Triterpenoids from Gutenbergia nigritana(Benth).Oliv and Hiern

Gutenbergia nigritana (Benth).Oliv and Hein (Asteraceae) is a Nigerian ethnomedicinal plant which has long being used medicinally in traditional systems of medicine.The plant has diverse ethnomedicinal uses which include: The Plant is used in the Ijaw area of Niger Delta region of Nigeria to treat Malaria,convulsion,diarrhea and as a remedy for skin infection. The antibacterial study on dichloromethane extract and chromatographic fractions:dichloromethane soluble part(DC1),ethyl acetate soluble part(E1) and N-butanol soluble portions of methanolic extract were investigated using agar diffusion assay method by measuring the zone of inhibition against clinical isolates: Bacillus subtillis,Escherichia coli,Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.Extensive Chromatographic separation and preparative TLC were employed in the isolation steps. Column chromatograpy of the dichloromethane extract, gel filteration on sephadex and preparative TLC led to the isolation of two triterpenoids: Lupenol(1) and Lupenol acetate(2). The structures were elucidatedby NMR spectroscopy and compared with literature. The dichloromethane extract exhibited antibacterial activity against all the test microorganisms with zones of inhibition ranging between 12-26mm. The chromatographic fraction (Fr-6) exhibited activity against E.coli,Ps.aeruginosa and S.aureus but in-active against B.subtilis, while the methanol soluble portions:dichloromethane and ethyl acetate showed weak activity while the n-butanol portion was in active. Dichloromethane extract of Gutenbergia nigritana leaves exhibited anti-bacterial activity, though the compounds isolated did not show activity, it is likely that the activity might reside in other components present in the dichloromethane extract.Key words: Lupenol, Lupenol acetate,antibacterial activity

ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE AS A DETERMINANT OF WORKERS’ JOB COMMITMENT IN PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN OGUN STATE, NIGERIA

This study examined organisational culture as a determinant of workers’ job commitment in public secondary schools in Ogun State. The  study adopted an ex-post facto design approach. The population consists of all workers (teaching and non-teaching staff) in secondary schools in Ogun State, Nigeria. A multi-stage random sampling technique was adopted where five (5) public secondary schools (comprising of both junior and senior) were randomly selected from each of the local government area s from twenty (20) local government areas in Ogun State, making a total of ten (10) secondary schools were selected for the study. Stratified random sampling technique was used in selecting ten (10) workers (teaching and non-teaching) from each junior and secondary  schools respectively, making a total number of twenty (20) workers from each of the selected ten (10) secondary schools. A total number of 200 workers was selected  for the  study. The  instrument  used for this study is a questionnaire which is sub-divided into three sections. Section A was used to collect information on personal characteristics of the respondents while Section B contained Workers Organisational Commitment Scale which was designed to measure workers’ job commitment. Section C contained Organisational Climate Index (OCI) and was used to measure organisational culture.  Data was analyzed using regression and T-test analysis at 0.05 level of significance. Findings revealed that organisational culture has significant relationship with public secondary school workers’ job commitment and that there was no significant difference in public secondary school workers’ job commitment between senior and junior school employees. It is concluded that organisational culture determines job commitment of public secondary school employees in Ogun State. Based on the findings, it is therefore recommended  that motivation strategies should adopted to improve teachers’ salaries and promotions. Teachers should positively change their attitude s to work and view their job as more of a  call than a profession.     &nbsp

Antimicrobial Resistant Pattern of Klebsiella pneumoniae Isolated from the Stool of Healthy Volunteers of Niger Delta University, Wilberforce Island, Amassoma, Bayelsa State

<p><strong>Background:</strong><i>Klebsiella pneumoniae</i> bacteria is a normal flora of the human intestinal tract where they do not cause disease in normal circumstances but can also act as a human opportunistic pathogenic infection when it proliferates in increased amounts, where it may cause a host of health complaints and symptoms ranging from mild to serious infections (pneumonia, septicemia, Urinary tract infections). The virulence factors like capsule, lipopolysaccharide, and type 1 or type 3 fimbriae are responsible for <i>K. pneumoniae </i>to form biofilm. <i>Klebsiella pneumonia </i>responsible for serious outbreaks of multi-drug resistant diseases may be due to uncontrolled usage of antibiotics.  <strong>Method:</strong> The samples were isolated and identified using standard microbiological methods. The isolates were screened for possible virulence traits using the Blood agar test and Congo-Red test. Antibiotic susceptibility screening was carried out for the isolates. <strong>Results:</strong> In this study (25.3%) <i>Klebsiella pneumoniae </i>isolates were recovered from the 300 stool samples of the healthy student volunteers, of which 29(38.2%) were from males and 47(61.8%) from females. The 76 <i>Klebsiella pneumoniae</i> isolates screened are biofilm producers while none produced hemolysin. The antimicrobial susceptibility pattern for the 76 <i>Klebsiella pneumoniae </i>isolates in this study revealed (Co-trimoxazole 3.9%, Ciprofloxacin 11.8%, Cefotaxime 9.2%, Ceftazidime 6.6% and Gentamicin 9.2%, Imipenem 17.1% and Ertapenem 40.8% and Nitrofurantoin (89.5%). In this study (17.1%) <i>Klebsiella pneumoniae</i> isolates exhibited multi-drug resistance. <strong>Conclusion</strong>: Drug resistance surveillance has revealed that asymptomatic carriers in the community are often colonized with resistant bacteria that subsequently lead to infections.</p&gt

