Antibiotic susceptibilities of Salmonella species prevalent among children of 0-5 years with diarrhea in Katsina state, Nigeria

This study was conducted to assess the prevalence of Salmonella species among children having diarrhea in Katsina State, Nigeria. A total of 220 diarrhea stool samples of children aged five years and below (0-5 years) were collected and screened for Salmonella species using culture technique. Presumptively positive isolates were further screened biochemically and serologically, using MicrogenTM Enterobactericeae ID kit and MicrogenTM Salmonella rapid confirmatory latex agglutination test kit. Antibiotic susceptibility of confirmed isolates was carried out and resistance patterns of the isolates determined. The highest incidence was observed in children of 13-24 months of age and the least in children of 0-12 months of age. There was a higher prevalence in male than female children. All the isolates screened were resistant to Ampicillin and Amoxicillin and of these, 90.9% were resistant to Amoxicillin-clavulanic acid and 45.5% were resistant to Nalidixic acid. However, 100% were sensitive to Gentamicin, 90.9% were sensitive to Ciprofloxacin and Cefotaxime and 9.09% showed reduced susceptibility to Ciprofloxacin. Both the occurrence of Salmonella in children and their resistance to multiple antibiotics as observed are of public health significance. The vein of this study underscores the importance of routine monitoring of the incidence of Salmonella and continued health education of caregivers.Keywords: Antibiotic resistance; Prevalence of Salmonella; Childhood diarrhea; Katsina State; Antibiotics susceptibility of Salmonell

Community-based intervention is necessary for the control of HIV in North-Central Nigeria.

Objectives: To determine factors associated with the observed high prevalence of HIV in North-Central Nigeria. Methods: In a cross-sectional multisite study conducted in 2007, behavioral, medical, and demographic data were obtained from pregnant women (N = 1011) who were tested for the presence of antibody against HIV-1 and HIV-2. Results: The overall prevalence of HIV-1 in the 1011 women included in the study was 10.3% (95% confidence interval (CI) 8.4–12.2). In the multivariate analysis, HIV-1 seropositivity was significantly associated with women from the Makurdi (odds ratio (OR) 31.3, 95% CI 3.8–255.7) and Minna (OR 15.4, 95% CI 1.7–135.1) sites in comparison with Panyam site. The presence of tuberculosis (OR 10.7, 95% CI 2.4–48.3) was also significantly associated with HIV-1 seropositive status. Factors associated with HIV-1 also differed between sites. The presence of antibody against HIV-2 was not observed. Conclusions: The high HIV-1 prevalence observed in this study corroborates previous observations in North-Central Nigeria. Disparity in the prevalence across communities was also seen. This is the only detailed socio-epidemiological and behavioral study that has explored potential factors associated with HIV-1 in North-Central Nigeria, and it revealed that differences in risk factors explain the disparity in prevalence across communities

Genetic Characteristics, Coreceptor Usage Potential and Evolution of Nigerian HIV-1 Subtype G and CRF02_AG Isolates

HIV-1 CRF02_AG and subtype G (HIV-1G) account for most HIV infections in Nigeria, but their evolutionary trends have not been well documented. To better elucidate the dynamics of the epidemic in Nigeria we characterised the gag and env genes of North-Central Nigerian HIV-1 isolates from pregnant women. Of 28 samples sequenced in both genes, the predominant clades were CRF02_AG (39%) and HIV-1G (32%). Higher predicted proportion of CXCR4-tropic (X4) HIV-1G isolates was noted compared to CRF02_AG (p = 0.007, Fisher’s exact test). Phylogenetic and Bayesian analysis conducted on our sequences and all the dated available Nigerian sequences on the Los Alamos data base showed that CRF02_AG and HIV-1G entered into Nigeria through multiple entries, with presence of HIV-1G dating back to early 1980s. This study underlines the genetic complexity of the HIV-1 epidemic in Nigeria, possible subtype-specific differences in co-receptor usage, and the evolutionary trends of the predominant HIV-1 strains in Nigeria, which may have implications for the design of biomedica