Benson Otarigho

Analysis of antibiotics resistant genes in different strains of Staphylococcus aureus

The control of Staphylococcus aureus infection is being hampered by methicillin and other resistant strains. The identification of the unique antibiotic resistant genes from the genomes of various strains of S. aureus is of interest. We analyzed 11 S. aureus genomes sequences for Antibiotics Resistance Genes (ARGs) using CARD 2017 platform. We identified 32 ARGs across 11 S. aureus strains. Tet(38), norB, lmrB, mepA and mepR were present across genomes except for S. aureus strain UTSW MRSA 55. The mepA and mepR were found across 11 different genomes. However, FosB3, vgaALC, mphC and SAT-4 were found in UTSW MRSA 55, S.a. strain ISU935 and S.a. strain FDAARGOS_159. The prevalent mode of mechanism of antibiotics resistant was efflux pump complex or subunit conferring antibiotic resistance as well as protein(s). Analysis of norB, ImrB, norA, ImrB, tet (38), sav1866 and mecA have 12 to 14 TMHs. The results help in the understanding of Staphylococcus aureus pathogenesis in the context of antibiotic resistance.

Survival potential, fecundity and fertility of Biomphalaria pfeifferi (Krauss, 1848) during acclimatization in the laboratory

Survival potential, fecundity and fertility of Biomphalaria pfeifferi were investigated during the process of acclimatization in the laboratory. Thirty adult snails (average size 5 × 13 mm) were used in Experiment A (control; laboratory-bred snails) and B (acclimatizing snails from the wild). Both experiments aimed at monitoring survival and reproductive potential of snails were performed at room temperature (21–29 °C) for five weeks. The mean pH, conductivity, total dissolved solid, dissolved oxygen, water and room temperature were 7.77, 228 ps/cm, 121, 0.5 mg/L, 25.0 and 29.0 °C, respectively. The mean and standard deviation of eggs per egg-mass was 19.86 ± 0.46 and 14.88 ± 5.01, the number of eggs per snail was 53.26 ± 10.34 and 38.51 ± 10.03, the amount of egg-mass per snail was 2.68 ± 0.04 and 2.48 ± 1.09 in Experiments A and B, respectively. Results of the experiment indicate a significant difference (p < 0.05) between fecundity, fertility and survival of B. pfeifferi in Experiments A and B. Experim...

Identification and characterization of sodium and chloride-dependent gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) transporters from eukaryotic pathogens as a potential drug target

We explored 285 completed eukaryotic pathogen genomes for GABA transporter proteins as effective chemotherapy targets. We identified 8 GABA proteins that spread across 4 phyla with 5 different pathogen species; Eimeria mitis Houghton, Neospora caninum Liverpool, S. mansoni, S. haematobium and Trichinella spiralis. Sub-cellular localization prediction revealed that these proteins are integral membrane and are mostly insoluble. It is found that about 81% of these proteins are non-crystallizable and 15% are crystallizable. Transmembrane helices predictions show that the GABA transporters have 10, 11, 12 and 14 TMHs with 15, 23, 31 and 11%, respectively. It is further observed that most of these GABA transporters are from several parasites`genomes.

Diversity, distribution and abundance of freshwater snails in Eleyele dam, Ibadan, south-west Nigeria

AbstractFreshwater molluscs help in the assessment of the ecological status of water bodies and also play significant roles in the public and veterinary health. Hence, scientific studies pertaining to their diversity, distribution and abundance become essential. In Eleyele dam, freshwater snails were sampled and physicochemical parameters of the water body were analysed fortnightly using standard methods from May to October 2013. Plant species distribution and abundance, bottom sediment types were also identified. A total of 2230 freshwater snails were collected. The snail species, total number and relative abundance were: Melanoides tuberculata 450 (20.18%), Potadoma liberiensis 301 (13.49%), Biomphalaria pfeifferi 37 (1.66%), Indoplanorbis exutus 456 (20.45%), Bulinus globosus 18 (0.81%), Gabbiella africana 53 (2.38%), Lymnaea natalensis 386 (17.31%), and Physa marmorata 529 (23.72%). 4 out of these 8 species are of medical importance. The study revealed that the density of freshwater snails varied mont...

Efficacy of aqueous and ethanolic extracts of leaves of Chromolaena odorata as molluscicide against different developmental stages of Biomphalaria pfeifferi

The molluscicidal activities of aqueous and ethanolic extracts of leaves of Chromolaena odorata were investigated on adult, one week old juveniles and 3 to 4 days old egg-masses of Biomphalaria pfeifferi . Ten adults each were exposed to a serial dilution of 40, 80, 160, 240, 320, 400, and 480 ppm distilled water extracts and 20, 40, 80, 160, 240 and 320 ppm ethanolic extracts of leaves of C. odorata. Twenty juveniles of uniform size each were exposed to 8, 20, 28, 40, 80, 120, and 160 ppm of aqueous and ethanolic extracts of the same plant. The adults and juveniles were exposed to the extracts for 24 h. Thirty eggs each were exposed to 8, 20, 28, 40, 60, 80, and 100 ppm of aqueous and ethanolic extracts for a period of 48 h. The experiments were repeated twice. LC 50 obtained with aqueous extract against eggs, juveniles and adults were 65.75, 75.59 and 217.57 ppm, respectively while these values were 44.03, 44.68 and 88.04 ppm, respectively for ethanolic extract. The LC 90 obtained with aqueous extract against eggs, juveniles and adults were 139.54, 249.54 and 288.96 ppm, respectively. These values were 119.03, 123.50 and 245.61 ppm, respectively for ethanolic extract. The plant extracts caused significant (P<0.05) mortality rates in the different stages of B. pfeifferi. C. odorata seem to be a promising plant molluscicide candidate and deserve further studies in order to identify and characterize its molluscicidal components. Keywords : Schistosomiasis, Chromolaena odorata, Biomphalaria pfeifferi , molluscicidal activities, LC 50 , LC 90 Vol. 12(4), pp. 438-444