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Sokoine University of Agriculture  Institutional Repository (SUA IR). This repository was built and is maintained by the university library  (Sokoine National Agricultural Library-SNAL) , in order to collect, preserve and disseminate scholarly output generated by University research community (staff and students) members.

This repository hosts a variety of openly accessible materials including: scholarly articles and books, theses and dissertations, conference proceedings and technical reports. For assistance about depositing your research output in the repository click here. SUA IR Policy  click here or any queries contact us at snal@sua.ac.tz.

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Now showing 1 - 5 of 14

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Descriptive survey of peste des petits ruminants and contagious caprine pleuropneumonia outbreaks in traditional goat flocks in southern Tanzania: producers' concerns, knowledge and attitudes
(Livestock Research for Rural Development, 2015) Mbyuzi, A O; Komba, E V G; Cordery-Cotter, R; Magwisha, H B; Kimera, S I; Kambarage, D M
A questionnaire-based survey was carried out in the southern part of Tanzania with the aim of evaluating the concerns and attitudes of traditional small holder small ruminant keepers in reference to Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR) and Contagious Caprine Pleuropneumonia (CCPP) during the period of January 2013. The study involved 141 goat keepers and four randomly selected wards from a total of 30 in Tandahimba district of Mtwara region. The results show that 91% of the respondents indicated animal diseases as the major constraint, with others reporting inadequacy of feed resources (3.30%), conflicts between crop producers and animal keepers (2.50%), poor veterinary and extension services (1.70%), water scarcity (0.80%) and thefts(0.80%) as limiting factors. Seventy three percent of livestock keepers who indicated diseases to be the major constraint identified PPR and CCPP as the most important health constraints. Other diseases of importance were helminthosis (14.0%), foot rot (8.00%) and orf (5.0%). Most livestock keepers (62.0%) indicated nasal discharge, dyspnoea, rough hair coat and coughing as the major features of PPR and CCPP. CCPP and PPR were reported to occur mainly (p=0.00) during the rainy than the dry season and were associated with morbidities ranging from 84.1% to 100% and mortalities varying from 64.0% to 81.0% in goats. In sheep, the morbidities ranged from 58.0% to 81.4%, while mortality range was 58.1%-74.0%.The morbidities and mortalities in goats were significantly higher (p=0.013) than those in sheep. The results thus indicate that smallholder small ruminant farmers in the emerging animal keeping area in the southern part of Tanzania consider PPR and CCPP as their major limiting factors which require immediate redress in terms of improved surveillance and control measures.
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Human and animal thermophilic campylobacter infections in East African countries: epidemiology and antibiogram
(Biomedical Journal of Scientific & Technical Research, 2017) Komba, Erick VG
Purpose: Campylobacter mediated diarrhoea is a leading cause of gastroenteritis worldwide. The organisms colonize the gastrointestinal tract of different animal species without causing disease symptoms. Humans acquire infections through contact with or consumption of contaminated meat especially raw/undercooked poultry meat. The rapid emergence of antibiotic-resistant Campylobacter strains heightens the public health concern of the organisms. The aim of this review was to summarise information on the epidemiology and antibiogram of Campylobacter in humans and animals in East African countries. Method: A structured literature search of PUBMED and Science Direct electronic databases. Results: Forty reports on thermophilic Campylobacter were identified in four of the five East African countries in the following order; Kenya (16), Tanzania (17), Uganda (4) and Rwanda (3). No study was found to report thermophilic Campylobacter infections in either humans or animals in Burundi. Studies on animals reported colonization of both domestic and wild species. Of the studies that described Campylobacter infections in humans, both symptomatic and asymptomatic subjects were reported to be infected; with higher prevalence in subjects younger than five years old. Among isolates, some demonstrated antimicrobial resistance. Conclusion: Available information for both human and animal Campylobacteriosis in the region is however sparse thus calling for more research to better understand the epidemiology of infections caused by the organism including clonal dependence and independence of human and animal derived isolates. This understanding will help researchers and health program developers in designing and implementing effective control strategies. Since the organism is zoonotic its control strategies should adopt the “One Health” approach involving collaborative efforts from veterinary and human medicine.
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Occurrence and determination of antimicrobial resistant escherichia coli isolates in fish and vegetables as indicator organism of faecal contamination in Dar es salaam, Tanzania
(Hindawi International Journal of Microbiology, 2021) Mwanza, Francis; Komba, Erick Vitus Gabriel; Kambarage, Dominic Mukama
