Abstract/Overview Ticks harbor multiple pathogens, most of which can be transmitted to hu mans. The ensuing zoonoses display non-specific symptoms that make defin itive diagnosis difficult. We report here the development and evaluation of multiplex real time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) assays for eight tick-borne zoonoses (TBZ). The assays were organized in duo formats of 4-plex each. Format 1 was optimized for Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Coxiella burnetii, Borrelia burgdoferi and Ehr...
Abstract/Overview Ever since the first case report of HIV infection approximately twenty years ago, enormous human and material resources have been put in place to assist in the control and management of the scourge. With an increase in number of cases of immunosuppression came an increase in the number of microbial organisms, which were previously unknown. Some, which have existed albeit at an equilibrium with the human immune system and by extension the body’s defence mechanism have f...
Abstract/Overview Background: Due to the difficulty in implementing microscopy-based definitive diagnosis of malaria especially in resource-poor areas, rapid diagnostic test (RDT) kits as alternatives have been developed by different companies. Kits from different companies may differ in sensitivity and specificity. It is therefore imperative to conduct field evaluation of kits from different manufacturers before they are recommended for widespread use in diagnosis of malaria. The present...
Abstract/Overview ApolipoproteinL1 (APOL1) protects humans and some primates against several African trypanosomes. APOL1 genetic variants strongly associated with kidney disease in African Americans have additional trypanolytic activity against Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense, the cause of acute African sleeping sickness. We combined genetic, physiological, and biochemical studies to explore coevolution between the APOL1 gene and trypanosomes. We analyzed the APOL1 sequence in modern and a...
Abstract/Overview Increased human population has led to increased vulnerabilities to hunger and reduced sources of affordable food. Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) is a root vegetable with large, starchy, tuberous roots, consumed worldwide. It is a potential food security crop, with high nutritional and economic value. Production of sweet potatoes in Kenya is low due to disease constraints such as sweet potato leaf spot (SPLS). Fungal SPLS results in reduced tuber yield, since the patho...
Abstract/Overview Background: Metagenomics approaches are increasingly being utilized as “dipstick” for microbial carriage. In this study, 16S rRNA metagenomics was used to probe for microbial community that resides in the ticks, those they pick from the environment, wildlife and livestock and to identify potential tick borne zoonoses. Methods: Tick DNA from 463 tick pools collected from domestic animals between 2007 and 2008 were amplified with primers that target the 16S rRNA V3-V4 ...
Abstract: Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARB) have been globally considered emerging environmental contaminants that pose a serious concern to human health and the ecosystem. The ubiquitous nature of ARB and ARGs among pathogens from wastewater effluents, indicate that wastewater treatment facilities are major reservoirs for antibiotic resistance determinants, thus contributing to the widespread dissemination of antibiotic resistance. The primary object...
Abstract: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is regarded as a global health threat, characterized by rising resistant bacteria and rapid development of resistance genes to existing antibiotics used in clinical and veterinary settings. AMR has negative impacts and affects human, animal, and the environment. In Botswana, Africa, AMR is not well understood, particularly in rural settings with poor sanitation. The misuse and overuse of commonly used antibiotics like ß-lactam antibiotics, combi...
Abstract: Aerobic moderately thermophilic and thermophilic methane-oxidizing bacteria make a substantial contribution in the control of global warming through biological reduction of methane emissions and have a unique capability of utilizing methane as their sole carbon and energy source. Here, we report a novel moderately thermophilic Methylococcus-like Type Ib methanotroph recovered from an alkaline thermal spring (55.4 °C and pH 8.82) in the Ethiopian Rift Valley. The isolate, designate...
Abstract: Gaet’ale (GAL) and Mud’ara (MUP) are two hypersaline ponds located in the Danakil Depression recharged by underground water from the surrounding highlands. These two ponds have different pH, salinity, and show variation in the concentration of many ionic components. Metagenomic analysis concludes that GAL is dominated by bacteria as in the case of the other hypersaline and acidic ponds in the Danakil Depression. However, Archaea dominated the ponds of MUP. In the current study,...
Abstract: Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes are not known to harbor endosymbiotic bacteria. Here we show, using nucleic acid-based methods, that 16S rRNA gene sequences specific to a recently described mosquito midgut bacterium, Thorsellia anophelis, is predominant in the midgut of adult An. gambiae s.l. mosquitoes captured in residences in central Kenya, and also occurs in the aquatic rice paddy environment nearby. PCR consistently detected T. anophelis in the surface microlayer of rice paddies,...
Abstract: Concentrations and distribution of cadmium, chromium, copper, iron, lead, manganese and zinc in mosquito larval habitats in urban Kisumu and Malindi, Kenya and their effect on the presence of Anopheles gambiae, Aedes aegypti, Culex quinquefasciatus and Anopheles funestus larvae were investigated. Manganese and iron were the most prevalent heavy metals in water of larval habitats in urban Kisumu and Malindi, respectively. Iron was the most prevalent heavy metal in bottom sediments i...
The wrong and excessive use of antibiotics in the poultry industry poses a threat to public health due to the release of antibiotic-resistant bacteria into the environment and its impact on consumers of poultry products. This research aimed to investigate the occurrence and patterns of antibiotic resistance found in Klebsiella species isolated from poultry faeces in Owo metropolis. Fecal samples were collected from healthy broilers in three privately-owned poultry farms in Owo, using sterile ...
Background and Objectives: Abuse and indiscriminate use of antibiotics, prolong hospital admission, travel history, organ transplants, immunocompromised conditions and age are parts of the factors that contribute to development of antibiotic resistance and intestinal carriage of Extended Spectrum Beta-Lactamases (ESBL) Enterobacteriaceae. These bacteria affect the course and outcome of an infection and continue to pose a challenge to infection management worldwide. This study was carried out ...
Abstract The current approach of morbidity control of schistosomiasis, a helminth disease of poverty with considerable public health and socioeconomic impact, is based on preventive chemotherapy with praziquantel. There is a pressing need for new drugs against this disease whose control entirely depends on this single drug that has been widely used over the past 40 years. We argue that a broader anthelminthic approach supplementing praziquantel with new antischistosomals targeting different p...