A comparative assessment of the antimicrobial effects of garlic (Allium sativum) and antibiotics on diarrheagenic organisms.

Antimicrobial sensitivity tests were carried out on Escherichia coli, Shigella sp, Salmonella sp, and Proteus mirabilis using standard procedures. Significant differences (p < 0.01) were seen in the effect of the antimicrobial agents (garlic, ciprofloxacin and ampicillin), and in the sensitivities of the microbial species (p < 0.01) to the antimicrobial agents were observed. The gram-negative diarrheagenic pathogens from the stool samples were highly sensitive to garlic, while ciprofloxacin (CPX) was most effective against E. coli. The differences were inferred to result from genetic differences among the organisms and differences in the modes of action of the antibiotics. No isolates were resistant to garlic, making it a promising antimicrobial agent. It appears that antibiotics that interfere with DNA and RNA syntheses, such as garlic does, could constitute an effective partner in the synergic effect of garlic currently being investigated worldwide.

Incidence of enteric bacterial pathogens in water found at the bottom of commercial freezers in calabar, southeastern Nigeria.

Bacteriological analysis of water that accumulates at the bottom of freezers in restaurants when the power was cut in Calabar, southeastern Nigeria, was carried out using standard procedures. Mean heterotrophic bacterial counts and Escherichia coli counts ranged from 3.1 +/- 0.02 to 7.1 +/- 0.30 x 10(4) cfu/ml and 0.2 +/- 0.10 to 0.6 +/- 0.50 x 10(4) cfu/ml, respectively, indicating heavy bacterial contamination whose source was mostly fecal. There was no significant difference (p > 0.05, 0.01) in bacterial counts between freezers. Some biochemically identified enteric bacterial pathogens were Salmonella typhi, Shigella sp, enteropathogenic E. coli, Yersinia sp, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Vibrio cholerae O1 and Vibrio parahaemolyticus. This reveals that the hygienic quality of the food items stored in the freezers and the hygienic status of the restaurants are in doubt. Infection could be going on unnoticed and thus endemicity maintained in the area. The pathogens showed alarming antibiotic resistance. The water in the freezers was a "soup" in which different species of the enteric pathogens were close to each other and could transfer drug resistance among themselves. Public health education of restaurant operators in southeastern Nigeria is recommended.

Microbiological and biochemical assessment of the surface area of breast nipples and breast milk of lactating women in Calabar, southeastern Nigeria.

Microbiological and biochemical analyses of 59 breast nipple swab samples and 15 manually expressed breast milk samples of lactating mothers aged 15 to 40 years, was carried out using standard procedures. The incidence of bacterial species in swab samples was Staphylococus aureus (63.8%), Streptococcus sp (25.5%), Escherichia coli (6.4%) and Klebsiella sp (4.26%), indicating the poor sanitary status of the lactating mothers. S. aureus was recovered from only 1 (6.7%) of the milk samples, indicating that breast milk is relatively sterile. The nutritional values for the breast milk were 22.5 mg/ml (protein), 0.3 mg/ml (calcium), 3.5 mg/ml (sugar) and 300 microg/ml (vitamin A) in age group 15-20 years, and 16.4 mg/ml (protein), 0.16 mg/ml (calcium), 1.8 mg/ml (sugar) and 100 microg/ml (vitamin A) in the age group 36-40 years. In conclusion, the nutritive and antimicrobial properties of breast milk decrease with increasing age of lactating mothers. The need for public health enlightenment of lactating mothers regarding hygiene, and the provision of oral vitamin A supplement to infants, is discussed.