In recent times, surface water resource in the Western Region of Ghana has been found to be inadequate in supply and polluted by various anthropogenic activities. As a result of these problems, the demand for groundwater by the human populations in the peri-urban communities for domestic, municipal and irrigation purposes has increased without prior knowledge of its water quality. Water samples were collected from 14 public hand-dug wells during the rainy season in 2013 and investigated for total coliforms, Escherichia coli, mercury (Hg), arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd) and physicochemical parameters. Multivariate statistical analysis of the dataset and a linear stoichiometric plot of major ions were applied to group the water samples and to identify the main factors and sources of contamination. Hierarchal cluster analysis revealed four clusters from the hydrochemical variables (R-mode) and three clusters in the case of water samples (Q-mode) after z score standardization. Principal component analysis after a varimax rotation of the dataset indicated that the four factors extracted explained 93.3 % of the total variance, which highlighted salinity, toxic elements and hardness pollution as the dominant factors affecting groundwater quality. Cation exchange, mineral dissolution and silicate weathering influenced groundwater quality. The ranking order of major ions was Na(+) > Ca(2+) > K(+) > Mg(2+) and Cl(-) > SO4 (2-) > HCO3 (-). Based on piper plot and the hydrogeology of the study area, sodium chloride (86 %), sodium hydrogen carbonate and sodium carbonate (14 %) water types were identified. Although E. coli were absent in the water samples, 36 % of the wells contained total coliforms (Enterobacter species) which exceeded the WHO guidelines limit of zero colony-forming unit (CFU)/100 mL of drinking water. With the exception of Hg, the concentration of As and Cd in 79 and 43 % of the water samples exceeded the WHO guideline limits of 10 and 3 μg/L for drinking water, respectively. Reported values in some areas in Nigeria, Malaysia and USA indicated that the maximum concentration of Cd was low and As was high in this study. Health risk assessment of Cd, As and Hg based on average daily dose, hazard quotient and cancer risk was determined. In conclusion, multiple natural processes and anthropogenic activities from non-point sources contributed significantly to groundwater salinization, hardness, toxic element and microbiological contamination of the study area. The outcome of this study can be used as a baseline data to prioritize areas for future sustainable development of public wells.

High selectivity and sensitivity is reported in the measurements of xanthine in urine by fast scan cyclic voltammetry (FSV) with a nanostructured carbon fiber sensor of 3.5 +/- 0.4 mum radius. Fabrication of the sensors for the measurements is described. Fabrication of the nanostructure at the carbon fiber sensor surface exposes surface pores. SEM images confirm the formation of the nanostructure. The results indicate that the nanostructure improves the sensitivity and limit of detection (LOD) in the measurements of xanthine and uric acid. The sensors allow rapid direct measurements of xanthine in 2000-fold diluted xanthinuric urine and of uric acid in 2000-fold diluted normal urine. The sensitivity and the LOD of xanthine is 0.40 +/- 0.02 nA microM(-1) (0.995) and 1 microM, respectively, and 0.99 +/- 0.01 nA microM(-1) (0.998) and 500 nM for uric acid. The concentration of xanthine in 2000-fold diluted xanthinuric urine is 1.6 +/- 0.2 muM from FSV and from HPLC. The concentration of xanthine and uric acid in urine can be determined by pre- or post-calibration of the sensor in buffer or by the method of standard addition.

