Browsing by Author "Ochieng, Juma John"
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Item Descriptive Analysis of Heavy Metals Content of Beef From Eastern Uganda and Their Safety for Public Consumption(Frontiers in Nutrition, 2021) Kasozi, Keneth Iceland; Hamira, Yunusu; Zirintunda, Gerald; Tamale, Andrew; Matama, Kevin; Ssempijja, Fred; Muyinda, Robert; Kawooya, Francis; Kisakye, Hellen; Bogere, Paul; Matovu, Henry; Etiang, Patrick; Ochieng, Juma JohnIn this study, we initiated an effort to generate information about beef safety in Uganda. Our entry point was to assess by atomic absorption spectrophotometry the levels of essential elements copper (Cu), cobalt (Co), iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn), and non-essential elements lead (Pb), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), and cadmium (Cd) in 40 beef samples collected from within and around Soroti (Uganda). The information was used to evaluate the safety of consuming such beef against the World Health Organization (WHO) limits. The latter was accomplished by (i) estimating the daily intake (EDI) of each metal in the study area, (ii) modeling the non-cancer health risk using the target hazard quotient (THQ) and (iii) modeling the cancer risk using the incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR). The study finds that the mean concentrations (±95% CI) and EDI were in the order of Fe > Zn > Cr > Ni > Pb > Co > Cu > Cd. Cancer risk was found to be due to Ni > Cr > Cd > Pb and significantly higher in children than adults. The latter particularly demonstrates the importance of Ni poisoning in the study area. Overall, while essential elements in our beef samples were below WHO limits (hence no health risks), non-essential elements had high health and cancer risks due to higher levels of Cr and Ni.Item Dietary Restriction Induces a Stable Metabolic Obesity Phenotype in Drosophila Melanogaster(Research Square, 2021) Asiimwe, Oscar Hilary; Oluwadare Sulaiman, Sheu; Ochieng, Juma John; Onanyang, David; Obado Osuwat, Lawrence; Ndinawe, John Mark; Omachonu Okpanachi, Alfred; Kasozi, Keneth IcelandChallenges associated with current nutritional models to induce obesity in Drosophila melanogaster created a rationale for this study. The objective of the study was to investigate biochemical changes associated with high-fat diet (HFD), high sucrose diet (HSD), and a protein-restricted diet (DR) to induce a healthy metabolic obesity state. Drosophila melanogaster were fed to four experimental diets: regular food (control), HFD, HSD, and DR, for four weeks. Peristaltic waves were measured on 3rd instar larvae, while negative geotaxis, body mass, catalase activity; and total triglycerides, sterol, and protein were measured in adult Drosophila melanogaster. Results DR produced a Drosophila melanogaster phenotype which had superior adaptive advantages than that generated from HFD and HSD. HFD was the best phenotype during larval stages; however, locomotory, body mass, triglyceride, sterol concentrations, and catalase activity were highest in the DR phenotype during adulthood. High catalase activity and high triglyceride content demonstrated a balanced and healthy metabolic obesity status than in other phenotypes in the adult stage. Evolutionary changes are responsible for the selective advantage of the DR phenotype over the HFD phenotype. Prospective studies to guide therapy and community behavior should place more emphasis on the DR phenotypes in Drosophila melanogaster.Item Epidemiology of Trypanosomiasis in Wildlife—Implications for Humans at the Wildlife Interface in Africa(Frontiers in Veterinary Science, 2021) Kasozi, Keneth Iceland; Zirintunda, Gerald; Ssempijja, Fred; Buyinza, Bridget; Matama, Kevin; Nakimbugwe, Helen N.; Onanyang, David; Bogere, Paul; Ochieng, Juma John; Matovu, Wycliff; Nalumenya, David Paul; Batiha, Gaber El-Saber; Osuwat, Lawrence Obado; Omadang, Leonard; Welburn, Susan ChristinaWhile both human and animal trypanosomiasis continue to present as major human and animal public health constraints globally, detailed analyses of trypanosome wildlife reservoir hosts remain sparse. African animal trypanosomiasis (AAT) affects both livestock and wildlife carrying a significant risk of spillover and cross-transmission of species and strains between populations. Increased human activity together with pressure on land resources is increasing wildlife–livestock–human infections. Increasing proximity between human settlements and grazing lands to wildlife reserves and game parks only serves to exacerbate zoonotic risk. Communities living and maintaining livestock on the fringes of wildlife-rich ecosystems require to have in place methods of vector control for prevention of AAT transmission and for the treatment of their livestock. Major Trypanosoma spp. include Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense, Trypanosoma brucei gambiense, and Trypanosoma cruzi, pathogenic for humans, and Trypanosoma vivax, Trypanosoma congolense, Trypanosoma evansi, Trypanosoma brucei brucei, Trypanosoma dionisii, Trypanosoma thomasbancrofti, Trypanosma elephantis, Trypanosoma vegrandis, Trypanosoma copemani, Trypanosoma irwini, Trypanosoma copemani, Trypanosoma gilletti, Trypanosoma theileri, Trypanosoma godfreyi, Trypansoma simiae, and Trypanosoma (Megatrypanum) pestanai. Wildlife hosts for the trypansomatidae include subfamilies of Bovinae, Suidae, Pantherinae, Equidae, Alcephinae, Cercopithecinae, Crocodilinae, Pteropodidae, Peramelidae, Sigmodontidae, and Meliphagidae. Wildlife species are generally considered tolerant to trypanosome infection following centuries of coexistence of vectors and wildlife hosts. Tolerance is influenced by age, sex, species, and physiological condition and parasite challenge. Cyclic transmission through Glossina species occurs for T. congolense, T. simiae, T. vivax, T. brucei, and T. b. rhodesiense, T. b. gambiense, and within Reduviid bugs for T. cruzi. T. evansi is mechanically transmitted, and T. vixax is also commonly transmitted by biting flies including tsetse. Wildlife animal species serve as long-term reservoirs of infection, but the delicate acquired balance between trypanotolerance and trypanosome challenge can be disrupted by an increase in challenge and/or the introduction of new more virulent species into the ecosystem. There is a need to protect wildlife, animal, and human populations from the infectious consequences of encroachment to preserve and protect these populations. In this review, we explore the ecology and epidemiology of Trypanosoma spp. in wildlife.