Population dynamics of indoor sampled mosquitoes and their implication in disease transmission in Abeokuta, south-western Nigeria

Background & objectives: A longitudinal study was carried out to investigate the speciescomposition, seasonal abundance, parity and feeding preference of indoor sampled mosquitoes inAbeokuta, south-western Nigeria.Methods: The mosquitoes were sampled weekly from five stratified locations using Center forDisease Control (CDC) light-traps between August 2005 and July 2006. The mosquitoes wereexamined for abdominal condition and dissected for age composition. Microscopic and precipitintechniques were also employed for the determination of host blood source.Results: A total of 2969 mosquitoes which belong to 10 species of mosquitoes were collectedduring the study period. Mansonia africana (35.65%) constituted the most abundant species followedby Culex quinquefasciatus (32.23%) and Anopheles gambiae complex (13.52%). Other species indecreasing order of abundance were Coquilletidia maculipennis (8.2%), Aedes albopictus (5.9%),Ae. aegypti (1.93%), M. uniformis (1.81%), Cx. duttoni (0.25%), Cx. tigripes (0.25%) and An.funestus (0.25%). Seasonal abundance revealed a significant difference (p <0.05) in the populationof mosquito vectors collected during the wet season as compared to the dry season and theirabundance was positively correlated with rainfall. The results showed that the majority of thevector species collected were unfed and nulliparous. Moreover, the blood meal test was positive forhuman blood.Conclusion: The preponderance of mosquitoes observed in the study is of public health concernsince they serve as vectors of most tropical diseases including malari

An efficient framework to sustainable management of refuse collection and evacuation in a developing city

The study developed a framework for sustainable management of refuse collection and evacuation in Bauchi city through spatial modeling. Coordinates of dump sites and sample households from the study area were obtained by Global Positioning System (GPS) while road network was obtained by digitizing satellite image of the area and both were used in this research. Thus, digital map of dump sites, sampled households and roads about the area were produced. Using the “Network Analyst Tool (NAT)” of ArcGIS 10.2 functionalities for service areas, closest facilities and best routes, a model was then developed to encourage efficient and sustainable refuse collection and evacuation in the area. The model developed has 22 dump sites, 15 closest facilities and 3 trucks routes. The service areas around each dump site are in three buffer zones covering distances of 200m, 350m and 500m respectively while the longest and shortest distances of 1499.46m and 156m in the closest facilities for the households were confirmed. Also, three trucks with truck3 having the longest distance was discovered while truck1 has the least distance for refuse evacuation in the area. These were discovered based on service areas, closest facility and best routes and hence the model will improve the general situation of refuse disposal in the area. Moreover, it will specifically ensure efficiency and sustainability in the management of refuse collection and evacuation of the area. Therefore, spatial modeling through NAT looks more appropriate as panacea for inefficient and unsustainable management of refuse collection and evacuation of a developing Bauchi metropolis. Thus, the model is recommended to be used as an efficient framework for sustainable management of refuse collection and evacuation in similar developing cities.Keywords: Closest facilities, modeling, network analyst, route optimization, service area

Occurrence of malaria and utilization of antimalaria preventive measures amongst pregnant women attending Ajeromi- Ifelodun General Hospital, Lagos State, Nigeria

