Multi-antibiotics Resistant Relatedness of bla-gene Encoded Enteric Bacteria harbouring High Molecular R-plasmids.

Increase prevalence of multi-resistant enteric bacteria isolates encoded with high mobile R-plasmid causing enteric infections was examined among the community residents in Abeokuta, Nigeria. Random cluster sampling of 251 fecal samples of community residents were cultured for enteric bacteria and biotyped. Disc diffusion and Micro-broth dilution assay were used to determine antibiotic susceptibility while R-plasmid was profiled with photo-gel documentation. Antibiotic resistance relatedness was detected using DendroUPGMA construction utility software. Of all isolates obtained, 31.3% were Escherichia coli Klebsiella oxytoca (19.5%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (15.3%) and Shigella specie (2.0%). Significant high rate of 62.6% showed resistant to Cefuroxime, 61.6% to Ampicillin and Augmentin (54.2%) while 44.7%, 38.9% and 33.9% resist Cotrimoxazole, Ciprofloxacin and Tetracycline respectively at MIC >16 μg/ml (p= 0.004). Only 54.1% harboured high molecular weight R-plasmid (>11.0kbp) and 2.7% having <5kbp R-plasmid weight. Two distinct clusters revealed significant multi-antibiotic resistant relatedness. Cluster A enteric isolates harboured similar R-plasmid of only one bands with high molecular weight more than 11kbp while Cluster B divided into subgroup a and subgroup b comprising different enteric species having similar high molecular weights with high antibiotic resistant expressing more than two plasmid bands showing computed cophenetic correlation of 0.94. Cluster analysis reveal a related high level multi-antibiotics resistant enteric bacteria strains among the community residents suggesting a continuous dissemination and imminent outbreak of resistant enteric pathotypes with resultant epidemic proportion

Suitability of spectrophotometric assay for determination of honey microbial inhibition

Commonly used methods for determination of antibacterial potency of honey are usually the disc, agar well diffusion and dilution plate assay which had shown various demerit of inaccuracies and impreciseness. Therefore, the suitability of spectrophotometric assay for determination of honey inhibitory activity is evaluated in this study. Honeys from different sources in southwest states in Nigeria were assayed for antibacterial activity using 96-well micro-titre plate spectrophotometric methods to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) against enteric bacteria strains. The honey inhibition assay of Nigerian honeys tested against enteric bacilli showed more than 90% inhibitory activity. Among all the honeys sample assayed, only two honeys reveal a very low MIC of 31.25 and 125mg/mL. The use of spectrophotometry is a precise method to determine honey inhibitory rate and it is proven to be suitable highly sensitive, reproducible, specific, reduced cost, fewer amounts of sample and reagent are require

Microbiological Assessment of Commercial Yogurt Sold in Ota Metropolis, Ogun State, Nigeria

Ten authorized Yogurt products purchased within Ota metropolis, Ogun State of Nigeria were subjected to pH, Total Bacterial Count (TBC) and Total Fungal Count (TFC) analysis. pH values were in the range of 4.05 to 5.50, the TBC and TFC values ranged between 1.0 x 103 - 5.0 x 105 cfu/ml and 1.0 x 103- 5.0 x 105 cfu/ml respectively. Eleven bacterial isolates were detected in the yogurt samples. Lactobacillus spp. and Bacillus spp. constituted 16% of the total microbial load, Corynebacterium spp., Klebsiela spp., Staphylococcus spp., and Pseudomonas spp. constituted 8% while Proteus spp., Micrococcus spp., Shigella spp., Listeria spp., and Streptococcus spp. constituted 4%. Fungal isolates obtained were Mucor spp. (22%), Geotrichum spp. (17%), Montospora spp. (11%), while Aspergillus spp., Rhizopus spp., and Fusanrium spp. constituted 6%.The antimicrobial susceptibility test showed that the isolates exhibited susceptible to Ciprofloxacin and Ofloxacin and resisted Nitrofurantoin, Augumentin, Cefixime, Ceufuroxime, Gentamicin and Ceftazidime. The isolates were plasmid encoded, with size range of 20,000- 40,000 Kilo base pairs. Result show no significant difference within the bacteria isolates (P> 0.05), while the fungi isolates showed significant difference (P<0.05). Significant difference also occurred between the bacteria and the fungi isolate (P< 0.05)

