Survey of Urinary Schistosomiasis among school-aged children in the rural communities of Mayo-belwa Local Government Area, Adamawa State, Nigeria.

Background & objectives: Schistosomiasis is a major health risk in the rural areas of developing countries where it continues to rank high and second behind malaria in terms of socio-economic and public health importance in Tropical and Subtropical areas. To provide information on the incidence of urinary Schistosomiasis among school-aged children of Mayobelwa and create awareness of the disease to the rural populace of Mayobelwa. Methods: A survey on the incidence of urinary Schistosomiasis was carried out on primary school children between the ages of 5-15 from April to June 2011 in some community schools in Mayobelwa Local Government of Adamawa State North-eastern Nigeria. A total of 346 pupils volunteered and responded to the questionnaire previously developed and these same pupils’ were subject to urine samples. Results: The microscopic examination of urine sediments revealed overall prevalence of 32.4% (n= 112) for Schistosoma haematobium. The age group most heavily infected was 11-15 years 68 (35.6%) both sexes have close prevalence with males having 72 (32.3%) and females 40 (32.5%). Majority of the subjects (54.6%) rely on the stream water as the only source of water supply and do not visit hospital (88.2%) even when symptom is observed. Interpretation and conclusion: The findings of this study show that majority are still ignorant of the disease hence the need for more public enlightment and effective community-based treatment programs. The prevalence of 34.2% in Mayobelwa and neighbouring communities is of great public health concern and poses a threat or problem to important socioeconomic activities in the area. Keywords: Adamawa, Mayobelwa, school-aged, Nigeria, Urinary schistosomiasis

Population ecology of <i>Chaetophractus vellerosus</i>: The first report for an armadillo in South America

The aim of this work was to obtain the first estimates of survival rates (S), capture probability (p) and life expectancy for armadillos in South America by analyzing capture-mark-recapture data obtained from a population of Chaetophractus vellerosus (Gray, 1865) located in Magdalena, Buenos Aires, Argentina. From June 2006 to June 2011, we conducted 16 field surveys that resulted in 365 capture events of 152 adult C. vellerosus. For the survival analysis we used a Cormack-Jolly-Seber (CJS) modelling framework. Interannual variation in S made an important contribution to overall variation in the survival rate of C. vellerosus. The average life expectancy for females and males after attaining sexual maturity was estimated at 1.70 and 1.65 years respectively. The period of lowest survival probability was associated with dry seasons that might have affected the availability of food. This study provides the first estimates of demographic parameters for xenarthrans in South America.Centro de Estudios Parasitológicos y de Vectore

Population ecology of <i>Chaetophractus vellerosus</i>: The first report for an armadillo in South America

The aim of this work was to obtain the first estimates of survival rates (S), capture probability (p) and life expectancy for armadillos in South America by analyzing capture-mark-recapture data obtained from a population of Chaetophractus vellerosus (Gray, 1865) located in Magdalena, Buenos Aires, Argentina. From June 2006 to June 2011, we conducted 16 field surveys that resulted in 365 capture events of 152 adult C. vellerosus. For the survival analysis we used a Cormack-Jolly-Seber (CJS) modelling framework. Interannual variation in S made an important contribution to overall variation in the survival rate of C. vellerosus. The average life expectancy for females and males after attaining sexual maturity was estimated at 1.70 and 1.65 years respectively. The period of lowest survival probability was associated with dry seasons that might have affected the availability of food. This study provides the first estimates of demographic parameters for xenarthrans in South America.Centro de Estudios Parasitológicos y de Vectore

Population ecology of <i>Chaetophractus vellerosus</i>: The first report for an armadillo in South America

The aim of this work was to obtain the first estimates of survival rates (S), capture probability (p) and life expectancy for armadillos in South America by analyzing capture-mark-recapture data obtained from a population of Chaetophractus vellerosus (Gray, 1865) located in Magdalena, Buenos Aires, Argentina. From June 2006 to June 2011, we conducted 16 field surveys that resulted in 365 capture events of 152 adult C. vellerosus. For the survival analysis we used a Cormack-Jolly-Seber (CJS) modelling framework. Interannual variation in S made an important contribution to overall variation in the survival rate of C. vellerosus. The average life expectancy for females and males after attaining sexual maturity was estimated at 1.70 and 1.65 years respectively. The period of lowest survival probability was associated with dry seasons that might have affected the availability of food. This study provides the first estimates of demographic parameters for xenarthrans in South America.Centro de Estudios Parasitológicos y de Vectore

Population ecology of Chaetophractus vellerosus: The first report for an armadillo in South America

The aim of this work was to obtain the first estimates of survival rates (S), capture probability (p) and life expectancy for armadillos in South America by analyzing capture-mark-recapture data obtained from a population of Chaetophractus vellerosus (Gray, 1865) located in Magdalena, Buenos Aires, Argentina. From June 2006 to June 2011, we conducted 16 field surveys that resulted in 365 capture events of 152 adult C. vellerosus. For the survival analysis we used a Cormack-Jolly-Seber (CJS) modelling framework. Interannual variation in S made an important contribution to overall variation in the survival rate of C. vellerosus. The average life expectancy for females and males after attaining sexual maturity was estimated at 1.70 and 1.65 years respectively. The period of lowest survival probability was associated with dry seasons that might have affected the availability of food. This study provides the first estimates of demographic parameters for xenarthrans in South America.Centro de Estudios Parasitológicos y de Vectore

