Comparative property investigation of raw and treated coconut shell biomass for potential polymer composite application.

The use of environmentally friendly materials for industrial applications has increased tremendously in the past decades due to environmental concerns associated with using synthetic materials. The present comparative investigation studied the properties of raw and chemically-treated coconut shell biomass for possible polymeric composite applications. The coconut shell biomass was treated with alkali (NaOH), bleaching and combined NaOH-bleaching solutions and investigated the surface morphology, chemical transformations, and thermal stability.

Performance of rapid diagnostic test, light microscopy, and polymerase chain reaction in pregnant women with asymptomatic malaria in Nigeria.

Objectives: Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) offer an attractive tool for diagnosing malaria in pregnancy. This study assessed the effectiveness of a specific RDT compared with microscopy and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in diagnosing asymptomatic malaria in pregnant women in southwest Nigeria.

Methods: The study included 406 asymptomatic pregnant women seeking antenatal care.

In-host density-dependent model of high-risk HPV virions, basal cells, lymphocytes t-cells incorporating functional responses.

Cervical cancer is one of the most common types of cancer and it is caused mostly by high-risk Human Papillomavirus (HPV) and continues to spread at an alarming rate. While HPV impacts have been investigated before, there are currently only a scanty number of mathematical models that account for HPV's dynamic role in cervical cancer. The objectives were to develop an in-host density-dependent deterministic model for the dynamics implications of basal cells, virions, and lymphocytes incorporating immunity and functional responses.

The Different Gene Expression Profile in the Eutopic and Ectopic Endometrium Sheds New Light on the Endometrial Seed in Endometriosis.

The changes in endometrial cells, both in the eutopic endometrium of patients with and without endometriosis and in lesions at ectopic sites, are frequently described and often compared to tumorigenesis. In tumorigenesis, the concept of "seed and soil" is well established. The seed refers to tumor cells with metastatic potential, and the soil is any organ or tissue that provides a suitable environment for the seed to grow.

Analysis of Membrane Type-1 Matrix Metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP, MMP14) in Eutopic and Ectopic Endometrium and in Serum and Endocervical Mucus of Endometriosis.

Background: Membrane type-matrix metalloproteinases (MT-MMPs) are a subgroup of the matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) family and are key molecules in the degradation of the extracellular matrix. Membrane type-1 matrix metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP, MMP14) is often deregulated in different cancer tissues and body fluids of human cancer patients; however, MT1-MMP levels in endometriosis and adenomyosis patients are currently unknown.

Materials And Methods: Tissue samples from patients with and without endometriosis or adenomyosis were analyzed with immunohistochemistry for the localization of MT1-MMP.

Human NCR3 gene variants rs2736191 and rs11575837 alter longitudinal risk for development of pediatric malaria episodes and severe malarial anemia.

Background: Plasmodium falciparum malaria is a leading cause of pediatric morbidity and mortality in holoendemic transmission areas. Severe malarial anemia [SMA, hemoglobin (Hb) < 5.0 g/dL in children] is the most common clinical manifestation of severe malaria in such regions.

HIV-1 Transmission Cluster in Injection Drug Users in Nairobi City, Kenya.

Background: While there is a striking increase in the prevalence of HIV in injection drug users, information on envelope-gene subtypes and transmission clusters in injection drug users is scarce.

Method: In a cross-sectional study, 247 injection drug users were recruited via out-rich method. Deoxyribonucleic acid was extracted from dry blood spot samples, amplified by Polymerase Chain Reaction and sequenced.

Hemoglobinopathies, merozoite surface protein-2 gene polymorphisms, and acquisition of Epstein Barr virus among infants in Western Kenya.

Background: Epstein Barr virus (EBV)-associated endemic Burkitt's Lymphoma pediatric cancer is associated with morbidity and mortality among children resident in holoendemic Plasmodium falciparum regions in western Kenya. P. falciparum exerts strong selection pressure on sickle cell trait (SCT), alpha thalassemia (-α/αα), glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD), and merozoite surface protein 2 (MSP-2) variants (FC27, 3D7) that confer reduced malarial disease severity.

