Phenotypic and genetic extended spectrum beta lactamase profiles of bacterial isolates from ICU in tertiary level hospital in Kenya.

Background: Bacterial infections in the Intensive Care Units are a threat to the lives of critically ill patients. Their vulnerable immunity predisposes them to developing bacteria-associated sepsis, deteriorating their already fragile health. In the face of increasing antibiotics resistance, the problem of bacterial infection in ICU is worsening.

Digital Meditation to Target Employee Stress: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Mindfulness meditation may improve well-being among employees; however, effects of digital meditation programs are poorly understood.

Objective: To evaluate the effects of digital meditation vs a waiting list condition on general and work-specific stress and whether greater engagement in the intervention moderates these effects.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This randomized clinical trial included a volunteer sample of adults (aged ≥18 years) employed at a large academic medical center who reported mild to moderate stress, had regular access to a web-connected device, and were fluent in English.

The Bacterial and pathogenic landscape of African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) whole blood and serum from Kenya.

Background: African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) is a significant reservoir host for many zoonotic and parasitic infections in Africa. These include a range of viruses and pathogenic bacteria, such as tick-borne rickettsial organisms. Despite the considerations of mammalian blood as a sterile environment, blood microbiome sequencing could become crucial for agnostic biosurveillance.

Effect of Different Formulations and Storage on the Physicochemical, Microbiological, and Organoleptic Characteristics of Fruit Yogurt.

This study investigated the effect of incorporating up to 15% (/) fruit pulp into cow milk yogurt. Monitoring the physico-chemical, microbiological, and organoleptic properties of these formulations was performed weekly during refrigerated (4 °C) storage for 21 days. Compared to the control, formulations with added pulp recorded enhanced contents of ascorbic acid, total polyphenols, fiber, total titratable acidity (TTA), and yellowness, which is in line with increasing fruit pulp.

A cross-sectional study on socio-demographic correlates of self-reported self-care practices for hypertension and type 2 diabetes among adults living in rural Kenya.

Background: Hypertension and type 2 diabetes are among the most common non-communicable diseases that contribute to a large number of adult morbidity and mortality in Kenya. The impact of these conditions may pose great challenges in rural areas with limited access to healthcare services. The objective of the study was to assess socio-demographic factors associated with self-reported self-care practices for hypertension and type 2 diabetes among adults living in rural Kenya.

Love Components in Free-Choice and Arranged Marriages Among Five Non-Western Populations From Africa, Amazonia, and Himalayas.

Two main ways to enter a marriage are through free choice and through an arrangement between families, known as an arranged marriage. In this study, we compared differences in three dimensions of love (Intimacy, Passion, and Commitment) between spouses in love-based marriages and arranged marriages among five non-Western societies: Bhotiya from the Himalayas, Igbo from Nigeria, Kimeru from Kenya, Meru from Tanzania, and Tsimane' from Bolivia. When considering all data gathered from the five cultures, free choice and arranged marriages did not differ significantly in average love scores.

The spatiotemporal and dependency analysis of selected meteorological parameters and normalized difference vegetation index with aerosol optical depth over east Africa.

The unprecedented rise in atmospheric aerosols, coupled with their intricate interactions with the environment through a wide array of physical, chemical, and biological processes, has profoundly impacted global climate. Their presence in the atmosphere scatters and absorbs solar radiation, thus altering the amount of sunlight reaching the Earth's surface. These direct effects, along with the indirect effects of aerosols, have significantly altered atmospheric temperatures, land surface processes, global surface temperature, hydrological cycle, and ecosystems.

Extraction mechanism and bio-activities of capsaicinoids from lantern peppers placenta using deep eutectic solvents.

This study proposed ultrasound-assisted deep eutectic solvent (DES) for the extraction of capsaicinoids (CAP) from the placenta of lantern peppers. The DES of choline chloride-citric acid (ChCl-CA), with the highest CAP yield (8.25 mg/g) was screened.

Diagnostic Accuracy of FluoroCycler XT MTBDR Assay for Detection of Rifampicin and Isoniazid-resistant Mycobacteria tuberculosis in Clinical Isolates from Kenya.

Background: Drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) poses a major global challenge to public health and therapeutics. It is an emerging global concern associated with increased morbidity and mortality mostly seen in the low- and middle-income countries. Molecular techniques are highly sensitive and offer timely and accurate results for TB drug resistance testing, thereby positively influencing patient management plan.

Prosocial reputation and stress among contemporary hunter-gatherers: the Hadza case.

