We investigated conidial mass production of eight isolates of six entomopathogenic fungi (EPF), Aphanocladium album (ARSEF 1329), Beauveria bassiana (ARSEF 252 and 3462), Lecanicillium aphanocladii ...(ARSEF 6433), Metarhizium anisopliae sensu lato (ARSEF 2341), Metarhizium pingshaense (ARSEF 1545), and Simplicillium lanosoniveum (ARSEF 6430 and 6651) on white or brown rice at four moisture conditions (75–100%). The tolerance of mass-produced conidia of the eight fungal isolates to UV-B radiation and heat (45 °C) were also evaluated. For each moisture content compared, a 20-g sample of rice in a polypropylene bag was inoculated with each fungal isolate in three replicates and incubated at 28 ± 1 °C for 14 days. Conidia were then harvested by washing the substrate, and conidial concentrations determined by haemocytometer counts. Conidial suspensions were inoculated on PDAY with 0.002% benomyl in Petri plates and exposed to 978 mW m−2 of Quaite-weighted UV-B for 2 h. Additionally, conidial suspensions were exposed to 45 °C for 3 h, and aliquots inoculated on PDAY with benomyl. The plates were incubated at 28 ± 1 °C, and germination was assessed at 400 × magnification after 48 h. Conidial production was generally higher on white rice than on brown rice for all fungal species, except for L. aphanocladii ARSEF 6433, regardless of moisture combinations. The 100% moisture condition provided higher conidial production for B. bassiana (ARSEF 252 and ARSEF 3462) and M. anisopliae (ARSEF 2341) isolates, while the addition of 10% peanut oil enhanced conidial yield for S. lanosoniveum isolate ARSEF 6430. B. bassiana ARSEF 3462 on white rice with 100% water yielded the highest conidial production (approximately 1.3 × 1010 conidia g−1 of substrate). Conidia produced on white rice with the different moisture conditions did not differ in tolerance to UV-B radiation or heat. However, high tolerance to UV-B radiation and heat was observed for B. bassiana, M. anisopliae, and A. album isolates. Heat-treated conidia of S. lanosoniveum and L. aphanocladii did not germinate.
•Conidia yield of EPF were higher on white rice than on brown rice regardless of moisture.•White rice with 100% moisture provided higher conidial production of most isolates.•B. bassiana ARSEF 3462 produced the most conidia (1.3 × 1010 conidia g−1 of substrate).•Conidia produced on different substrate moisture did not differ in stress tolerance.•A. album, B. bassiana, and M. anisopliae isolates were more tolerant to UV radiation and heat.
Laboratory research in Ghana demonstrated the effectiveness of an isolate of Beauveria bassiana (IMI 389521) from the United Kingdom against the larger grain borer Prostephanus truncatus (Horn) ...(Coleoptera: Bostrichidae), a major pest of stored maize. The minimum effective concentration, following artificial infestation trials on maize, was between 109 and 1010 cfu/kg maize. Before moving out to village-level control, a major requirement was to determine if the product could effect control in artificially infested maize held under real environmental conditions in several locations in Ghana. Therefore, this study investigated the efficacy of formulated conidia of B. bassiana, IMI 389521, at two concentrations (1 × 109 and 3.16 × 109 cfu/kg maize) to control P. truncatus on stored maize kernels under semi-field conditions in Ghana. Maize (‘Obatanpa’ cultivar) kernels were treated with the formulated B. bassiana product and stored in polypropylene woven bags in cribs in Southern Ghana. After 24 h, one hundred adults of P. truncatus were placed into each bag containing the treated maize. Mortality and the percent of weight loss of kernels were assessed every two weeks for three months. The semi-field trials revealed the possibility of successfully controlling adult P. truncatus on maize kernels treated with B. bassiana at 3.16 × 109 cfu/kg maize. However, due to the minimal protection of kernels after four weeks, re-treating maize kernels after this period is recommended to ensure maximum protection during prolonged storage.
•B. bassiana kills P. truncatus in maize kernels under semifield conditions in Ghana.•>90 % mortality of P. truncatus in 2 weeks with B. bassiana at 3.16 × 109 cfu/kg maize.•Re-treating of maize kernels after 4 weeks is required for prolonged storage.
