Antimicrobial resistance to commercially available medications has become a global issue, yet there is still the possibility of developing new drugs from medicinal plants. As a result, the aims of the present study were to screen secondary metabolites and to evaluate in vitro antifungal activities of Brucea antidysenterica, Aloe vera, and Justicia schimperiana. After the plants were identified, their leaves were collected, washed, dried under the shade, pulverized, and extracted with methanol (99.8) using the maceration technique. The presence of secondary metabolites in plant extracts was screened using various laboratory protocols. The antifungal activities of the plant extract against reference fungal strains of Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger at concentrations of 200, 100, and 50mg/mL were assessed using the agar-well diffusion method. Ketoconazole (15μg) was used as a positive control, while 5 dimethyl sulfoxide and/or 5 Tween 80 were used as negative controls. All tests were conducted in triplicate. Alkaloids, flavonoids, and phenols were secondary metabolites found in all plant extracts. The extract of leaves of B. antidysenterica and J. schimperiana formed a mean zone of inhibition of 15.5±0.5mm and 15.3±0.58mm, respectively, against Candida albicans at a concentration of 200mg/mL, whereas extracts of A. vera leaves formed a 12.3±0.58mm inhibition zone only against Aspergillus niger at 200mg/mL. In conclusion, the current study found that B. antidysenterica, A. vera, and J. schimperiana had antifungal activity. In addition, all these plants had a variety of secondary metabolites that possibly have antifungal activities. Studies on in vivo investigations and isolation of specific antifungal compounds from these medicinal plants are suggested.

Background: Foot and mouth disease is a debilitating and highly contagious transboundary disease of cattle that can cause a huge economical loss globally. It is a notifiable disease in Ethiopia, and it is thought to be causing a decrease in cattle productivity and production. Methods: A cross-sectional study and outbreak investigation were performed to estimate seroprevalence, identify associated factors and serotypes of FMDV in dairy cattle around Addis Ababa. A multi-stage random sampling technique was employed for the selection of sampling units for the seroprevalence study. A total of 383 blood samples were collected using plain vacutainer tubes and the obtained sera were tested by 3ABC-Ab ELISA at the NAHDIC lab. Also, from outbreak cases, 20 epithelial tissue samples were collected purposively for the molecular detection of FMDV serotypes. Results: The overall seroprevalence of FMD in dairy cattle was 72.1% (95% CI=67.27– 76.50). The seroprevalence in dairy cattle of Ada Berga, Holeta, and Sululta districts was 97.2%, 71.4%, and 57.6%, respectively. Up on Chi-square analysis, age, body condition, and management system were significantly associated with FMD seroprevalence (p< 0.05). Besides, multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that district, age, body condition, and management were significantly associated with FMD seroprevalence (p< 0.05). The odds of being seropositive to FMD were 6.9 (95% CI=1.8– 24.9; p=0.005) and 2.3 (95% CI=1.2– 4.7; p=0.01) times higher in cattle found in Ada Berga and Holeta Woreda. From outbreak cases, 18 (90.0%) were identified positive for FMDV serotype O. Conclusion: The current study revealed higher seroprevalence was recorded in the study area and associated risk factors identified statically, serotype O of FMDV was identified from outbreak cases. Therefore, it is critical to design and implement feasible control and prevention mechanisms based on the type of circulating virus serotype.

Background: Although traditional healers in Ethiopia have a long history of using medicinal plants to treat diseases in animals and humans, studies on the antibacterial activities and potential bioactive ingredients of most medicinal plants have been insufficient. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the in-vitro antibacterial activities and to screen phytochemical constituents of selected medicinal plants against reference bacterial strains. Methods: The fresh and healthy roots of Echinops amplexicaulis, fruits of Ruta chalepensis, and leaves of Salix subserrata were collected from West Shewa Zone, Ethiopia. Agar well diffusion and agar dilution methods were used to evaluate antibacterial activities and minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC). All the crude plant extracts were tested against Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa at concentrations of 100, 50, and 25 mg/mL in each triplet (3x). MIC of crude extracts ranging from 1.5625 to 12.50 mg/mL was applied to all bacterial strains. The positive control was ciprofloxacin disk (5 μg) and the negative control was 5% dimethyl sulfoxide. The presence of secondary metabolites of each crude extract was screened. The group means comparisons were done using one-way ANOVA and results were presented as mean ± standard deviation. Results: Although all selected plant extracts had shown antibacterial activities, methanol extracts had a greater zone of inhibition against all reference bacterial strains when compared to petroleum ether extracts. The growth of P. aeruginosa was inhibited at a minimum concentration of both methanol and petroleum extracts (1.5625 mg/mL) when compared to the remaining bacterial strains. Phytochemical screening showed that saponins and alkaloids were found in all crude plant extracts, while phytosterol was meager. Conclusion: This study revealed that all tested plants had significant secondary metabolites and antibacterial activities against reference bacterial strains.

