Phytochemistry, Antibacterial and Antioxidant Activities of Grewia lasiocarpa E. Mey. ex Harv. Fungal Endophytes: A Computational and Experimental Validation Study.

The genus Grewia are known for their medicinal properties. We isolated and characterized five endophytic fungi from Grewialasiocarpa for in vitro antibacterial and antioxidant activities. Five [Aspergillus fumigatus (MK243397.

State of the health workforce in the WHO African Region: decade review of progress and opportunities for policy reforms and investments.

Introduction: An adequate health workforce is one of the cornerstones of a healthy nation. Over the last two decades, Africa has gained momentum in mitigating critical health workforce gaps, but urgent actions are still needed to accelerate progress towards universal health coverage and ensuring health security. This analysis provides an overview of the health workforce in the WHO African Region for the last decade.

Protocol for a low-volume, direct analysis urine preparation procedure for non-targeted GC-MS metabolomics.

We present a low-volume, direct analysis protocol for non-targeted gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) metabolomics, using 100 μL of urine. The steps include sample collection, stock solution preparation, metabolite extraction, two-step derivation with a drying phase, and analysis via two-dimensional GC time-of-flight MS (GCxGC-TOFMS). This protocol improves the efficiency and thoroughness of urinary metabolite analysis, contributing to advancements in metabolomics research, disease diagnosis, and biomarker discovery.

Draft genome sequences of GM93m3, a promising probiotic strain from raw goat milk.

The draft genome of a previously documented potential probiotic strain GM93m3 from raw goat milk in Nigeria is reported. The total genome size was 2,447,229 with 46 contigs and G+C content of 44.86%.

Noncommunicable Disease Conditions and HIV in Rural and Urban South Africa: 2005-2015.

Purpose: Hypertension, obesity, hyperlipidemia, and type 2 diabetes contribute primarily to noncommunicable disease deaths and together with human immunodeficiency virus contribute largely to mortality in South Africa. Our longitudinal study provides the necessary data and insights over a 10-year period to highlight the areas where improved management is required in urban and rural localities.

Methods: This study included 536 rural and 387 urban Black participants aged 32 to 93 years from the North-West province, South Africa.

Does Matrilineality Reduce Gender Inequality in Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) Public Participation? Some Evidence from Malawi.

This paper reports on Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) public participation in Malawi with a focus on the role of women from matrilineal and patrilineal marriage systems. Six rural ESIA projects are explored of which three are in areas of patrilineal and three are in areas of matrilineal systems. Participation space was found to be consistently dominated by men, with no obvious differences between both systems.

The effect of environmental stressors on the anticancer potential of aqueous extracts and fractions.

Some species have been shown to have pharmacological properties such as activity against cancer, and it is also used as a traditional herbal medicine in many rural parts of the world. The (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-Yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay was used as a screening tool to determine the approximate cell viability inhibitory concentrations of methanol and aqueous crude extracts of spp. The extracts were screened using small-cell lung cancer (H69V), hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2/C3A) and non-cancerous kidney cells (Vero) cell lines.

Quantitative Galactose Colorimetric Competitive Assay Based on Galactose Dehydrogenase and Plasmonic Gold Nanostars.

We describe a competitive colorimetric assay that enables rapid and sensitive detection of galactose and reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) via colorimetric readouts and demonstrate its usefulness for monitoring NAD+-driven enzymatic reactions. We present a sensitive plasmonic sensing approach for assessing galactose concentration and the presence of NADH using galactose dehydrogenase-immobilized gold nanostars (AuNS-PVP-GalDH). The AuNS-PVP-GalDH assay remains turquoise blue in the absence of galactose and NADH; however, as galactose and NADH concentrations grow, the reaction well color changes to a characteristic red color in the presence of an alkaline environment and a metal ion catalyst (detection solution).

Research-to-Policy Partnerships for Evidence-Informed Resource Allocation in Health Systems in Africa: An Example Using the Thanzi Programme.

Objectives: Empirical data on the impact of research-to-policy interventions are scant, with the few attempts mainly focusing on ensuring policymakers' timely access to evidence and evidence-informed dialogs.

Methods: This article reflects on how the Thanzi Programme cultivates an approach of research-to-policy engagement in health economics. The program is structured around 3 interrelated pillars comprising research evidence generation, capacity and capability building, and research-and-policy engagement.

Antibiotic prescribing to inpatients in Limpopo, South Africa: a multicentre point-prevalence survey.

Background: Electronic continuous surveillance databases are ideal for monitoring antibiotic use (ABU) in hospitalised patients for antibiotic stewardship programmes (ASP). However, such databases are scarce in low-resource settings. Point prevalence surveys (PPS) are viable alternatives.

Disaster management and environmental policy integration in Pakistan - an evaluation with particular reference to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Plan.

Economic and social development, the state of the environment and a propensity for disasters are closely intertwined. Therefore, environmental policy integration (EPI) across development and disaster management (DM) policies and plans is important. Pakistan as a country is highly vulnerable to climate-induced environmental changes and associated disasters.

