Background: Urogenital schistosomiasis (UgS) is a parasitic disease caused by Schistosoma haematobium and can lead to chronic ill-health. Nigeria is endemic for schistosomiasis, but epidemiology of UgS has not been studied in most states. This study was conceived with the aim to contribute towards an accurate national picture of UgS in Nigeria. The prevalence of UgS and the associated risk factors were for the first time investigated among primary school pupils in Jidawa and Zobiya communities of the Dutse Local Government Area (LGAs) of Jigawa State, Nigeria.Method: Focus group discussions with teachers and parents were conducted. After obtaining written consent from parents, questionnaires were administered to pupils to obtain socio-demographic data and information on water contact activities. Urine samples (279) were collected and processed by the urine filtration technique to evaluate haematuria and the presence of S. haematobium eggs.Results: Prevalences of 65.7% (90/137) and 69.0% (98/142) were recorded in the Jidawa and Zobiya communities, respectively. In both communities, there was a significant association between gender and UgS: 63.3% of the infected pupils were males as compared to 36.7% females (χ 2 = 5.42, p = 0.020). Grade 5 students had a significantly higher prevalence (χ 2 = 17.919, p = 0.001) (80.0%) compared to those in grades 2, 3, 4, and 6 (63.8%, 66.7%, 61.5%, and 64.6%, respectively). Water contact activities showed that pupils involved in fishing, irrigation, and swimming were at greater risk of becoming infected in Jidawa and Zobiya, with odds ratios (risk factors) of 5.4 (0.994-28.862) and 4.1 (1.709-9.862), respectively (p = 0.05).

Following a preliminary investigation a study was carried from April to October, 2019 to establish more information on the abundance and distribution of freshwater snails in relation to physiochemical factors of Warwade dam. Four sampling sites; human activity, vegetation cover, lentic and lotic were selected for the study along the bank of the dam. Freshwater snails were collected in each of the four sampling sites using long handled scoop net with mesh 0.2mm and hand picking methods. Water samples from the sampling sites were analyzed in the laboratory using standard procedures. A total of 2,027 of fresh water snails belonging to ten species were identified with Bulinus globosus 12(0.6%) and Lymnaea natalensis 12(0.6%) having the lowest abundance while Melanoides tuberculata 1553(76.6%) had the highest. Snail abundance was highest in site characterized by human activities (670) followed by vegetation (482), lotic (442) and lentic (433) waters. Most of the physico-chemical factors measured appeared to favour the growth and survival of fresh water snails. pH (p = 0.01), water current (p = <0.01) and magnesium ion concentration (p = < 0.01) varied significantly across the four sites. Only calcium ion concentration was significantly associated with snail abundance (p = 0.04). Snail abundance showed weak positive relationship with water temperature, color, turbidity and concentration of magnesium ion. The dominance of M. tuberculata over all species particularly those of medical and veterinary importance could have positive implication for their control in the dam.

This study examined pyrethroid resistance intensity and mechanisms in Culex quinquefasciatus (Say) (Diptera: Culicidae) populations from Jigawa, North-West Nigeria. Resistance statuses to permethrin, lambda-cyhalothrin and alphacypermethrin were determined with both WHO and CDC resistance bioassays. Synergist assay was conducted by pre-exposing the populations to Piperonyl butoxide (PBO) using the WHO method. Resistance intensities to 2x, 5x and 10x of diagnostic concentrations were determined with the CDC bottle method. Species analysis and presence of knockdown mutation (Leu-Phe) were done using Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). Results showed that Cx. quinquefasciatus was the only Culex spp. present and “Kdr-west” mutation was not detected in all analyzed samples. Using WHO method, Cx. quinquefasciatus resistance to permethrin was detected in Dutse (12.2%) and Kafin-Hausa (77.78%). Lambda-cyhalothrin resistance was recorded only in Kafin-Hausa (83.95%) with resistance suspected in Ringim (90%). Resistance to alphacypermethrin was recorded in all locations. Pre-exposure to PBO led to 100% mortality to alphacypermethrin and lambda-cyhalothrin in Ringim while mortality to permethrin and alphacypermethrin in Dutse increased from 12.2% to 97.5% and 64.37% to 79.52% respectively. Using CDC bottle bioassay, resistance was also recorded in all populations and the result shows a significant positive correlation (R2 = 0.728, p = 0.026) with the result from the WHO bioassay. Results of resistance intensity revealed a very high level of resistance in Kafin-Hausa with susceptibility to lambda-cyhalothrin and alphacypermethrin not achieved at 10x of diagnostic doses. Resistance intensity was also high in Dutse with susceptibility to all insecticides not achieved at 5x of diagnostic doses. Widespread and high intensity of resistance in Cx. quinquefasciatus from North-West Nigeria is a major threat to the control of diseases transmitted by Culex and other mosquito species. It is a challenge that needs to be adequately addressed so as to prevent the failure of pyrethroid-based vector control tools.

