Distribution of bacteria and fungi in the earthworm Libyodrillus violaceous (Annelida: Oligochaeta), a native earthworm from Nigeria

Earthworms are soil invertebrates that play a key role in recycling organic matter in soils.In Nigeria, earthworms include Libyodrillus violaceous. Aerobic and anaerobic bacterial counts, as well as fungal counts of viable microorganisms in soils and gut sections, were made on twenty L. violaceous collected from different sites on the campus of the University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Nigeria. The samples were collected between April and November, 2002. Numbers of microorganisms were higher in castings and gut sections than in uningested soil samples. The guts and their contents also had higher moisture and total nitrogen contents than the uningested soils. Bacteria and fungi isolated from the samples were identified by standard microbiological procedures on the bases of their morphological and biochemical characteristics. Isolated bacteria were identified as Staphylococcus, Bacillus spp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Streptococcus mutans, Clostridium, Spirocheata spp., Azotobacter spp., Micrococcus lylae, Acinetobacter spp., Halobacterium for bacteria. Yeast isolates were identified as Candida spp., Zygosaccharomyces spp., Pichia spp., and Saccharomyces spp while molds were identified as, Aspergillus spp., Pytium spp., Penicillium spp., Fusarium spp and Rhizopus spp. Of the five locations examined, the refuse dump area had the highest numbers of both aerobic and anaerobic organisms, followed by the arboretum while the cultivated land area recorded the lowest counts. The higher numbers of microorganisms observed in the gut sections and casts of the earthworms examined in this work reinforce the general concept that the gut and casts of earthworms show higher microbial diversity and activity than the surrounding soil.

Trace Metals and Vitamin Levels in Nigerian Patients with Sensory Ataxic Syndrome

The aetio-pathogenesis of sensory ataxic syndromes is not well understood. Several factors have been implicated ranging from infectious agents to various toxico-nutritional mechanisms. Vitamin deficiencies have been demonstrated in individuals with this disorder. In recent times; the deficiencies of essential trace elements have been implicated; especially zinc; copper; selenium and manganese; in the etiology of ataxic syndromes. We report the levels of essential trace metals and vitamins in the serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of twelve patients with features of sensory ataxia. The levels of the vitamins and the elements were determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The serum and CSF levels of copper; iron and zinc were significantly reduced when compared to controls; but the levels of magnesium were lower in controls than subjects. The levels of manganese were comparable in both groups. Our obsevation supports the possible role of deficiencies of essential trace metals; specifically copper; iron and zinc; and vitamins in the aetio-pathogenetic mechanism of sensory ataxic syndromes; probably due to defective prevention of oxidative damage to the neurones. The significance of the higher levels of magnesium in the patients is unclear and needs further investigation. Further studies with larger sample sizes are needed to confirm this observation

Pathological Changes Induced by Chrysobalanus Icaco Seeds

The study was to determine possible pathological changes induced by the consumption of C. icaco and possible health implication. Animal feed tests were carried out using varying amounts of the seed mixed with usual mice meals. The result revealed weight loss; and increase in total bilirubin; protein; albumin; globin; cholesterol level; alkaline phosphate and mean serum glutamic - oxaloacetate transaminase and serum glutamic - pyruvic transaminase activities. Possible health implications are discussed