Publications by authors named "Prabhat Jha"

Liver cancer is one of the most prevalent malignant diseases in humans and the second leading cause of cancer-related mortality globally. Angiopteris helferiana was mentioned as a possible anticancer herb according to ethnomedicinal applications. However, the molecular docking and chemical profiling of the bioactive phytoconstituents accountable for the reported anticancer action still require research.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Although death in old age is unavoidable, premature death-defined here as death before age 70 years-is not. To assess whether halving premature mortality by 2050 is feasible, we examined the large variation in premature death rates before age 70 years and trends over the past 50 years (1970-2019), covering ten world regions and the 30 most-populous nations. This analysis was undertaken in conjunction with the third report of The Lancet Commission on Investing in Health: Global Health 2050: the path to halving premature death by mid-century.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • * Analysis of WHO mortality data revealed that colorectal cancer mortality rates have increased in several countries, particularly in the UK and Mexico, despite a general decline in total cancer mortality across most nations.
  • * The findings underscore the importance of addressing the obesity epidemic and enhancing cancer surveillance strategies aimed at younger populations to combat the rising mortality from colorectal cancer.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The unique historical and cultural background of Nepal has shaped its perspective on cannabis usage. Narcotic Drugs Control Act 1976 of Nepal prohibits the cultivation, production, manufacture, sales, and distribution of narcotic drugs, which also include various forms of cannabis. With proponents for cannabis legalization increasing in the country, it is equally crucial to analyze context and practices in countries already adopting legalization.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

While SARS-CoV-2 infection appears to have spread widely throughout Africa, documentation of associated mortality is limited. We implemented a representative serosurvey in one city of Sierra Leone in Western Africa, paired with nationally representative mortality and selected death registration data. Cumulative seroincidence using high quality SARS-CoV-2 serological assays was 69% by July 2021, rising to 84% by April 2022, mostly preceding SARS-CoV-2 vaccination.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Malaria contributes substantially to the persistent burden of child deaths in sub-Saharan Africa. Accurate and comprehensive malaria mortality data are crucial to monitor the progress in reducing malaria incidence and mortality. Verbal Autopsy (VA) ascertains the cause of death despite its limitations leading to misclassification errors.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Few national-level studies have evaluated the impact of 'hybrid' immunity (vaccination coupled with recovery from infection) from the Omicron variants of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

Methods: From May 2020 to December 2022, we conducted serial assessments (each of ~4000-9000 adults) examining SARS-CoV-2 antibodies within a mostly representative Canadian cohort drawn from a national online polling platform. Adults, most of whom were vaccinated, reported viral test-confirmed infections and mailed self-collected dried blood spots (DBSs) to a central lab.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Ethnomedicinally, more than 2000 plants were found to be used in Nepal. Among them, the red colored rhizome of and the bark of have been used widely to treat muscle fatigue, bone pain, fever, postpartum hemorrhage, and thirst by healers in Kaski and Tanahun districts, Nepal. However, scientific evidence towards their traditional uses is lacking till December, 2023.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Ethiopia, with about 10% of Africa's population, has little direct information on causes of death, particularly in rural areas where 80% of Ethiopians live. In 2019-2020, we conducted electronic verbal autopsies (e-VA) to examine causes of death and quantify cause-specific mortality rates in rural Ethiopia.

Methods: We examined deaths under 70 years in the three years prior to the survey dates (November 25, 2019-February 29, 2020) among 2% of East Gojjam Zone (Amhara Region) using registered deaths and adding random sampling in this cross-sectional study.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: The extent to which the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 raised death rates in China during its viral wave of December 2022-January 2023 remains largely undocumented.

Methods: We worked with an established national survey organization to survey 8,004 adults in all 31 administrative areas of China to ask about deaths in families since January 2020. We examined age-specific death rates, focusing on deaths above age 60 years, and at 15-59 years.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Numerous bacterial species associate with plants through commensal, mutualistic, or parasitic association, affecting host physiology and health. The mechanism for such association is intricate and involves the secretion of multiple biochemical substances through dedicated protein systems called secretion systems SS. Eleven SS pathways deliver protein factors and enzymes in their immediate environment or host cells, as well as in competing microbial cells in a contact-dependent or independent fashion.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

