Effect of organic and inorganic fertilizer on growth and yield of fluted pumpkin (telfaria occidentialis, Hook F.) In Uyo, Akwa Ibom state, Nigeria

Field trails were conducted during 2009 and 2010 farming seasons at University of Uyo Teaching and Research Farm, to asses the effect of organic and inorganic fertilizers on growth and yield of fluted pumpkin (Telfaria occidentalis). A randomized complete block design was used with three replicates. The treatments were inorganic fertilizer (N.P.K. 15:15:15) rates (0,200, 400 and 600kg/ha), poultry manure (2t/ha) and combination of 2t/ha of poultry manure with 200, 400 and 600kg/ha of inorganic fertilizer. In both years planting was done in March at 1m x 1m spacing. The following growth and yield parameters were obtained; average number of leaves per plant, leaf area, vine length, number of branches per vine, number of pod per plant and pod yield. The result showed significant difference (p≤ 0.05). Increase in fertilizer led to increase in growth and yield parameters. The application of 600kg/ha + 2t/ha of poultry manure performed best but in terms of economic and environmental consideration, application of 200kg/ha + 2t/ha of poultry manure was recommended, since the yield from 600kg/ha + 2t/ha was not significantly higher than yield from 200kg/ha + 2t/ha of poultry manure. Key words: Fluted pumpkin, organic, inorgani

Response of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) To different rates of goat and poultry manure on an ultisol

The growth and yield of cucumber (Cucumus sativus L.) in response to application of goat dung and poultry dropping rates was investigated in 2010 and 2011. The experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design replicated three times in a split plot arrangement. The main plot treatment was organic manure source (goat dung and poultry dropping) while organic manure rate, 0, 2, 4, 6 and 8t/ha constituted the sub-treatments. Results revealed that organic manure application would enhance growth and yield of cucumber. There was no significantly (p<0.05) different between application of goat dung and poultry dropping on growth and yield parameters except on leaf area. The result also showed significantly (p<0.05) different among the manure rates irrespective of manure source. Application of poultry dropping performed best in fresh fruit yield 7.66 and 7.73t/ha in 2010 and 2011 respectively while goat dung produced 6.81 and 6.82t/ha in 2010 and 2011 respectively. The application of 8t/ha of poultry manure produced fresh fruits of 11.25 and 11.29t/ha in 2010 and 2011 respectively while goat dung at 8t/ha rate produced 9.53 and 9.69t/ha of fresh fruit in 2010 and 2011 respectively. Keywords: Cucumber, Poultry Manure, Goat Manur

Poverty and fever vulnerability in Nigeria: a multilevel analysis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Malaria remains a major public health problem in Sub Saharan Africa, where widespread poverty also contribute to the burden of the disease. This study was designed to investigate the relationship between the prevalence of childhood fever and socioeconomic factors including poverty in Nigeria, and to examine these effects at the regional levels.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Determinants of fever in the last two weeks among children under five years were examined from the 25004 children records extracted from the Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey 2008 data set. A two-level random effects logistic model was fitted. </p> <p>Results</p> <p>About 16% of children reported having fever in the two weeks preceding the survey. The prevalence of fever was highest among children from the poorest households (17%), compared to 15.8% among the middle households and lowest among the wealthiest (13%) (p<0.0001). Of the 3,110 respondents who had bed nets in their households, 506(16.3%) children had fever, while 2,604(83.7%) did not. (p=0.082). In a multilevel model adjusting for demographic variables, fever was associated with rural place of residence (OR=1.27, p<0.0001, 95% CI: 1.16, 1.41), sex of child: female (OR=0.92, p=0.022, 95% CI: 0.859, 0.988) and all age categories (>6months), whereas the effect of wealth no longer reached statistical significance.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>While, overall bednet possession was low, less fever was reported in households that possessed bednets. Malaria control strategies and interventions should be designed that will target the poor and make an impact on poverty. The mechanism through which wealth may affect malaria occurrence needs further investigation. </p

Prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections among HIV patients in Benin City, Nigeria

