ABSTRACT An outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF), characterized by a mortality of 50 to 100% in various herds, was diagnosed among free-ranging domesticated pigs in Delta State, Nigeria, in August 1998. The etiological confirmation of ASF was made by virus isolation, PCR and sequencing of a 280 base pair fragment of the major capsid protein (VP72) gene. Experimental infection of pigs with infected blood resulted in pyrexia, which peaked two to four days postinfection, followed by death in ...
Abstract African animal trypanosomosis is a complex infectious disease responsible for production losses in livestock herds. The severity of the disease has been associated with different species and strains of trypanosomes which have not been characterized molecularly in Nigeria. Many of the previous studies conducted in Nigeria were based on microscopy and serology. This study accessed the prevalence of trypanosomes in the forest (Ogun State) and Savannah (Kaduna State) zones, being major e...
Abstract Forty-five juvenile tilapia and 30 weanling albino rats exposed to water containing 50, 100 and 150ppm of aqueous extract of Aloe vera leaves for 96 hours and 28 days, respectively were used for this study. Fifteen tilapia and 10 rats exposed to clean water (0 ppm A. vera) served as controls. Clinical signs, mortality, gross and histologic organ pathology in the tilapia; weekly haematology, plasma biochemical parameters and organ pathology were monitored in the rats. Fish cultured in...
ABSTRACT Serological and bacteriological studies were carried out to determine the prevalence of brucellosis among cattle in Benue State, Nigeria; and to determine the level of contamination of fresh bulk herd and fermented milk sold to the public for consumption; as well as detect and characterize the causative agent of bovine brucellosis in the area; and to evaluate a new diagnostic test for brucellosis, the Brucella Lateral Flow Assay (the rapid field test). Serum samples obtained from ca...
ABSTRACT Infectious bursal disease (IBD) causes high morbidity and high mortality among 3 – 6 weeks old chicks. Its occurrence even in vaccinated flocks is a global concern. Passive haemagglutination (PHA) test, a simple and rapid test has been adopted for IBD antibodies but its use for viral titres has not been reported. To modify the test for assessment of viral titres, serial dilutions of a reference IBDV sample were used to sensitize human group O+ red blood cells (RBC) before reacting...
Abstract This study evaluated the anti-diabetic and antioxidant potential of methanolic extract of Helianthus annuus L. leaves in alloxan-induced hyperglycemic rats. Fresh leaves of the plant were collected from their local habitat in the University of Nigeria, Nsukka environment. The extract was prepared by cold maceration using 80 % methanol at environmental temperature with intermittent sharing for 48 h to obtain a yield of 10.04 % w/w dry Helianthus annuus extract (HAE). The extract was t...
ABSTRACT Effect of Aluminium – Magnesium Silicate (AMS) on Avian Influenza Virus was tested in vitro by incubating an isolate of a highly pathogenic Avian Influenza Virus (AIV) involved in an outbreak of the disease in Nigeria, with a synthetic AMS. The isolate was a confirmed Influenza virus type A, subtype H5N1. Equal amount of the Virus sample and of the AMS, on volume to weight (v/w) basis, were incubated at room temperature for one hour and then centrifuged at 3000 revolutions per m...
ABSTRACT This study investigated the effects of a combination of arthemether and diminazene aceturate therapy on experimental Trypanosoma brucei infection in albino rats. Thirty five male albino rats were used for the study. They were randomly assigned to seven groups of five rats each, after acclimatization. The groupings and their specific treatments were as follows: Group A- infected and treated with diminazene aceturate (DA) at the dose of 7.0 mg/kg body weight (bw) once on day 7 post-in...
ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of planes of nutrition on body weight, haematology and immune responses in broiler chickens vaccinated with NDV I-2 and Lasota vaccines. Two hundred (200) day old broiler chicks of Anak 2000 strain were used for the study. They were randomly assigned into nine groups of 20 birds each. Three feed types (A, B, C) were compounded for the study. Proximate analyses of the feeds were carried out. The groupings are A1 (feed A + ...
Abstract The effects of varied oral doses of trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole therapy on the thyroid glands, haematology, serum chemistry and sperm count were evaluated in Nigerian local dogs. Twenty adult male dogs weighing between 4.5-10 kg were used for the study. The dogs were housed in metal cages in the Animal house of Department of Veterinary Parasitology and Entomology, University of Nigeria, Nsukka. The dogs were acclimatized for three weeks during which period they were vaccinated agai...
ABSTRACT Fifteen female grasscutters, obtained from David Mark Farms, Otukpo, Benue State, Nigeria, were used for the study. They were randomly assigned to 3 groups of 5 each according to their ages; 1-3 months, 4-6 months and 7-9 months. They were acclimatized for 14 days. The live weights of the grasscutters were obtained. They were then euthanized with gaseous chloroform in an air-tight container. The female reproductive system (ovaries, uterine tubes, uterine horns, uterus duplex, cervi...
ABSTRACT This study was aimed at determining the prevalence of and awareness of health risks associated with antimicrobial residues (AMRs) in edible tissues of cattle and pigs slaughtered for human consumption in Enugu State. In the first phase, the awareness of public health problems associated with consumption of animal tissues containing AMRs and compliance to specified withdrawal period (WP) by livestock farmers and veterinary practitioners were determined. This was carried out using a ...
Abstract The objectives of this study were to evaluate the factors limiting turkey production in Enugu State, Nigeria, determine the seroprevalence of Newcastle disease (ND) virus infection in turkeys raised in Enugu State and compare the clinical signs and lesions of velogenic ND virus (NDV) in turkeys and chickens. The study consisted of a cross-sectional survey of turkey producers in the three senatorial zones of Enugu State and experimental infection of chickens and turkeys with a veloge...
Abstract The physiological, biochemical and anaesthetic effects of the drug combinations were studies in West African Dwarf goat. In protocol I, there was a significant (p < 0.05) increase in the HR of GP I goats at 10 mins post-induction (PI), which significantly (p < 0.05) decreased from 30 min PI. The HR significantly decreased (p < 0.05) at 20 min in GP IV goats, and at 10 min GP II goats, and returned to the pre-anaesthetic value at 40 min PI. However, HR decreased significantly (p < 0...
ABSTRACT Two protocols were used to investigate and compare the biocompatibility of the nonconventional suture material-Cotton Hair Thread (CHT) with conventional silk suture on experimentally induced wounds on rabbits. The results of the study in protocol I showed no significant difference(p > 0.05) in the means of, collagenization, vascularisation, reepithelialization, fibroblasts formation, polymorphonuclear leucocytes (PMNLs) and macrophage proliferation in groups A and B throughout the ...