Incidence of pulmonary mycoses in patients with acquired immunodeficiency diseases

Fungal infections are common complications ofAIDS and pulmonary complications remain a major cause of both morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised patients. Such complications can also result in life threatening meningitis and discomforting if not debilitating thrush. The impact of the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) on the incidence of mycoses is difficult to predict but is likely to be substantial. Retrospective studies in Africa and USA have indicated that 58% to 81% of patients with AIDS develop amycosis. The objectives of the study were to determine the prevalence of pulmonary mycosis in AIDS patients with complications of cough, determine if there is any relationship between AIDS and pulmonary mycoses and determine if there is any difference in the prevalence of pulmonary mycoses inAIDS patients on anti retroviral drugs and those not on drugs. A total of 195 sputum samples were obtained from patients diagnosed with full blown Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) who had been sick between 6months to 3 yrs with CD4 count less than 200/mm presentingwith cough at theUniversity ofBeninTeachingHospital (UBTH) Edo State. 55 (28.2%) of population studied had been on anti-retroviralmedication,with the remainder on none during the study period. Forty other sputum samples were obtained from apparently healthy (HIV Seronegative) persons also based in Benin City as controls. All subjects were grouped int

Uropathogens isolated from HIV-infected patients from Limpopo Province, South Africa

The primary aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and antibiotic susceptibility profiles of uropathogens isolated from HIV-infected patients in Limpopo Province, South Africa. One hundred and ninety-five urine samples were obtained from HIV-infected patients between June 2008 and May 2009 and the samples were investigated using standard and conventional microbiological methods. Urinary tract infections (UTIs) were detected in 95 samples. Enterobacter species (37.6%) was the most prevalent uropathogen. Other bacterial isolates included Escherichia coli and Klebsiella species, each constituting 17.9%, Citrobacter species (9.7%), Proteus species (7.4%) and others (11.6%). Resistance to trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (SXT) which is used for empiric therapy was above 35%. However, majority of the isolates were susceptible to amikacin, ciprofloxacin and most of the second generation cephalosporins as well as imipenem. Resistance of uropathogens to SXT in Limpopo Province is higher than the recommended IDSA setting and this requires the introduction of an alternative first-line therapy.Keywords: Antibiotic resistance, HIV, uropathogens, urinary tract infection

Antibacterial activity of honey and medicinal plant extracts against Gram negative microorganisms

There has been a steady rise in antibiotic resistance of bacteria and this urgently calls for the discovery of alternative therapeutic agents. Honey possesses therapeutic potentials which includes antimicrobial activity. Although the antimicrobial activity of honey has been effectively established against an extensive spectrum of microorganisms, it differs depending on the type of honey. To date, not much extensive studies of the antibacterial properties of South African honeys on enteric microorganisms have been conducted. The objective of this study was to compare the antibacterial activity of extracts of six different honeys with those of medical plants commonly used in South Africa. Using a broth dilution method, the antibacterial activity extracts of six South African honeys and medicinal plants against six enteric microorganisms viz- Enterobacter cloacae, Escheriachia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Citrobacter freundii isolated from geophagia samples and Aeromonas hydrophila and plesiomonas isolated both from stool and water samples using agar well diffusion method was done. Different concentrations of honey and plant extracts were tested against each type of microorganism. Briefly, two-fold dilutions of honey solutions were tested to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) against each type of microorganism. Extracts from both South African honeys and medicinal plants showed zones of inhibition that ranged from 6.94 to 37.94 mm. The most susceptible bacteria were Escheriachia coli, Aeromonas hydrophila and Plesiomonas shigelloides. MIC and MBC values of extracts were found in the range of 0.625 to 5.000 mg/ml. Extracts of honey showed good antibacterial activity against most organisms than the standard antibiotics such as Ampicillin and Gentamycin. Honey extracts showed antibacterial activity against most microorganisms which were showing some degree of resistance to commercial antibiotics. Extracts from South African honeys and medicinal plants exhibited variable activities against different microorganisms. This result suggests that the honeys could potentially be used as an alternative therapeutic agent against certain microorganisms.Keywords: Agar well diffusion assay, honey, minimum inhibitory concentration, minimum bactericidal concentrationAfrican Journal of Biotechnology, Vol. 13(4), pp. 616-625, 22 January, 201

Prevalence of Antiretroviral Drug Resistance Mutations and HIV-1 Subtypes among Newly-diagnosed Drugna\uefve Persons Visiting a Voluntary Testing and Counselling Centre in Northeastern South Africa

