 120 randomly selected patients attending the hospital laboratory. The specimens were processed macroscopically and microscopically (by direct wet mount method, formalin-ethyl acetate sedimentation and Ziel-Nelson staining method). The overall prevalence of G. intestinalis was 36% while Cryptosporidium species was 25%. There were no significant difference observed in Cryptosporidium species and G. intestinalis infection in relation to sex (p>0.05). Risk factors such as age-group, hand-washing practice before handling food, educational level, source of drinking water, frequency of contact with animal, and nature of human waste disposal were found to be statistically significant (p<0.05). There is need for public health education to be enhanced to discourage the adoption of risky practices. There is also a need for reliable diagnostic methods other than microscopy.Keywords:  Cryptosporidium species; Giardia intestinalis; prevalence; infection, Duts

Evaluation of Ethyl Acetate Crude Kolaviron (Garcinia Kola Extract) In Trypanosoma Brucei Brucei Infected Wistar Rats

Trypanosoma brucei brucei are unicellular parasites transmitted by the tsetse fly. they are the causative agent of african animal trypanosomiasis (aat), which continue to pose important public health and economic problems in many parts of africa. the search for vaccination candidate against aat remains elusive and effective treatment is beset with problems of drug resistance and toxicity. This study aimed at search for effective and safe treatment of aat. after a preliminary phytochemical screening, gas chromatography mass spectrometry (gc-ms) analysis was conducted on the extract which revealed octadecenoic acid methyl ester (59%) to be the most abundant compounds. the ethyl acetate extract of garcinia kola (kolaviron) at dose levels of 100mg/kg and 500mg/kg body weight was assessed in trypanosoma brucei brucei experimentally infected wistar rats. parasitemia in all treated animals continuously increased (p=0.0060) till death except for the groups administered 500mg/kg and 100mg/kg per day, which maintained low parasite count (p<0.05) and extension of life span from 12 days in the infected untreated rats (positive control group) to 18 days in the infected but treated rats (test group). full blood count showed a significant increase in the blood parameters of test group (p=0.0080) when compared with positive control group (p=0.0001). the histopathological analysis showed no organ damage except for the degeneration of liver tissues in positive control, but regeneration in test groups. it was concluded that ethyl acetate extract of g. kola extract was trypanostatic. the antitrypanosomal activity exhibited by these extracts might be attributed to the chemicals detected

Mortality and Inhibitory Effects of Aqueous and Methanolic Extracts of Artemisia annua L. on Biomphalaria pfeifferi (Krauss) and Shedding of Cercariae

The search for bioactive plants which can be used as non-conventional anthelmintics has received considerable attention in recent times because of the increasing, worldwide development of resistance to synthetic anthelminthes worm populations. However, scientific evidence to validate the use of raw plants materials remain limited. This study evaluated the mortality and inhibitory effects of the crude aqueous and methanolic extract of Artemisia annua L. against the shedding of cercariae of Schistosoma mansoni from Biomphalaria pfeifferi. The phytochemical screening of the plant was done using standard procedure, after which the mortality effects of the plant extracts and effects on the shedding of cercariae from B. pfeifferi snails were assessed for 24 hour of exposure. Methanolic extract with the highest concentration of 1.77mg/µL had an inhibitory effect of 63.06±1.84 while the least concentration with 0.12mg/µL had 22.41±2.17 inhibitory effect. For the aqueous extract, the highest concentration with 2.73mg/µL had an inhibitory effect of  55.75±1.94 while the least concentration of 0.23mg/µL had 21.80±1.45. Inhibitory effect of cercariae in the snail vector was  concentration dependent, and there was significance difference (P<0.05) between the treatment mean when compared with the control group. This study has shown that this plant material has some inhibitory effect on the shedding of of S. mansoni cercariae and toxicityeffect on the B. pfeifferisnails, and can therefore be used for the control of the disease causing agent as well as the vector. Keywords: Artemisia annua, Inhibitory effects, cercariae, Biomphalaria pfeiffer