Among the animals housed at the University of Nairobi, department of Biological Sciences is the white rats. the white rats are mostly used for scientific research
The University of Nairobi’s Department of Biology, Chiromo campus, has for ages been breeding white mice and rats for research. The commonest strain are the Wistar rats, which are kept and fed in well-lit and aerated rooms with a cage holding about 10 mice.
Jacques Kabaru, an associate professor at the Department of Biology, has been the animal house in charge at Chiromo for the last 30 years.
Aflatoxins are highly toxic metabolites of several Aspergillus species widely distributed throughout the environment. These toxins have adverse effects on humans and livestock at a few micrograms per kilogram (μg/kg) concentrations. Kenya has the most recorded outbreaks of aflatoxicosis, which has resulted in death, in Africa. Aflatoxins affect not only human and animal health but also food security and trade. Though produced in small quantities, the ease with which these highly potent, carcinogenic metabolites permeate farmers’ fields, and crop value chain, is of grave concern.