For the first time, the International Symposium on Fungal Stress was joined by the XIII International Fungal Biology Conference. The International Symposium on Fungal Stress (ISFUS), always held in ...Brazil, is now in its fourth edition, as an event of recognized quality in the international community of mycological research. The event held in São José dos Campos, SP, Brazil, in September 2022, featured 33 renowned speakers from 12 countries, including: Austria, Brazil, France, Germany, Ghana, Hungary, México, Pakistan, Spain, Slovenia, USA, and UK. In addition to the scientific contribution of the event in bringing together national and international researchers and their work in a strategic area, it helps maintain and strengthen international cooperation for scientific development in Brazil.
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Recent research in Ghana has demonstrated the effectiveness of an isolate of B. bassiana, sensu lato (IMI 389521) from the U.K. against the larger grain borer Prostephanus truncatus (Horn) ...(Coleoptera: Bostrichidae), a major pest of stored maize. To determine whether this isolate is effective on immature stages of P. truncatus, a laboratory study of the response of immature stages (egg, larvae and pupae) of P. truncatus in maize grains to two concentrations (1 × 10
9
and 3.16 × 10
9
cfu/kg maize) of B. bassiana, IMI 389521 formulated with Entostat™ and kaolinite was undertaken. Adult emergence, per cent survival of adults that emerged and the number of larvae in each immature stage were assessed after 45 days. Apart from the egg experiment, higher numbers of adults emerged in grains containing larvae and pupae treated with B. bassiana product compared to the untreated maize control. This notwithstanding, survival of emerged adults of P. truncatus was greatly reduced in B. bassiana treatments (<10%) compared with 75-95% in the controls. Surface treatment with B. bassiana on pre-infested maize showed a significant effect on the developmental biology of P. truncatus in Ghana.
The purpose of the project was to assess the health seeking behaviour and knowledge on neonatal danger signs among neonatal caregivers in Upper Denkyira East Municipality.
The study used a ...cross-sectional design and simple random sampling technique was employed to sample mothers' neonates visiting the postnatal clinic in the selected health facilities. The target population was mothers with neonates and above 18 years visiting the health facilities and were willing to be part of the study. Total population for the study was 387 however, 381 responded to the questionnaire. Structured questionnaire was the main data collection tool for the study. Data were analysed with SPSS version 23.0. Logistic regression with Pearson Chi square, p-value and odd ratio were the main statistical methods for the data analysis.
The results showed that 138 (36.2%) of the respondents stated that diarrhoea and vomiting constituted the major danger signs that sent their neonates to the hospital. Also the health seeking behaviour of the mothers showed positive results as most of the mothers (77.2%) attended hospital upon seeing neonatal danger sign. Finally, the association between mothers' socio-demographic characteristics and recognition of neonatal danger signs showed that mothers educational level and occupation were statistically significant (p-value = 0.000).
The study concluded that mothers' knowledge level on neonatal danger signs was high and also caregivers had good health seeking behaviour. It is recommended that community health nurses and midwives should embark on home visits to encourage mothers to practice the knowledge and skills acquired during counselling at the hospital. Mothers should be empowered to make decisions concerning their children's health care.
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global threat that necessitates coordinated strategies to improve antibiotic prescribing and reduce AMR. A key activity is ascertaining current prescribing ...patterns in hospitals to identify targets for quality improvement programmes.
The World Health Organisation point prevalence survey methodology was used to assess antibiotic prescribing in the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital. All core variables identified by the methodology were recorded.
A total of 78.8% (82/104) patients were prescribed at least one antibiotic, with the majority from adult surgical wards (52.14%). Significantly longer hospital stays were associated with patients who underwent surgery (p = 0.0423). "Access" antibiotics dominated total prescriptions (63.8%, 132/207) with ceftriaxone, cefuroxime, and ciprofloxacin being the most prescribed "Watch" antibiotics. The most common indications were for medical prophylaxis (59.8%, 49/82) and surgical prophylaxis (46.3%, 38/82). Over one-third of surgical prophylaxis (34.2%, 13/38) indications extended beyond one day. There was moderate documentation of reasons for antibiotic treatment in patient notes (65.9%, 54/82), and targeted therapy after samples were taken for antimicrobial susceptibility testing (41.7%, 10/24). Guideline compliance was low (25%) where available.
