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The practice of herbal medication is as old as the culture of the people and despite the advent of modern medication, many people of south eastern Nigeria, still patronizes herbal medication. Herbal medications are consumed directly and could be contaminated with mycotoxins which are detrimental to human and animal health. This study was therefore, designed to determine the extent of mycotoxin contamination of herbal medications on sale in Ebonyi State, South-Eastern Nigeria. In this regard, a multistage random sampling technique was used to select 19 herbal medication samples from stores and markets in Ebonyi State, Nigeria and evaluated for occurrence of three major mycotoxins- aflatoxins (AFs), ochratoxin A (OTA) and fumonisins (FB). Employing wet extraction procedure, mycotoxin occurrence and levels were determined via lateral flow immunoassay technique. Results showed high prevalence of all three mycotoxins in the samples in the order OTA (89.47%), FB (82.46%) and AF (82.21%). Ochratoxin A was highest in Goodswill herbal (23.66 ± 3.51 ppb) and lowest in Goko mixture (0.00 ± 0.00) while fumonisin was highest in Ukwara (634.33 ± 8.00 ppb) and lowest in Iketo-2 mixture (0.00 ± 0.10). Aflatoxin B1 was highest in African Iba (20.00 ± 2.00 ppb) and lowest in Dunamis and Divine roots herbals (0.00 ± 0.00). Data from the analysis of herbal medication samples showed varying concentrations of mycotoxins AFs (0 – 20 ppb); OTA (0 – 23 ppb); FB (0 – 634 ppb) respectively. In conclusion, mycotoxins concentration determined in the herbal samples were above Nigerian and European Union (EU) set limits for OTA only. The co-occurrence of these mycotoxins in herbal samples analyzed in this study raises further awareness to the health risks consumers of these herbal commodities.Keywords: Mycotoxin, herbal medicine, quality, Nigeria.

BackgroundThis was a prospective study designed to evaluate the impact of thyroid function abnormalities on reproductive hormones during menstrual cycle in HIV infected females at Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital Nnewi, South-East Nigeria.MethodsThe study randomly recruited 35 Symptomatic HIV infected females and 35 Symptomatic HIV infected females on antiretroviral therapy (HAART) for not less than six weeks from an HIV clinic and 40 apparently heathy control females among the hospital staff of NAUTH Nnewi. They were all premenopausal females with regular menstrual cycle and aged between 15–45 years. Blood samples were collected at follicular and luteal phases of their menstrual cycle for assay of Thyroid indices (FT3, FT4 and TSH) and Reproductive indices (FSH, LH, Estrogen, Progesterone, Prolactin and Testosterone) using ELISA method.ResultsThe result showed significantly higher FSH and LH but significantly lower progesterone (prog) and estrogen (E2) in the test females compared to control females at both phases of menstrual cycle (P<0.05). There was significantly lower FT3 but significantly higher TSH value in Symptomatic HIV females (P<0.05). FSH, LH and TSH values were significantly lowered while prog and FT3 were significantly higher in Symptomatic HIV on ART compared to Symptomatic HIV females (P<0.05). FT3, FT4, Prog and E2 were inversely correlated while FSH and LH were positively correlated with duration of HIV infection in HIV females (P<0.05 respectively). There was a direct correlation between CD4+ count and FT3 while inverse correlation was found between CD4+ count and TSH levels (P<0.05).DiscussionThe present study demonstrated hypothyroidism with a significant degree of primary hypogonadism in Symptomatic HIV infected females at both follicular and luteal phases of menstrual cycle which tends to normalize on treatments.

Objective: Obesity is a major public health issue and a significant risk factor for metabolic disorders. This prospective study was aimed at evaluating the prevalence of obesity, lipid profiles, and fasting blood glucose (FBG) among female premedical students of NAU, Nnewi Campus, Nigeria.Methods: A total of 320 female premedical students aged 18–35 years were recruited. The participants were classified using Body mass index(BMI) as underweight (35), overweight (104), obese (26), and control (155). FBG and lipids were estimated using enzymatic methods. Obesity was assessed using BMI and waist circumference. Blood pressure (BP) was measured using accoson sphygmomanometer.Results: The study observed 10.9% underweight, 32.5% overweight, and 8.1% obesity. Underweight was higher among participants aged 18–23 years (48.6%), while overweight and obesity were more among participants aged 24–29 years (57.7% and 53.8%). Central obesity was observed in 28.8% of participants. BPs were higher in obese and overweight participants than in other groups. FBG was higher in obese and overweight participants than in other groups. The mean total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLC) were significantly higher in obese and overweight participants, while high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLC) was significantly lower when compared to their corresponding values in underweight and control participants (p<0.05).Conclusions: The study showed high prevalence of underweight, overweight, and obesity among the study population. The significantly higher levels of TC, LDLC, FBG, and elevated BP with significantly lower HDLC in overweight and obese participants compared to control suggests a possible risk of dyslipidemia, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension. The significant correlation between the lipid parameters, FBG, and anthropometric indices suggests high-risk cardiovascular disorders.