International Refereed Journal of Engineering and Science (IRJES) ISSN (Online) 2319-183X, (Print) 2319-1821 Volume 9, Issue 5 (May 2020), PP. 01-05 www.irjes.com 1 | Page Protozoan Parasites Associated With Different Water Sources In Lokoja Metropolis *Vantsawa, PA 1 .Emere, MC 1 and Ochedi, MO 1 1 Department of Biological Sciences, Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) Kaduna, Kaduna State, Nigeria. ABSTRACT This study was conducted to examine and identify the protozoan parasites associated with different water sources in Lokoja metropolis. A total of 600 water samples were collected, from Tap, Borehole, well and River waters for six month between February, 2018 and July, 2018 these samples were collected from five different locations namely; Lokongoma, Meme Bridge, Adankolo, kpata and Old Market in Lokoja, Kogi state, Nigeria. Lugol’s iodine was used to stain the parasites, using colouration to show parasitic features, 9 protozoan parasites were recovered from Well and River water source while no parasite was recorded for Tap and Borehole water sources.Entamoebahistolytica was observed to be the most prevalent protozoan parasite (49.8%) followed by Cocccidia species (21.3%) Opalina species (11.6%), Balantidium coli (10.7%), Chilomastixmesnili and Giardia species (2.2%), Neigleriaspecies (1.3%) while Amphileptusspecies andChillodonella species had the least occurrence of (0.4%). Out of the 225 different stages recovered, 80 of them were cysts, 50 were Oocyst while trophozoites were 95. Most of the protozoan parasites were recovered from River Niger water source in Old Market site (41.8%), followed by Lokongoma (18.2%), Meme Bridge (14.7%), Kpata (12.9%) and Adankolo had (12.4%). The month of July had the highest number of protozoan occurrence (31.6%) followed by the month of June with (18.7%) then April (16.9%), May (13.3) and March (11.6%) while the month of February had the least number of occurrence (8.0%) the result of this study shows that, water-bodies especially rivers used by inhabitants for drinking, cooking, house chores, fishing, recreation are heavily parasitizedand government intervention is required to reduce the rate of contamination, since Well water had low level of contamination, simple water treatment such as filtration, Chlorination and other disinfectants will be of great help and measures should be put in place for the provision of pipe borne-water in communities where they are lacking. KEY WORDS: Protozoan, Parasites, Water Sources, LokojaMetropolis__ --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Date of Submission: 15-09-2020 Date of acceptance: 30-09-2020 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I. INTRODUCTION Parasitic diseases are among the most important causes of morbidity and mortality in developing countries (Aazadiet al., 2014).Water related diseases are responsible for 80% of all illness or death in the developing countries and kill more than 5 million people every year (UNESCO, 2007).Parasitic diseases transmitted through water by protozoa causes epidemic and endemic diseases in both developed and developing countries. There are about 15,000 species of protozoa (Cox, 2002). Parasitic protozoa that are transmitted through water and those that cause human infections includeToxoplasma gondii, Entamoebahistolytica, Cyclosporacayetanensis, Isospora belli, Blastocystishominis, Balantidium coli, Acanthamoeba spp., Sarcocystis spp. and Naegleria spp. (Lane and Lloyd, 2002). These enteric protozoan parasites are important causes of diarrheal disease and these pathogens cause human disorders worldwide (Fontanet et al., 2000; Apichaiet al., 2005). Many of the intestinal oocyst producing protozoan parasites inhabits the gastrointestinal tracts of humans (Baquiet al., 1992).Sources of water are polluted by indiscriminate disposal of sewage, industrial waste and human activities, however,the rate of contamination vary widely depending on the location and environmental factors. In a survey carried out on the parasitic contamination of drinking water sources inEzza North Local Government Area ofEbonyi State, South East Nigeria. 63 water samples were investigated from five major water sources within the study area. Pond water was found to have the highest occurrence of parasites (35.9%)followed by stream (28.1%) well (21.9%) borehole (9.4%) while rainwater had the least percentage (4.7%). Three parasites Gardialamblia, Entamoebahistolyticaand Cryptosporidium parvum were observed in their cystic and oocystic forms. Among these parasites, Entamoebahistolystica had the highest prevalence of 29(45.3%) followed byGardialamblia 22(34.4%) and Cryptosporidium parvum 13(20.3%) (Ani and Itiba, 2015).In Heipang, BarkinLadi Local Government Area of Plateau State, Nigeria,Chollomet al., (2012) reported