Population ecology of Chaetophractus vellerosus: The first report for an armadillo in South America

The aim of this work was to obtain the first estimates of survival rates (S), capture probability (p) and life expectancy for armadillos in South America by analyzing capture-mark-recapture data obtained from a population of Chaetophractus vellerosus (Gray, 1865) located in Magdalena, Buenos Aires, Argentina. From June 2006 to June 2011, we conducted 16 field surveys that resulted in 365 capture events of 152 adult C. vellerosus. For the survival analysis we used a Cormack-Jolly-Seber (CJS) modelling framework. Interannual variation in S made an important contribution to overall variation in the survival rate of C. vellerosus. The average life expectancy for females and males after attaining sexual maturity was estimated at 1.70 and 1.65 years respectively. The period of lowest survival probability was associated with dry seasons that might have affected the availability of food. This study provides the first estimates of demographic parameters for xenarthrans in South America.Centro de Estudios Parasitológicos y de Vectore

DFT and PM3 Computational Studies of the Reaction Mechanism of the Oxidation of L-Tyrosine by Iodine in the Gas Phase

- The oxidation of L-Tyrosine by molecular iodine was studied using semi-empirical and density functional theory methods. Molecular information such as net charges, values of frontier orbital energies, composition, proportions and bonding contribution were obtained and analyzed. Thus, possible reactive sites were proposed and the reaction mechanism was postulated. The postulated transition states, intermediates and products were also computed using the PM3 and DFT methods. Computed enthalpies of the oxidation reaction at standard conditions for the PM3 and DFT calculation were 216.97 kJ/mol and -36327404.72 kJ/mol respectively. The calculated ΔGo andΔSo, for the transition states according to the DFT model were both large and negative indicating that the processes were exergonic associative substitution reactions

GATA3 protein as a MUC1 transcriptional regulator in breast cancer cells

INTRODUCTION: Recent studies have demonstrated that members of the GATA-binding protein (GATA) family (GATA4 and GATA5) might have pivotal roles in the transcriptional upregulation of mucin genes (MUC2, MUC3 and MUC4) in gastrointestinal epithelium. The zinc-finger GATA3 transcription factor has been reported to be involved in the growth control and differentiation of breast epithelial cells. In SAGE (serial analysis of gene expression) studies we observed an intriguing significant correlation between GATA3 and MUC1 mRNA expression in breast carcinomas. We therefore designed the present study to elucidate whether MUC1 expression is regulated by GATA3 in breast cancer cells. METHODS: Promoter sequence analysis of the MUC1 gene identified six GATA cis consensus elements in the 5' flanking region (GATA1, GATA3 and four GATA-like sequences). Chromatin immunoprecipitation and electrophoretic mobility-shift assays were employed to study the presence of a functional GATA3-binding site. GATA3 and MUC1 expression was analyzed in vitro with a GATA3 knockdown assay. Furthermore, expression of GATA3 and MUC1 genes was analyzed by real-time RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry on breast cancer-specific tissue microarrays. RESULTS: We confirmed the presence of a functional GATA3-binding site on the MUC1 promoter region in the MCF7 cell line. We determined that GATA3 knockdown assays led to a decrease in MUC1 protein expression in MCF7 and T47D cells. In addition, we detected a statistically significant correlation in expression between GATA3 and MUC1 genes at the mRNA and protein levels both in normal breast epithelium and in breast carcinomas (p = 0.01). GATA3 expression was also highly associated with estrogen receptor and progesterone receptor status (p = 0.0001) and tumor grade (p = 0.004) in breast carcinomas. CONCLUSION: Our study provides evidence indicating that GATA3 is probably a mediator for the transcriptional upregulation of MUC1 expression in some breast cancers

Identificación de un módulo transcripcional asociado a la expresión de ZFP36 y su rol en la progresión del cáncer de mama

El gen ZFP36 (TTP), es el prototipo de una pequeña familia de proteínas de unión a ARN, formada por dominios dedos de zinc (CCCH) en tandem. ZFP36 se une a secuencias ricas en adenina y uracilo (AREs, AU rich elements) localizadas en el extremo 3'‐UTR de varios ARNm. La unión específica de ZFP36 a los AREs provoca la desestabilización de una serie de moléculas de ARNm, ejerciendo una regulación post‐transcripcional negativa sobre diversos genes relacionados con la progresión tumoral. La expresión de TTP se encontraría dramáticamente suprimida en diversos tipos de tumores sólidos como el cáncer de mama.Facultad de Ciencias Médica

Identificación de un módulo transcripcional asociado a la expresión de ZFP36 y su rol en la progresión del cáncer de mama

El gen ZFP36 (TTP), es el prototipo de una pequeña familia de proteínas de unión a ARN, formada por dominios dedos de zinc (CCCH) en tandem. ZFP36 se une a secuencias ricas en adenina y uracilo (AREs, AU rich elements) localizadas en el extremo 3'‐UTR de varios ARNm. La unión específica de ZFP36 a los AREs provoca la desestabilización de una serie de moléculas de ARNm, ejerciendo una regulación post‐transcripcional negativa sobre diversos genes relacionados con la progresión tumoral. La expresión de TTP se encontraría dramáticamente suprimida en diversos tipos de tumores sólidos como el cáncer de mama.Facultad de Ciencias Médica