There was high use of antibiotics within the hospital which needs addressing. Identified quality targets include developing surgical prophylaxis guidelines, reviewing "Watch" antibiotic prescribing, and assessing antibiotic durations for patients on two or more antibiotics. Organizational-level deficiencies were also identified that need addressing to help instigate ASPs. These can be addressed by developing local prescribing protocols and antibiotic stewardship policies in this hospital and wider in Ghana and across Africa.
•GeneXpert assay is reproducible at 1% to 2% sputum contaminations with blood.•Ten percent sputum contamination with blood inhibited DNA amplification.•Carbon tetrachloride and guanidinium chloride ...are unable to destroy PCR inhibitors present in blood.•Boiling blood stain sputa at 95°C for 5 minutes is able to neutralize PCR inhibitors present in whole blood.
This study investigated the possibility of detecting Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) in blood-stained sputa with GeneXpert assay (Xpert MTB/Rif G4 v.5) using appropriate blood lysing (distilled water and distilled water/carbon tetrachloride) and protein denaturing (guanidinium chloride and heat) agents. Blood free sputa were collected from individuals infected with MTB. Various levels of blood-spiked sputa (0%–50%) were prepared and subsequently assayed with GeneXpert analyzer. GeneXpert was found to be reproducible at less than 2% blood contamination. However, beyond 5% blood contamination, GeneXpert was unreliable with absolute PCR inhibition at 20% of blood contamination. Boiling at 95°C for 5 minutes was able to recover MTB DNA in previously undetectable levels as well as in 57% of patients’ sputa with blood stains with previous negative GeneXpert results.
Blood transfusion practice is an essential medical intervention; however, it poses problems of transmissibility of infectious diseases including malaria. This study was designed to determine the ...potential of transfusion-transmitted malaria (TTM) by detecting malaria antigens and parasites in recipients of infected donor blood. After successful blood transfusion, remnants of transfused blood were screened for
Plasmodium falciparum
HRP2 antigen and parasitemia using CareStart malaria RDT and 10% Giemsa stain microscopy respectively according to established protocols. Recipients of microscopy detectable
P. falciparum
in infected blood who tested negative for malaria by both microscopy and mRDT prior to receiving infected donor blood were followed up weekly for 35 days. Donor
P. falciparum
antigenemia and parasitemia were 12.1% and 8.4%, respectively, while the prevalence of blood recipient parasitemia was 3.2%. Blood stored for 2–5 days recorded mean parasitemia higher than those stored for a day and after 5 days. Additionally, parasitemia was observed in all follow-up days with marginally high frequencies in days 7, 14, and 35. There was no association between the attributes (storage days, blood group, and parasite count range) of the infected donor blood units and the characteristics of blood recipients with post-transfusion parasitemia. This study provides baseline data on TTM in Ghana. However, further studies should establish the genetic relatedness of the implicated parasites since new infections and/or recrudescence of previous infections could account for this observation.
This study investigated malaria transmission under various contrasting settings in the Central Region, a malaria endemic region in Ghana.
This cross-sectional study was carried out in five randomly ...selected districts in the Central Region of Ghana. Three of the districts were forested, while the rest was coastal. Study participants were selected to coincide with either the regular rainy or dry season. From each study site, hospital attendees were randomly selected with prior consent. Consciously, study participants were selected in both rainy (September and October, 2020) and dry (November and December, 2020) seasons. Clinical data for each patient was checked for clinical malaria suspicion and microscopic confirmation of malaria. Using SPSS Version 24 (Chicago, IL, USA), bivariate analysis was done to determine the association of independent variables (ecological and seasonal variations) with malaria status. When the overall analysis did not yield significant association, further statistical analysis was performed after stratification of variables (into age and gender) to determine whether any or both of them would significantly associate with the dependent variable.
