Biochemical and bacteriological profiles of asymptomatic bacteriuria among school children in Ago-Iwoye, Nigeria

Background: Asymptomatic bacteriuria (ASB) in children is a predisposing factor to symptomatic urinary tract infection (UTI) that may be complicated by blood stream infections if not appropriately treated with resultant mortality or morbidity. The objectives of this study are to determine the prevalence of ASB, and evaluate both biochemical and bacteriological characteristics of urine samples of primary school pupils in Ago-Iwoye, Ijebu North Local Government Area (LGA), Ogun State, Nigeria.Methodology: Three hundred and seventy-two (186 males and 186 females) apparently healthy (asymptomatic) pupils aged 2-16 years from four randomly selected primary schools in the LGA were screened for ASB. Clean catch specimen of midstream urine was collected from each subject. Biochemical analysis of the urine was performed with Combi 10 reagent strip. MacConkey and Cysteine Lactose Electrolyte Deficient (CLED) agar plates were inoculated with calibrated wireloop delivering 0.01 ml of urine for aerobic culture at 37oC for 24 hours. Identification of significant bacteria on culture plates was done using conventional biochemical tests.Results: The frequency of clear, slightly turbid and turbid urine were 31 (8.3%), 99 (26.6%) and 56 (15.1%) respectively. All analyzed urine samples were alkaline and negative for ketone, glucose and blood, but contained protein in 230 (61.8%), bilirubin in 184 (49.5%), nitrites in 64 (17.2%) and urobilinogen in 14 (3.7%) subjects. The prevalence of significant bacteriuria was 11.8% (44 of 372) with 7.0% in males and 16.7% in females (p = 0.0063). The frequency of bacteria isolated in descending order were Escherichia coli 61.4%, Staphylococcus saprophyticus 61.4%, Staphylococcus aureus 45.5%, Bacillus subtilis 45.5%, Enterococcus faecalis 43.2%, Enterobacter spp 36.4%, Serratia marscencen 31.8%, Klebsiella pneumoniae 22.7%, Proteus mirabilis 22.7% and Pseudomonas aeruginosa 20.5%.Conclusion: This result highlights the presence of significant bacteriuria among apparently healthy pupils in the study area, with higher prevalence in the female pupils. The apparent risk of developing symptomatic UTI with the attendant complications in these pupils should spur preventive education of parents/guardians and the general populace about this entity.Keywords: Asymptomatic bacteriuria, S. saprophyticus, morbidity, prevalence, primary school pupil

Mycoflora and Aflatoxin Levels in Stale Retailed Pepper Sold in Abeokuta Nigeria

Fungi constitute a major problem in the production, storage and processing of agricultural products, recent concern about the consumption of stale retail pepper in Abeokuta necessitated the need to determine the fungal population and also to quantify Aflatoxin produced by the fungi. Fungi species were isolated from 20 pepper samples (Capsicum annum) bought from different markets in Abeokuta using standard microbiological procedures and High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) was used to quantify the aflatoxin present. Isolated fungi were Aspergillus flavus (55%), Mucor sp (10%), Sacharomyces cerevisiae (20%), Aspergillus fumigatus , Rhizopus sp and Penicillium sp (5%) respectively. Results shows that fourteen of the pepper samples had no detectable aflatoxin and the aflatoxin content in the remaining six samples was 23ng/kg, 18 ng/kg, 15 ng/kg, 9 ng/kg, 6 ng/kg and 2 ng/kg,. five of these samples had aflatoxin content above the European Union maximum tolerance level of 5ng/kg. The presence of toxin producing Aspergillus flavus capable of causing food poisoning raises concern over public health risks that may be associated with the consumption of stale pepper. Keywords: Aflatoxin, Fungal contamination, Capsicum annum, stale foods, High Performance Liquid chromatography, public healt

Biological Resolution of Virulence Genes of Salmonella Species from different Microbiomes

The pathogenic promiscuity of virulence associated macromolecules in Salmonella infection is a key driver to their wide epidemiology and curtailing  such distribution is contingent upon proper clarification of these virulence genes. This study was therefore aimed at determining the virulence  genes of Salmonella species from different microbiomes. To achieve this, a total of three hundred (300) biological specimens were aseptically  collected and processed for Salmonella presence using the BAM USFDA technique prior to their genotypic characterization while virulence gene  detection was carried out in a primer specific polymerase chain reaction. Results obtained depict the distribution of the following Salmonella species  viz; Salmonella gallinarum 19(26.39%), Salmonella heidelberg 19(26.39%), Salmonella enteritidis 18(25%) and Salmonella typhimurium  16(22.22%) while the occurrence of the virulence genes (InvA, SopE, AgfA and SpvC) were Salmonella enteritidis ( 7(38.8), 6(33.3), 9(50), 3(16.7),  Salmonella typhimurium ( 5(26.3), 3(15.8), 2(10.5), 7(36.8)), Salmonella heidelberg (0(0), 8(50), 4(25), 4(25), and Salmonella gallinarum (12(63.2),  6(31.6), 2(10.5), 7(36.8)) respectively. It was however found that the different microbiomes analyzed were ubiquitously rich in virulence genes  associated Salmonella species.   La promiscuité pathogène des macromolécules associées à la virulence dans l’infection à Salmonella est un facteur clé de leur large épidémiologie  et la réduction de cette distribution dépend de la clarification appropriée de ces gènes de virulence. Cette étude visait donc à déterminer les gènes  de virulence des espèces de Salmonella de différents microbiomes. Pour ce faire, un total de trois cents (300) échantillons biologiques ont été  collectés et traités de manière aseptique pour la présence de Salmonella à l’aide de la technique BAM USFDA avant leur caractérisation génotypique  tandis que la détection du gène de virulence a été effectuée dans une réaction en chaîne par polymérase spécifique à l’amorce. Les résultats  obtenus décrivent la distribution des espèces de Salmonella suivantes, à savoir ; Salmonella gallinarum 19(26,39%), Salmonella heidelberg  19(26,39%), Salmonella enteritidis 18(25%) et Salmonella typhimurium 16(22,22%) alors que la présence des gènes de virulence (InvA, SopE, AgfA et  SpvC) était Salmonella enteritidis ( 7(38,8), 6(33,3), 9(50), 3(16,7), Salmonella typhimurium ( 5(26,3), 3(15,8), 2(10,5), 7(36,8)), Salmonella heidelberg (0(  0), 8(50), 4(25), 4(25) et Salmonella gallinarum (12(63.2), 6(31.6), 2(10.5), 7(36.8)) respectivement. différents microbiomes analysés étaient  ubiquitairement riches en gènes de virulence associés aux espèces de Salmonella  &nbsp