Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the open reading frame (ORF) of prion protein gene (PRNP) in Nigerian livestock species.

BACKGROUND: Prion diseases, also known as transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) remain one of the deleterious disorders, which have affected several animal species. Polymorphism of the prion protein (PRNP) gene majorly determines the susceptibility of animals to TSEs. However, only limited studies have examined the variation in PRNP gene in different Nigerian livestock species. Thus, this study aimed to identify the polymorphism of PRNP gene in Nigerian livestock species (including camel, dog, horse, goat, and sheep). We sequenced the open reading frame (ORF) of 65 camels, 31 village dogs and 12 horses from Nigeria and compared with PRNP sequences of 886 individuals retrieved from public databases. RESULTS: All the 994 individuals were assigned into 162 haplotypes. The sheep had the highest number of haplotypes (n = 54), and the camel had the lowest (n = 7). Phylogenetic tree further confirmed clustering of Nigerian individuals into their various species. We detected five non-synonymous SNPs of PRNP comprising of G9A, G10A, C11G, G12C, and T669C shared by all Nigerian livestock species and were in Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium (HWE). The amino acid changes in these five non-synonymous SNP were all "benign" via Polyphen-2 program. Three SNPs G34C, T699C, and C738G occurred only in Nigerian dogs while C16G, G502A, G503A, and C681A in Nigerian horse. In addition, C50T was detected only in goats and sheep. CONCLUSION: Our study serves as the first to simultaneously investigate the polymorphism of PRNP gene in Nigerian livestock species and provides relevant information that could be adopted in programs targeted at breeding for prion diseases resistance.

Presence of Burkholderia pseudomallei in Soil, Nigeria, 2019.

Melioidosis, caused by the soil-dwelling bacterium Burkholderia pseudomallei, is predicted to be endemic in Nigeria but is only occasionally reported. This report documents the systematic identification of the presence of B. pseudomallei and B. thailandensis in the soil across multiple states in Nigeria.

Scrapie-associated polymorphisms of the prion protein gene (PRNP) in Nigerian native goats.

Scrapie is a fatal prion protein disease stiffly associated with single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) of the prion protein gene (PRNP). The prevalence of this deadly disease has been reported in small ruminants, including goats. The Nigerian goats are hardy, trypano-tolerant, and contribute to the protein intake of the increasing population. Although scrapie has been reported in Nigerian goats, there is no study on the polymorphism of the PRNP gene. Herein, we evaluated the genetic and allele distributions of PRNP polymorphism in 132 Nigerian goats and compared them with publicly available studies on scrapie-affected goats. We utilized Polyphen-2, PROVEAN and AMYCO programs to examine structural variations produced by the non-synonymous SNPs. Our study revealed 29 SNPs in Nigerian goats, of which 14 were non-synonymous, and 23 were novel. There were significant differences (P < 0.001) in the allele frequencies of PRNP codons 139, 146, 154 and 193 in Nigerian goats compared with scrapie-affected goats, except for Northern Italian goats at codon 154. Based on the prediction by Polyphen-2, R139S and N146S were 'benign', R154H was 'probably damaging', and T193I was 'possibly damaging'. In contrast, PROVEAN predicted 'neutral' for all non-synonymous SNPs, while AMYCO showed a similar amyloid propensity of PRNP for resistant haplotype and two haplotypes of Nigerian goats. Our study is the first to investigate the polymorphism of scrapie-related genes in Nigerian goats.

Polymorphism of prion protein gene (PRNP) in Nigerian sheep.

Polymorphism of the prion protein gene (PRNP) gene determines an animal's susceptibility to scrapie. Three polymorphisms at codons 136, 154, and 171 have been linked to classical scrapie susceptibility, although many variants of PRNP have been reported. However, no study has investigated scrapie susceptibility in Nigerian sheep from the drier agro-climate zones. In this study, we aimed to identify PRNP polymorphism in nucleotide sequences of 126 Nigerian sheep by comparing them with public available studies on scrapie-affected sheep. Further, we deployed Polyphen-2, PROVEAN, and AMYCO analyses to determine the structure changes produced by the non-synonymous SNPs. Nineteen (19) SNPs were found in Nigerian sheep with 14 being non-synonymous. Interestingly, one novel SNP (T718C) was identified. There was a significant difference (P < 0.05) in the allele frequencies of PRNP codon 154 between sheep in Italy and Nigeria. Based on the prediction by Polyphen-2, R154H was probably damaging while H171Q was benign. Contrarily, all SNPs were neutral via PROVEAN analysis while two haplotypes (HYKK and HDKK) had similar amyloid propensity of PRNP with resistance haplotype in Nigerian sheep. Our study provides valuable information that could be possibly adopted in programs targeted at breeding for scrapie resistance in sheep from tropical regions.

Evaluation of prothrombin time and activated partial thromboplastin time in hypertensive patients attending a tertiary hospital in calabar, Nigeria.

Introduction. Several biomedical findings have established the effects of hypertension on haemostasis and roles of blood coagulation products in the clinical course of hypertension. Methods. This cross-sectional study aimed at determining effects of hypertension on prothrombin time (PT) and activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) in hypertensive patients in comparison with normotensive subjects attending a tertiary hospital in Calabar. Forty-two (42) hypertensive patients and thirty-nine (39) normotensive control subjects were investigated for PT and APTT using Quick one-stage methods. Results. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) correlated positively with APTT (r = 0.3072, r = 0.4988; P < 0.05) in hypertensive patients. DBP, SBP, PT, and APTT were significantly higher in hypertensive patients when compared to normotensive subjects (P < 0.05). DBP correlated negatively with duration of illness (r = -0.3097; P < 0.05) in hypertensive patients and positively with age of normotensive subjects (r = 0.3523; P < 0.05). Conclusion. The results obtained indicated that measurements of PT and APTT may serve as indices for evaluating hemostatic abnormalities in hypertensive patients and guide for antihypertensive therapy. However, to have better understanding of hemostatic activities in hypertension, it is recommended to conduct D-dimer, platelet factors, and protein assays.

Dual Path Platform HIV 1/2 assay: evaluation of a novel rapid test using oral fluids for HIV screening at the National Hospital in Abuja, Nigeria.

HIV/AIDS disease is endemic in Nigeria and associated with stigmatization. Availability of a reliable rapid testing kit and procedure will increase uptake of services. The study aimed to determine the correlation between detection of HIV antibodies in blood to that in oral fluid and to determine the sensitivity and specificity of the Dual Path Platform (DPP) testing kit using oral fluid samples. HIV antibodies detected in oral mucosa transudate and whole capillary blood from HIV-positive, high-risk and low-risk participants were compared with results obtained with whole venous blood from the same participants tested with Determine and Western blot (for discordant cases). Oral fluid test has sensitivity and specificity of 100% relative to Determine rapid assay, while whole capillary blood test has sensitivity of 100% and specificity of 99.5%. DPP oral fluid test is a reliable point-of-care test and may be deployed in large-scale screening exercises.