It has been suggested that having a reputation for being prosocial is a critical part of social status across all human societies. It has also been argued that prosocial behavior confers benefits, whether physiological, such as stress reduction, or social, such as building allies or becoming more popular. Here, we investigate the relationship between helping reputation (being named as someone others would go to for help), and hair-derived chronic stress (hair cortisol concentration).

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.

Potential Application of Camel Milk as a Therapeutic Ingredient in Bath Soaps and Shampoos.

The increasing worldwide market for natural-ingredient-based cosmetic toiletries is fuelled by the awareness of the dangers of synthetic cosmetics and benefits of natural-based cosmetics on the skincare and management of skin disorders. Besides naturally formulated cosmetics being biodegradable, they also contain ingredients which are chemically beneficial to human skin. Milk-based cosmetics are very promising since milk is rich in essential components such as lactoferrins, vitamins, and lactic acids, which have shown therapeutic properties against disorders such as skin cancer, acne scars, and dandruff.

Comparative sanitation data from high-frequency phone surveys across 3 countries.

With less than half of the world's urban population having safely managed sanitation due to the high cost and difficulty of building sewers and treatment plants, many rely on off-grid options like pit latrines and septic tanks, which are hard to empty and often lead to illegal waste dumping; this research focuses on container-based sanitation (CBS) as an emerging off-grid solution. Off-grid sanitation refers to waste management systems that operate independently of centralized infrastructure and CBS is a service providing toilets that collect human waste in sealable containers, which are regularly emptied and safely disposed of. These data relate to a project investigating CBS in Kenya, Peru, and South Africa, focusing on how different user groups access and utilize sanitation - contrasting CBS with other types.

Height and integration in proximity networks among Tanzanian Hadza men.

In recent years there has been much interest in investigating the extent to which social status or prestige are related to an individual's degree of integration in social networks. It has been shown that, among hunter-gatherers, social characteristics of an individual based on social status or prestige, such foraging reputation, friendship popularity, and pro-social reputation, can influence the extent to which an individual is embedded in a social network. However, little is known regarding the extent to which height, a physical trait that in Western societies is often associated with social status, is associated in integration in social networks among small-scale hunter gatherers.

Multisystemic factors predicting street migration of children in Kenya: A multilevel longitudinal study of families and villages.

Background: Street-migration of children is a global problem with sparse multi-level or longitudinal data. Such data are required to inform robust street-migration prevention efforts.

Objective: This study analyzes longitudinal cohort data to identify factors predicting street-migration of children - at caregiver- and village-levels.

On bootstrap based variance estimation under fine stratification.

The primary focus of all sample surveys is on providing point estimates for the parameters of primary interest, and also estimating the variance associated with those point estimates to quantify the uncertainty. Larger samples and important measurement tools can help to reduce the point estimates' uncertainty. Numerous effective stratification criteria may be used in survey to reduce variance within stratum.

Clinical Use of Hematoma Volume Based On Automated Segmentation of Chronic Subdural Hematoma Using 3D U-Net.

Purpose: To propose a method for calculating hematoma volume based on automatic segmentation of chronic subdural hematoma (CSDH) using 3D U‑net and investigate whether it can be used clinically to predict recurrence.

Methods: Hematoma volumes manually measured from pre- and postoperative computed tomography (CT) images were used as ground truth data to train 3D U‑net in 200 patients (400 CT scans). A total of 215 patients (430 CT scans) were used as test data to output segmentation results from the trained 3D U‑net model.

Evidence-Based Therapist-Supported Digital Mental Health Intervention for Patients Experiencing Medical Multimorbidity: A Retrospective Cohort Intent-to-Treat Study.

Objective: Multimorbidity or the co-occurrence of multiple health conditions is increasing globally and is associated with significant psychological complications. It is unclear whether digital mental health (DMH) interventions for patients experiencing multimorbidity are effective, particularly given that this patient population faces more treatment resistance. The goal of the current study was to examine the impact of smartphone-delivered DMH interventions for patients presenting with elevated internalizing symptoms that have reported multiple lifetime medical conditions.

Light-dependent chloroplast relocation in wild strawberry ().

Chloroplast photorelocation is a vital organellar response that optimizes photosynthesis in plants amid fluctuating environmental conditions. Chloroplasts exhibit an accumulation response, in which they move toward weak light to enhance photoreception, and an avoidance response, in which they move away from strong light to avoid photodamage. Although chloroplast photorelocation has been extensively studied in model plants such as , little is known about this process in the economically important crop strawberry.