Escherichia coli such as E. coli O157:H7, a non-sorbitol-fermenting (NSF) E. coli, is an essential human pathogen among other common zoonotic pathogens carried by animals especially cattle. ,ey are discharged through cattle faeces into the environment. With the increasing practice of urban farming, livestock manure is used as organic fertiliser in either fish ponds or vegetable gardens. ,is practice increases the risk of transmission of such pathogens to humans. ,is study aimed at determining the occurrence, antimicrobial resistance profiles, and genetic relatedness of E. coli isolates from manure, vegetables, and fish. Microbiological standard methods were used to isolate and identify E. coli isolates from manure, vegetable, and fish samples. Confirmed isolates on biochemical tests were tested for resistance against six antibiotics using the disc diffusion method. Enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus polymerase chain reaction (ERIC-PCR) typing method was used to generate fingerprints and determine the genetic relatedness of the E. coli isolates. Of 156 samples including 89 manure, 53 vegetables, and 16 fish, 36 (23.1%) samples were positive for E. coli from where a total of 48 E. coli different isolates were recovered that were subjected to antimicrobial susceptibility testing and genetic relatedness. Of these isolates, 25 (52.1%) were resistant to at least one antimicrobial agent and 12 (48.0%) showed multidrug resistance. ERIC-PCR profiles of E. coli isolates from manure, vegetables, and fish showed genetic diversity with genetic relatedness ranging from 74.5% to 100%. Nine phylogenetic clusters (I–IX) determined at 90% threshold level of genetic relatedness were identified among the isolates. ,is study determined the occurrence, antimicrobial resistant patterns, and genetic diversity of antimicrobial-resistant E. coli isolates from different sources. ,is study showed the potential of microbial health risk to humans through contamination, and hence, it is necessary to monitor and improve husbandry practices in urban farming.
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Mechanisms and contextual factors affecting the implementation of animal health surveillance in Tanzania: a process evaluation
(Frontiers in Veterinary Science, 2022) George, Janeth; Häsler, Barbara; Komba, Erick V. G.; Rweyemamu, Mark; Kimera, Sharadhuli I.; Mlangwa, James E. D.
A strong animal health surveillance system is an essential determinant of the health of animal and human population. To ensure its functionality and performance, it needs to be evaluated regularly. Therefore, a process evaluation was conducted in this study to assess animal health surveillance processes, mechanisms and the contextual factors which facilitate or hinder uptake, implementation and sustainability of the system in Tanzania. A mixed-method study design was used to evaluate the national animal health surveillance system guided by a framework for process evaluation of complex interventions developed by Moore and others. The system was assessed against standard guidelines and procedures using the following attributes: fidelity, adherence, exposure, satisfaction, participation rate, recruitment and context. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected using a cross-sectional survey, key informant interviews, document review, site visits and non-participant observation. Data from questionnaires were downloaded, cleaned and analyzed in MicrosoftTM Excel. Qualitative data were analyzed following deductive thematic and content analysis methods. Fidelity attribute showed that case identification is mainly based on clinical signs due to limited laboratory services for confirmation. Data collection was not well-coordinated and there were multiple disparate reporting channels. Adherence in terms of the proportion of reports submitted per month was only 61% of the target. District-level animal health officials spent an average of 60% of their weekly time on surveillance-related activities, but only 12% of them were satisfied with the surveillance system. Their dissatisfaction was caused by large area coverage with little to no facilitation, poor communication, and lack of a supporting system. The cost of surveillance data was found to be 1.4 times higher than the annual surveillance budget. The timeliness of the system ranged between 0 and 153 days from the observation date (median = 2 days, mean = 6 days). The study pointed out some deviations in animal health surveillance processes from the standard guidelines and their implication on the system’s performance. The system could be improved by developing a user-friendly unified reporting system, the active involvement of subnational level animal health officials, optimization of data sources and an increase in the horizon of the financing mechanism.
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Drug susceptibility profiles and factors associated with non-tuberculous mycobacteria species circulating among patients diagnosed with pulmonary tuberculosis in Tanzania
(PLoS ONE, 2022) Maya, Togolani Godfrey; Komba, Erick Vitus; Mensah, Gloria Ivy; Mbelele, Peter Masunga; Mpagama, Stella George; Mfinanga, Sayoki Godfrey; Addo, Kennedy Kwasi; Kazwala, Rudovick Reuben
Background While most Non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are saprophytic, several species have been associated with human diseases, from localized infection to disseminated diseases. Pulmonary NTM infections lead to TB-like disease called NTM pulmonary disease (NTM- PD). Due to variation in treatment options among NTM species, it is necessary to identify the species and determine drug susceptibility profiles to inform the choice of appropriate regimen for the disease. Design A total of 188 culture-positive isolates from patients diagnosed with TB were screened for NTM at the Central Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory. All NTM were further speciated using GenoType® Mycobacterium—Common Mycobacterium and Additional species (GenoType® CM/AS) kit. Mycobacteria avium complex (MAC) and Mycobacteria absces- sus complex (MABC) which could not be identified with the test to species were subjected to GenoType® Mycobacteria NTM-DR for further speciation. Using the same test, identified MAC and MABC were genotyped to determine the drug susceptibility profile for each isolate to macrolide and aminoglycosides. Results Of all isolates identified as mycobacteria, 24 (13%) were NTM. Fifteen isolates could be identified to species level of which prevalent species was M. avium sub. intracellulare 4 (27%). A total of 10 isolates were MAC (n = 6) and MABC (n = 4) were subjected to Geno- Type® Mycobacteria NTM-DR for determination of macrolide and aminoglycoside suscepti- bility. Three of the four MABC had a mutation at the T28 position of the erm (41). All MAC were susceptible to both drugs. Conclusion In this study, MAC was the most frequently isolated NTM species followed by MABC. While all MAC and MABC identified, were susceptible to aminoglycosides, three MABC were resistant to the macrolides due to mutation at position 28 of the erm (41) gene. For this, it is important for clinicians need to rule out NTM, understand species and their drug susceptibil- ity for optimal case management.