Urinary Peptidomics and Pulse Wave Velocity: The African-PREDICT Study.

Increased arterial stiffness is related to early vascular aging and is an independent predictor for cardiovascular disease and mortality. Molecular mechanisms underlying increased arterial stiffness are largely unexplored, especially at the proteome level. We aimed to explore the relationship between pulse wave velocity and urinary proteomics.

Loss of attachment promotes proline accumulation and excretion in cancer cells.

Previous studies have revealed a role for proline metabolism in supporting cancer development and metastasis. In this study, we show that many cancer cells respond to loss of attachment by accumulating and secreting proline. Detached cells display reduced proliferation accompanied by a general decrease in overall protein production and de novo amino acid synthesis compared to attached cells.

The interactive effects of drought and heat stress on photosynthetic efficiency and biochemical defense mechanisms of species.

Drought and heat stress are major abiotic stress factors that limit photosynthesis and other related metabolic processes that hamper plant growth and productivity. Identifying plants that can tolerate abiotic stress conditions is essential for sustainable agriculture. plants can tolerate adverse weather conditions, especially drought and heat, and their leaves and grain are highly nutritious.

A ketogenic diet alters mTOR activity, systemic metabolism and potentially prevents collagen degradation associated with chronic alcohol consumption in mice.

Introduction: A ketogenic diet (KD), which is a high fat, low carbohydrate diet has been shown to inhibit the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway and alter the redox state. Inhibition of the mTOR complex has been associated with the attenuation and alleviation of various metabolic and- inflammatory diseases such as neurodegeneration, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome. Various metabolic pathways and signalling mechanisms have been explored to assess the therapeutic potential of mTOR inhibition.

Bioaugmentation potential of inoculum derived from anaerobic digestion feedstock for enhanced methane production using water hyacinth.

The utilisation of water hyacinth for production of biogas is considered to be a solution to both its control and the global renewable energy challenge. In this instance, an investigation was conducted to evaluate the potential of water hyacinth inoculum to enhance methane production during anaerobic digestion (AD). Chopped whole water hyacinth (10% (w/v)) was digested to prepare an inoculum consisting mainly of water hyacinth indigenous microbes.

Bacteriological Quality and Biotoxin Profile of Ready-to-Eat Foods Vended in Lagos, Nigeria.

A comprehensive study of bacterial and biotoxin contaminants of ready-to-eat (RTE) foods in Nigeria is yet to be reported. Hence, this study applied 16S rRNA gene sequencing and a dilute-and-shoot LC-MS/MS method to profile bacteria and biotoxins, respectively, in 199 RTE food samples comprising (n = 30) bread (n = 30), shawarma (n = 35), (n = 35), biscuits (n = 34), and (n = 35). A total of 631 bacterial isolates, clustered into seven operational taxonomic units, namely , , , and , , and , that are reported for the first time were recovered from the foods.

Identifying a urinary peptidomics profile for hypertension in young adults: The African-PREDICT study: Urinary peptidomics and hypertension: Urinary peptidomics and hypertension.

Hypertension is one of the most important and complex risk factors for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). By using urinary peptidomics analyses, we aimed to identify peptides associated with hypertension, building a framework for future research towards improved prediction and prevention of premature development of CVD. We included 78 hypertensive and 79 normotensive participants from the African-PREDICT study (aged 20-30 years), matched for sex (51% male) and ethnicity (49% black and 51% white).

Influence of Drought and Heat Stress on Mineral Content, Antioxidant Activity and Bioactive Compound Accumulation in Four African Species.

Drought and heat stress is known to influence the accumulation of mineral content, antioxidant activity, phenolics, flavonoids and other bioactive compounds in many tolerant leafy vegetables. plants can tolerate adverse weather conditions, especially drought and heat. Therefore, evaluating the influence of drought and heat stress on commercially and medically important crop species like is important to grow the crop for optimal nutritional and medicinal properties.

FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO PULMONARY TB TREATMENT LOST TO FOLLOW-UP IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES: AN OVERVIEW.

Background: Despite the available treatment options, pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) remains a leading cause of disease-related deaths worldwide. Treatment non-adherence/lost to follow-up (LTFU), particularly in developing countries, is a continuous concern. LTFU prolongs TB infectiousness and contributes to TB treatment failure, relapse, and death.

Analysis of genome-wide knockout mouse database identifies candidate ciliopathy genes.

We searched a database of single-gene knockout (KO) mice produced by the International Mouse Phenotyping Consortium (IMPC) to identify candidate ciliopathy genes. We first screened for phenotypes in mouse lines with both ocular and renal or reproductive trait abnormalities. The STRING protein interaction tool was used to identify interactions between known cilia gene products and those encoded by the genes in individual knockout mouse strains in order to generate a list of "candidate ciliopathy genes.