Chapter 31 - Application of nanochitosan in tagging and nano-barcoding of aquatic and animal meats

Nanochitosans obtained from crustacean shells are biodegradable and biocompatible offering valuable functional, nutritional, and binding properties. Their low toxicity favors diverse industrial applications in various research models and can enable their use in the tagging of commercially sold aquatic and animal meat, easily contaminated by microbial sources during packaging, storage, and transportation. In this capacity, nanochitosans have been applied in fingerprinting for tracking and identifying the manufacturing and expiry dates of commercially sold meats and fish, as well as delivery of antioxidants and antimicrobials in these food products without affecting product consistency, composition, and organoleptic property. This chapter reviews current research on chitosan-based nanoparticles as barcodes and biosensors in tagging and monitoring aquatic and animal meats; and highlights methods of fish tagging and coding, and the benefits as well as the properties of materials used as biosensors in nano-barcoding of fish and meat

Significance of African Diets in Biotherapeutic Modulation of the Gut Microbiome

Diet plays an essential role in human development and growth, contributing to health and well-being. The socio-economic values, cultural perspectives, and dietary formulation in sub-Saharan Africa can influence gut health and disease prevention. The vast microbial ecosystems in the human gut frequently interrelate to maintain a healthy, well-coordinated cellular and humoral immune signalling to prevent metabolic dysfunction, pathogen dominance, and induction of systemic diseases. The diverse indigenous diets could differentially act as biotherapeutics to modulate microbial abundance and population characteristics. Such modulation could prevent stunted growth, malnutrition, induction of bowel diseases, attenuated immune responses, and mortality, particularly among infants. Understanding the associations between specific indigenous African diets and the predictability of the dynamics of gut bacteria genera promises potential biotherapeutics towards improving the prevention, control, and treatment of microbiome-associated diseases such as cancer, inflammatory bowel disease, obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. The dietary influence of many African diets (especially grain-base such as millet, maize, brown rice, sorghum, soya, and tapioca) promotes gut lining integrity, immune tolerance towards the microbiota, and its associated immune and inflammatory responses. A fibre-rich diet is a promising biotherapeutic candidate that could effectively modulate inflammatory mediators’ expression associated with immune cell migration, lymphoid tissue maturation, and signalling pathways. It could also modulate the stimulation of cytokines and chemokines involved in ensuring balance for long-term microbiome programming. The interplay between host and gut microbial digestion is complex; microbes using and competing for dietary and endogenous proteins are often attributable to variances in the comparative abundances of Enterobacteriaceae taxa. Many auto-inducers could initiate the process of quorum sensing and mammalian epinephrine host cell signalling system. It could also downregulate inflammatory signals with microbiota tumour taxa that could trigger colorectal cancer initiation, metabolic type 2 diabetes, and inflammatory bowel diseases. The exploitation of essential biotherapeutic molecules derived from fibre-rich indigenous diet promises food substances for the downregulation of inflammatory signalling that could be harmful to gut microbiota ecological balance and improved immune response modulation

Nanochitosan derived from marine bacteria

Nanochitosans are polysaccharides produced by the alkalescent deacetylation of chitin and comprise a series of 2‐deoxy‐2 (acetylamino) glucose linked by ß‐(1‐4) glycosidic linkages. These are naturally formed from the deacetylation of shellfish shells and the exoskeleton of aquatic arthropods and crustaceans. Reports of chitosan production from unicellular marine bacteria inhabiting the sea, and possessing distinct animal‐ and plant‐like characteristics abound. This capacity to synthesize chitosan from chitin arises from response to stress under extreme environmental conditions, as a means of survival. Consequently, the microencapsulation of these nanocarriers results in new and improved chitosan nanoparticles, nanochitosan. This nontoxic bioactive material which can serve as an antibacterial agent, gene delivery vector as well as carrier for protein and drug release as compared with chitosan, is limited by its nonspecific molecular weight and higher composition of deacetylated chitin. This chapter highlights the biology and diversity of nanochitosan‐producing marine bacteria, including the factors influencing their activities, survival, and distribution. More so, the applications of marine bacterial nanochitosans in transfection and gene delivery; wound healing and drug delivery; feed supplement development and antimicrobial activity are discussed

