Evaluating the performance of a virtual platform 'T-BOM' for mentorship in tropical diseases research among early career scientists: Insights from a pilot in Nigeria and other resource-limited settings.

Background: Research mentorship plays a crucial role in advancing science. However, there are limited virtual platforms for cultivating mentorship among early career infectious diseases researchers in resource challenged settings. This study reports the findings from the utilization of a recently developed virtual mentorship platform, including its achievements, challenges and needs.

Taxonomy of the Rhampholeon boulengeri Complex (Sauria: Chamaeleonidae): Five New Species from Central Africa's Albertine Rift.

In a recent molecular study, the pygmy chameleon Rhampholeon boulengeri Steindachner, 1911 was shown to contain six genetically distinct, but phenotypically cryptic lineages. Phylogenetic analyses of genetic data demonstrated that several well-supported clades occurred in non-overlapping elevational ranges across the Albertine Rift in Central Africa. In order to resolve the taxonomy of the R.

A lesser giant millipede from Tanzania (Diplopoda, Spirostreptida, Spirostreptidae).

Archispirostreptus microgigas sp. nov. is described, based on a specimen from Tanzania, and compared with its congeners, especially A.

Scratching the surface of Afrotropical Dissomphalus (Hymenoptera, Bethylidae): a revision uncovering 114 new species.

The main goal of this paper is to revise the Dissomphalus genus within the Afrotropical region. Specimens were collected across seventeen countries: Benin, Botswana, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Guinea, Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. A total of 127 species have been identified in the Afrotropical region.

Two new freshwater crab species from the Eastern Arc Mountains, Tanzania, East Africa (Brachyura: Potamoidea: Potamonautidae).

This work focuses on two new freshwater crab species from Tanzania, East Africa: Arcopotamonautes parekeeae n. sp. and A.

Nadus overlaeti (Navás, 1931) redescribed-new to the fauna of Mozambique, Namibia and Tanzania (Neuroptera: Myrmeleontidae).

Two species used to be included in the African genus Nadus: Nadus overlaeti (Navás, 1931) and Nadus sudanensis Navás, 1935. Following our revision of the genus, we propose that Nadus sudanensis Navás, 1935 (syn.nov.

Review of the Afrotropical members of the genus Eridachtha Meyrick, 1910 (Lepidoptera: Lecithoceridae: Lecithocerinae), with descriptions of 12 new species.

The genus Eridachtha Meyrick, 1910 of the subfamily Lecithocerinae is revised for the Afrotropical region. Twelve new species are described within it: six from Kenya (Eridachtha campanella Park, sp. nov.

A new species of freshwater crab from the East Usambara Mountains of Tanzania, East Africa, with a redescription of Telphusa infravallata Hilgendorf, 1898 (Brachyura: Potamoidea: Potamonautidae).

This work describes a new species of freshwater crab from the East Usambara Mountains of Tanzania from previously unidentified museum material. A second species from these mountains, T. infravallata Hilgendorf, 1898, is redescribed based on reexamination of the type material, and its gonopods and mandible are illustrated for the first time.

The genus Lecithocera (Lepidoptera: Lecithoceridae: Lecithocerinae) in Kenya and Tanzania, with descriptions of six new species.

Six new species of the genus Lecithocera Herrich-Schäffer, 1853 (Lecithocerinae) are described from Kenya and Tanzania: five new species from Tanzania (L. kitulangaroensis Park, sp. nov.

Deciphering the climate-malaria nexus: A machine learning approach in rural southeastern Tanzania.

Objectives: Malaria remains a critical public health challenge, especially in regions like southeastern Tanzania. Understanding the intricate relationship between environmental factors and malaria incidence is essential for effective control and elimination strategies.

Study Design: Cohort study.

Interventions to Enhance Facility Deliveries in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Scoping Review.

Objectives: The objectives of this review were to identify and map evidence of interventions to enhance facility deliveries in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

Methods: A search for all relevant existing reports in the literature was conducted in December 2020 using the following online bibliographic databases: PubMed, EMBASE, and CENTRAL. A manual search of the reference lists of relevant systematic reviews and all identified studies was performed to identify additional studies.

Computational analysis of Urolithin A as a potential compound for anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and neurodegenerative pathways.

Urolithin A, an active precursor derived from the metabolism of ellagitanins in rats and humans, is known for its potential health benefits, including stimulating mitophagy and promoting muscular skeletal function. While experimental studies have demonstrated Urolithin A's potential to enhance cellular health, the detailed molecular interactions through which Urolithin A exerts its effects are not fully elucidated. In this study, we investigated the anti-inflammatory, antioxidation and neuroprotective abilities of Urolithin A in selected targets using molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation methods.

Male social embeddedness and intimate partner violence perpetration in Tanzania: A cross-sectional study of young Tanzanian men.

Objectives: Social embeddedness - or lack thereof - has been associated with a number of antisocial behaviours, including perpetration of intimate partner violence (IPV). The prevalence of IPV in Tanzania remains high, yet the influence of perceived social connection on IPV and coercive control perpetration in young African men has remained mostly unexplored.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey among 1,002 young Tanzanian men aged 18 to 24 living in Mwanza, Tanzania.

