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Leachates are known to contain dissolved or suspended solid materials which may be toxic when it finds its way to water bodies or land meant for agricultural purposes. The study however investigated the physicochemical properties, anions and heavy metal composition of leachates from the solid waste dumpsite at Onitsha, Anambra State, Nigeria so as to ascertain the level of contamination by comparing values obtained with the FEPA/WHO standards. Analyses were carried out using leachates obtained from two portions of the sites marked active site and abandoned site (withdrawing dumpsite). The result of the physicochemical analysis revealed that there was significant increase at p<0.05 of mean values of Electrical Conductivity (EC), Total Dissolved Solid (TDS), Total Suspended Solids (TSS), Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) and Total Hydrocarbon Content (THC) of the active site when compared to values from the abandoned site. Analysis has shown that leachate from the active site is a potential source of heavy metal poisoning and a source of pollution with potential effect on the environment and neighboring underground water if the present trend is not controlled.

Clinical manifestations of malaria primarily result from proliferation of the parasite within the hosts' erythrocytes. The malaria parasite digests hemoglobin within its digestive vacuole through a sequential metabolic process involving multiple proteases. The activities of these proteases could lead to the production of ROS which could lead to the death of the parasites due to the destruction of their membrane. The action of SDS on hemoglobins can be likened to the way malarial proteases destabilizes host hemoglobin. Hence, the study was designed to determine the binding parameters of SDS and H2O2 for normal, sickle trait carrier and sickle hemoglobins at pH 5.0 and 7.2 using UV-VIS Titration Spectrophotometry. Hb-SDS interactions were significantly different at pH 5.0 but were not at pH 7.2. Also, Hb-H2O2 interactions were statistically different at pH 5.0 and 7.2. The interactions suggest that HbA and HbS are easily destabilized than HbAS and that HbAS has more affinity for H2O2. These suggest a production of more ferryl intermediates or hydroxyl radicals. All these interactions may hinder the development of the malaria parasite at the intraerythrocytic stage and could likely account for a significant proportion of the mechanism that favours the resistance to malaria by individuals with HbAS.

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