Aim: To assess the microbial quality and safety or otherwise of ‘nono’ sold to the public for consumption. Study Design: A cross sectional study design was employed for the study. Place and Duration of Study: Mangu Local Government Area, Plateau State is the study area. The study lasted between May 2017 and June 2018. Methodology: Questionnaire was administered to 300 ‘nono’ sellers and subsequently, 300 ‘nono’ samples were randomly collected (30 samples collected at intervals) from 10 markets and the samples were transported to central diagnostic laboratory of the National Veterinary Research Institute (NVRI) Vom, Plateau State for laboratory analyses of the samples using serial dilution and spread-plate technique. Results: Results showed that majority (86.0%) of the respondents depends on selling ‘nono’ as the only source of income, and 75.7 % of them had no formal education. An overall mean total bacterial count (TBC) of 6.09 Log10cfuml-l was recorded from all the samples. Majority of the ‘nono’ samples collected from the different markets had significantly higher bacterial count than the recommended level of 5.0 Log10cfuml-1 set by the International Farm Comparison Network (IFCN) for a minimum acceptable level of bacterial count in milk and milk products. Bacteria isolated were Coliforms, Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp., Shigella spp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus with overall prevalence of 52.7%, 43.0%, 10.0%, 8.3%, 5.0%, and 16.3% which recorded overall mean counts of 4.37, 3.56, 0.83, 0.69, 0.41 and 1.30 Log10cfuml-1, respectively. Aspergillus niger, A. flavus, Penicillium spp., Mucor spp., Rhizopus spp. and Candida spp. isolated from the products had an overall prevalence of 25.7 % and overall mean fungal count of 2.13 Log10cfuml-1. A statistically significant (P<0.05) difference was established among the means of the microbial groups. Conclusion: Microbiological safety of ‘nono’ sold in Mangu is not guaranteed as at time of study possibly as a result of unhygienic practices during ‘nono’ production and product contamination from the vendors.

The most important losses in agricultural production which involve the greatest costs on the farm economy occur postharvest. It is estimated that worldwide between 10 and 40% losses of agricultural produce occur postharvest. Losses are more severe in developing than developed nations of the world. Several species of fungi and in some cases bacteria participate in postharvest deterioration and rots of tubers and agro-produce. These include species of Aspergillus, Fusarium, Colletotrichum, Macrophomina, Penicillium and Rhizopus amongst several others. In a bid to control these storage diseases several control techniques including physical, biological, and chemical and in recent times plant-based pesticides are employed. Chemical control has been identified as the most popular and most effective means of controlling plant diseases. However, it is being de-emphasized due largely to mammalian toxicity occasioned by chemical residues in crops. This in addition to many other demerits on ecological health and build-up of pathogens' resistance to some of the most effective fungicides have prompted search for alternatives. Recently in plant pathology many tropical plants are being screened for fungitoxic properties. This review presents highlights of the different control techniques for control of myco-induced storage rots of tubers and agricultural products in the tropics.

Sheep play significant role in the socio-economic life of the large human population. Improving the productivity of sheep through selection and breeding would require understanding of their growth characteristics. This study was conducted to assess the pre- and post-weaning daily weight gains (ADG) of four Nigerian sheep breeds and some non- genetic factors affecting them. Pre- and post-ADG were measured in 33, 34, 43 and 47 lambs of Balami, Uda, WAD and Yankasa ewes respectively, and analyzed to determine the effect of breed, sex, year, season, parity, and birth type. At the pre-weaning stage, Balami and Uda had similar gains (91.89g vs. 92.44g) which were higher than that of Yankasa (74.22g) which was in turn higher than that of WAD (62.44g). During the post weaning stage, Balami gained most (77.19g), followed by Uda (71.12g), and Yankasa (59.37g) while WAD still maintained the lowest rate of gain (55.15g). Male sheep had higher ADG than females, 100.7g vs. 87.8g at pre-; and 65.67 vs. 58.15g at post weaning. However, sex within breed analysis revealed non- significant influence of sex in all breeds except WAD at pre-weaning stage but males maintained better (p<0.01) rates of gain post-weaning. Pre-ADG decreased with increased litter size. Lambs born at first parity gained more (85.00g) than subsequent parity lambs. Season and year had no significant effect on both pre- and post-weaning gains. It is concluded that breed, sex, birth type and parity influenced average daily gain in sheep.     Les moutons jouent un rôle important dans la vie socio-économique de la population humaine. Pour améliorer la productivité des moutons grâce à la sélection et à l'élevage, il faudrait comprendre leurs caractéristiques de croissance. Cette étude a été menée pour évaluer les gains de poids quotidiens avant et après le sevrage (le 'ADG') de quatre races de moutons nigérians et certains facteurs non génétiques qui les affectent. Le Pré- et le post- 'ADG' ont été mesurés dans 33, 34, 43 et 47 agneaux de Balami, Uda, WAD et Yankasa brebis respectivement, et analysés pour déterminer l'effet de la race, sexe, année, saison, parité, et le type de naissance. Au stage de pré-sevrage, Balami et Uda ont connu des gains similaires (91.89 g contre 92.44 g) supérieurs à ceux de Yankasa (74.22 g), ce qui est à son tour supérieur à celui de WAD (62.44 g). Au cours de l'étape post-sevrage, Balami a gagné le plus (77.19 g), suivi par Uda (71.12 g) et Yankasa (59.37 g) tandis que WAD a maintenu le taux de gain le plus bas (55.15 g). Les moutons mâles avaient un ADG plus élevé que les femelles, 100.7 g contre 87.8 g à l'avant; et 65.67 contre 58.15 g au sevrage après le sevrage. Cependant, le sexe dans l'analyse de race a indiqué l'influence non significative du sexe dans toutes les races excepté WAD au stade de pré-sevrage mais les mâles ont maintenu de meilleurs taux (p<0.01) de gain après le sevrage. Le pré-ADG a diminué avec l'augmentation de la taille des portées. Les agneaux nés à la première parité ont gagné plus (85.00 g) que les agneaux parité subséquents. La saison et l'année n'ont eu aucun effet significatif sur les gains avant et après le sevrage. On conclut que la race, le sexe, le type de naissance et la parité influençait le gain quotidien moyen chez les moutons.