Data on antiretroviral drug resistance among drug-na\uefve persons are important in developing sentinel surveillance policies. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of antiretroviral drug resistance mutations among drug-na\uefve HIV-infected individuals attending a voluntary testing and counselling centre at the Mankweng Hospital in northeastern South Africa. In total, 79 drug-na\uefve HIV-positive individuals were sequentially recruited during February 2008-December 2008. Drug resistance mutations were determined using the calibrated population resistance tool available on the Stanford HIV drug resistance database. Viral DNA was obtained from 57 (72%) of the 79 individuals. Reliable nucleotide sequences were obtained for 54 reverse transcriptase (RT) and 54 protease (PR) gene regions from 54 individuals. Overall, five sequences (9.3%) harboured drug resistance mutations (95% confidence interval -1.53 to 16.99). Four (7.4%) of these were nucleoside RT inhibitor mutations (D67G, D67E, T69D, and T215Y), and one (1.9%) was a PR inhibitor mutation (M46I). No major non-nucleoside RT resistance mutation was detected. Several minor resistance mutations and polymorphisms common in subtype C viruses were observed in the PR and RT genes. Phylogenetic analysis of the partial pol sequences showed that 52 (96%) of the 54 isolates were HIV-1 subtype C. One isolate (08MB08ZA) was HIV-1 subtype B while another (08MB26ZA) was related to HIV-1 subtype J. HIV-1 subtype recombination analysis with REGA assigned the pol sequence to HIV subtype J (11_cpx) with a bootstrap value of 75%. The prevalence of drug resistance mutations observed in the population studied was relatively higher than previously reported from other parts of South Africa. In addition, this is apparently the first report of an HIV-1 subtype J-like virus from northeastern South Africa

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR): significance to food quality and safety

Publication history: Accepted - 28 February 2019; Published online - 9 April 2020.Antibiotic resistance presents a significant challenge to clinical, veterinary, and plant health and is now recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a major emerging problem of global significance. As yet, there have been no successful discoveries of classes of novel antibiotics since 1987. There is an antibiotic discovery void, and it is now widely acknowledged that there is an urgent need for the development of novel antimicrobial agents. For economic reasons, many of the largest pharmaceutical companies have abandoned the antibiotic field, and research conducted by academia was scaled back due to funding cuts following the economic crisis. A post-antibiotic era— in which common infections and minor injuries can kill—far from being an apocalyptic fantasy, is indeed a very real possibility for the 21st century.DWN thanks Professors James Dooley and Ibrahim Banat at Ulster University for critical comments. The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) is gratefully acknowledged for facilitating this literature review process through an Evidence and Innovation project 16/3/11 (activity 48125)

Genetic characterization of human immunodeficiency virus from Northern South Africa

PhD (Microbiology)Department of Microbiolog

Nigeria: The Political Economy of the Bourgeois Restoration by Siddique Mohammed and Tony Edoh, Eds.

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Nigeria: The Political Economy of the Bourgeois Restoration by Siddique Mohammed and Tony Edoh, Eds.

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Rickettsia africae an Agent of African Tick Bite Fever in Ticks Collected from Domestic Animals in Eastern Cape, South Africa

Background: Ticks transmit a plethora of pathogens of zoonotic implications. Their distribution, diversity and the pathogens they transmit differ from one ecological location to another. Rickettsia africae is the agent of African tick bite fever found in South Africa, a zoonotic infection that is frequently reported among travelers who have visited many sub-Saharan African countries where the pathogen is prevalent. Methods: Ticks were collected from domestic animals in Raymond Nkandla Municipality, Eastern Cape, South Africa. The ticks were identified morphologically prior to DNA extraction followed by molecular identification of randomly selected ticks from the morphologically delineated groups. To assess for the presence of tick-borne pathogens belonging to Rickettsia spp. by PCR (polymerase chain reaction), we used specific primer pairs targeting the gltA, ompA and ompB genes. The selected amplified ticks, all positive ompB and forty three ompA amplicons were sequenced in a commercial sequencing facility. The obtained nucleotide sequences were edited and subjected to BLASTn for homology search and phylogenetic analyses were performed with MEGA 7 Version for genetic relationships with curated reference sequences in GenBank. Results: A total of 953 ticks collected in the study were delineated into three genera consisting of Amblyomma, Rhipicephalus and Hyalomma in decreasing order of abundance. The presence of rickettsial DNA was detected in 60/953 (6.3%) from the three genera of ticks screened. Genetic analyses of the DNA sequences obtained showed that they have phylogenetic relationship to members of the spotted fever group rickettsiae with R. africae, being the predominant SFGR (spotted fever group rickettsiae) detected in the screened ticks. Conclusion: This report shows that R. africae is the predominant spotted fever group rickettsiae in ticks collected from domestic animals in the study area and the human health impacts are not known