Isolation and Characterization of Novel Lytic Bacteriophages Infecting Carbapenem-Resistant Pathogenic Diarrheagenic and Uropathogenic .

Background: The evolution of antimicrobial resistance has dramatically reduced the efficacy of the first-choice and last-resort antibiotics used to treat infections. Thus, searching for novel therapeutics to treat and control the emergence of antibiotic resistance is urgent. Therefore, this study aimed to illustrate the lytic effect of phages against carbapenem-resistant pathogenic .

16S-Metagenomic data profiling of the bacterial community in ready-to-eat vegetable salads sold in Kampala, Uganda.

This article presents a dataset on bacterial community structure associated with Ready-to-eat (RTE) vegetable salads sold in Kampala City, Uganda. The Illumina Miseq sequencing of 16S rRNA gene amplicon unveiled the bacterial communities and generated a metagenomic library from RTE vegetable salads to understand the diversities and distribution. The metagenome contained a total of 23,805 sequences with 35,420 Taxonomic units (OTUs).

Novel -Infecting Bacteriophages Isolated from Uganda That Target Human Clinical Isolates.

Background: The antimicrobial resistance catastrophe is a growing global health threat and predicted to be worse in developing countries. Phages for Global Health (PGH) is training scientists in these regions to isolate relevant therapeutic phages for pathogenic bacteria within their locality, and thus contributing to making phage technology universally available.

Materials And Methods: During the inaugural PGH workshop in East Africa, samples from Ugandan municipal sewage facilities were collected and two novel lytic phages were isolated and characterized.

Abolishment of morphology-based taxa and change to binomial species names: 2022 taxonomy update of the ICTV bacterial viruses subcommittee.

This article summarises the activities of the Bacterial Viruses Subcommittee of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses for the period of March 2021-March 2022. We provide an overview of the new taxa proposed in 2021, approved by the Executive Committee, and ratified by vote in 2022. Significant changes to the taxonomy of bacterial viruses were introduced: the paraphyletic morphological families Podoviridae, Siphoviridae, and Myoviridae as well as the order Caudovirales were abolished, and a binomial system of nomenclature for species was established.

Medically important bacteria isolated from commercial herbal medicines in Kampala city indicate the need to enhance safety frameworks.

The high global bacterial infection burden has created need to investigate the neglected potential drivers of pathogenic bacteria, to inform disease prevention. Kampala is facing a proliferation of herbalists, selling herbal medicine (HM), of largely unregulated microbiological quality. We evaluated the bacterial contamination burden in HM sold in Kampala, to support evidence-based redress.

Genome Sequences of Bacteriophages UPEC01, UPEC03, UPEC06, and UPEC07 Infecting Avian Pathogenic Escherichia coli.

Here, we present the genome sequences of four bacteriophages that infect avian pathogenic Escherichia coli. The phages were isolated from raw sewage in Kampala, Uganda. The genome sizes of the phages ranged between 143,140 bp and 178,307 bp, with an average G+C content of 41.

Phage banks as potential tools to rapidly and cost-effectively manage antimicrobial resistance in the developing world.

Lower and middle-income countries seldom develop vaccines and therapeutics for their own populations and are dependent on supplies from industrialized countries, which are often hampered by financial or supply chain limitations. This has resulted in major delays in delivery with significant loss of life, as seen with the coronavirus pandemic. Since the vast majority of deaths from the antimicrobial resistance crisis are expected to occur in developing countries, there is an urgent need for in-country production of antibacterial therapies such as phages.

Antibiotic-resistance in medically important bacteria isolated from commercial herbal medicines in Africa from 2000 to 2021: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Antimicrobial resistance is swiftly increasing all over the world. In Africa, it manifests more in pathogenic bacteria in form of antibiotic resistance (ABR). On this continent, bacterial contamination of commonly used herbal medicine (HM) is on the increase, but information about antimicrobial resistance in these contaminants is limited due to fragmented studies.