Malaria in Pregnancy poses a serious health problem both for the mother and her unborn baby and this can be prevented with the use of Intermittent Preventive Treatment with sulphadoxine pyrimethamine (IPTp-SP), Long Lasting Insecticidetreated Nets (LLIN) and other preventive measures. This cross-sectional survey was carried out among pregnant women attending Ajeromi Ifelodun General Hospital between August 2013 and February 2014. A total of 414 pregnant women (with mean age of 29±8.7) in their first (84), second (124) and third (206) trimesters were recruited for this study. Blood samples for making both thin and thick smears were collected and semi-structured questionnaires administered to the respondents. The questionnaire probed into their knowledge on cause of malaria, the preventive measures taken against mosquito bite, use of IPTp-SP, possession and use of LLIN. The overall prevalence of malaria due to Plasmodium falciparum is 24 (5.8%) out of which 13 were primigravid, 5 were secundi-gravid, and 6 were multigravida with no significant difference (P&gt;0.05) amongst them. Two hundred and eighty-six (69.1%) pregnant women had good knowledge of the cause of malaria. 164 (39.6%) of the sampled population had a tertiary education while 182 (44.0%) had secondary education, 124 (30.4%) were traders and 80(19.6%) were civil servants. Preventive measures claimed to be adopted by the respondents in avoiding mosquito bites include the use of LLIN (62.6%), insecticides sprays (36.2%), and locally adopted measures (1.5%). The number of respondents who had not availed themselves of IPTp-SP was significantly higher 258 (62.3%) compared to those who had (P&lt;0.05). It was observed that educational status had no significant effect on the knowledge of the cause of malaria in sample population (p&gt;0.05). The findings of this study reveal that there is a good knowledge on the cause of malaria among pregnant women but low use of IPTp-SP. In order to meet the new target of reaching an elimination stage set by the World Health Organization, factors responsible for the low use of these preventive measures should be investigated and quickly addressed so as to reduce both maternal and child morbidity/mortality resulting from malaria infection.Keywords: Malaria, Pregnant women, Prevention, Intermitent preventive treatment, Sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine, Longlasting Insecticide treated ne

Growth performance and nutrient utilization of post fingerlings Clarias gariepinus fed varied levels of biscuit waste

A feeding trial was conducted to determine the effect of biscuit waste meal on the growth performance and utilization of Clarias gariepinus juveniles. A total of 300 juveniles of average weight 8.85g were randomly divided into 5 Treatments, each with three replicates. Twenty juveniles were distributed into fifteen happas (0.7m3) and each happa was suspended to 3/4 of its volume using kuralon ropes carefully tied round the bamboo poles across the concrete tanks. Five diets containing 40% crude protein were formulated in which maize was replaced with biscuit waste meal at Treatment diet 1 (TD1) 0%, 25% (TD2), 50% (TD3), 75% (TD4), 100% (TD5) levels.The juveniles were fed at 3% body weight per day for 10 weeks. It was recorded at the end of the experiment that biscuit waste was most suitable as an energy supplement when incorporated at 25% replacement (TD2) with maize. TD1 had the highest weight gain followed by TD2, TD3, TD4 and TD5 respectively. There were no significant differences (P>0.05) in the growth response in TD1 (0%), T0D (25%) and TD3 (50%). It is therefore concluded that biscuit waste meal is a cheap source of non conventional energy source which can be used favorably to replace maize (25% inclusion level) as an energy source in the diets of Clarias gariepinus

Biomembrane Modelling in Planar Chromatographic Determination of Lipophilicity Using Olive and Castor Oils

BackgroundLipophilicity is a crucial physicochemical parameter that predicts in vivo pharmacokinetics and should be reliably estimated in early stage drug discovery to reduce incidence of attrition. Previous methodologies for its measurement often lead to technically incorrect decisions due to simplistic architecture and poor biomimetic attributes. Significantly, a certain seed oil, used for biomembrane modelling on planar chromatographic platform, was reported to be sufficiently biomimetic and fit for purpose.ObjectivesTo evaluate olive oil (OL) and olive-castor oil (OL-C) equi-mixture as lipids for biomembrane simulation on planar chromatographic platform.Material and MethodRetention behavior of nabumetone, a model compound was used to optimize these potential lipid membranes using a thin film engineered from 5% Liquid paraffin (LP) as benchmark, while halofantrine, nabumetone , α-naphthol and β-naphthol representing varying molecular polarities, were used for validation studies. The validation involved 2-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) associated with variability in Basic lipophilicity parameter (Rmw), and Specific hydrophobic surface area (SHSA) for the optimized surfaces, relative to LP and octadecylsilane (ODS) Further validation entailed correlation of the lipophilicity descriptor i.e. isocratic chromatographic hydrophobicity index (ICHI) on OL, OL-C, ODS and LP with experimental Log P(octanol/water).ResultsOptimized film thicknesses were produced by 5% OL and 1.25% OL-C (p &gt; 0.05). The 2-way ANOVA revealed great variability in performance characteristics of the surfaces (p &lt; 0.0001), and the new surfaces also gave poorer correlation with Log P values (R2= 0.502 and 0.449 respectively).ConclusionThe 1.25 % OL-C demonstrated a higher biomimetic attribute and warrants further validation studies to ascertain biorelevance, of lipophilicity measurement on this platform, in predicting oral drug absorption. Keywords: Lipophilicity, Reversed-phase Thin Layer Chromatography, Retention behaviour, Olive oil, Castor oi