Application of Hybridization Chain Reaction/CRISPR-Cas12a for the Detection of SARS-CoV-2 Infection.

Globally, the emergence of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has had a significant impact on life. The need for ongoing SARS-CoV-2 screening employing inexpensive and quick diagnostic approaches is undeniable, given the ongoing pandemic and variations in vaccine administration in resource-constrained regions. This study presents results as proof of concept to use hybridization chain reaction (HCR) and clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/Cas12a complex for detecting SARS-CoV-2.

Prevalence of brucellosis in livestock keepers and domestic ruminants in Baringo County, Kenya.

Brucellosis is widely distributed in more than 170 countries around the world, where it poses a huge threat to animal husbandry and human health. Brucellosis is a worldwide re-emerging zoonotic disease that poses serious public health problems in many developing countries including Kenya. However, prevalence of brucellosis has not been determined in Baringo County, Kenya, yet there is a continuous movement of cattle resulting from trade and grazing, thus predisposing many herds to brucellosis infection.

Activin A Modulates Betaglycan Shedding via the ALK4-SMAD3-Dependent Pathway in Endometriotic Cells.

The TGF-β superfamily members, activins and inhibins, are mainly involved in cell proliferation, cell survival, invasion, immune surveillance, and lesion growth in endometriosis. Herein, we investigated the modulation of the TGF-β type III receptor (betaglycan or BG) by activin A and inhibin A in endometriosis in vitro. Often, BG undergoes ectodomain shedding releasing soluble BG (sBG) which frequently antagonizes TGF-β signaling.

Nonsynonymous amino acid changes in the α-chain of complement component 5 influence longitudinal susceptibility to infections and severe malarial anemia in kenyan children.

Severe malarial anemia (SMA; Hb < 5.0 g/dl) is a leading cause of childhood morbidity and mortality in holoendemic transmission regions such as western Kenya. We investigated the relationship between two novel complement component 5 (C5) missense mutations [rs17216529:C>T, p(Val145Ile) and rs17610:C>T, p(Ser1310Asn)] and longitudinal outcomes of malaria in a cohort of Kenyan children (under 60 mos, n = 1,546).

Resistance of sensu lato to Pirimiphos-methyl Insecticide in Kakamega County, Highlands of Western Kenya.

Background: Insecticide treated bed nets and Indoor residual spraying remains the principal interventional malaria control strategies. To achieve malaria disease eradication, vector control programmes that monitor insecticide resistance profiles are necessary.

Objective: The study evaluated pirimiphos-methyl susceptibility of sensu lato in Kakamega County, western Kenya.

Genetic variation in CSF2 (5q31.1) is associated with longitudinal susceptibility to pediatric malaria, severe malarial anemia, and all-cause mortality in a high-burden malaria and HIV region of Kenya.

Plasmodium falciparum infections remain among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in holoendemic transmission areas. Located within region 5q31.1, the colony-stimulating factor 2 gene (CSF2) encodes granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), a hematopoietic growth factor that mediates host immune responses.

Impaired Expression of Membrane Type-2 and Type-3 Matrix Metalloproteinases in Endometriosis but Not in Adenomyosis.

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) play an important role in menstruation and endometriosis; however, the membrane-type matrix metalloproteinases (MT-MMPs) are not well studied in endometriosis and adenomyosis. We analyzed MT2-MMP (MMP15) and MT3-MMP (MMP16) in eutopic endometrium with and without endometriosis and with and without adenomyosis and ectopic endometrium of deep infiltrating endometriosis (DIE), peritoneal endometriosis (PE), and ovarian endometriosis (Ov) by immunohistochemistry. Preferential expression of both proteins was observed in the glandular and luminal epithelial cells of the eutopic endometrium of patients with and without endometriosis with a ~2.

Role of Betaglycan in TGF-β Signaling and Wound Healing in Human Endometriotic Epithelial Cells and in Endometriosis.

Endometriosis is characterized by the presence of ectopic endometrium most often in the pelvis. The transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) superfamily is also involved in the pathogenesis; however, betaglycan (BG, syn. TGF-β type III receptor) as an important co-receptor was not studied.

