Gastrointestinal carriage of carbapenemase-producing enterobacterales among inpatient and outpatient children in Kenya.

Gastrointestinal carriage of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria, especially carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales (CPE), presents a critical public health threat globally. However, in many resource-constrained countries, epidemiological data on CPE is limited. Here, we assessed gastrointestinal carriage and associated factors of CPE among inpatient and outpatient children (≤ 5 years).

Prevalence and associated factors of TB and HIV coinfections among adult inmates with presumptive pulmonary TB in a Kenyan prison.

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is more than ten times higher in prisons compared to the general population, and HIV-infected persons are at increased risk of developing active TB and death. In the World Health Organization (WHO) African region, however, where the TB and HIV coinfections are highest, and prisons rarely factored in national disease surveillance, epidemiological data to inform TB control interventions in correctional facilities is limited. In this study, we assessed the prevalence of TB and HIV coinfections, as well as the factors associated with coinfections in our study setting.

Carbapenem-resistant gram-negative bacterial infections and risk factors for acquisition in a Kenyan intensive care unit.

Background: Carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (CR-GNB) are a critical public health threat globally; however, there are inadequate surveillance data, especially in intensive care units (ICU), to inform infection prevention and control in many resource-constrained settings. Here, we assessed the prevalence of CR-GNB infections and risk factors for acquisition in a Kenyan ICU.

Methods: A hospital-based cross-sectional study design was adopted, recruiting 162 patients clinically presenting with bacterial infection after 48 h of ICU admission, from January to October 2022 at the Nairobi West Hospital, Kenya.

Extended-spectrum β-lactamase- producing gram-negative bacterial infections in severely ill COVID-19 patients admitted in a national referral hospital, Kenya.

Background: Bacterial infections in COVID-19 patients, especially those caused by multidrug-resistant gram-negative strains, are associated with increased morbidity, hospital stay and mortality. However, there is limited data on the epidemiology of extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing bacteria in COVID-19 patients. Here, we assessed the prevalence and the factors associated with ESBL-producing gram-negative bacterial (GNB) infections among severely ill COVID-19 patients admitted in Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH), Kenya.

Asymptomatic gastrointestinal carriage of multidrug-resistant carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae among children under five years in a Kenyan hospital.

Objectives: Asymptomatic gastrointestinal carriage of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) is a threat to global health in developing countries with inadequate safe drinking water, poor hygiene, and weak antimicrobial stewardship; however, epidemiological data to guide CRE infection prevention and control is limited in these settings. We assessed asymptomatic CRE and carbapenem-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE) fecal carriage rates and associated risk factors among hospitalized children aged under 5 years.

Methods: We adopted a cross-sectional study at Mama Lucy Kibaki Hospital in Nairobi-City County, Kenya, between June and September 2022.

Multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacterial infections and associated factors in a Kenyan intensive care unit: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Patients admitted to intensive care units (ICU) are at risk of Gram-negative bacteria (GNB) infections, especially those caused by multidrug-resistant (MDR) isolates, increasing morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs. However, epidemiological surveillance data on MDR bacteria to inform infection prevention and control (IPCs) interventions is limited in our study setting. Here we assessed the prevalence and factors associated with GNB infections in ICU- patients admitted in our study setting.

Multidrug resistant bacterial infections in severely ill COVID-19 patients admitted in a national referral and teaching hospital, Kenya.

Background: Bacterial infections are a common complication in patients with seasonal viral respiratory tract infections and are associated with poor prognosis, increased risk of intensive care unit admission and 29-55% mortality. Yet, there is limited data on the burden of bacterial infections among COVID-19 patients in Africa, where underdeveloped healthcare systems are likely to play a pertinent role in the epidemiology of the COVID-19 pandemic. Here, we evaluated the etiologies, antimicrobial resistance profiles, risk factors, and outcomes of bacterial infections in severely ill COVID-19 patients.

Multidrug-Resistant Shigellosis among Children Aged below Five Years with Diarrhea at Banadir Hospital in Mogadishu, Somalia.

Globally, shigellosis remains the second leading cause of diarrhea-associated deaths among children under five years of age, and the infections are disproportionately higher in resource-limited settings due to overcrowding, poor sanitation, and inadequate safe drinking water. The emergence and global spread of multidrug-resistant (MDR) are exacerbating the shigellosis burden. We adopted a cross-sectional study design to determine the distribution and antimicrobial susceptibility (AST) patterns of serogroups among children aged below five years presenting with diarrhea at Banadir Hospital in Mogadishu, Somalia, from August to October 2019.

Arboviruses and Blood Meal Sources in Zoophilic Mosquitoes at Human-Wildlife Interfaces in Kenya.

Zoophilic mosquitoes play an important role in the transmission of arboviruses of medical importance at human-wildlife interfaces, yet arbovirus surveillance efforts have been focused mostly on anthropophilic mosquitoes. Understanding the diversity of zoophilic mosquitoes and their associated feeding patterns and arboviruses can inform better vector control strategies. We morphologically identified mosquitoes collected from two game reserves in Kenya, the Maasai Mara National Reserve (MMNR) and locations near the Shimba Hills National Reserve (SHNR).

Structural and functional analysis of an anchorless fibronectin-binding protein FBPS from Gram-positive bacterium Streptococcus suis.

The anchorless fibronectin-binding proteins (FnBPs) are a group of important virulence factors for which the structures are not available and the functions are not well defined. In this study we performed comprehensive studies on a prototypic member of this group: the fibronectin-/fibrinogen-binding protein from Streptococcus suis (FBPS). The structures of the N- and C-terminal halves (FBPS-N and FBPS-C), which together cover the full-length protein in sequence, were solved at a resolution of 2.

In vitro assembly of Ebola virus nucleocapsid-like complex expressed in E. coli.

Ebola virus (EBOV) harbors an RNA genome encapsidated by nucleoprotein (NP) along with other viral proteins to form a nucleocapsid complex. Previous Cryo-eletron tomography and biochemical studies have shown the helical structure of EBOV nucleocapsid at nanometer resolution and the first 450 amino-acid of NP (NPΔ451-739) alone is capable of forming a helical nucleocapsid-like complex (NLC). However, the structural basis for NP-NP interaction and the dynamic procedure of the nucleocapsid assembly is yet poorly understood.

Structures of the Zika Virus Envelope Protein and Its Complex with a Flavivirus Broadly Protective Antibody.

Zika virus (ZIKV), a mosquito-borne flavivirus, is a current global public health concern. The flavivirus envelope (E) glycoprotein is responsible for virus entry and represents a major target of neutralizing antibodies for other flaviviruses. Here, we report the structures of ZIKV E protein at 2.