Assessment of groundwater contamination around active dumpsite in Ibadan southwestern Nigeria using integrated electrical resistivity and hydrochemical methods

Investigation of groundwater contamination due to leachate migration in a solid waste disposal site was done using both geophysical and hydrochemical methods. The main goals were to delineate groundwater contamination due to leachate percolation and thus assessment of quality of groundwater from nearby hand-dug wells bordering the dumpsite for drinking purpose. A total of ten resistivity traverses were acquired within and outside the dumpsite using Wenner configuration with constant electrode separation ranging from 5 to 25 m. The 2D resistivity data were processed and inverted using RES2DINV and RES3DINV softwares, respectively. Geochemical assessment of groundwater samples were carried out according to APHA standards while hydrochemical facies of the sampled groundwater was evaluated using Piper Trilinear software. The inverse resistivity models of the subsurface from 2D and 3D imaging revealed low resistivity value less than 10 X m suspected to be leachate while 3D inverse sections allowed delineation of leachate, weathered layer, bedrock and seepage path from the dumpsite. The extent of migration was more pronounced in the southern part of the dumpsite, hence possible contamination of shallow groundwater system as dumpsite ages. The results of physico-chemical analyses showed the groundwater samples to be within the limits of WHO/NSDWQ for drinking purpose. However, higher values of concentrations of most analyzed parameters were noticed in well 1 due to its nearness to dumpsite and well 10 due to agricultural activities, respectively. Interpretation of Piper diagram showed CaHCO3 to be dominant facie in the area while alkaline earth metals (Ca2þ; Mg2þ) and weak acids (HCO3 -, CO3-) are dominant cations and anions during both climatic seasons. Groundwater in the study area is of hard, fresh and alkaline in natur

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

INTRODUCTION Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. RATIONALE We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs). RESULTS Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants. CONCLUSION Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century

Effect of dietary copper and probiotic supplementation on growth performance and carcass characteristics of broiler chickens

This study was conducted to investigate the effect of dietary copper and probiotic supplementation on growth performance and carcass&nbsp; characteristics of broiler Chickens. A total of 180-day old marshal broiler chicks of mixed sex were randomly allotted to six treatment groups of 30 birds each. The Treatments were divided into three replicates of ten birds each; starter and finisher diets were formulated and fed for a period of&nbsp; fifty-six days. The dietary treatments were subjected to completely randomized design experimental layout which was made up of probiotic (0 and 500ppm) and copper (0, 125 and 250mg).The chicks were fed the broiler starter diet for the first 28 days and broiler finisher for the last 28 days. Treatment effect on broiler body weight, feed intake and feed conversion ratio were determined on a weekly basis. Data obtained were analyzed&nbsp; using analysis of variance (ANOVA) and, Duncan's Multiple Range Test was used to separate significant means. Dietary supplementation of copper and probiotic had no significant (P &gt; 0.05) effect on final weight (FW), daily weight gain (DWG), feed intake (FI), and feed conversion ratio (FCR) at the starter phase of the experiment. However, at finisher phase, inclusion of probiotic resulted in higher significant (P &lt; 0.05) values for FW&nbsp; (2214.12g/b) DWG (60.22g/b/d), FI (159.02g/b/d), and FCR (2.64). The carcass yields of the broilers were significantly (P&lt; 0.05) influenced by copper and probiotic supplementations. However, lower value (1.07%) was obtained for abdominal fat in broilers fed 250mg Cu/kg supplemented diet. The study concluded that supplementation of copper and probiotics resulted in improved growth performance and carcass yield of broiler chickens. Keywords: Dietary Copper; probiotic supplementation; broiler chicks