Mental Health Literacy of University Students in Vietnam and Cambodia

Mental health literacy (MHL) refers to knowledge and attitudes that shape the recognition, management, and prevention of mental disorders. While the topic has been exhaustively researched in Western countries, research from Southeast Asia still is limited. Previous studies in this field showed a moderate recognition of mental disorders, a high prevalence of stigmatizing attitudes and a low willingness to seek professional help among Southeastern-Asian populations. This study explored the level of MHL among university students from different parts of Vietnam and Cambodia. Correlations with influencing factors (gender, age, study year, educational attainment of the parents, urban/rural origin, ethnicity, personal experiences with mental disorders) were also explored. An online survey, using a 30-item Vietnamese version of the Mental Health Literacy Scale (MHLS), was conducted at six university sites in Vietnam and Cambodia. Data of 1032 students from different study branches were included. The MHL of Vietnamese and Cambodian university students was lower, compared to samples from Australia or the UK. Females and students with a personal experience of mental disorders (self or family) showed a significantly higher MHL. No differences in MHL were found between students from different socioeconomic backgrounds (professional attainment of parents, urban/rural origin). Findings on the influence of ethnicity were inconclusive. MHL needs to be improved among the university students of Vietnam and Cambodia. Mental health promotion should specifically target male students, students from STEM branches, and international students.     

Two new sesquiterpene lactones from leaves of yacon,Smallanthus sonchifolius

The chemical constituents of 95% EtOH extract of yacon leaves were separated to yield two new sesquiterpene lactones, together with three known compounds. The two new compounds were characterized to be 8β-angeloyloxy-13-methoxyl-11, 13-dihydromelampolid-14-oic acid methyl ester (1) and 8β-(3-methylbut-2-enoyl) oxy-13-methoxyl-11, 13-dihydromelampolid-14-oic acid methyl ester (2) on the basis of NMR spectra, HR-MS and other spectroscopic methods. The cytotoxicity of compounds 1–5 were evaluated on human hepatoma cell Bel-7402 and all the compounds showed moderate cytotoxicity.     

Two new pyrrolo-2-aminoimidazoles from a Myanmarese marine sponge,Clathria prolifera

Marine organisms such as marine sponges and soft corals are valuable sources of pharmacologically active secondary metabolites. In our ongoing research on the discovery of new secondary metabolites from marine organisms, two new pyrrolo-2-aminoimidazoles, clathriroles A (1) and B (2), were isolated from the water-soluble portion prepared from the methanol and acetone (2:1) extract of the marine sponge, Clathria prolifera, collected in Myanmar. The chemical structures of the isolated compounds were determined using extensive spectroscopic techniques, including NMR, HRESIMS, IR, and optical rotation, and comparisons with the reported literature. The spectroscopic analyses of 1 and 2 suggested that 1 is an enantiomer of antifungal N-methylmanzacidin C isolated from the marine sponge Axinella brevistyla, whereas 2 is a diastereomer of manzacidin D at C-11 isolated from the marine sponge Astrosclera willeyana. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of the isolation of the pyrrolo-2-aminoimidazole compounds from C. prolifera. Furthermore, in contrast to the potency of N-methylmanzacidin C against Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the antifungal assay revealed that 1 and 2 lack any activity against this strain. Thus, these observations may suggest that the absolute configurations at both C-9 and C-11 play an important role in controlling the antifungal activity of this type of compound.

     

WHO's Service Availability and Readiness Assessment of primary health care services of commune health centers in a rural district of Northern Vietnam

The objective of this study was to assess the availability and readiness of the primary health care (PHC) services of commune health centers (CHCs) in Quoc Oai, a rural district of Northern Vietnam based on the World Health Organization's Service Availability and Readiness Assessment (SARA) tool. The study was done in 2 steps. First, the heads of the 21 CHCs of Quoc Oai district were interviewed using SARA, a quantitative survey, and the responses were then validated by direct observations of each facility. The results showed that although the average number of health staffs in each CHC met the national standards (at least 5 staffs per CHC), its allocation within each CHC was not properly met because some CHCs had only 2 health staffs. Several health equipment and facilities were not fully available in many CHCs, and although the majority of the PHC services were available at the CHCs, their readiness remained limited. Several significant correlates between the availability of health care workers and the availability of the facilities and the PHC services were observed, suggesting that they depend upon and affect one another in the health system. Using the SARA‐based inventory, the study helps health managers and policy makers to prioritize efforts and allocate resources more appropriately. To be effective, attention should be given to how to make facilities, services, and human resources for health ready for PHC activities—more investment and support from the system (from higher to lower level) and the government.     