Gastrointestinal parasites impose severe constraints on sheep production worldwide. lnformation on prevalence of helminthosis in the ovine species could provide a useful guide towards effective control. Investigated in this study was helminthosis prevalence in some Nigerian sheep. The sheep included initial 64 yearlings (12 each of Balami, BL, and Uda, UD, and 20 each of Yankasa, YK and West African Dwarf, WAD, in a sex ratio of 1:1 per breed) and their 156 offspring. Faecal samples were collected from the sheep six-weekly over a period of 3 years and examined for the presence of various helminth species using the modified McMaster technique. Total helminths, Strongyles, Strongyloides, Moniezia, Trichuris and Nematodirus prevalence were 95.9, 87.3, 38.2, 60.6, 45.0 and 46.4%, respectively. Based on prevalence, breeds and seasons ranked (p < 0.05) thus: YK = WAD > BL > UD and late rainy> early rainy> late dry > early dry. Females and older sheep (≥ 4months) had higher (p < 0.05) prevalence than males and lambs (< 4months), respectively. Prevalence increased with decreased body condition score (BCS). Year, birth type and parity did not influence prevalence. It is concluded that there is high prevalence of helminthosis in the study area, with variation between breeds, sex, age groups and seasons. These variations could be exploited through selective breeding and cross breeding to control the disease with or without minimal use of anthelminthics.     Les parasites gastro-intestinaux imposent de sévères contraintes à la production ovine dans le monde. Les informations sur la prévalence de l'helminthose chez les ovins pourraient fournir un guide utile pour une lutte efficace. La prévalence de l'helminthose chez certains moutons nigérians a été étudiée dans cette étude. Les moutons comprenaient au départ 64 yearlings (12 chacun de Balami, BL et Uda, UD, et 20 chacun de Yankasa, YK et West AfricanDwarf, WAD, dans un rapport de masculinité de 1 : 1 par race) et leurs 156 descendants. Des échantillons de matières fécales ont été prélevés sur les moutons six fois par semaine sur une période de 3 ans et examinés pour la présence de diverses espèces d'helminthes en utilisant la technique modifiée de McMaster. La prévalence totale des helminthes, Strongyles, Strongyloides, Moniezia, Trichuriset Nematodirus était de 95.9, 87.3, 38.2, 60.6, 45.0 et 46.4%, respectivement. Sur la base de la prévalence, des races et des saisons classées (p <0.05) ainsi : YK = WAD>BL> UD et pluvieux tardif> pluvieux bdafur70@gmail.com 13 précoce> sec tardif> sec tôt. Les femelles et les moutons plus âgés (≥ 4 mois) avaient une prévalence plus élevée (p<0.05) que les mâles et les agneaux (<4 mois), respectivement. Laprévalence augmentait avec la diminution du score de l'état corporel (le 'BCS'). L'année, letype de naissance et la parité n'ont pas influencé la prévalence. Il est conclu qu'il existe uneprévalence élevée d'helminthose dans la zone d'étude, avec des variations entre les races, lesexe, les groupes d'âge et les saisons. Ces variations pourraient être exploitées par unesélection sélective et des croisements pour lutter contre la maladie avec ou sans utilisationminimale d'anthelminthiques.

The most important losses in agricultural production which involve the greatest costs on the farm economy occur postharvest. It is estimated that worldwide between 10 and 40% losses of agricultural produce occur postharvest. Losses are more severe in developing than developed nations of the world. Several species of fungi and in some cases bacteria participate in postharvest deterioration and rots of tubers and agro- produce. These include species of Aspergillus, Fusarium, Colletotrichum, Macrophomina, Penicillium and Rhizopus amongst several others. In a bid to control these storage diseases several control techniques including physical, biological, and chemical and in recent times plant-based pesticides are employed. Chemical control has been identified as the most popular and most effective means of controlling plant diseases. However, it is being de-emphasized due largely to mammalian toxicity occasioned by chemical residues in crops. This in addition to many other demerits on ecological health and build-up of pathogens’ resistance to some of the most effective fungicides have prompted search for alternatives. Recently in plant pathology many tropical plants are being screened for fungitoxic properties. This review presents highlights of the different control techniques for control of myco- induced storage rots of tubers and agricultural products in the tropics.