Chapter 21 - Utilization of nanochitosan in the sterilization of ponds and water treatment for aquaculture

Water pollution constitutes the leading cause of infant mortality, neonatal deformities, and shrinkage of man’s average life expectancy. Pollutants come from point and nonpoint sources; and water pollution arises from the discharge of wastewater containing undesirable impurities used for domestic, agricultural, and industrial purposes. More so, high nutrient and wastewater runoffs from fish production systems contribute to the fouling and eutrophication of recipient water bodies. Hence, aquaculture which is inextricably linked to the natural environment is challenged by the dearth of appropriate water quantity and quality, militating against fish, and fishery production. Nanochitosans as polysaccharides produced by the alkalescent deacetylation of chitin, comprise a series of 2-deoxy-2 (acetylamino) glucose linked by ß-(1-4) glycosidic linkages. They are naturally formed from the deacetylation of shellfish shells and exoskeletons of aquatic arthropods and crustaceans. The unique attributes of chitin confer a wide range of biotechnological applications on the polymer, observed in flocculation as a wastewater treatment and purification route initiated by chitosan. This chapter highlights nanochitosan properties of aquaculture relevance; and elucidates the purification potentials of nanochitosan, compared to inorganic coagulants and organic polymeric flocculants. Effects of chitosan on contaminants and microorganisms, as well as applications in fish pathogens detection, fish disease diagnosis, and control are discussed

Utilization of nanochitosan for enzyme immobilization of aquatic and animal-based food packages

Studies have identified the properties of enzymes, functionalized molecules, and compounds in food industry applications as edible coatings and encapsulations, that assure prolonged food quality and standards. These molecules present benefits of longer shelf-life by delayed deterioration and inhibition of the proliferation of spoilage and mycotoxigenic microorganisms. However, challenges of reduced nutrient levels, miniaturized size, and low chemical stability remain concerning. Chitosan polymers naturally formed from the deacetylation of shellfish shells and exoskeletons of aquatic arthropods and crustaceans offer improved benefits when functionalized into nanoparticles as nanochitosans. These polysaccharides produced by the alkalescent deacetylation of chitin, comprise a series of 2-deoxy-2 (acetylamino) glucose linked by ß-(1-4) glycosidic linkages. This chapter considers the health impacts and

Chlamydia trachomatis Infecion Among Apparently Healthy Students of Ambrose Alli University Ekpoma, Edo State, Nigeria

Chlamydia trachomatisinfection is one of the sexually transmitted diseases (STD) occurring asymptomatically and frequently causing pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). Randomized control screening was conducted using immunochromatographic (ICG) tests for the detection of chlamydial antigen in extracts from urine and endo-cervical swab (ECS) samples from 530 University students. Positive samples were further subjected to Giemsa staining technique and microscopy for elementary bodies. Of the 530 students screened, a total of 80 (15.1%) males and 40 (7.5%) females were found positive by the immunochromatographic (ICG) method, but no inclusion bodies were found in any of the positive samples further examined by the Giemsa's staining method. ICG tests were found to be more sensitive for detecting chlamydial infection in ECS samples than the matching urine samples (P>0.05). Routine screening and appropriate treatment, especially of sexually-active youths is imperative if control measures are to be effective. Immunochromatographic screening method for chlamydial infection can give an on-the-spot diagnosis; hence the prevalence of infection and an estimate of the cost of its management. Keywords: Prevalence, Chlamydia trachomatis, asymptomatic infection Journal of Medical Laboratory Sciences Vol. 14 (2) 2005: pp. 62-6