Evaluating the utility of national‐scale data to estimate the local risk of foot‐and‐mouth disease in endemic regions

Knowledge of the distribution of foot‐and‐mouth disease (FMD) is required if control programmes are to be successful. However, data on the seroprevalence and incidence of affected villages in developing countries with endemic disease are scarce. This is partly due to resource constraints as well as the logistical challenges of conducting intensive surveys and diagnostic testing in remote locations. In this study, we evaluated the performance of low resolution national‐scale data against high resolution local survey data to predict the FMD serological status of 168 villages in the Mandalay and Sagaing Regions of central Myanmar using both logistic regression and random forest modelling approaches. Blood samples for ELISA testing were collected from approximately 30 cattle per village in both the 6 to 18 month age range and in the over 18 month age range to distinguish between recent and historical exposure, respectively. The results of the animal level tests were aggregated to the village level to provide the outcome of interest (village positive or not positive for FMD), and three explanatory data sets were constructed: using only nationally available data, using only data collected by survey and using the combined survey and nationally available data. The true seroprevalence of FMD at the village level was 61% when only young animals were included, but increased to 87% when all animals were included. The best performing model was a logistic regression model using the combined national and survey data to predict recent infection in villages. However, this still incorrectly classified 40% of villages, which suggests that using national‐level data were not reliable enough for extrapolating seroprevalence in regions where conducting detailed surveys is impractical. Other methods for collected data on FMD such as the use of local reporting should be explored.     

Blood Kidney Injury Molecule-1 Is a Biomarker of Acute and Chronic Kidney Injury and Predicts Progression to ESRD in Type I Diabetes

Currently, no blood biomarker that specifically indicates injury to the proximal tubule of the kidney has been identified. Kidney injury molecule-1 (KIM-1) is highly upregulated in proximal tubular cells following kidney injury. The ectodomain of KIM-1 is shed into the lumen, and serves as a urinary biomarker of kidney injury. We report that shed KIM-1 also serves as a blood biomarker of kidney injury. Sensitive assays to measure plasma and serum KIM-1 in mice, rats, and humans were developed and validated in the current study. Plasma KIM-1 levels increased with increasing periods of ischemia (10, 20, or 30 minutes) in mice, as early as 3 hours after reperfusion; after unilateral ureteral obstruction (day 7) in mice; and after gentamicin treatment (50 or 200 mg/kg for 10 days) in rats. In humans, plasma KIM-1 levels were higher in patients with AKI than in healthy controls or post-cardiac surgery patients without AKI (area under the curve, 0.96). In patients undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass, plasma KIM-1 levels increased within 2 days after surgery only in patients who developed AKI (P<0.01). Blood KIM-1 levels were also elevated in patients with CKD of varous etiologies. In a cohort of patients with type 1 diabetes and proteinuria, serum KIM-1 level at baseline strongly predicted rate of eGFR loss and risk of ESRD during 5–15 years of follow-up, after adjustment for baseline urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio, eGFR, and Hb1Ac. These results identify KIM-1 as a blood biomarker that specifically reflects acute and chronic kidney injury.     

Dogs as Sentinels for Flavivirus Exposure in Urban,Peri-Urban and Rural Hanoi,Vietnam

Diseases caused by flaviviruses, including dengue fever and Japanese encephalitis, are major health problems in Vietnam. This cross-sectional study explored the feasibility of domestic dogs as sentinels to better understand risks of mosquito-borne diseases in Hanoi city. A total of 475 dogs serum samples from 221 households in six districts of Hanoi were analyzed by a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (cELISA) for antibodies to the pr-E protein of West Nile virus and other flaviviruses due to cross-reactivity. The overall flavivirus seroprevalence in the dog population was 70.7% (95% CI = 66.4–74.8%). At the animal level, significant associations between seropositive dogs and district location, age, breed and keeping practice were determined. At the household level, the major risk factors were rural and peri-urban locations, presence of pigs, coil burning and households without mosquito-borne disease experience (p < 0.05). Mosquito control by using larvicides or electric traps could lower seropositivity, but other measures did not contribute to significant risk mitigation of flavivirus exposure in dogs. These results will support better control of mosquito-borne diseases in Hanoi, and they indicate that dogs can be used as sentinels for flavivirus exposure.     

Development of a portable electrochemical loop mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) device for detection of hepatitis B virus

The objective of this study was to develop a simple, inexpensive prototype device for rapid detection of hepatitis B virus (HBV). The device was able to simultaneously amplify, detect and quantify the target HBV DNA. The system was fabricated from a custom-made electrochemical set-up of which the temperature was thermostatically controlled by a water bath. Real-time monitoring of HBV DNA was accomplished by measuring the response of redox indicator in the reaction mixture. Concentration of HBV DNA in the samples was determined from the peak high ratio (PHR) and threshold time relationship. The signal was processed by sigmoidal model fitting to enhance the accuracy of the results. Key parameters including concentrations of redox indicator and reaction temperatures were optimized. Sensitivity and specificity of the method toward HBV DNA were evaluated. The prototype was capable of real-time amplification and detection of HBV DNA with concentration as low as 6.18 fg μl⁻¹. The test showed high specificity against HBV DNA. The system was also able to detect HBV positive serum directly with simple thermal pretreatment instead of tedious DNA extraction. The electrochemical set-up was compatible with microfluidic platforms and can be readily adapted for efficient and high throughput point-of-care (POC) diagnosis of HBV.

A novel prototype device using LAMP and electrochemical drop cell set-up for rapid detection of hepatitis B virus.