Observations of equatorial ionization anomaly over Africa and Middle East during a year of deep minimum

In this work, we investigated the veracity of an ion continuity equation in controlling equatorial ionization anomaly (EIA) morphology using total electron content (TEC) of 22 GPS receivers and three ground-based magnetometers (Magnetic Data Acquisition System, MAGDAS) over Africa and the Middle East (Africa–Middle East) during the quietest periods. Apart from further confirmation of the roles of equatorial electrojet (EEJ) and integrated equatorial electrojet (IEEJ) in determining hemispheric extent of EIA crest over higher latitudes, we found some additional roles played by thermospheric meridional neutral wind. Interestingly, the simultaneous observations of EIA crests in both hemispheres of Africa–Middle East showed different morphology compared to that reported over Asia. We also observed interesting latitudinal twin EIA crests domiciled at the low latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere. Our results further showed that weak EEJ strength associated with counter electrojet (CEJ) during sunrise hours could also trigger twin EIA crests over higher latitudes

Perfil fenotípico e genotípico de Staphylococcus aureus isolados de estudantes de enfermagem, 2008 Perfil fenotípico y genotípico del Staphylococcus aureus aislados de estudiantes de enfermería, 2008 Phenotypic and genotypic profile of Staphylococcus aureus isolated in nursing students, 2008

OBJETIVO: Verificar a prevalência de carreamento nasal, perfil fenotípico e genotípico de S. aureus isolados de estudantes de enfermagem. MÉTODOS: Estudo transversal, com população composta por 101 alunos, cursando as três primeiras séries do curso de graduação em Enfermagem no ano de 2008. S. aureus foi isolado de material biológico obtido dos vestíbulos nasais através de swab. A susceptibilidade à oxacilina e vancomicina foi determinada pelo teste de concentração inibitória mínima. A presença do gene MecA foi determinada pelo teste de reação em cadeia da polimerase. RESULTADOS: Verificou-se 90,1% de positividade para S. aureus. A frequência de resistência à oxacilina foi de 9,8% e todas as amostras foram sensíveis à vancomicina. A oito amostras resistentes À oxacilina apresentaram o gene MecA. CONCLUSÃO: A prevalência foi elevada. A resistência à oxacilna foi expressiva e todas as amostras foram sensíveis à vancomicina. As amostras resistentes à oxacilina carreavam o gene MecA.<br>OBJETIVO: Verificar la prevalencia de transporte nasal, perfil fenotípico y genotípico de S. aureus aislados de estudiantes de enfermería. MÉTODOS: Estudio transversal, con población compuesta por 101 alumnos, cursando las tres primeras series del Pregrado en Enfermería en el año 2008. El S. aureus fue aislado del material biológico obtenido de los vestíbulos nasales a través de swab. La susceptibilidad a la oxacilina y vancomicina fue determinada por el test de concentración inhibitoria mínima. La presencia del gen MecA fue determinada por el test de reacción en cadena de la polimerasa. RESULTADOS: Se verificó el 90,1% de positividad para el S. aureus. La frecuencia de resistencia a la oxacilina fue de 9,8% y todas las muestras fueron sensibles a la vancomicina. Las ocho muestras resistentes a la oxacilina presentaron el gen MecA. CONCLUSION: La prevalencia fue elevada. La resistencia a la oxacilina fue expresiva y todas las muestras fueron sensibles a la vancomicina. Las muestras resistentes a la oxacilina transportaban el gen MecA.<br>OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence of nasal entrainment, phenotypic and genotypic profile of Staphylococcus aureus, asisolated from nursing students. METHODS: A cross-sectional population of 101 students enrolled in the first three grades of the undergraduate nursing course in 2008. Staphylococcus aureus was isolated from biological material obtained from the swab through the nasal vestibules. Susceptibility to oxacillin and vancomycin was determined by minimum inhibitory concentration test. The mecA gene was identified by testing the polymerase chain reaction. RESULTS: There was a 90.1% positive finding of Staphylococcus aureus. The frequency of oxacillin resistance was 9.8%; all samples were sensitive to vancomycin. The eight strains resistant to oxacillin carried the mecA gene. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus was high. Oxacillin resistance was significant, but all strains were sensitive to vancomycin. Isolates resistant to oxacillin carried the mecA gene