High seroprevalence of viral hepatitis among animal handlers in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria.

Viral hepatitis is a deadly disease which can manifest as acute, chronic, hepatocellular carcinoma, and liver failure. Information about hepatitis is scarce among animal handlers. Due to Federal Government of Nigeria diversification programmes, many people are now involved in animal farming which can make them susceptible to viral hepatitis. This study aimed at determining the prevalence of Hepatitis B, C, and E viruses among animal handlers in Abeokuta, southwestern Nigerian. A total of 156 subjects were recruited for the study. Sociodemographic and risks factors data were fetched from subjects using interviewer-administered questionnaire. Blood samples were collected via venepuncture and tested for HCV, HBV, and HEV using ELISA technique. Results were analyzed using SPSS software version 21.0 and P value ≤ 0.05 was considered significant. The prevalence of HCV, HBV, and HEV were 46 (29.5%), 20 (12.8%), and 4 (2.6%) respectively while 6 (3.8%), 1 (0.6%), and 1 (0.6%) had co-infection of HBV-HCV, HBV-HEV, and HCV- HEV respectively. This study concludes that there is high prevalence of hepatitis C and B viruses among animal handlers in Abeokuta, Ogun state which is of significant public health problem, warranting further attention and research.

Serological evidence of HIV, Hepatitis B, C, and E viruses among liver disease patients attending tertiary hospitals in Osun State, Nigeria.

Hepatitis infection in HIV positive individuals with liver diseases causes high mortality worldwide. HIV worsens the pathological effect of hepatitis viruses and potentiates reactivation of latent hepatitis infections due to reduced immunity. This research therefore aimed to study the occurrence of HIV and hepatitis viruses among liver diseases patients (LVDP) attending tertiary hospitals in Osun State, southwestern Nigeria. A total of 121 LVDP blood samples collected were tested for HIV and Hepatitis B, C, and E using and enzyme linked Immunossorbent assay (ELISA). Data were analyzed using packages within SPSS and P ≤ 0.05 was considered significant. Prevalence of 32.2%, 0.8%, 10.7%, and 18.2% for HBsAg, Anti-HCV, HEV-IgM, and HIV were found respectively. Marital status showed a significant association with HEV-IgM infection (χ2 = 9.869, P = .020). The prevalence of HBsAg, HEV, and HIV among LVDP in Osun State is alarming and health education among the patients and general populace is hereby advocated. High HEV-IgM seroprevalence implies that HEV routine screening should be incorporated into blood screening. Since HEV is associated with unhygienic practice, people should be enlightened on how to improve their living conditions.

Clinicopathological Studies on Rats Exposed to Municipal Landfill Gaseous and Particulate Emissions

The study assessed the Clinicopathological changes of Wistar rats exposed to municipal landfill gaseous particulate emissions. Four groups of Wistar rats were exposed to the different sites of landfill emission with use of filters for filtering landfill gaseous emission while the control group was not exposed. Performance of the animals was evaluated weekly, blood and lung, liver, kidney and heart tissues were taken for haematological and histopatholgical examinations. At the end of six weeks exposure, the peak weight was recorded as 108.96±0.45 of Group B as compared to 126.352±0.88 of the Control Group, as well as the decrease in the body weight of Group A-D compared to the Control Group. There was leucocytosis, lymphocytosis and neutrophilia in the rats that were exposed to landfill emission. There were pulmonary, hepatic, and renal lesions while the heart was spared. Changes were observed on the use of filters for filtering landfill gaseous emission. The 3M 6001 CN Gas Mask Carnister Cartridge which filters 50% of landfill emission together with black polythene nylon restricting external air into the filtered cage was not sufficient to reduce the effect of landfill gaseous emission at the end of the exposure period. The screening with PM2.5 material which filters 100% of PM2.5 emission was only able to screen PM2.5 emission but could not screen other landfill gaseous emission. This indicates that landfill gaseous emission is capable of inducing respiratory problems and tissue damage on dumpsite workers if there is sufficient and continuous exposure to landfill gaseous emissions. To prevent the hazard that may arose from dumpsite activities; gas nose mask respirator is recommended for an individual who works as scavengers and landfill workers before entering the dumpsite environment..

Histological alterations in the internal organs of growing chicks from feeding raw jackbean or limabean seeds.

The effect of raw jackbean (Canavalia ensiformis) or limabean (Phaseolus lunatus) seeds at 0, 250 or 500 g/kg in broiler chick diets for 28 d on performance and cytopathological changes in internal organs was evaluated. Relative pancreas weight increased significantly (P < 0.05) and the lungs had severe atelectasis, thickening of the alveolar septa and bronchiolar epithelial hyperplasia. Slight hemorrhages were in the intestinal walls of growing chicks fed 250 g/kg or 500 g/kg of jackbean and limabean, respectively. The livers had marked congestion of the sinusoids and centrolobular veins, while the kidneys had distension of the capillary vessels with numerous thrombi. The structural alterations in the internal organs of chicks fed the plant seeds were attributed to allelochemicals in the seeds.

An outbreak of African Swine Fever in Nigeria: virus isolation and molecular characterization of the VP72 gene of a first isolate from West Africa.

The isolation of 98/ASF/NG, a strain of African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV) associated with a 1998 epizootic in Nigeria, is reported. This first isolate of the virus from West Africa was identified through a successful polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification and sequencing of a 280 base pair (bp) fragment of the Major Capsid Protein (VP72) gene. Further amplification and sequence analysis of a 1.9 kilobase pair (kbp) fragment encompassing the complete VP72 gene showed that the isolate has a 92.2%, 92.4%, and 97.2% homology with previously sequenced Ugandan, Dominican Republican and Spanish isolates respectively. Of the 50 nucleotide changes observed in this highly conserved gene, 45 were found to result in 40 amino acid changes clustered around the central region (position 426 to 516) of the VP 72 protein while changes at the remaining 5 positions were silent. These changes also led to the loss of two out of the seven potential N-glycosylation sites which are in this gene conserved among all isolates. The possible epizootiological implications of such mutations in a highly conserved gene of a DNA virus is discussed in relation to this outbreak.

Controlled trial of D-penicillamine to prevent retinopathy of prematurity.

204 infants with birthweights between 751 and 2000 g and 26-35 weeks gestational age (100 treated and 104 control subjects) were enrolled in a prospective controlled trial of the effectiveness of D-penicillamine (DPA) in the prevention of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). The two groups did not differ significantly in gestational age, birth weight, Apgar scores, the time of exposure to oxygen and in the incidence of PDA or in the number of exchange transfusions and RBTs. Of the treated infants 29, and of the control infants 34 died before the tenth week of life. These cases were not included in further analysis. Patients were subsequently examined and assessed by two ophthalmologists independently, who did not know which babies were receiving DPA. Six of the 70 surviving control infants and none of the 71 surviving treated infants had ROP stage II or graver. The results suggested that ROP may effectively be prevented with DPA in very low-birth-weight-infants, and that the drug has no serious adverse effects during the neonatal period.