Malaria disproportionately affects all ages with a high burden among children below five years. Thus, control measures are deployed including Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC). The present study assessed the impacts of SMC on malaria burden among subjects aged 3–59 months in Borno State, Nigeria. Twenty (20) clusters were randomly selected from accessible 16 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Borno State, Nigeria, and SMC was deployed in 10 of the clusters by administering a full dose of amodiaquine plus sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine at monthly intervals for 4 months consecutively. Three hundred and ninety-nine children were enrolled in the study. A structured questionnaire was used to obtain demographic and malaria-related data. Thick blood smear, thin blood smear, and capillary sample were collected two weeks after the 4th cycle of SMC. The prevalence of malaria and anaemia was determined among the subjects and for the clusters. The proportions of the female (46.4%; 185/399) and male (53.6%; 214/399) subjects were similar (p>0.05) with subjects aged 24–47 months (35.8%; 143/399) accounting for the highest proportion (p<0.05). Malaria prevalence was 10.3% (41/399) and was higher among non-SMC subjects (15.9%; 31/195) than among SMC subjects (4.9%; 10/204) (p<0.05, df = 1, χ2 = 10.8). Malaria prevalence was higher in non-SMC clusters (80.0%; 8/10) than in SMC clusters (30.0%; 3/10) (p<0.05, df = 1, χ2 = 40.5). The mean haematocrit of the 399 subjects was 34.0 ± 5.3% with an anaemia prevalence of 18.1% (72/399). The mean haematocrit was higher among SMC subjects (35.4 ± 5.0% vs. 33.1 ± 4.2%; p<0.05) while anaemia prevalence was higher among non-SMC subjects (21.5% vs. 14.6%; p<0.05, df = 1, χ2 = 2.8). Of the SMC subjects, 4.9% reported adverse drug reactions. SMC is safe and significantly reduced malaria burden among children in Borno State, and thus, the measure could be deployed in the state for effective malaria control.

Microorganisms that inhabit the avian cloaca usually contaminate poultry semen which could easily spread throughout an entire flock. This study was conducted to determine the presence of microbial contaminants in turkey semen and evaluate their antibiotic sensitivity. Semen was collected from each tom, pooled and then divided into two aliquots A and B. Aliquot A was immediately  evaluated for microbial contaminants and antibiotic sensitivity while aliquot B, was extended and preserved for 24 hours at 40 C and thereafter microbial culture, identification and antibiotic sensitivity were conducted. Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecalis, Bacillus subtilis, Corynebacteria species and a fungal organism Candida albican were isolated and identified in both aliquots. All the identified organisms were sensitive to pefloxacin, gentamicin and ciprofloxacin, while Enterococcus faecalis, Bacillus subtilis and Corynebacteria species were resistant to Ampicillin-cloxacillin, cefuroxime, amoxicillin and ceftriaxone. Escherichia coli was only resistant to co-trimoxazole, ofloxacin and nalidixic acid. The study concludes that, Escherichia coli, Enterococcus foecalis, Bacillus subtilis, Corynebacteria species and Candida albican were found to be turkey semen contaminants and were resistant to penicillin and streptomycin combination in turkey semen extender but sensitive to pefloxacin, gentamicin and ciprofloxacin. Key words: Microbial contaminants, turkey semen, extender, antibiotic sensitivity

The aim of the present study was to follow the time related developmental changes of caprine foetuses to aid in their age determination. Certain gross external features along with body size changes were studied. Twenty five pregnant Sahel does of known gestational age managed under controlled conditions were used for the study. Absolute changes in the body weight, crown-rump length and height at withers and their relative growth changes compared to body size had similar and significant growth relationships. All the parameters showed high positive significant correlation with the foetal age and with each other with r-values ranging from 0.975 to 0.998. A chronological guide on age estimation of caprine foetuses at 28 day gestational interval, evolved from observations based on developmental horizons. The present study has provided a baseline data which could be applied for age estimation of Sahel goat foetuses. It has also indicated that, it is necessary to employ many criteria involving physiological horizons to estimate the age of a foetus age within narrow limits.

Populations of many galliform species have declined mainly due to habitat loss and over-hunting, notably the Congo peacock, which has been classified as a vulnerable species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The domestic turkey, being a species of least concern, which has been reported to be closely related to peacocks, could serve as a model for the optimization of assisted reproductive technologies for the Congo peacock. This study was aimed at developing a suitable turkey semen extender for artificial insemination in field conditions. Semen was collected using the dorso-abdominal massage technique from seven turkey toms and analyzed. Ejaculates with >70% motility and >80% live spermatozoa were pooled and divided into four aliquots (four treatments). Each of the four treatments was extended in a soybean-based extender or an egg yolk-based extender, with or without L-ascorbic acid. Two liquid preservation protocols (ambient temperature (35 °C) and chilled (4 °C)) were employed, and quality parameters including motility, viability and morphology were evaluated. The results show that the two extenders were similar with regard to semen quality parameters, and L-ascorbic acid supplementation of the turkey semen extenders improved semen quality during liquid storage.

In order to determine the challenges faced by rabbit farmers and suitable strategies required to enhanced the survival of rabbit kits, information on constraints and some reproductive problems of rabbit production in Maiduguri Maiduguri Metropolitan Council (M.M.C) and Jere LGAs of Borno state was investigated. Structured questionnaire was administered to 100 respondents in M.M.C and Jere LGAs. It was found that low market value for rabbit, neonatal death and loss from theft or predators were the major constraints observed in rabbit production within the study area. Mortality was high among young rabbits (1-2 weeks old), and the average number of survived rabbit kits was 1 – 5 kits per litter. In addition, seasonal variation, poor management and housing design were the immediate causes of neonatal mortality in rabbit within M.M.C and Jere LGAs of Borno state. Improved housing design, pre-natal nutrition and peri-natal hygiene was therefore recommended.