ABSTRACT
Serious clinical concern has been raised globally over the continual evolution of pathogenic microorganisms that are resistant to several chemotherapeutic agents, especially the beta-lactam antibiotics. This study investigated ESBL-production in Escherichia coli isolated from door handles in Nasarawa State University, Keffi-Nigeria. A total of 200 door handles were sampled and 34 (17.0%) E. coli isolates were identified. The bacterial resistance profile to tested antibiotics was: tetracycline 31 (91.18%), cotrimoxazole, ceftazidime, and augmentin with 28 (82.35%). Streptomycin and ampicillin had 26 (76.47%), while ciprofloxacin, chloramphenicol, ceftriaxone, and gentamicin had 16 (47.06%), 14 (41.18%), 12 (35.29%) and 7 (20.59%) resistance profile respectively. Multiple antibiotics resistance index (MARI) ≥ 0.3 was recorded in 33 (97.06%) of the isolates. A total of 23 resistant phenotypes were observed in this study. The most common resistant phenotype was AMP-AUG-CAZ-CRO-S-CIP-SXT-TE-C with 4 appearances. Fourteen (14) of the isolates were Multidrug resistant (MDR), while 9 were extensively resistant (XDR) isolates. Fifteen (15) ESBL-producers were identified out of which bla TEM was identified in 7 of the isolates, while 10 were carriers of bla SHV, and bla CTX-M gene was not detected in any of the test isolates. This study recommends prompt action by all stakeholders in public health to prevent a potential disease burden from a superbug.
ABSTRACT
Studies on the reference values of CD4 and CD3 T cells in healthy individuals have continued to gain significance because of the importance of these immunological markers in the initiation of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART). The aim of the present study was to determine and compare the reference values of CD4 and CD3 T cells in urban and rural Nigerians who were human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) negative. After ethical clearance and informed consent, 1123 subjects who met the inclusion criteria [mean age = 24.4 (± 11.2) years] were recruited in this study. Blood samples were analysed using the BD FACScount cytometer according to the manufacturer's instructions. Of the overall 1123 subjects, reference means of CD4, CD3 and CD4/CD3 ratio were 1030 ± 367, 1757 ± 609 cells/µl and 0.59 ± 0.08, respectively. Five hundred and fifty-one (49.1%) were an urban population with the mean CD4, CD3 and CD4/CD3 T cell ratio of 1032 ± 369, 1761 ± 612 cells/µl and 0.59 (±0.08), respectively. The remaining 572 (50.9%) were of a rural population with the mean CD4, CD3 and CD4/CD3 T cell ratio of 1028 ± 459, 1753 ± 958 cells/µl and 0.59 ± 0.13, respectively. Subjects with higher CD4 and CD3 T cells were more likely to be female than male (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference between the T cell values of the two populations (P > 0.05). Our findings provide new insight in the CD4 and CD3 T cell reference values of Nigerians.