This study was carried out to determine the presence of intestinal parasites and their correlation with CD4+ T-cell counts and demographics among human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive patients in Benin City, Nigeria. Stool specimens from 2,000 HIV-positive patients and 500 controls (HIV-negative individuals) were examined for ova, cysts, or parasites, using standard procedures. In addition, patient's blood samples were analyzed for CD4 counts by flow cytometry. An overall prevalence rate of 15.3% was observed among HIV-positive patients while 6.2% was noted among non-HIV subjects. HIV status was a significant (P<0.0001) risk factor for acquiring intestinal parasitic infections. Male gender, CD4 count <200cell/µl, and diarrhea were significantly associated with an increased prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections among HIV-positive patients. The level of education, occupation, and source of water among HIV patients significantly (P<0.0001) affected the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections. Ascaris lumbricoides was the most predominant parasite in both HIV-positive patients and controls. A CD4 count <200 cells/µl was significantly associated with only Isospora belli and Cryptosporidium infections. The presence of pathogenic intestinal parasites such as A. lumbricoides, hookworm, Giardia intestinalis, Entamoeba histolytica, Trichuris trichiura, and Taenia species among HIV-infected persons should not be neglected. Cryptosporidium species and I. belli were the opportunistic parasites observed in this study. Routine screening for intestinal parasites in HIV-positive patients is advocated

Confirmed malaria cases among children under five with fever and history of fever in rural western Tanzania

The World Health Organization recommends that malaria treatment should begin with parasitological diagnosis. This will help to control misuse of anti-malarial drugs in areas with low transmission. The present study was conducted to assess the prevalence of parasitologically confirmed malaria among children under five years of age presenting with fever or history of fever in rural western Tanzania. A finger prick blood sample was obtained from each child, and thin and thick blood smears were prepared, stained with 10% Giemsa and examined under the light microscope. A structured questionnaire was used to collect each patient's demographic information, reasons for coming to the health center; and a physical examination was carried out on all patients. Fever was defined as axillary temperature ≥ 37.5°C. A total of 300 children with fever or a history of fever (1 or 2 weeks) were recruited, in which 54.3% (163/300, 95%CI, 48.7-59.9) were boys. A total of 76 (76/300, 25.3%, 95%CI, 22.8 - 27.8) of the children had fever. Based on a parasitological diagnosis of malaria, only 12% (36/300, 95%CI, 8.3-15.7) of the children had P. falciparum infection. Of the children with P. falciparum infection, 52.7% (19/36, 95%CI, 47.1-58.3) had fever and the remaining had no fever. The geometrical mean of the parasites was 708.62 (95%CI, 477.96-1050.62) parasites/μl and 25% (9/36, 95%CI, 10.9 -- 39.1) of the children with positive P. falciparum had ≥ 1001 parasites/μl. On Univariate (OR = 2.13, 95%CI, 1.02-4.43, P = 0.044) and multivariate (OR = 2.15, 95%CI, 1.03-4.49) analysis, only children above one year of age were associated with malaria infections. Only a small proportion of the children under the age of five with fever had malaria, and with a proportion of children having non-malaria fever. Improvement of malaria diagnostic and other causes of febrile illness may provide effective measure in management of febrile illness in malaria endemic areas

Identification and Characterization of Microsporidia from Fecal Samples of HIV-Positive Patients from Lagos, Nigeria

BACKGROUND: Microsporidia are obligate intracellular parasites that infect a broad range of vertebrates and invertebrates. They have been increasingly recognized as human pathogens in AIDS patients, mainly associated with a life-threatening chronic diarrhea and systemic disease. However, to date the global epidemiology of human microsporidiosis is poorly understood, and recent data suggest that the incidence of these pathogens is much higher than previously reported and may represent a neglected etiological agent of more common diseases indeed in immunocompetent individuals. To contribute to the knowledge of microsporidia molecular epidemiology in HIV-positive patients in Nigeria, the authors tested stool samples proceeding from patients with and without diarrhea. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Stool samples from 193 HIV-positive patients with and without diarrhea (67 and 126 respectively) from Lagos (Nigeria) were investigated for the presence of microsporidia and Cryptosporidium using Weber's Chromotrope-based stain, Kinyoun stain, IFAT and PCR. The Weber stain showed 45 fecal samples (23.3%) with characteristic microsporidia spores, and a significant association of microsporidia with diarrhea was observed (O.R. = 18.2; CI: 95%). A similar result was obtained using Kinyoun stain, showing 44 (31,8%) positive samples with structures morphologically compatible with Cryptosporidium sp, 14 (31.8%) of them with infection mixed with microsporidia. The characterization of microsporidia species by IFAT and PCR allowed identification of Enterocytozoon bieneusi, Encephalitozoon intestinalis and E. cuniculi in 5, 2 and 1 samples respectively. The partial sequencing of the ITS region of the rRNA genes showed that the three isolates of E.bieneusi studied are included in Group I, one of which bears the genotype B. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: To our knowledge, this is the first report of microsporidia characterization in fecal samples from HIV-positive patients from Lagos, Nigeria. These results focus attention on the need to include microsporidial diagnosis in the management of HIV/AIDS infection in Nigeria, at the very least when other more common pathogens have not been detected