BACKGROUND: Smoking cessation reduces mortality and morbidity. However, the extent and rapidity at which cessation reduces contemporary death rates from smoking-related illnesses remain uncertain. METHODS: We pooled current or former versus never cigarette smoker hazard ratios from four national cohorts with linkage to death registries in the United States, United Kingdom, Norway, and Canada among adults 20 to 79 years of age from 1974 to 2018.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Smoking globally kills over half of long-term smokers and causes about 7 million annual deaths. The World Health Organization Framework Convention for Tobacco Control (FCTC) is the main global policy strategy to combat smoking, but its effectiveness is uncertain. Our interrupted time series analyses compared before- and after-FCTC trends in the numbers and prevalence of smokers below the age of 25 years (when smoking initiation occurs and during which response to interventions is greatest) and on cessation at 45-59 years (when quitting probably occurs) in 170 countries, excluding China.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Deaths in lower income countries often go unrecorded, making verbal autopsy, a method to determine causes of death through interviews with family members, essential for gathering critical health data.
  • A study in Southeast Asia highlighted the importance of understanding local customs and cultural practices surrounding death to ensure emotional sensitivity during interviews.
  • Key findings included variations in mourning practices across different demographics, recommendations on timing for interviews, and the necessity for respectful community engagement to facilitate effective data collection.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: To look at the associations between labour market outcomes and major risk factors for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) (smoking, heavy alcohol consumption), key metabolic changes resultant of the risk factors (overweight and obesity, hypertension, type 2 diabetes), and major depressive disorder, and examine any gender differences.

Design: Systematic review of cohort and longitudinal studies, to establish causality between exposures and outcomes.

Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted in MEDLINE (Ovid), Embase (Ovid), EconLit (EBSCO), EconPapers, and Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, from inception to July 2022 for all peer-reviewed literature published, guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) framework.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The article reviews the large body of evidence on how taxation affects the consumption of tobacco, alcohol, and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB). There is abundant evidence that demand for tobacco, alcohol, and SSB is price-responsive and that tax changes are quickly passed on to consumers. This suggests that taxes can be highly effective in changing consumption and reducing the burden of diseases associated with consuming these products.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

After a period of unprecedented progress against malaria in the 2000s, halving the global disease burden by 2015, gains overall in sub-Saharan Africa have slowed and even reversed in some places, beginning well before the COVID-19 pandemic. The highly effective drugs, treated nets, and diagnostics that fueled the initial progress all face some threats to their effectiveness, and global funding to maintain and increase their use over the long term is not guaranteed. Malaria vaccines are among the most promising new interventions that could accelerate the elimination of malaria.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Environmental concerns and rising biosurfactant demand emphasize the need for this study. The objective is to maximize rhamnolipid-biosurfactant production by (SSL-4) utilizing waste engine oil (WEO) as the sole substrate for use in soil bioremediation and commercial production. Using an L Taguchi orthogonal array, a signal-to-noise ratio, and an analysis of variance (ANOVA), the effects of environmental (pH, incubation temperature) and dietary parameters (carbon source concentration, carbon/nitrogen (C/N) and carbon/phosphorus (C/P) ratio) are examined.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

It is uncertain whether malaria is an important cause of death among adults in endemic areas. We performed a chart review of adults admitted to Bo Government Hospital during 2019. Of 893 admissions, 149 (59% female, mean age 58.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: During the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, the proportion of reported cases of COVID-19 among Canadians was under 6%. Although high vaccine coverage was achieved in Canada by fall 2021, the Omicron variant caused unprecedented numbers of infections, overwhelming testing capacity and making it difficult to quantify the trajectory of population immunity.

Methods: Using a time-series approach and data from more than 900 000 samples collected by 7 research studies collaborating with the COVID-19 Immunity Task Force (CITF), we estimated trends in SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence owing to infection and vaccination for the Canadian population over 3 intervals: prevaccination (March to November 2020), vaccine roll-out (December 2020 to November 2021), and the arrival of the Omicron variant (December 2021 to March 2023).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Despite the relevance of E. cloacae as an opportunistic pathogen, very little is known about its pathogenicity mechanism and the factors influencing its virulence. The mechanism of E.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests generally report only binary (positive or negative) outcomes. Quantitative PCR tests can provide epidemiological information on viral transmission patterns in populations. SARS-CoV-2 transmission patterns during India's SARS-CoV-2 viral waves remain largely undocumented.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF