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Bulinus are intermediate snail hosts of Schistosoma haematobium. Despite their vectorial role, the transmission dynamics and infectivity of these intermediate snail hosts remain understudied in the Ase River. This longitudinal study evaluated the geospatial and seasonal transmission patterns and infectivity of three S. haematobium vectors between November 2020 and October 2022 in the Ase River catchment, Delta State, Nigeria. Eleven (11) geospatial water contact coordinates were mapped for monthly spatiotemporal collection of Bulinus species along the Ase River and its catchment, for two years. Snail sampling was performed for 45 minutes at each study site using scooping/hand-picking techniques and subsequently counted, identified, and recorded. Snails of the Bulinus genus were individually placed in a beaker containing distilled water and exposed to light to shed cercariae which were identified to be human schistosome type. The number of infected snails for each month and the season was also counted and recorded to establish spatiotemporal and seasonal infectivity transmission dynamics and infectivity. A total of 41.45% of the 2345 Bulinus snails collected were infected with S. haematobium. The monthly infectivity of Bulinus snails varied significantly (P < 0.05) throughout the study period (P = < 0.0001; F = 23.11; df = 11). Further analysis showed a strong significant association (χ2 = 23.57; df = 11; p = 0.015) between the study years. The Principal Component Analysis (PCA) also indicates that Bulinus infectivity in the Ase River catchment was primarily driven by February and January. B. truncatus consistently had the highest transmission potential, followed by B. globosus and B. senegalensis. ANOVA confirms that the monthly/study site infectivity and transmission potential in B. truncates, B. globosus and S. senegalensis were statistically, significant (P < 0.05). These results demonstrated a clear distinction in the patterns and relationships between the different months in terms of snail infectivity and seasonal transmission potential. This understanding will help in the continuous monitoring and targeted interventions to control schistosomiasis transmission in Ase River.

Objectives: Vegetables have been reported to be a mechanical means of transmission of human intestinal parasites. This study is aimed to ascertain the association between parasites and vegetables sold in Ethiope East, Delta State, Nigeria. Methods: Two hundred and seventy (270) vegetables were subjected to sedimentation and zinc sulphate floatation techniques for parasitic investigations. Results: Of the 270 vegetables examined, 184(68.15%) were infected. Talinium occidentalis had the highest prevalence (9.26%), closely followed by Brassica oleracea and Daucus carota with a value of 8.89% and 8.15% respectively. The highest parasite prevalence was observed in Abraka (78.89%), followed by Eku (72.22%) and Okpara water-side (53.33%). Abraka had its highest prevalence in D. carota and Cucumis sativum with a prevalence of 11.11 and 10.00% respectively. Statistically, there was no significant difference in the contaminated vegetable (p > 0.05) but a considerable significant difference was noted in the market locations (p < 0.05). The highest percentage occurrence of parasites was Ascaris lumbricoides with a percentage occurrence of 23.49. The most prevalent parasites in Abraka were A. lumbricoides (45.56%) and Entamoeba histolytica (30.00%). There was significant effect (p < 0.05) in the prevalence of parasites (p = 0.0003; df = 6; F = 11.07) and markets locations (p = 0.0019; df = 2; F = 11.01). The Principal Component Analysis showed that the study locations positively influence the occurrence of parasites with Abraka location accounting for 95.99% of the total variance. The analysis further showed that A. lumbricoides, Trichuris trichura, and hookworm prevalence were strongly correlated to Abraka and Okpara water-side locations. Conclusion: Given the public health importance of the parasites isolated, there is a need for improved environmental sanitation, personal hygiene and surveillance systems in vegetable transportation, storage and means of displays in Ethiope East and Delta State at large.