An understanding of the ecological relationship between birds and vegetation is important for management and conservation of any wetland ecosystem. Despite the significant importance of the Hadejia-Nguru Ramsar site and an Important Bird Area, little is kn relationship between bird and vegetation communities. Bird diversity and density were examined and compared between Protected Areas (PAs) and Unprotected Areas (UPAs) with attention to vegetation diversity and density. Data were co were surveyed (seven in PAs and seven in UPAs), and point count method was employed. In total, 42, 255 bird individuals, 148 species, 23 orders, and 50 families were identified. Two global species namely, European Turtle Dove (Streptopelia turtur) and Pallid harrier (Circus macrourus) were also recorded. Results showed that neither vegetation diversity nor density correlated with bird diversity nor density in both PAs and UPAs influence the bird diversity and density in both areas. PAs and UPAs of the Hadejia rich in avifaunal species, thus management of these areas will preserve large species diver Increase public awareness in the wetland on the importance of conserving birds and vegetation, as they play a vital role in the ecosystem is strongly recommended. The results presented here provide an overview of the relationship between bird and veg an important input for better understanding of its conservation.

Background: The Jigawa State Ministry of Health in Northern Nigeria undertook a pilot intervention without a follow-up to control schistosomiasis through preventive chemotherapy by ensuring that each child swallows praziquantel from 2009 to 2013 in five primary schools in Dutse metropolis. Previously, the overall prevalence for urinary and intestinal schistosomiasis determined using Sedimentation and Kato Katz methods was 22.9%. Methods: A cross sectional study involving 150 randomly selected pupils, aged 6 - 15 years old was conducted using sedimentation and Kato-Katz methods to determine the prevalence of urinary and intestinal schistosomiasis respectively in three schools in July, 2018. Information on demographic and associated risk factors was collected using a structured questionnaire and the data generated was analyzed using SPSS statistics version 18.0. Results: The overall prevalence was 10% with S. haematobium 8%, S. mansoni 2.67% and co-infection 0.67%. Males had higher prevalence, 15.10% than females 1.75%. The 11 - 15 years age group had higher prevalence, 10.10% than 6 - 10 years, 9.68%. Nearly all the infections occurred among class 4-6 pupils with 12.10% and 2.94% in 1-3. Based on parental occupations, children of unskilled laborer had the highest prevalence of 16.67% followed by children of civil servants 12.50%, and children of butchers 0%. Kachi School had the highest prevalence of 14.00% while Sir Muhammadu Sunusi had the lowest 4.00%. Schistosomiasis prevalence was found only to be significantly associated with gender; higher among males than females (15.1% vs 1.75%, P = 0.011). Conclusion and Implications for Translation: Schistosomiasis is still endemic among school-aged children in Dutse metropolis, but with a drop in overall prevalence from 22.9% to 10.00%. Chemotherapy and health education should be sustained on both in and out of school-aged children in order to control the transmission. Key words: • Schistosomiasis • Tropical diseases • Northern Nigeria • Chemotherapy• School-aged Children • Kato - Katz • Sedimentation   Copyright © 2020 Dogara et al. Published by Global Health and Education Projects, Inc. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0) which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work, first published in this journal, is properly cited.