Indigenous Knowledge and Quantitative Analysis of Medicinal Plants Used to Remedy Respiratory Tract Disorders in Mid-Western Tanzania.

This study is aimed at documenting the indigenous knowledge and quantitative analysis of medicinal plants (MPs) used by traditional health practitioners (THPs) of Urambo District in mid-western Tanzania to manage respiratory tract disorders (RTDs). The ethnomedicinal data were collected using semistructured interviews with 55 THPs using a snowballing technique in the district. The data were analysed for indigenous knowledge among gender, age groups, education status, and experience.

Characterization of population connectivity for enhanced cross-border surveillance of yellow fever at Mutukula and Namanga borders in Tanzania.

Objectives: Yellow fever (YF) remains a public health threat in Sub-Saharan Africa and South America, with an estimated 200,000 cases and 30,000 deaths annually. Although the World Health Organization considers Tanzania to be at low risk for YF because no YF cases have been reported, the country remains at alert to importation of the virus due to ecological factors and high connectivity to high-risk YF areas in other countries. This study aimed to identify points of interest with connectivity to high-risk YF areas to guide preparedness efforts in Tanzania.

The relationship between HIV and reading performance for children in Tanzania.

Objective: Children with HIV (CWH) are at increased risk for cognitive and developmental delays, although HIV's influence on reading development remains unclear. Research using internationally validated reading measures with control for factors known to influence literacy outcomes is needed. The Early Grade Reading Assessment (EGRA) is a tool for assessing students' progress toward reading that has been validated across countries.

Mitochondria-Targeting Fluorescent Probes for Hydrogen Sulfide Detection and Imaging.

Hydrogen sulfide (HS) is a potent redox-active signaling molecule commonly dysregulated in disease states. The production of HS and its involvement in various pathological conditions associated with mitochondrial dysfunction has been extensively documented. During stress, cystathionine gamma-lyase and cystathionine beta-synthase enzymes residing in cytosol are copiously translocated into the mitochondria to boost HS production, confirming its pivotal role in mitochondrial activities.

The bionomics of Anopheles arabiensis and Anopheles funestus inside local houses and their implications for vector control strategies in areas with high coverage of insecticide-treated nets in South-eastern Tanzania.

Background: Residual malaria transmissions in Africa may be associated with improved coverage of insecticide-treated nets, house features, and livestock husbandry. These human-land use activities may drive the ecology and behaviour of malaria vectors which sustain residual malaria transmission. This study was conducted to assess changes in the ecology and behaviour of Anopheles funestus and Anopheles arabiensis in villages with high coverage of insecticide-treated nets to guide the selection of complementary vector control strategies against residual malaria transmission.

Barriers and facilitators of fetal heart monitoring with a mobile cardiotocograph (iCTG) device in underserved settings: An exploratory qualitative study from Tanzania.

Background: Fetal monitoring in low-resource settings is often inadequate. A mobile cardiotocograph fetal monitoring device is a digital innovation that could ensure the safety of pregnant women at high risk and their fetuses through early detection and management of fetal distress. Research is scarce on factors that affect the implementation of fetal heart monitoring using the mobile cardiotocograph device in low-resource settings, including Tanzania.

Food and nutrient intake among non-pregnant, non-lactating women of reproductive age of Mbeya in Tanzania: A repeated 24-hour dietary recall.

Micronutrient deficiencies can hurt the health of women of reproductive age (WRA), their pregnancy outcomes, and the growth and development of their offspring in sub-Saharan African countries. The present study aimed to estimate the dietary intake of non-pregnant and non-lactating (NPNL) WRA, residing in seven districts of the Mbeya region in Tanzania using a 24-hour dietary recall. A cross sectional study was conducted among 500 NPNL WRA.

Management of possible serious bacterial infections in young infants where referral is not possible in the context of existing health system structure in Mbeya, Tanzania: Experience and lessons from the end line assessment.

Severe bacterial infections (SBIs) are a leading cause of neonatal deaths in low- and middle-income countries. World Health Organization's (WHO's) guideline for outpatient management of danger signs indicating possible serious bacterial infections (PSBI) when referral is not possible was adopted by three pilot district councils in Mbeya Region, in Tanzania (Busekelo, Kyela and Mbarali Districts) in 2018 (the PSBI project). This study documented changes in practice during the PSBI project, and lessons learned.

Copy number variants underlie major selective sweeps in insecticide resistance genes in Anopheles arabiensis.

To keep ahead of the evolution of resistance to insecticides in mosquitoes, national malaria control programmes must make use of a range of insecticides, both old and new, while monitoring resistance mechanisms. The outdoor-biting malaria vector Anopheles arabiensis is of increasing concern for malaria transmission because it is apparently less susceptible to many indoor control interventions, yet knowledge of its mechanisms of resistance remains limited. Furthermore, comparatively little is known in general about resistance to non-pyrethroid insecticides such as pirimiphos-methyl (PM), which are crucial for effective control in the context of globally high resistance to pyrethroids.