Malaria during pregnancy is a complex issue when considering the public health and an important contributor to maternal and infant morbidity and mortality in malaria-endemic countries. Malaria can be regarded as one of the leading cause of maternal deaths with regards to the sub-Saharan Africa. A minimum of 6 million women around the world stand the risk of being infected with malaria during pregnancy. Maternal deaths as a result of malaria occur at an approximate figure of 10, 000 per year while a minimum of 200, 00 babies also die on annual basis. Malaria remains a life threatening disease to the mother and her unborn child. The impact of the disease will depend on the strength of the mother, her immune system and the severity of the malaria. The people who are most at risk from malaria are women, who are experiencing their first pregnancies, and who are living in areas where stable malaria infections already exist. The protozoan parasites belong to the genus Plasmodium. Some relevant spp are P. falciparum, P. vivax, P. malariae, P. ovale, and extremely rarely P. knowlesi which causes malaria in macaques but can also infect humans. They are transmitted by the bite of a sporozoite-bearing female anopheline mosquito. After a period of pre-erythrocytic development in the liver, the blood stage infection, which causes the disease, begins. Parasitic invasion of the erythrocyte consumes haemoglobin and alters the red cell membrane. Malaria contributes to complications that can occur during pregnancy and these complications include anaemia, constant abortion, fetal deaths and prematurity. The first and second pregnancies experience the worst of this case. The World Health Organization with governmental support over the years have put in great effort in tackling the menace of malaria in pregnancy. The major objective of the collaborative effort is the public sensitization on the use of insecticide treatedmosquito nets (ITN), Intermittent preventive malaria treatment (IPT) and adequately treating acute mamalia infections that occurs during pregnancy, while the combination of Sulfadoxine-Pyrimethamine as regarding the IPT has proven to be of a great importancein the prevention of chronic malaria cases that can occur during pregnancy. The introduction of the Artemisinin-Combination Therapy (ACT) by the World Health Organization serving as a first-line treatment less complicated cases of malaria occurring during pregnancy has also provent to be of high benefit. Recently, the administration of soluble of chondrointin sulphate A (CSA) to pregnant women has proven to drastically reduce parasite adhesion. The administration of chondroitinase can effectively reduce parasite by 90%, thereby reducing chances of the foetus being exposed to the parasite. It is very important to make confirmations before proceeding to the treatment of malaria and enforcing therapy completions should be encouraged.
This study was carried out to determine the prevalence of intestinal protist infection in five selected primary schools in Maiyama Local Government Area of Kebbi State, Nigeria. Stool samples from 200 pupils were collected and examined using formol-ether concentration technique for protist cysts, out of which 49 (24.5%) were infected with different species of intestinal parasitic protists. Entamoeba histolytica was the most common intestinal parasitic protist encountered in the study area. With respect to gender, the prevalence of the infection was higher in males (29.0%) than their female counterpart (20.0%). The prevalence of the infection changed with age of the pupils (X2= 5.298, P = .02). The result of this study also shows significant association between the prevalence of the infection and other risk factors such as source of drinking water (X2= 6.59, P = .04), toilet facilities (X2= 25.388 and P <.0001) and regular hands washing (X2=11.409, P= .0007). It was concluded that poverty, ignorance, and poor personal and environmental hygiene were factors found to be associated with the high prevalence rates recorded in this study area. Health education, personal and environmental hygiene, regular mass treatment program and improvement in the standard of living of the people are recommended.
Schistosomiasis affects about 204.6 million people in 78 countries of the world, out of which 58 countries are endemic with moderate to high intensity. Different diagnostic tools (Rapid Diagnostic Test kit) have been used in the diagnosis of Schistosoma haematobium infection hence, there is the need to ascertain the most sensitive RDT for proper screening of Schistosoma haematobium. This Study was undertaken to comparatively examine whether there is an association between urine colour observation and intensity of Schistosoma haematobium infection using polycarbonate membrane filtration method and sedimentation methods. A total of 202 (118 males and 84 females).urine samples were examined from some selected primary schools in Makurdi. Of these, 52 (25.74%) tested positive of Schistosoma haematobium using filtration technique. The findings of this research demonstrated that urine colour observation was significantly associated with infection intensity (X2 = 0.721, p<.01). Three (3) Out of 67 urine sample screened having brown colour, 19(32.8%) tested positive for Schistosoma haematobium ova with for light, mild and heavy infection (14, 5 and 3 respectively). The study also revealed a significant association between membrane filtration and sedimentation techniques (r= 0.964). However, the findings of this research revealed that membrane filtration technique is more sensitive RDT than conventional sedimentation technique.
Root-knot nematodes (Meloidogyne spp.) are considered among the most deteriorating soilborne parasites that can significantly affect many plants. These nematodes are developing increased resistance against nematicides used currently to control them, therefore, continued use of these nematicides poses a challenge, thereby giving rise to the need for newer alternatives. This paper evaluated the In vitro nematicidal efficiency of copper nanoparticles (CuNPs) against root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita. In this study, CuNPs were prepared according to the chemical reduction method; physicochemical characterization of CuNPs was done using UV-Vis spectroscopy, Dynamic Light Scattering and Transmission Electron Microscopy. When second stage juveniles (J2) of M. incognita were incubated in soil saturated with CuNPs (spherical shape; 100 nm diameter) for 3 days, it was found that J2 mortality is directly proportional to the concentration of CuNPs and 0.2 g/L was sufficient to cause 100% mortality. Statistical analysis showed that all mortalities caused by treatment with CuNPs at different concentrations were statistically significant compared with non-treated control. Conclusively, this paper may provide a potential alternative nematicide against root-knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita. Further In vivo and toxicological research on CuNPs should be conducted in order to assess the possible applicability of such nanoparticles as a nematicide.
Avian coccidiosis is a parasitic disease which causes a considerable economic loss in poultry. The emergence of anticoccidial drug resistance enhances the need for the development of the novel approach and alternative controls strategies such as plants extracts. Therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the anticoccidial efficacy of ethanolic extracts of Ageratum conyzoides and Vernonia amygdalina on broiler chickens. Ninety (90) Cobb 500 broiler chickens were divided into nine groups of 10 chickens each. Each chicken in 8 groups (A-H) was orally infected with approximately 3000 sporulated oocysts of Eimeria tenella at day 28 of age while one group (group I) served as uninfected control. After the establishment of the disease at day 7 post-infection, chicks of groups A to F were treated with the graded concentrations (1.5, 3 and 6 g/ L) of ethanolic extracts of both plants. Group G was treated with the conventional drug (Anticox) and group H served as infected non treated control. All treatments were mixed with drinking water and administered for five consecutive days. The activity was evaluated by means of faecal oocyst count reduction, host growth and haematological parameters. The results showed that ethanolic extracts of both plants demonstrated a gradual inhibitory effect on the shedding of oocysts in a concentration-dependent manner. Among the treated groups, the highest inhibitory effect was recorded in the extract concentration of 6 g/L (oocyst count reduction rate of 100% which was comparable to the group receiving conventional drug (P>0.05). There were no significant differences in the food intake between experimental groups (P>0.05). The mean body weight of treated groups was significantly (P<0.05) higher than that of the untreated group. All treated groups showed better feed conversion ratio (FCR) as compared to infected non-treated group (P<0.05). The mean of RBC count, Hb rate and PCV after treatment with the various concentrations of ethanolic extracts of both plants was significantly (P<0.05) higher than those of the untreated group. These results demonstrated that both plants have similar activity and could, therefore, find application in anticoccidial therapy.