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Vegetables cultivated in soil irrigated with untreated groundwater and municipal-waste-dominated (MWD) stream can elevate the concentration of heavy metals (Cd, Fe, Zn, Hg, Cr, and Ni) in edible parts of the crop, affecting food safety and public health worldwide. This study assessed the quality, sources, and distribution of heavy metals in surface soils, MWD stream and groundwater, and edible tissues of leafy and non-leafy vegetables from a major urban farm in the Sekondi-Takoradi metropolis, Ghana. Human health risk due to exposure to the metals in frequently consumed vegetables were investigated. Indigenous leafy vegetables (Corchorus olitorious and Amaranthus spinosus), exotic leafy vegetables (Lactuca sativa, Brassica oleracea, and Brassica rapa), and non-leafy vegetables (Capsicum annum, Raphanus sativus, Daucus carota, and Allium cepa) were collected from the urban farm. The mean concentration of Cd, Hg, and Fe ranged from 0.008 -0.027, 0.001-0.013, and 4.517-36.178 mg/ kg fw in edible parts of non-leafy vegetables, respectively and 0.011-0.035, 0.002-0.011, and 3.617-13.695 mg/ kg fw in exotic or indigenous leafy vegetables. The vegetables were less impacted with the metals if compared to similar vegetables produced from other urban farms, locally and in some countries in Africa, Asia, and Europe. Water resource on the farm were not suitable for vegetable crop irrigation since mean concentration of E. coli (200 cfu/mL), Hg (0.009 mg/L), and Cd (0.019 mg/L) in the MWD stream and 80 % of the groundwater sources exceeded the safe limits recommended by the Food and Agriculture Organization. Geo-accumulation index for each metal in soil was 0, however, enrichment factor indicated a high anthropic enriched soil for Cr and Ni. Principal component analysis-multiple linear regression of the metals in soil identified mixed household waste/ fertilizer, fertilizer, and crustal material as main sources for the heavy metal load in soil for which geogenic sources accounted for 74.3 %. Preferentially, Cd and Hg accumulated in Amaranthus spinosus, Daucus carota, and Corchorus olitorious. The estimated daily intake of each metal in the vegetables were below local and international daily dietary intake levels. At the 95 th percentile concentration of each metal, target hazard quotient and the hazard index was <1 for adult male or female who consume the vegetables. Finally, appropriate agri-horticultural practices must be enforced to mitigate Cd, Ni, Cr, and Hg accumulation in the soil-vegetable system since the metals have profound adverse effect on human health.

BackgroundThe ineffectiveness of artesunate and amodiaquine tablets in malaria treatment remains a health burden to WHO and governments of malaria-endemic countries, including Ghana. The proliferation of illegitimate anti-malarial drugs and its use by patients is of primary concern to international and local drug regulatory agencies because such drugs are known to contribute to the development of the malaria-resistant parasites in humans. No data exist on quality of these drugs in the fishing village communities in Ghana although the villagers are likely users of such drugs. A pilot study on the quality of anti-malarial tablets in circulation during the major fishing season at a malarious fishing village located along the coast of Tema in southern Ghana was determined.MethodsBlisterpacks of anti-malarial tablets were randomly sampled. The International Pharmacopoeia and Global Pharma Health Fund Minilab protocols were used to assess the quality of anti-malarial tablets per blisterpacks allegedly manufactured by Guilin Pharmaceutical Co Ltd, China (GPCL) and Letap Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Ghana (LPL) and sold in chemical sales outlets at Kpone-on–Sea. Ferric chloride and cobaltous thiocyanate tests confirmed the presence of active ingredients in the tablets. A confirmatory test for the active ingredient was achieved with artesunate (ICRS1409) and amodiaquine (ICRS0209) reference standards. A high performance liquid chromatography analysis confirmed the amount of artesunate found in tablets.ResultsBased on the International Pharmacopoeia acceptable range of 96/98 to 102% for genuine artesunate per tablet, 10% [relative standard deviation (RSD): 3.2%] of field-selected artesunate blisterpack per tablets manufactured by GPCL, and 50% (RSD: 5.1%) of a similar package per tablet by LPL, passed the titrimetric test. However, 100% (RSD: 2.2%) of amodiaquine blisterpack per tablet by GPCL were found to be within the International Pharmacopeia acceptable range of 90 to 110% for genuine amodiaquine in tablet, whilst 17% of a similar package per tablet by LPL failed spectrophotometric testing.ConclusionInadequate amounts of artesunate and amodiaquine detected in the tablets suggest that both pharmaceutical companies may not be following recommended drug formulation procedures, or the active pharmaceutical ingredients might have been degraded by improper storage conditions. Thus, drugs being sold at Kpone-on-Sea, Ghana may likely be classified as substandard drugs and not suitable for malaria treatment.