Palm kernel agar: An alternative culture medium for rapid detection of aflatoxins in agricultural commodities

The feasibility of using palm kernel agar (PKA) as an alternative culture medium to desiccated coconut agar (DCA), the conventional medium for the recovery of aflatoxigenic fungi from mixed cultures andthe detection of aflatoxigenic fungi and direct visual determination of aflatoxins in agricultural commodities was assessed. The medium recovered aflatoxigenic fungi in 48 h from mixed cultures andagricultural commodities in 58 h as compared to 62 h obtained for the two treatments on desiccated coconut medium. Aflatoxigenic fungi were detected in all the agricultural commodities except for onions with maize having the highest value of 13.18% (w/w) followed by melon (10.97), yam flour (10.23) and groundnut (8.52) as against 11.48, 10.0, 6.92 and 8.52% (w/w) obtained for DCA. All aflatoxigenic strains produced a characteristic yellow pigmentation on a pink background and blue or blue green fluorescence of palm kernel agar Under long wave UV light (366nm) as against the white background of DCA, which often interferes with fluorescence with corresponding yield of aflatoxins. This shows that the medium is able to efficiently detect aflatoxin production through direct visual observation of fluorescence. Palm kernel agar (PKA) can therefore be routinely used as an alternative culture medium for screening aflatoxigenic fungi and direct visual determination of aflatoxins in agricultural commodities since it is faster and has a unique pink background for easy identificatio

Cervical screening with Luviva machine for early detection of cervical dysplasia: experience from Ekiti state, Nigeria

Background: Cervical cancer is a preventable and potentially curable cancer when detected early, yet it continues to be among the leading causes of cancer death in developing countries. Screening for cervical dysplasia is critical for early detection in order to reverse this trend. Several traditional screening methods such as pap smear test, HPV-DNA screening test, visual inspection with acetic acid or lugol iodine are in vogue with different specificity and sensitivity. LuViva advanced cervical scan is a new automated screening tool that has great promise for the detection of the disease in itsearliest form both in developing and developed countries.Objective: This study was designed to describe our experience with the use of LuViva advanced cervical scan as a primary screening tool for cervical dysplasia.Method: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study, whose data was obtained from the free health screening for civil servants in Ekiti State conducted between 11th and 21st February, 2014. Screening for Cervical dysplasia was conducted using the LuViva advanced cervical scan for women 40 years old and above. The result was automatically recorded and transferred to an Excel sheet for analysis.Result: A total sum of 254 patients was screened during the study period. Only one patient had a prior pap smear done. The automated self-reporting LuViva scan presented the result of the benign changes on the cervix as low risk in 143 patients (56.3%), moderate risk in 52 patients  15%) and high risk in 59 patients (11.5%). The machine further classified the dysplastic changes of the low, moderate and high risk categories as Atypical glandular cell (AGC), Atypical glandular cell favouring neoplasia (AGC-FN), Atypical g l a n d u l a r c e l l o f u n d e t e r m i n e d significance(AG-US), Atypical squamous cell of undetermined significance (ASC-US), Atypical squamous cell where high grade cannot be excluded (ASC-H) and Low grade squamous Intraepithelial lesion (LSIL). The proportion of moderate and high risk AGC (31.2%) was just slightly lower than the moderate and high risk of ASC-US (35.2%) while a higher percentage of43.9% in low grade squamous intraepithelial lesion was recorded among the patients.Conclusion: Our experience suggests that there is a place for the use of luViva scan in the primary screening for cervical dysplasia and there is a correlation between LuViva scan high risk result and histological diagnosis of cervical dysplasia.Keywords: Cervical screening, cervical dysplasia, civil servants, LuViva Scan, Ekiti State Nigeri

