Physical properties, correlation and regression analyses of potable water in Ilorin, Nigeria

Water is said to be wholesome if it is fit to use for drinking, cooking, food preparation or washing without any potential danger to human health. This research aimed to determine the potability of water from borehole, sachet and river in Ilorin, Nigeria using physical parameters, assess the correlation between the parameters and carry out regression analysis of the parameters. Water samples were randomly collected from the three Local Government Areas (LGA) in Ilorin to assess physical properties and carry out correlation and regression analyses. Temperature of water samples were between 29 ⁰C – 31.4 ⁰C while pH ranged between 6.42 and 7.90. Correlation coefficient was +0.989 while regression analysis estimated optimal temperature of 30 ⁰C for pH of 7.03. The physical parameters of water in the study area fell within recommended range. There was strong direct relationship between the physical parameters studied. Further studies could consider investigating other physical and chemical parameters involving larger number of samples. Keywords: Potable water, physical parameters, correlation, regression, Ilori

Sex-specific disruption of murine midbrain astrocytic and dopaminergic developmental trajectories following antenatal GC treatment

The mammalian midbrain dopaminergic systems arising in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc) and ventral tegmental area (VTA) are critical for coping behaviours and are implicated in neuropsychiatric disorders where early life challenges comprise significant risk factors. Here, we aimed to advance our hypothesis that glucocorticoids (GCs), recognised key players in neurobiological programming, target development within these systems, with a novel focus on the astrocytic population. Mice received antenatal GC treatment (AGT) by including the synthetic GC, dexamethasone, in the mothers' drinking water on gestational days 16-19; controls received normal drinking water. Analyses of regional shapes and volumes of the adult SNc and VTA demonstrated that AGT induced long-term, dose-dependent, structural changes that were accompanied by profound effects on astrocytes (doubling/tripling of numbers and/or density). Additionally, AGT induced long-term changes in the population size and distribution of SNc/VTA dopaminergic neurons, confirming and extending our previous observations made in rats. Furthermore, glial/neuronal structural remodelling was sexually dimorphic and depended on the AGT dose and sub-region of the SNc/VTA. Investigations within the neonatal brain revealed that these long-term organisational effects of AGT depend, at least in part, on targeting perinatal processes that determine astrocyte density and programmed cell death in dopaminergic neurons. Collectively, our characterisation of enduring, AGT-induced, sex-specific cytoarchitectural disturbances suggests novel mechanistic links for the strong association between early environmental challenge (inappropriate exposure to excess GCs) and vulnerability to developing aberrant behaviours in later life, with translational implications for dopamine-associated disorders (such as schizophrenia, ADHD, autism, depression), which typically show a sex bia

Brucellosis as an Emerging Threat in Developing Economies:Lessons from Nigeria

Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa, has a large proportion of the world's poor livestock keepers, and is a hotspot for neglected zoonoses. A review of the 127 accessible publications on brucellosis in Nigeria reveals only scant and fragmented evidence on its spatial and temporal distribution in different epidemiological contexts. The few bacteriological studies conducted demonstrate the existence of Brucella abortus in cattle and sheep, but evidence for B. melitensis in small ruminants is dated and unclear. The bulk of the evidence consists of seroprevalence studies, but test standardization and validation are not always adequately described, and misinterpretations exist with regard to sensitivity and/or specificity and ability to identify the infecting Brucella species. Despite this, early studies suggest that although brucellosis was endemic in extensive nomadic systems, seroprevalence was low, and brucellosis was not perceived as a real burden; recent studies, however, may reflect a changing trend. Concerning human brucellosis, no studies have identified the Brucella species and most reports provide only serological evidence of contact with Brucella in the classical risk groups; some suggest brucellosis misdiagnoses as malaria or other febrile conditions. The investigation of a severe outbreak that occurred in the late 1970s describes the emergence of animal and human disease caused by the settling of previously nomadic populations during the Sahelian drought. There appears to be an increasing risk of re-emergence of brucellosis in sub-Saharan Africa, as a result of the co-existence of pastoralist movements and the increase of intensive management resulting from growing urbanization and food demand. Highly contagious zoonoses like brucellosis pose a threat with far-reaching social and political consequences

Defining the causes of sporadic Parkinson’s disease in the global Parkinson’s genetics program (GP2)

\ua9 2023, Springer Nature Limited. The Global Parkinson’s Genetics Program (GP2) will genotype over 150,000 participants from around the world, and integrate genetic and clinical data for use in large-scale analyses to dramatically expand our understanding of the genetic architecture of PD. This report details the workflow for cohort integration into the complex arm of GP2, and together with our outline of the monogenic hub in a companion paper, provides a generalizable blueprint for establishing large scale collaborative research consortia

Multi-ancestry genome-wide association meta-analysis of Parkinson’s disease

\ua9 2023, This is a U.S. Government work and not under copyright protection in the US; foreign copyright protection may apply. Although over 90 independent risk variants have been identified for Parkinson’s disease using genome-wide association studies, most studies have been performed in just one population at a time. Here we performed a large-scale multi-ancestry meta-analysis of Parkinson’s disease with 49,049 cases, 18,785 proxy cases and 2,458,063 controls including individuals of European, East Asian, Latin American and African ancestry. In a meta-analysis, we identified 78 independent genome-wide significant loci, including 12 potentially novel loci (MTF2, PIK3CA, ADD1, SYBU, IRS2, USP8, PIGL, FASN, MYLK2, USP25, EP300 and PPP6R2) and fine-mapped 6 putative causal variants at 6 known PD loci. By combining our results with publicly available eQTL data, we identified 25 putative risk genes in these novel loci whose expression is associated with PD risk. This work lays the groundwork for future efforts aimed at identifying PD loci in non-European populations

Semen bacterial flora of Rhode Island Breeder cocks in Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria

The semen used in this study was collected from 77 Rhode Island Breeder cocks reared in battery cages under intensive management from a private farm in Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria using the back massage procedure, 27 of the 77 semen samples (35.1%) contained bacterial isolates. None of the samples grew fungi. Bacteria isolates obtained from the semen include: Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus faecalis, Proteus species and Klebsiella species. Seventy of the semen samples were negative for brucellosis but seven samples exhibited Brucella specie agglutinins using tube agglutination test and the level of antibody titres are 61.5, 82.0 and 102.5 iu/ml respectively. The pressence of Brucella agglutinin detected in this study is significant since brucellosis is of public health and economic significance. In addition, the presence of bacteria contaminants in semen should be viewed with seriousness. As a consequence, routine control of bacteria in collected semen seems desirable. This study sought to identify the bacterial flora and pathogens in semen collected from cocks and see how they may be effectively reduced or destroyed in the interest of the efficient collection, preservation and delivery of highly fertile semen artificially. Areas for further investigations were highlighted.Keywords: Cocks, Semen. Bacterial flora, Artificial Insemination, Rhode Island Breeder

Prevalence of haemoparasitic and microfilarial infections in dogs in Zaria, Nigeria

No Abstract. The Nigerian Journal of Parasitology Vol. 22(1&2) 2001: 53-5