Mycobacterial Species Identification and Public Health Implications of Tuberculosis Among Nomadic Pastoralists in Three Local Governments of Plateau State, North Central Nigeria

Bovine and human tuberculosis is endemic in Nigeria, and apart from meat inspection at the abattoir, which is not very effective, no control measures are currently practiced against the disease in Nigerian livestock. A study was conducted to determine the level of awareness and knowledge of the public health implications of tuberculosis among pastoralists in some selected Local Government Areas of Plateau State. Majority of the respondents in the study area were aware of tuberculosis and they consumed both raw and boiled milk. However, despite their knowledge of tuberculosis, very few of them vaccinate their children against the disease. Five persons admitted being infected with tuberculosis and 3 (three) of these five were receiving treatment as at the time of questionnaire administration. Smear microscopy and deletion analyses were deployed to detect Mycobacterium species. All specimens were however negative by both techniques. Keywords: Tuberculosis, Nomadic, Cattle, Pastoralists, AwarenessNigerian Veterinary Journal, VOL:32 (4) 321-33

The use of Deletion Analysis in the Detection of Mycobacterium bovis, Mycobacteium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium africanum among Slaughtered Cattle in Plateau State, North Central Nigeria.

Bovine and human tuberculosis is endemic in Nigeria and apart from meat inspection at the abattoir, which is not very effective, no control measures are currently practiced against the disease in Nigerian livestock. A total of 3381slaughtered cattle were examined for tuberculous lesions in the study area. Of these, 150 (4.4%) animals showed lesions typical of tuberculosis and 124 (3.7%) were acid fast positive. The major organs showing tuberculous lesions were lungs and lymph nodes. Out of 150 animals, 114 lungs (76%) and 27lymph nodes (18%) respectively were positive. 96 (64%) of the lungs were acid fast positive. Tuberculous organs were observed mostly in femaleanimals. Following deletion analysis of 142 tissue samples mic seal using RD1, RD4, RD9, RD12, RD1 and RD2 , 107 were identified as M. bovis, six as M. tuberculosis and two as M. africanum. The public health implication and control measures were discussed

Molecular Epidemiology of Bovine Tuberculosis and most Common Strains of Mycobacterium Bovis in Plateau State, North Central Nigeria

Even though tuberculosis is endemic in Nigeria, information on the epidemiology of the disease especially bovine tuberculosis is still very scanty. Variable Number of Tandem Repeat (VNTR) was carried out on 113 tissue samples to have an idea of not only the epidemiology of bovine tuberculosis but also the most common strains of Mycobacterium bovis circulating in Plateau State. A total of twenty eight (28) different VNTR patterns were obtained from the analysis with genotypes 5 5 5 4 3; 5 5 4 4 3 and 5 5 3 4 3 being the predominant isolates. Out of 113 samples available for generating dendograms, 71 (51.8%) had complete VNTR patterns. Several other profiles which have not been reported from previous studies in Nigeria were observed in this study and it is evident that bovine tuberculosis is prevalent in Plateau State