Herbal medicine used for the treatment of diarrhea and cough in Kampala city, Uganda.

Background: Globally, diarrheal and respiratory diseases are among the main causes of mortality and morbidity. In Uganda, cities are facing proliferation of trade in herbal medicines (HM), including those for diarrhea and/or cough. Information on the economic, and the ethnopharmacological aspects of these HM is scarce, deterring the sector from achieving optimal capacity to support national development.

Bacterial Viruses Subcommittee and Archaeal Viruses Subcommittee of the ICTV: update of taxonomy changes in 2021.

In this article, we - the Bacterial Viruses Subcommittee and the Archaeal Viruses Subcommittee of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) - summarise the results of our activities for the period March 2020 - March 2021. We report the division of the former Bacterial and Archaeal Viruses Subcommittee in two separate Subcommittees, welcome new members, a new Subcommittee Chair and Vice Chair, and give an overview of the new taxa that were proposed in 2020, approved by the Executive Committee and ratified by vote in 2021. In particular, a new realm, three orders, 15 families, 31 subfamilies, 734 genera and 1845 species were newly created or redefined (moved/promoted).

Prevalence and dynamics of clinically significant bacterial contaminants in herbal medicines sold in East Africa from 2000 to 2020: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Infectious diseases remain a leading cause of mortality and morbidity around the world, and those caused by bacteria are common in the East African region. In this region, trade and consumption of herbal medicine has been expanding in the recent decades. Herbal medicines may be contaminated with pathogenic bacteria; however, there is limited information due to fragmented studies in East Africa.

Bacteriophage activity against and characterisation of avian pathogenic Escherichia coli isolated from colibacillosis cases in Uganda.

Avian Pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC) cause colibacillosis leading to significant economic losses in the poultry industry. This laboratory-based study aimed at establishing stocks of avian pathogenic Escherichia coli lytic bacteriophages, for future development of cocktail products for colibacillosis management. The study determined the antibiotic susceptibility; phylogenetic categories, occurrence of selected serotypes and virulence genes among Escherichia coli stock isolates from chicken colibacillosis cases; and evaluated bacteriophage activity against the bacteria.

Comparison of the microbial composition of African fermented foods using amplicon sequencing.

Fermented foods play a major role in the diet of people in Africa, where a wide variety of raw materials are fermented. Understanding the microbial populations of these products would help in the design of specific starter cultures to produce standardized and safer foods. In this study, the bacterial diversity of African fermented foods produced from several raw materials (cereals, milk, cassava, honey, palm sap, and locust beans) under different conditions (household, small commercial producers or laboratory) in 8 African countries was analysed by 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing during the Workshop "Analysis of the Microbiomes of Naturally Fermented Foods Training Course".

Retrospective Analysis of Archived Pyrazinamide Resistant Complex Isolates from Uganda-Evidence of Interspecies Transmission.

The contribution of to the proportion of tuberculosis cases in humans is unknown. A retrospective study was undertaken on archived complex (MTBC) isolates from a reference laboratory in Uganda to identify the prevalence of human infection. A total of 5676 isolates maintained in this repository were queried and 136 isolates were identified as pyrazinamide resistant, a hallmark phenotype of .

In vitro regeneration of Ugandan passion fruit cultivars from leaf discs.

Objective: Passion fruit improvement efforts by conventional breeding have had limited success calling for research into alternative approaches such as tissue culture and genetic engineering. An efficient and reproducible regeneration system is a prerequisite for successful genetic engineering. Currently, there is no reliable regeneration system for Uganda's passion fruit varieties owing to the high heterogeneity of the Passiflora genus.

Prevalence and risk factors for brucellosis in prolonged fever patients in post-conflict Northern Uganda.

Background: Brucellosis is a disease with significant public and economic implications but strategies for controlling this disease remain problematic.

Objectives: This study sought to determine the sero-prevalence of brucellosis in prolonged fever patients and to identify modifiable risk factors for the infection in humans in post conflict Northern Uganda.