Hospital-based incidence of maternal heart failure during pregnancy in Nigeria

Patience Olayinka Akinwusi,1,2 Adetunji Oladeni Adeniji,3 Oluseyi Olaboyede Atanda,3 Adebayo Duyile Adekunle3 1Department of Medicine, College of Health Sciences, Osun State University, 2Department of Medicine, 3Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology Teaching Hospital, Osogbo, Nigeria Purpose: To determine the incidence of heart failure during pregnancy and incriminated cardiac lesions, as well as maternal and fetal outcomes in Ladoke Akintola University of Technology Teaching Hospital (LTH), Osogbo, Southwest Nigeria. Methods: This study was a retrospective, descriptive review of all cases of heart failure during pregnancy based on data retrieved from the medical records of LTH over a 7-year period from January 2004 to December 2010. Analysis of these data was carried out using SPSS 17. Ethical clearance was obtained from the Ethical Committee of LTH. Results: A total of 4523 patients delivered babies over the 7-year period, ten (2.2/1000) of which had cardiac decompensation. All patients were not registered at LTH for antenatal care (unbooked), with 70% of them aged 18–24 years. Fifty percent were primigravidae and the majority of them presented with symptoms in the second and third trimester. There were two cases of maternal deaths recorded and three cases of fetal/perinatal mortality. Only one case of congenital heart disease (pulmonary stenosis) and no cases of rheumatic heart disease were found. Conclusion: The data suggests that heart failure during pregnancy is uncommon in Southwest Nigeria. However, it occurs more often in young, unbooked primigravid women. Efforts should be aimed at encouraging early booking for antenatal care and a full cardiovascular evaluation to prevent associated maternal and fetal/perinatal morbidity and mortality. Keywords: heart failure, pregnancy, cardiac disease, fetal outcome, maternal outcom

In vitro efficacy of Coriandrum sativum, Lippia sidoides and Copaifera reticulata against Leishmania chagasi Eficácia in vitro de Coriandrum sativum, Lippia sidoides e Copaifera reticulata sobre Leishmania chagasi

The increased incidence of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) in Brazil is due to a lack of effective disease control measures. In addition to that, no effective treatment exists for canine VL in response to synthetic drugs. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of the essential oils of Coriandrum sativum and Lippia sidoides, and oleoresin from Copaifera reticulata, on Leishmania chagasi promastigotes and amastigotes. We also examined the toxicity of these treatments on the murine monocyte cell line RAW 264.7. To determine the IC50 a MTT test (3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) was performed on promastigotes, and an in situ ELISA assay was conducted on amastigotes. Here, we demonstrate that oleoresin from C. reticulata was effective against both promastigotes (IC50 of 7.88 µg.mL-1) and amastigotes (IC50 of 0.52 µg.mL-1), and neither of the two treatments differed significantly (p > 0.05) from pentamidine (IC50 of 2.149 µg.mL-1) and amphotericin B (IC50 of 9.754 µg.mL-1). Of the three plant oils tested, only oleoresin showed no toxicity toward monocyte, with 78.45% viability after treatment. Inhibition of promastigote and amastigote growth and the lack of cytotoxicity by C. reticulata demonstrate that oleoresin may be a viable option for analyzing the in vivo therapeutic effects of leishmanicidal plants<br>O aumento na incidência da Leishmaníase Visceral (LV) no Brasil deve-se à ineficácia das medidas de controle da doença. Além disso, não há tratamento efetivo para LV canina com drogas sintéticas. Assim, o objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o efeito dos óleos essenciais de Coriandrum sativum e de Lippia sidoides e do óleo-resina de Copaiferareticulata sobre promastigotas e amastigotas de Leishmania chagasi e analisar o grau de toxicidade sobre células monocíticas murinas RAW 264.7. Para determinar a CI50 sobre promastigotas foi usado teste MTT (brometo de 3-[4,5-dimetil-tiazol-2-il]-2,5-difeniltetrazólio) e sobre amastigotas foi realizado imunoensaio in situ pela técnica de ELISA. Os resultados obtidos comprovaram que o óleo-resina de C. reticulata foi o mais eficaz contra as formas promastigotas (CI50 de 7,88 µg.mL-1) e amastigotas (CI50 de 0,52 µg.mL-1) e em nenhum dos dois testes diferiu do controle pentamidina que obteve CI50 de 2,149 µg.mL-1, no teste sobre promastigotas, e anfotericina B que obteve CI50 de 9,754 µg.mL-1, nos testes com amastigotas (p > 0.05). Quanto à citotoxicidade apenas o óleo-resina não apresentou toxicidade com 78,45% de monócitos viáveis. Os resultados obtidos sobre promastigotas e amastigotas e a ausência de citotoxicidade do óleo-resina de C. reticulata evidenciam que este óleo-resina pode ser viável para a análise de seus efeitos terapêuticos em testes in vivo