Of the 3993 study participants, 62.5% were suspected of malaria whereas 38.2% were confirmed to have clinical falciparum malaria. Data analysis revealed that in both rainy and dry seasons, malaria cases were significantly higher in forested districts ) than coastal districts (x2 = 217.9 vs x2 = 50.9; p < 0.001). Taken together, the risk of malaria was significantly higher in the dry season (COR = 1.471, p < 0.001) and lower in coastal zones (COR = 0.826, p = 0.007). There was significant reduced risk of participants aged over 39 years of malaria (COR=0.657, p < 0.001). Whereas, in general patients between 10 and 19 years were insignificantly less likely to have malaria (COR = 0.911, p = 0.518) compared to participants aged less than< 10 years, the reverse was observed in coastal districts where patients less than 10 years of age in coastal districts were less likely to have malaria (COR=2.440, p = 0.003). In general, gender did not associate with malaria, but when stratified by study district, the risk of female gender to malaria was significantly higher in Agona Swedru (COR = 5.605, p < 0.001), Assin central (COR = 2.172, p < 0.001), Awutu Senya (COR = 2.410, p < 0.001) and Cape Coast (COR = 3.939, p < 0.001) compared to Abura-Asebu-Kwamankese.
This study demonstrated that the predictors of malaria differ from one endemic area to another. Therefore, malaria control interventions such as distribution of long-lasting insecticide treated bed nets, residual spraying with insecticide and mass distribution of antimalaria prophylaxis must be intensified in forested districts in all seasons with particular attention on females.
Malaria is endemic in the Central region of Ghana, however, the ecological and the seasonal variations of Plasmodium population structure and the intensity of malaria transmission in multiple sites ...in the region have not been explored. In this cross-sectional study, five districts in the region were involved. The districts were Agona Swedru, Assin Central and Gomoa East (representing the forest zone) and Abura-Asebu-Kwamankese and Cape Coast representing the coastal zone. Systematically, blood samples were collected from patients with malaria. The malaria status was screened with a rapid diagnostic test (RDT) kit (CareStart manufactured by Access Bio in Somerset, USA) and the positive ones confirmed microscopically. Approximately, 200 μL of blood was used to prepare four dried blood spots of 50μL from each microscopy positive sample. The Plasmodium genome was sequenced at the Malaria Genome Laboratory (MGL) of Wellcome Sanger Institute (WSI), Hinxton, UK. The single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the parasite mitochondria (PfMIT:270) core genome aided the species identification of Plasmodium. Subsequently, the complexity of infection (COI) was determined using the complexity of infection likelihood (COIL) computational analysis. In all, 566 microscopy positive samples were sequenced. Of this number, Plasmodium genome was detected in 522 (92.2%). However, whole genome sequencing was successful in 409/522 (72.3%) samples. In total, 516/522 (98.8%) of the samples contained P. falciparum mono-infection while the rest (1.2%) were either P. falciparum/P. ovale (Pf/Po) (n = 4, 0.8%) or P. falciparum/P. malariae/P. vivax (Pf/Pm/Pv) mixed-infection (n = 2, 0.4%). All the four Pf/Po infections were identified in samples from the Assin Central municipality whilst the two Pf/Pm/Pv triple infections were identified in Abura-Asebu-Kwamankese district and Cape Coast metropolis. Analysis of the 409 successfully sequenced genome yielded between 1-6 P. falciparum clones per individual infection. The overall mean COI was 1.78±0.92 (95% CI: 1.55-2.00). Among the study districts, the differences in the mean COI between ecological zones (p = 0.0681) and seasons (p = 0.8034) were not significant. However, regression analysis indicated that the transmission of malaria was more than twice among study participants aged 15-19 years (OR = 2.16, p = 0.017) and almost twice among participants aged over 60 years (OR = 1.91, p = 0.021) compared to participants between 20-59 years. Between genders, mean COI was similar except in Gomoa East where females recorded higher values. In conclusion, the study reported, for the first time, P. vivax in Ghana. Additionally, intense malaria transmission was found to be higher in the 15-19 and > 60 years, compared to other age groups. Therefore, active surveillance for P. vivax in Ghana and enhanced malaria control measures in the 15-19 year group years and those over 60 years are recommended.
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