I. S. OBUEKWE

Fresh vegetables such as green peas and carrots are important components of the humandiet but are highly susceptible to microbial contamination, posing significant public healthrisks. This study aimed to assess the microbial contamination of these vegetables sold inlocal markets in Benin City, Nigeria, focusing on the isolation and identification of bacteria, theevaluation of their prevalence, and the assessment of antibiotic susceptibility patterns. Atotal of 20 vegetable samples were collected from New Benin, Adolor, and Ring Road markets. Standard microbiological techniques were employed for bacterial isolation and identification, while the disc diffusion method was used for antibiotic susceptibility testing. The results revealed high bacterial loads, with Ring Road Market samples showingthehighest total heterotrophic bacterial counts (265 ± 77.78 CFU/g for green peas and115±12.73 CFU/g for carrots), suggesting poor hygiene and handling practices. The bacteriaisolated included Escherichia coli, Salmonella sp., Shigella sp., Staphylococcus aureus, andBacillus sp. E. coli had the highest prevalence in carrots (50%), while S. aureus was most prevalent in green peas (40%). Antibiotic susceptibility testing showed multidrug resistance, with many isolates resistant to colistin, erythromycin, tetracycline, metronidazole, andclindamycin. However, ciprofloxacin and gentamicin remained effective against most isolates. These findings highlight the urgent need for improved food safety practices, strict regulationof antibiotic use in agriculture, and regular microbial monitoring to reduce the risksoffoodborne illnesses and the spread of antimicrobial resistance in fresh produce.09121662458

Hospital wastewater is a significant reservoir of pathogenic bacteria and antibiotic-resistant strains, posing serious public health and environmental risks. This study investigates the bacteriological analysis of wastewater samples collected from different wards at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. A total of four wastewater amples were obtained from different drainage outlets using sterile 500 mL glass bottles and transported under cold conditions to the Microbiology Laboratory of the University of Benin for analysis. The Total Heterotrophic Bacterial Count (THBC) varied across the sampled wards, with the highest bacterial load recorded in the laundry department (8.00 ± 0.05 × 10⁴ log₁₀ cfu/mL) and the lowest in the eye clinic (3.12 ± 0.23 × 10⁴ log₁₀ cfu/mL). Morphological, biochemical, and cultural analyses identified multiple bacterial species, including Salmonella sp., Bacillus sp., Escherichia coli, Enterobacter sp., Pseudomonas sp., Streptococcus sp., Staphylococcus sp., and Klebsiella sp. Among these, Staphylococcus sp. and Pseudomonas sp. were the most widely distributed, occurring in all sampled wards, while the eye clinic exhibited the lowest bacterial diversity. Antibiotic susceptibility testing revealed high resistance patterns among bacterial isolates, with Pseudomonas sp. displaying the highest resistance to multiple antibiotics such as Levofloxacin, Cefotaxime, Amoxicillin, and Azithromycin. Among Gram￾ix positive bacteria, Staphylococcus sp. exhibited the highest resistance, particularly to Rocephin and Erythromycin. The multiple antibiotic resistance (MAR) index ranged from 0.20 (Klebsiella sp. and Bacillus sp.) to 0.70 (Pseudomonas sp.), indicating substantial resistance to antibiotics. The findings highlight the potential health risks associated with hospital wastewater discharge and underscore the need for improved wastewater treatment practices to mitigate the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. This study provides valuable data for hospital infection control and public health policies in Nigeria.

In the past, compact discs (also known as CDs) were the unchallenged leaders of the digital era, completely changing the way we stored and accessed information. CDs, which were created by Sony and Philips in the early 1980s, swiftly overtook cassette tapes as the most popular format for music delivery. This research project aims to study the impact of temperature and humidity at different ranges on the diversity and population of fungal species colonies dominating stored CD plates. For this research experiment, a total of Thirty-six (36) were purchased, out of which twelve CDs were opened, another twelve were closed by singularly sealing each CD in a regular CD storage nylon pack, and the last set of CDs was burnt (a process of storing information of various types, raw data documents to videos. Thermometers and hygrometers were used to track temperature and relative humidity, and for four weeks, conventional protocols were followed for fungal count and identification. According to the results, there is a weekly variation in temperature, but it usually stays between 30 and 37 degrees Celsius. On the other hand, relative humidity rose regularly in the various locations under study. Fungal counts of all CD plates studied increased with an increase in humidity with time. Fungal isolated from the studied CD plates were Aspergillus niger, Rhizopus arrhizus, Mucor mucedo, Cladosporium spp., Penicillium sp. Conclusively, relative humidity had a positive correlation with the fungal load of the studies CD plate, while temperature had little effect on fungal counts.