Background: Human activities adversely affect the distribution and diversity of zooplankton. They are diverse group of organisms with little or no locomotive ability and quickly respond to changes in their environment. This research was aimed at providing updated information on the distribution and seasonal variation of zooplankton in Great Kwa River. Materials and Methods: Two sampling stations (S1- Obufa Esuk and S2- Esuk Atu) were mapped along the river bank, samples were collected using plankton net of 55µm mesh size and preserved in 4% formalin. Species were identified using taxonomic keys. Data were analyzed using ecological indices. Results: The results revealed 12 taxa; belonging to 38 species. Tintinnida, Protozoa, Cladocera, Copepoda were 23.1%, 18.5%, 15.4% and 13.3% respectively. The lowest taxonomic groups were Diptera, Foraminitera, Atenatadata and Trichoptera having 1.85% for each order. The highest species was recorded in S2 having 31 species. In both Stations Ascampbelliella acuta was dominance over other species. Shannon-Weiner index (H) were 2.997 and 2.40 in S2 and S1 respectively. The evenness index were 0.576 and 0.547 for S1 and S2 respectively. Margalef,s diversity index were 8.171 and 4.111 for Esuk Atu-S2 and Obufa Esuk-S1 respectively. Zooplankton species were abundant in wet season than dry season. Conclusion: This present study provide updated information on the zooplankton distribution, diversity and seasonal variations of the Great Kwa River. The high dominance of Tintinnida in this study indicates a natural linkage between nano-planktons and macro-planktons in the food webs of the river.

Background: Asymptomatic bacteriuria (ASB) in pregnancy is associated with adverse maternal and obstetric outcomes if untreated. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and susceptibility profile of ASB among pregnant women attending antenatal clinics in traditional birth attendant homes in Ikono, Akwa-Ibom State.Methods: The study was a cross sectional survey using 350 pregnant women with ASB. Mid-stream clean catch urine samples were collected from the women using sterile containers. The urine samples were cultured, bacterial colonies were identified and antibiotic sensitivity was done. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 20.0 and significant was set at ≤0.05.Results: The overall prevalence was 33.4% using 350 asymptomatic pregnant women. The mean age was 26.21±3.6 years and aged 27-32 have the highest prevalence (13.4) of ASB. 55.1% attained primary school, while 33.4% had informal education, monoparous (54%), 3rd trimester was 44.6% with 15.8% positive cases. Multigravidae was 71.1% with 19.4% positive cases. There was significant association of age, education, parity, occupation, monthly income, etc with ASB. The most common isolates were Escherichia coli (29.9%), then Klebsiella pneumonia (19.7%). Pseudomonas aeruginosa was susceptible to gentamicin (92%), Ciprofloxacin (83%) imipenam (83%) and azetronam (75%), while Staphylococcus saprophyticus was susceptible to imipenam (90%), then gentamicin at 80%. Multi-drug resistant were widespread in most of the isolates.Conclusions: Multi-drug resistant were observed in most of the isolates. Continuous and collaborative surveillance of ASB and antimicrobial resistance pattern are essential to reduce the consequence of asymptomatic bacteriuria in pregnant women.

Background and Objectives: Human activities can increase the amount of pollutants in the environment leading to water pollution. The contamination of surface water and sediments by heavy metals can result in adverse health conditions of humans, due to the bioaccumulation of metals. This study seeks to assess the pollution load of some heavy metals and physiochemical properties in Great Kwa River. Methods: Water samples were collected once a month from three stations within four selected months in wet and dry seasons. Samples were preserved by adding 10 ml of 6 N Nitric acid and stored at 5oC. Laboratory investigations were conducted and data analyzed statistically. Findings: The mean pH, dissolved O2, biological O2 demand, conductivity, NO3, NH4 and temperature were 7.44±1.24, 5.58±0.92, 0.957±0.002, 32.84±2.941, 0.1030±0.1701, 0.113±0.018 and 28.2±1.48, respectively during wet season. Mean concentration of Cu, Fe, Cr, Mn, Zn, Ni are 0.225±0.003, 0.489±0.009, 0.068±0.016, 0.102±0.006, 0.794±0.003, 0.031±0.001, respectively during the wet season. Mean concentration of metals in the river during the wet season were ranked in descending order as Zn > Fe > Cu > Mn > Cr > Ni. Iron (0.489±0.009 mg/l and 0.438±0.003 mg/l), chromium (0.068±0.016 mg/l and 0.055±0.008 mg/l), nickel (0.031±0.001 mg/l and 0.025±0.002 mg/l) were higher than Nigerian standard for drinking water in both seasons. The contamination factor of heavy metals in station 3 were 2.14, 1.56, 1.09, 0.89 for Fe, Cr, Ni, Zn, respectively, indicating moderate contamination. The pollution load index in stations 1, 2, 3 were 0.262, 0.537, 0.981, respectively. Conclusion: The present study provided base-line information on the pollution levels and physiochemical properties of the river. The river was not highly polluted by heavy metals except iron, chromium and nickel that were found above the recommended standards. However, drinking of water from the river over one’s lifetime is not advisable due to detrimental health hazards.