Microbiological Characterization of Urinary Tract Infection-Causing Bacteria among Undergraduate Students of Tansian University, Umunya, Anambra State, Nigeria

Diagnosing infectious diseases is highly essential to proffering adequate treatment measures. Accurate detection of uropathogens during acute urinary tract infection has facilitated administration of effective antibiotics against the pathogens. This study was conducted to isolate and characterize bacterial pathogens implicated in urinary tract infections among undergraduate students at Tansian University, Umunya, Anambra, Nigeria. Forty urine samples were aseptically collected from 40 participants using sterile capped plastic bottle. The samples were analyzed for the presence of uropathogens using standard microbiological technique, and isolates were characterized based on cultural, microscopic, and biochemical features. The bacteria isolated were Gram-positive and negative and yeast cell with various cell arrangements and shapes such as Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas species, Klebsiella species, and a yeast-like Candida species. The ability of the bacterial species to produce various enzymes was shown in positive test to catalase, oxidase, coagulase, and indole, especially Staphylococcus aureus that produced a virulent factor and enzyme known as coagulase. This study has shown that uropathogens that are responsible for urinary tract infection could be isolated and characterized using cultural, microscopy, and biochemical features, though rapid detection and molecular characterization remain the ultimate.