Introduction: One in every three preventable under-five deaths occur in the neonatal period and one of the leading causes of neonatal death in Low and Middle-Income Countries (LMIC) is sepsis. Organisms isolated varies between and within geographical locations, its trend changes with time. Each setting hence needs to have its antibiogram for susceptible isolates to optimize treatment outcome, the background on which this study was conducted. Methodology: A retrospective study was done on neonates admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of Bowen University Teaching Hospital, a missionary hospital in South West Nigeria, between January 2016 and December 2017. The medical records of these neonates were retrieved from the comprehensive electronic database for all neonates admitted into the unit. Result: Of the 129 newborns eligible for the study, early-onset sepsis (56.6%) predominated. There were 79 (61%) males giving a M:F ratio of 1.6:1. The incidence rate of neonatal sepsis was 15 per 1,000 live births with a mortality rate of 24%. Gram-Negative Bacilli were mostly isolated in positive cultures. The likelihood of getting a positive culture was unrelated to the age and sex of patients at presentation. There was a varying resistance pattern of the isolates to commonly used empiric antibiotics. Conclusion and Recommendation Gram-Negative Bacilli was the commonest cause of neonatal sepsis in our center, associated with poor outcome. The high incidence of resistance to the commonly used empirical treatment calls for an urgent review of practice if the trend of high morbidity and mortality would be curtailed, as well as improved infection control practices.
Neonatal Sepsis ; Microbial Sensitivity Tests

To evaluate the phytochemical constituents, antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of the extracts of Distemonanthus benthamianus (D. benthamianus) stem bark and Solanum torvum (S. torvum) fruit which have been used as traditional medicinal herbs in Gabon. Methods: Plant extracts were subjected to a qualitative study (phytochemical screening) and a quantitative (dosing) study of secondary metabolites. Antioxidant activity was tested by 1,1- diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl and 2,2'-azino-bis 3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid assay. Bacteria and fungi susceptibility tests were performed on Mueller Hinton medium and solid Sabouraud, respectively, using the diffusion method, while minimum inhibitory concentration, minimum fungicidal concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration were evaluated by microdilution method. Results: The total phenol and tannin contents were significantly higher in the water-ethanol extract compared to the other extracts of D. benthamianus and S. torvum. The water-ethanol and water-acetone extracts showed significantly higher antioxidant activity than the aqueous extracts of the two medicinal plants. However, the extracts presented weak antioxidant activities compared to standards (Vitamin C, BHA). The water-acetone and water-ethanol extracts of S. torvum showed the highest antimicrobial activity against Bacillus cereus LMG 13569 BHI, Shigella dysenteriae 5451 CIP, Shigella dysenteriae and Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Conclusions: Our results show that D. benthamianus and S. torvum can be promising sources of natural products with potential antimicrobial and antioxidant activities.

OBJECTIVE: To understand the protective effects of Ganoderma terpenoid extract (GTE) against Plasmodium berghei-malarial infection in mice, the present study was carried out to evaluate the effects of GTE in combination with chloroquine disulphate (CQ) on erythrocyte-selected inflammatory markers and antioxidant defense status in P. berghei-infected mice. METHODS: P. berghei-infected mice were divided into six groups: infected control (IC) group, administered 1 mL Tween 20; GTE RESULTS: Infected mice treated with a combination of GTE and CQ (GT CONCLUSION Data generated in this study showed that GTE enhanced the anti-plasmodial action of CQ in mice through its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities.