Machine learning and molecular dynamics simulations predict potential TGR5 agonists for type 2 diabetes treatment.

Introduction: Treatment of type 2 diabetes (T2D) remains a significant challenge because of its multifactorial nature and complex metabolic pathways. There is growing interest in finding new therapeutic targets that could lead to safer and more effective treatment options. Takeda G protein-coupled receptor 5 (TGR5) is a promising antidiabetic target that plays a key role in metabolic regulation, especially in glucose homeostasis and energy expenditure.

The Concept of Pain in Children Attending Primary School: Implications for School-Based Pain Education.

A child's concept of pain comprises their understanding of what pain is, the purpose of pain, and biological processes underpinning pain. The concept of pain can influence pain experiences, pain beliefs, and pain-related behaviour. This study aimed to assess the concept of pain among children attending primary schools in Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape of South Africa.

Bibliometric analysis of teen pregnancy research in Asia-Africa: Explore the future scope.

Background: Adolescent pregnancy is prevalent in Asian-African countries. Hence, it is critical to track the progress of research and development trends related to the topic. The study aimed to characterize published articles on teen pregnancy by measuring the authors' country and affiliation, most relevant and cited journals, thematic research, and growth trends.

Carotid-Femoral Pulse Wave Velocity in Children in South Africa: Reference Values for the Vicorder Device.

Atherosclerosis often starts in childhood, tracking to adulthood. In children, early vascular disease can be detected as arterial stiffness. Carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity is considered the non-invasive gold standard method for measuring arterial stiffness and widely accepted for use in children.

Feasibility, acceptability and preliminary effects of a social network-based, peer-led HIV self-testing intervention among men in two Ugandan fishing communities, 2022.

Background: Social network-based interventions can improve uptake of health interventions. However, limited evidence exists on their feasibility and acceptability in fishing community settings. We assessed the feasibility, acceptability and preliminary effects of a social network-based, peer-led HIV self-testing (HIVST) intervention among men in Uganda.

Assessment of the impact of HIV infection on the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis and pubertal development among adolescent girls at a tertiary centre in Zimbabwe: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Proper planning of reproductive health needs for HIV-infected adolescents requires a clear understanding of the effects of HIV infection on adolescents' pubertal development.

Objective: To assess the effects of HIV infection on the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian (HPO) axis, ovarian reserve and pubertal development in adolescent girls at a tertiary hospital in Zimbabwe.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional survey of HIV-infected adolescent girls aged 10-19 years, with available CD4 + count results at a tertiary hospital in Zimbabwe.

KDIGO 2025 clinical practice guideline for the evaluation, management, and treatment of autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD): executive summary.

The Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) 2025 Clinical Practice Guideline for the Evaluation, Management, and Treatment of Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease (ADPKD) represents the first KDIGO guideline on this subject. Its scope includes nomenclature, diagnosis, prognosis, and prevalence; kidney manifestations; chronic kidney disease (CKD) management and progression, kidney failure, and kidney replacement therapy; therapies to delay progression of kidney disease; polycystic liver disease; intracranial aneurysms and other extrarenal manifestations; lifestyle and psychosocial aspects; pregnancy and reproductive issues; pediatric issues; and approaches to the management of people with ADPKD. The guideline has been developed with patient partners, clinicians, and researchers around the world, with the goal to generate a useful resource for healthcare providers and patients by providing actionable recommendations.

The Role of Sex and Gender in Acute Kidney Injury - Consensus Statements from the 33 Acute Disease Quality Initiative.

Sex differences exist in acute kidney injury (AKI), and the role that sex and gender play along the AKI care continuum remains unclear. The 33 Acute Disease Quality Initiative meeting evaluated available data on the role of sex and gender in AKI and identified knowledge gaps. Data from experimental models, pathophysiology, epidemiology, clinical care, gender, social determinants of health, education, and advocacy were reviewed.

Cardiovascular risk and allostatic load in PTSD: The role of cumulative trauma and resilience in affected and trauma-exposed adults.

Background: The pathophysiology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) involves dysregulation of stress-sensitive biological systems due to repeated trauma exposure, predisposing individuals to the development of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Allostatic load (AL), an indicator of maladaptive stress responses, could shed light on the underlying biological mechanisms. We determined whether CVD risk and AL were associated with trauma load and resilience in women with PTSD and trauma-exposed controls (TEC).

A longitudinal analysis of neurocognitive profiles in South African women with HIV.

HIV and the consequences of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND) disproportionally affect South African women. Longitudinal neurocognitive data on women with HIV are limited. We tracked longitudinal neurocognitive profiles of South African women with HIV (baseline = 140) compared to women without HIV (baseline = 156).

Modeling the Impact of Seasonality on Mosquito Population Dynamics: Insights for Vector Control Strategies.

Mosquitoes are important vectors for the transmission of some major infectious diseases of humans, i.e., malaria, dengue, West Nile Virus and Zika virus.

Life history data derived from the dental histological analysis of Giraffa camelopardalis: Implications for the palaeohistology of extinct giraffids.

The analysis of incremental marks in the enamel, dentine and cementum of extant and extinct species provides important information about the rate and pattern of tooth growth, which permits inferences about key life history traits. Traditionally, such research has mainly focused on primates, while other mammalian groups have remained relatively unexplored. In some cases, this has led to the misidentification of incremental markings and the miscalculation of dental growth parameters in non-primate taxa, which has highlighted the importance of obtaining more reliable comparative frameworks.

Effectiveness of dissemination strategies of maternal clinical guidelines: A narrative review.

Background:  Maternal clinical guidelines (MCGs) provide evidence-based recommendations for skilled birth professionals (SBPs) at the point of care. The dissemination strategies and use of MCGs are inconsistent among skilled birth providers despite their potential to improve the maternal care outcomes.

Aim:  This study examined the effectiveness of dissemination strategies of MCGs by SBPs in a primary care setting.

Graduate perceptions of their interprofessional practice: Lessons for undergraduate training.

Background:  Interprofessional education (IPE) during undergraduate training (UGT) is considered important for new graduates to collaborate inter-professionally. There are, however, well-documented workplace challenges that hinder their involvement in interprofessional collaborative practice (IPCP) such as professional hierarchy, poor role clarification and communication challenges.

Aim:  This article explores graduates' perceptions of the value rural undergraduate IPE had on their IPCP during their first year of work.

COVID-19 impact on HIV PrEP uptake and retention at selected health facilities in Eswatini.

Background:  Oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) uses antiretroviral medication to reduce HIV risk in HIV-negative individuals. Despite its effectiveness, global uptake faces policy and accessibility challenges. In Eswatini, PrEP introduction in 2017 showed promise despite stigma and COVID-19 disruptions.

Factors associated with mortality in thoracic trauma patients in Cameroon.

Background: Thoracic trauma is the third most common cause of death after abdominal injury and head trauma in polytrauma patients. The identification of a patient at risk of thoracic trauma mortality is necessary to avoid delays that may lead to morbidity and mortality. Therefore, the objective was to assess the factors associated with mortality among thoracic trauma patients in Cameroon.

Antimicrobial stewardship: a definition with a One Health perspective.

Antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) is a commonly advocated approach to address antimicrobial resistance. However, AMS is often defined in different ways depending on where it is applied, such that a range of definitions is now in use. These definitions may be functional and well-structured for a given context but are often ill-adapted for collaborative work, creating difficulties for intersectoral communication on AMS and complicating the design, implementation, and evaluation of AMS interventions from a One Health perspective.

Empowering African Expertise: Enhancing Safety Data Integration and Signal Detection for COVID-19 Vaccines Through the African Union Smart Safety Surveillance Joint Signal Management Group.

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated new vaccine development. Limited safety data necessitated robust global safety surveillance to accurately identify and promptly communicate potential safety issues. The African Union Smart Safety Surveillance (AU-3S) program established the Joint Signal Management (JSM) group to support identification of potential vaccine safety concerns in five pilot countries (Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa), accounting for approximately 35% of the African population.

Genomics yields biological and phenotypic insights into bipolar disorder.

Bipolar disorder is a leading contributor to the global burden of disease. Despite high heritability (60-80%), the majority of the underlying genetic determinants remain unknown. We analysed data from participants of European, East Asian, African American and Latino ancestries (n = 158,036 cases with bipolar disorder, 2.

Data management and sharing.

Guided by the FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable), responsible data sharing requires well-organized, high-quality datasets. However, researchers often struggle with implementing Data Management and Sharing Plans (DMSPs) due to lack of knowledge on how to do this, time constraints, legal, technical and financial challenges, particularly concerning data ownership and privacy. While patients support data sharing, researchers and funders may hesitate, fearing the loss of intellectual property or competitive advantage.

The role of the jasmonate signalling transcription factors MYC2/3/4 in circadian clock-mediated regulation of immunity in Arabidopsis.

Plants are exposed to pathogens at specific, yet predictable times of the day-night cycle. In Arabidopsis, the circadian clock influences temporal differences in susceptibility to the necrotrophic pathogen . The jasmonic acid (JA) pathway regulates immune responses against .

Bi-ventricular elastic material parameters estimation using 3D CMR myocardial strains in rheumatic heart disease patients.

Understanding the elastic material behavior of myocardium during the diastolic phase is critical for evaluating cardiac function and improving treatments for diastolic abnormalities. This study introduces a novel multi-objective optimization framework that incorporates both strain and volume measurements to enhance the accuracy of myocardial property assessments in Rheumatic Heart Disease (RHD) patients and healthy controls. By employing global volume and strain measurements instead of segmented strains from the sixteen AHA regions, we achieve a robust alignment with the Klotz curve across all groups, indicating an accurate simulation of end-diastolic pressure-volume relationships (EDPVRs).