Authors: Ademokoya A.A.
Background: The pathogenic bacteria causing various diseases in man and animals have divers’ means and routs of infection. The clear understanding of the vehicle by which a disease is transmitted or spread is highly significant in controlling the disease; various diseases have been reported by different authors to have been contacted from communal water supply, fomites and other materials jointly shared or used by the people living in a community. Therefore, this study was designed to evaluate the kind of pathogens associated with the Nigerian’s currency in order to educate the citizenry on the proper and the hygienic ways of handling money.
Methods: Swabbed samples the Nigerian’s currency was collected from different occupational group of people in Ondo State namely: students, commuters, farmers, market people, artisans, office workers, butchers, and bankers. The samples were subjected to standard microbiology test techniques in order to identify the pathogens associated
with the Nigerian’s currency.
Result: Concerning the study data, one-way ANOVA was done using statistical software SPSS Version 20. The total viable microbial count of the Nigerian’s Naira note ranged from 2.0 x 102 to 9.8 x 102 Coliform Forming Unit/ mil (CFU/ML) of the sterile distilled water used as the diluent. In this study, the result of the pathogenic microorganisms isolated is arranged in descending order as follow: Staphylococcus aurous (198%), Pseudomonad aeruginosa (178%), Salmonella typhi (60%), and Escherichia coli O157:H7 (56%).
Conclusion: This study shows that the Nigerian currency notes are contaminated with pathogenic microorganisms especially the enteric pathogens that can cause severe infection in susceptible individuals. Therefore, the teeming population should be informed on strict hygienic practices, such as hands washing after contact with money.
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