Inflammatory demyelinating diseases of the central nervous system in Niger

Background

In sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), few studies have been reported on inflammatory demyelinating diseases of the central nervous system (CNS). Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) seems to be the most frequent inflammatory demyelinating disease of CNS in sub-Saharan Africans or people of sub-Saharan African descent.

Assessment of indirect cost-of-illness in a subsistence farming society by using different valuation methods

Indirect costs or productive labour time lost are the largest share of household economic burden of illness. However, the estimate of household indirect cost can vary depending on the valuation methods used. We therefore estimated household indirect cost in a subsistence farming society in Burkina Faso based on daily production value. These results were validated by using willingness-to-pay method and current wage rate. Among the three methods, the value of a day lost for adults assessed by willingness-to-pay method was considerably higher than other methods. There were no significant differences in indirect costs estimated by daily production value and wage rate. There were significantly higher indirect costs for households which were of higher economic status when daily production value was used. It might raise a question of equity. The willingness-to-pay method can capture the various aspects of indirect cost such as differences among age groups and gender, important individual characteristics and seasons. Thus, it is an appropriate approach for rural subsistence farmer communities. Estimation of indirect cost by wage rate can also be used as a rapid estimation of indirect cost in a rural area in developing countries as an alternative for daily production value.     

Étude de la prévalence des oocystes de <Emphasis Type="Italic">Toxoplasma gondii</Emphasis> chez le chat à Nouakchott

The aim of the work was to evaluate the prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii oocyst shedding on a sample of 100 cats in five districts of Nouakchott, Mauritania. The faecal flotation method revealed that 23% ± 0.08 of cats which underwent the test excreted oocysts and the prevalence was influenced by age and sex. Excretion rates were significantly higher in neighborhoods of Basra (27.8 ± 0.2), Elmina (25 ± 0.13) and Netegue (20 ± 0.35). The average parasite number was less than 5 oocysts/5 g faeces. Hence, the results suggest that cats have an important role in the transmission of the zoonosis in Nouakchott.     

Increased Vancomycin Susceptibility in Mycobacteria: a New Approach To Identify Synergistic Activity against Multidrug-Resistant Mycobacteria

Mycobacterium tuberculosis is wrapped in complex waxes, impermeable to most antibiotics. Comparing Mycobacterium bovis BCG and M. tuberculosis mutants that lack phthiocerol dimycocerosates (PDIM) and/or phenolic glycolipids with wild-type strains, we observed that glycopeptides strongly inhibited PDIM-deprived mycobacteria. Vancomycin together with a drug targeting lipid synthesis inhibited multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) clinical isolates. Our study puts glycopeptides in the pipeline of potential antituberculosis (TB) agents and might provide a new antimycobacterial drug-screening strategy.     

Viral dynamics of primary HIV-1 infection in Senegal, West Africa

BACKGROUND: Few studies have addressed primary human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type 1 infection in sub-Saharan Africa, where the epidemic is of a predominantly heterosexual character and is caused by different subtypes. The present study examines the dynamics of viral replication in subjects infected with various HIV-1 subtypes. METHODS: Seven hundred fifty-two HIV-negative Senegalese women at high risk for infection were monitored every 3 months for acute/early HIV infection; 26 infections were identified (23 HIV-1 and 3 HIV-2), with an HIV-1 incidence rate of 3.23 cases/person-years observation. Multiple viral-load measurements were taken for all seroconverters. RESULTS: The mean+/-standard deviation viral load for all subjects during the early stage of infection was 4.13+/-0.66 log10 copies/mL, with an overall decrease of 0.22 log10 copies/mL after the early stage; the viral set point was reached after 12 months of infection. Most subjects had relatively low viral loads during the early stage of infection. HIV-1 CRF02_AG-infected women had a significantly higher mean viral load during the early stage of infection (mean +/- SD, 4.45+/-0.60 log(10) copies/mL) than did non-HIV-1 CRF02_AG-infected women (mean+/-SD, 3.78+/-0.46 log(10) copies/mL) (P=.008). None of the subjects reported symptoms consistent with primary HIV-1 infection. CONCLUSION: Our findings in Senegalese women differ from what have been described for primary HIV-1 infection. Further investigations of primary infections with non-B subtypes are warranted, to better characterize their differences with primary infections with subtype B.     

Development of a combined broadband near-infrared and diffusion correlation system for monitoring cerebral blood flow and oxidative metabolism in preterm infants

Neonatal neuromonitoring is a major clinical focus of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and there is an increasing interest in measuring cerebral blood flow (CBF) and oxidative metabolism (CMRO₂) in addition to the classic tissue oxygenation saturation (StO₂). The purpose of this study was to assess the ability of broadband NIRS combined with diffusion correlation spectroscopy (DCS) to measured changes in StO₂, CBF and CMRO₂ in preterm infants undergoing pharmaceutical treatment of patent ductus arteriosus. CBF was measured by both DCS and contrast-enhanced NIRS for comparison. No significant difference in the treatment-induced CBF decrease was found between DCS (27.9 ± 2.2%) and NIRS (26.5 ± 4.3%). A reduction in StO₂ (70.5 ± 2.4% to 63.7 ± 2.9%) was measured by broadband NIRS, reflecting the increase in oxygen extraction required to maintain CMRO₂. This study demonstrates the applicability of broadband NIRS combined with DCS for neuromonitoring in this patient population.OCIS codes: (170.3660) Light propagation in tissues, (170.3880) Medical and biological imaging, (170.6510) Spectroscopy, tissue diagnostics