RESUMO
Aim: Enumeration of bacterial counts is an important index of assessing the safety and quality of food products. This study aimed to investigate the occurrence of pathogenic bacteria in white shrimp samples obtained from major markets serving consumers in Calabar. Study Design: This study was a cross sectional study conducted between April 2017 and April 2018. Methodology: One hundred and twenty (120) samples of smoked dried Nematopalaemon hastatus (white shrimp) were analyzed for the presence of bacterial pathogens. Bacterial loads and identification of isolated organisms was determined using standard microbiological methods. Results: The results showed that 66.7% of the analyzed shrimps had aerobic bacterial counts exceeding the upper permissible limit (<1.0x106Cfu/g) and 56.7% had unsatisfactory (?20Cfu/g) Vibrio counts. The study revealed the presence of different bacteria genera namely Klebsiella, Salmonella, Pseudomonas, Serratia, Vibrio, Citrobacter, Proteus, Aeromonas, Streptococcus, Escherichia, Coagulase-negative Staphylococci (CoNS), Enterobacter and Bacillus. Predominant organism was Salmonella spp (26.7%), followed by Vibrio spp (21.7%) while the least isolated organisms were Bacillus spp and Coagulase-Negative Staphylococci (1.7%) each. The occurrence of high counts of pathogens in seafood may cause food poisoning; especially in individuals who consume this seafood raw, or lightly or insufficiently cooked. Conclusion: Hence, seafood should be processed and packaged under standard hygienic conditions to reduce the risk of microbial contamination. In addition, public health awareness campaign targeted at consumers and vendors should be optimized with frequent monitoring by regulatory agencies.
RESUMO
Background: Increasing population has led to increased water demand in major towns across the world. This study focused on Kitui Town in Kenya where about 80% of the inhabitants depend on Masinga-Kitui water supply system. There are limited alternative water sources including groundwater that are not reliable due high contamination with coliforms. The aim of this study was to determine bacteriological quality of Masinga-Kitui water and establish the potential sources of contaminants. Methods: A total of 90 water samples were collected for analysis whereby, 72 were from the households’ water storage facilities selected through stratified purposive sampling technique. Additional 18 samples were representatively collected from the main distribution network/including two community water points located in Kitui Town (Kalundu and Bondeni). Water quality analysis was performed at Kenya Water Institute water laboratory in Nairobi. Results: All the analyzed water samples were grossly contaminated with E. coli and total Coliforms which exceeded the acceptable WHO/KEBS limit of zero (0) CFU/100 ml of water sample. Majority of the Kitui Town residents associated poor water quality with poor sanitation, poor waste management, poorly maintained sewage and waste waters, contamination of water at the main distribution tank at Kwa-Ngindu, poor water storage at the household and unhygienic practices. About 34% of Kitui residents were at the risk of contracting waterborne diseases due to consumption of contaminated water. Conclusions: Regular monitoring of water quality, surveillance of Masinga-Kitui water infrastructure, and enhanced awareness programme should be adopted to encourage Kitui residents to treat drinking water.