Genetic Diversity and Population Structure of Doum Palm () Using Genotyping by Sequencing.

Doum palm () is a perennial economic plant primarily growing in Kenya's Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs). It is heavily relied upon for food, animal feed, construction materials and medicine, making it an ideal plant for resource sustainability. However, the limited information on its genetic resources has hindered its breeding and conservation studies.

A Comprehensive COVID-19 Daily News and Medical Literature Briefing to Inform Health Care and Policy in New Mexico: Implementation Study.

Background: On March 11, 2020, the New Mexico Governor declared a public health emergency in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The New Mexico medical advisory team contacted University of New Mexico (UNM) faculty to form a team to consolidate growing information on severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and its disease to facilitate New Mexico's pandemic management. Thus, faculty, physicians, staff, graduate students, and medical students created the "UNM Global Health COVID-19 Intelligence Briefing.

Differential Gene Expression in Host Ubiquitination Processes in Childhood Malarial Anemia.

Malaria remains one of the leading global causes of childhood morbidity and mortality. In holoendemic transmission regions, such as western Kenya, severe malarial anemia [SMA, hemoglobin (Hb) < 6.0 g/dl] is the primary form of severe disease.

Complement component 3 mutations alter the longitudinal risk of pediatric malaria and severe malarial anemia.

Severe malarial anemia (SMA) is a leading cause of childhood morbidity and mortality in holoendemic transmission regions. To gain enhanced understanding of predisposing factors for SMA, we explored the relationship between complement component 3 (C3) missense mutations [rs2230199 (2307C>G, Arg>Gly) and rs11569534 (34420G>A, Gly>Asp)], malaria, and SMA in a cohort of children (n = 1617 children) over 36 months of follow-up. Variants were selected based on their ability to impart amino acid substitutions that can alter the structure and function of C3.

Abundance and Distribution of Malaria Vectors in Various Aquatic Habitats and Land Use Types in Kakamega County, Highlands of Western Kenya.

Background: Management of malaria transmission relies heavily on vector control. Implementation and sustenance of effective control measures require regular monitoring of malaria vector occurrences, species abundance and distribution. The study assessed mosquito larval species composition, distribution and productivity in Kakamega County, western Kenya.

Phenotypic and Genotypic Antibiotic Resistant diarrheagenic pathotypes isolated from Children with Diarrhea in Nairobi City, Kenya.

Background: The marked genome plasticity of diarrheagenic Escherichia coli promotes emergence of pathotypes displaying unique phenotypic and genotypic resistance. This study examined phenotypic and genotypic antibiotic resistant diarrheagenic Escherichia coli pathotypes among children in Nairobi City, Kenya.

Methods: In a cross-sectional study, diarrheagenic Escherichia coli pathotypes were isolated from stool samples and their phenotypic and genotypic resistance against eight antimicrobial agents assayed.

Haematological abnormalities in children with sickle cell disease and non-severe malaria infection in western Kenya.

Background: In Plasmodium falciparum infection, clinical conditions such as anaemia, thrombocytopenia and leukocytosis are common. Mutation in haemoglobin sub-unit beta gene (HBB) may be a genetic factor responsible for these haematological changes during infection. However, the contributions of the carriage of different HBB genotypes on these changes remain largely unknown.

The Importance of Stromal Endometriosis in Thoracic Endometriosis.

Thoracic endometriosis (TE) is a rare type of endometriosis, where endometrial tissue is found in or around the lungs and is frequent among extra-pelvic endometriosis patients. Catamenial pneumothorax (CP) is the most common form of TE and is characterized by recurrent lung collapses around menstruation. In addition to histology, immunohistochemical evaluation of endometrial implants is used more frequently.

Association between haematological parameters and sickle cell genotypes in children with Plasmodium falciparum malaria resident in Kisumu County in Western Kenya.

Background: Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a monogenic disorder due to point mutation in the β-globin gene resulting in substitution of Valine for Glutamic acid. The SCD is prevalent in P. falciparum endemic regions such as western Kenya.