Methods: The study employed a cross-sectional method among prolonged fever patients who had visited selected health facilities in the study districts in Northern Uganda.

Chemical tick control practices in southwestern and northwestern Uganda.

Tick acaricide failure is one of the leading challenges to cattle production in Uganda. To gain an understanding into the possible drivers of acaricide failure, this study characterized the current chemical tick control practices in the southwestern (Mbarara, Mitooma and Rukungiri districts) and northwestern (Adjumani district) regions of Uganda. A total of 85 farms participated in a survey that utilized a semi-structured questionnaire.

Influence of physicochemical parameters on storage stability: Microbiological quality of fresh unpasteurized fruit juices.

Fresh juices rich in health and nutritional benefits are valued for their fresh flavor, taste, and aroma. These juices' quality however is affected by factors like temperature, light, and microbiological contamination significantly changing physicochemical parameters and storage stability. Physicochemical and microbiological analyses of passion fruit, pineapple, and mango juices in dark and light bottles at 24°C and 4°C were conducted in Kampala, Uganda for 12 days.

Prevalence of foodborne pathogens in food from selected African countries - A meta-analysis.

Food safety information in the African region is insufficient and fragmented due to lack of surveillance, documentation and reporting, thereby resulting in inefficient utilization of resources, duplication of activities, and lack of synergy among the countries of the region. This paper reviews the prevalence of foodborne pathogens in seven African countries (Benin, Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Sudan and Uganda) from papers in regional or international journals published between January 2000 and December 2015. One hundred and sixteen publications that dealt with food microbiology were reviewed for general analysis, while 66 papers on contamination of pathogenic bacteria were used for meta-analysis of prevalence.

Risk estimates for children and pregnant women exposed to mercury-contaminated and in Lake Albert Uganda.

Exposure to mercury contaminated fish predisposes populations particularly children and pregnant women to various health hazards including neurotoxicity, reproductive abnormalities and cognitive disorders. Earlier studies in the Lake Albert community have demonstrated the presence of mercury in Nile tilapia and Nile perch. However, the risk estimates for vulnerable groups such as Children and pregnant women is not well documented.

Perceptions about mercury and lead in fish consumed in Lake Albert fishing communities Uganda.

Fish consumption is a lifestyle in fishing communities influenced by individual and communal perceptions. However, information about individual perceptions about fish consumption in the vulnerable fishing community in a developing country is lacking. Without this study, the benefits of fish consumption in a vulnerable community may not be realized.

Draft Genome Sequences of Mycobacterium bovis BZ 31150 and Mycobacterium bovis B2 7505, Pathogenic Bacteria Isolated from Archived Captive Animal Bronchial Washes and Human Sputum Samples in Uganda.

Bovine tuberculosis (BTB), a zoonotic infection of cattle caused by Mycobacterium bovis, results in losses of $3 billion to the global agricultural industry and represents the fourth most important livestock disease worldwide. M. bovis as a source of human infection is likely underreported due to the culture medium conditions used to isolate the organism from sputum or other sample sources.

Performance of cryptococcal antigen lateral flow assay using saliva in Ugandans with CD4 <100.

Background: Cryptococcal meningitis can best be diagnosed by cerebrospinal fluid India ink microscopy, cryptococcal antigen detection, or culture. These require invasive lumbar punctures. The utility of cryptococcal antigen detection in saliva is unknown.

Brucellosis seroprevalence in livestock in Uganda from 1998 to 2008: a retrospective study.

A total of 17,359 samples were analysed serologically, of which 1,061, 15,758 and 585 samples were from Makerere, Entebbe and Tororo laboratories, respectively, were used to determine the seroprevalence of brucellosis. The overall seroprevalence of brucellosis was 10% while from individual laboratories was 38%, 32% and 7% for Makerere, Entebbe and Tororo laboratories, respectively. Majority of these positive brucellosis test results were in the cattle corridor with P value = 0.