Antibacterial compounds from the mushroom Ganoderma colossum from Nigeria.

Three colossolactones (colossolactone E, colossolactone B and 23-hydroxycolossolactone E) were isolated and characterized from an n-hexane:dichloromethane (2:7) extract of Ganoderma colossum using chromatographic techniques. The antimicrobial activity of the three compounds was then tested against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The activity was evaluated by the thin-layer chromatography agar overlay method. The results showed that colossolactone E and 23-hydroxycolossolactone E were active against Bacillus subtilis and Pseudomonas syringae. Colossolactone B was not active against the bacteria. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic methods. Potency of the compounds against bacteria tested supports the use of this mushroom in therapeutic medicine.

Prosthetic management of soft palate cleft--a case report.

The treatment of cleft in the soft palate can be achieved essentially by surgical reconstruction or prosthetic obturation. The goals of prosthetic intervention are to prevent food and liquid leakage into the nose and to improve speech intelligibility by ensuring functional velopharyngeal port closure. In this report, the prosthetic management of a 5-year-old child with soft palatal cleft is presented. The impression of the cleft was taken with tissue conditioner, Visco -gel, TM (De Trey, Amalgamated Dental London) and the pharyngeal obturator (speech bulb) was made in clear acrylic resin. Patient tolerated the appliance well and was referred to speech therapist for speech articulation.

Facial injuries caused by animals in northern Nigeria.

We did a retrospective survey of 34 patients who sustained facial injuries after animal associated incidents and presented to three Nigerian teaching hospitals. There were 27 male (79%) and 7 female patients, whose ages ranged from 6 to 40 years. Sixteen (47%) were less than 15 years. Cows (n=14), camels (n=9), and donkeys (n=6) were the most commonly involved. Three dog bites were seen. Knocks from cows' horns (n=9) were the predominant mechanism of injury, followed by falls (n=8) and kicks (n=7). There were many facial lacerations and fractures, and the cheek (n=14), forehead (n=13), and chin (n=10) were the most common sites of soft tissue injury. All injuries were considered to be contaminated irrespective of the duration of the injury. Treatment consisted of thorough debridement and irrigation, primary closure where feasible, and secondary reconstruction in others. All patients were given prophylactic broad-spectrum antibiotics. Overall, outcome was satisfactory except for a few cases of scar formation, facial nerve palsy, and partial laryngeal stenosis. Associated injuries were recorded in nine cases (27%), with rupture of the globe in three patients (9%). One patient died of associated abdominal injuries after being trampled by a herd of cattle. There is a need for adequate protective measures to forstall animal-related incidents that could result in severe facial and other injuries.

Oral cancer awareness and prevalence of risk behaviours among dental patients in South-western Nigeria.

The present study, based in a tertiary hospital in South western Nigeria, assessed cancer awareness among patients seeking dental treatment. A specially designed questionnaire was used to collect information on the knowledge, beliefs and habits of those attending the dental hospital within a designated period of the year. Almost 61% of the respondents had post-secondary education. The level of oral cancer awareness was remarkably high (72%), but this was low compared to awareness about occurrence of cancer in other parts of the body (89.9%). Awareness was found to be closely associated with educational status. The study also revealed that 50% had previous information on oral cancers from mass media as against 20.1% who were informed through health care professionals. Almost half of the study sample recalled episodes of previous oral ulceration and of these, greater than 50% indulged in either self medication (38.1%) or no medication at all (18.4%). The prevalence of alcohol consumption and smoking habits among the respondents was low being, 16.3% and 4.2% respectively. The lack of association, in this study, between oral cancer incidence and the known risk behaviours, is an obvious indication for investigation into other predisposing factors such as nutrients, genetic predisposition and the role of chronic infections. Perhaps one or more of these might be more relevant in this environment.

Antimicrobial activity of some Ganoderma species from Nigeria.

The crude n-hexane:diethyl ether, chloroform:acetone and methanol extracts of four species of Ganoderma (Ganoderma colossum (Fr.) C. F. Baker, G. resinaceum Boud., G. lucidum (cf.) (Curtis) P. Karst. and G. boninense (cf.) Pat.), from Nigeria, were tested for antimicrobial activity. The three solvent extracts of all the species of Ganoderma were active against Pseudomonas syringae and Bacillus subtilis, whereas none of the extracts were active against Cladosporium herbarum. Preliminary thin layer chromatography chemical tests on these extracts of Ganoderma showed that they contained compounds that stained blue-violet and blue or green when sprayed with anisaldehyde-sulphuric acid or Dragendorff, respectively. The profile of compounds in the extracts showed some variation among the four species.