Foot and mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious viral disease of cloven-hoofed animals and one of the endemic diseases in Ethiopia. The study was aimed to estimate the seroprevalence and to assess associated risk factors of foot and mouth disease seroprevalence in West Shewa Zone. A total of 384 sera samples were collected from randomly selected cattle and tested using ELISA for antibodies against nonstructural proteins of foot and mouth disease viruses based on IDEXX FMD Multispecies Ab Test (IDEXX Laboratories Inc, USA). The seroprevalence of foot and mouth disease in West Shewa Zone was found to be 40.4% (95% CI: 35.46–45.27) at an animal and 74.7% (95% CI: 65.58–83.85) at the herd level. Multivariable logistic regression analysis indicated that districts, breed, and animal composition were the potential risk factors of FMD seropositivity. Accordingly, cattle found in Abuna Ginde Beret (odds ratio (OR): 9.1, 95% CI: 2.4–34.1, p=0.001), Cheliya (OR: 8.8, 95% CI: 2.5–31.3, p=0.001), Bako Tibe (OR: 7.6, 95% CI: 2.1–28.3, p=0.002), Tokekutaye (OR: 5.8, 95% CI: 1.7–19.5, p=0.004), and Jeldu (OR: 5.3, 95% CI: 1.3–21.5, p=0.020) districts were more at risk to be infected with FMD than cattle from Ambo. The odds of FMD seropositivity was significantly higher in cattle kept with small ruminants (OR: 2.1, 95% CI: 1.3–3.3, p=0.003) than cattle alone. The analysis also revealed that the odds of seropositivity were 6 times higher in crossbred compared with local cattle (p=0.003). The current study found high seroprevalence of FMD in West Shewa Zone. Therefore, cattle should be vaccinated regularly after the identification of specific FMD serotypes circulating in the study area.

The study aimed to determine the phytochemicals and to assess the antibacterial activities of crude extracts of different parts of Calpurnia aurea against Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyogenes, Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli O157 H:7, Salmonella typhi, and Campylobacter jejuni. The fresh and healthy leaves, barks, stems, and roots of the plant parts were collected, herbarium, dried, and grounded, and bioactive compounds were extracted by ethanol (99%) and water. Mass of crude extracts was determined by using the Whatman No. 1 filter paper and rotary evaporator. Major secondary metabolites were also screened using phytochemical screening tests. Antibacterial activities (inhibition zones, mm) and minimum inhibition concentrations (MIC) were evaluated using agar-well diffused methods and agar dilution methods, respectively. The antibiotics ciprofloxacin, amoxicillin, penicillin, and tetracycline were used as positive controls at concentrations of 0.1 mg/ml and 0.2 mg/ml, while distilled water was used as the negative control. All the crude extracts were tested triplet (3x) for antibacterial activities against selected bacterial strains with two different concentrations 25 and 50 mg/ml and analyzed to compare the mean +/- standard deviation between triplets. The results revealed that ethanol extracts showed high crude mass extracts, antibacterial activities, and major secondary metabolites such as alkaloids, tennis, flavonoids, saponins, steroids, and phlobatannins compared with aqueous extracts. Among antibiotics used, penicillin showed resistance to S. aureus and E. coli O157 H:7. C. jejuni was found to be the most susceptible bacterium to ethanol extracts' leaves, barks, and stems with MIC 3.125 mg/ml, whereas S. aureus was the least susceptible to all crude extracts. The study provided the traditional and scientific basis of Calpurnia aurea used against some bacterial diseases.