Prevalence of malaria parasitaemia in screened blood donors at Jos University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria

The prevalence of malaria parasitaemia was investigated among screened blood donors at Jos University Teaching Hospital between April and June 2003. A total of 200 blood donors that were systematically selected were examined for malaria parasitaemia. Twenty two samples were positive giving a prevalence of 11.0% and only Plasmodium falciparum was detected. The donors o

Microbial handflora of nursing services workers in a Nigerian University Teaching Hospital

A study of the bacterial flora on the hands of 100 randomly selected nursing services workers comprising 56 nurses and 44 ward-maids working in Medical, Surgical, Ophthalmology, Obstetrics and Gynaecology and Paediatric wards in addition to Intensive Care Units and Special Care Baby units of Jos University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria were carried out. The samples were inoculated onto dried Blood agar, MacConkey agar, Mannitol salt agar and Muellar-Hinton agar plates and incubated aerobically at 37°C for 18-24 hours. Overall, 38% of the cultures yielded growth, while 52% of the nurses yielded growth as against 75% of the ward-maids. The bacterial isolates are Staphylococcus aureus (27%), Coagulase negative Staphylococci (20%), Bacillus alvei (17%), and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (4%). Out of the S. aureus isolates, 92.6% of them were methicillin-resistant (MRSA), and the highest prevalence (100%) was recorded in the Obstetrics and Gynaecology wards. The Ophthalmology ward, Intensive care unit and Special Care Baby Unit had no MRSA. The bacterial density ranged from 2 to 20105 CFU. This study has demonstrated that more stringent measures should be taken towards proper hand-washing so as to at least reduce the incidence of nosocomial infections, with the attendant consequences in our hospital. Nigerian Medical Practitioner Vol. 50(1) 2006: 12-1

Prevalence Of Malaria Parasitaemia In Pregnant Women Attending Antenatal Clinic At Jos University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria

The prevalence of malaria parasitaemia in 200 pregnant women attending the antenatal clinic (ANC) of Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH) between April and June 2003 was determined. Geimsa-stained thick and thin blood films were examined microscopically for malaria parasites; the parasite densities were determined on the thick films. Eighteen (9%) of the women were positive for malaria parasites and only Plasmodium falciparum was encountered in the study. Pregnant women in the 15-20 year age group recorded the highest prevalence of 16%, closely followed by the age group 21-25 years with 15.2%. The 26-30, 31-35, 36-40 and 41-50 year age groups recorded 6.7%, 4.5%, 4.1% and 0% prevalence rates respectively. Women in their first trimester recorded 13.3% as against 10.2% and 3.8% for the second and third trimester respectively. The primigravidae had a prevalence of 12.9% as against 7.2% for multigravidae. Most of the women with malaria parasitaemia (89%) had parasite densities of less than 1000/µL of blood. The low prevalence of malaria parasitaemia in the ANC women is attributed to the regular prophylactic malaria therapy and the impacts of the health talks normally given to pregnant women during routine antenatal visits Key words: Malaria, pregnancy, prevalence, prophylaxis Afr. J. Clin. Exper. Microbiol. 2005; 6(2): 91-9

The Prevalence And Intensity Of Malaria Parasite In Children At Jos University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria

Objective: To determine the prevalence and intensity of malaria parasitaemia in clinically diagnosed paediatric patients in jos university teaching hospital, and to see if there is any correlation between the parasite density and the ages of the patients Study population/methods: Consisted of blood samples from 300 children aged between 0-14 years attending the Emergency Paediatric Unit and Paedratic Out-patient Department of theu Jos University Teaching Hospital Jos, with sign /symptoms suggestive of malaria. Blood collect aseptically in sterile containers. Thick and thin film were made using Giemsa staining technique. The stain examined under X100 objective microscope. Result: Revealed a parasite rate of 29.3% with p. falciparum 96.6%, p. maleria 3.4%. Eihteen percent of the study population had mean parasite desities higher than the critical value of 10,000 per microlitre. There was no difference in parasitaemia in relation to gender. Conclusion: The prevalence of maleria is still high in paediatric age group 27 – 29.5%. There is the need to intensify the Roll Back Malaria programme by the Federal Government of Nigeria in order to reduce the prevalence of malaria. Key words: Prevalence, Malaria, Children. Highland Medical Research Journal Vol.1(1) 2002: 9-1