Determination of the growth rate and volume of lipid produced by Lipomyces species isolated from shear butter leaf (Vitellaria paradoxa)

A Lipomyces strains was isolated from shear butter leaf (Vitellaria paradoxa) by placing the leaf sample in 10 ml of sterile distilled water containing 0.002 g of potassium dihydrogen phosphate and incubatedfor 3 days at 28oC. A drop of this was subsequently streaked nitrogen free medium. For determination of growth rate and volume of lipid produced, 24 h culture of the Lipomyces species isolated was washed into each of the following medium: yeast extract both (YE), nitrogen free broth (NF), maize broth free of salts (MF), maize broth with salts (MB), sorghum broth with salts (SB) and sorghum broth free of salts (SF). These were incubated for 7 days at 28oC on a shaker, and the lipid produced was extracted by using diethyl ether. The Lipomyces species was found to be able to grow and produce lipid more efficiently in yeast extract broth than in other medium used. The organism produced 25 ml of lipid per 8 g of glucose in yeast extract broth

Biological studies on albino rats fed with Sorghum bicolorstarch hydrolyzed with &#8733-amylase from Rhizopus sp.

Partially purified amylase was extracted from the culture medium of Rhizopus sp. grown in potato dextrose broth for 48 h at room temperature by precipitation with 96.9% ethanol. The enzyme was usedto hydrolyze sorghum starch. The hydrolyzed product was afterwards formulated into rat feed, which was fed to albino rats for a period of thirty days. The average daily body weight of the albino rats fed with hydrolyzed formulated feed on the 30th day of the experiment was 131 g while the values recorded for the groups fed with unhydrolyzed and commercial feed were 120 and 97.4 grams respectively. Thehematological analysis revealed that the packed cell volume (PCV), Hemoglobin (Hb), red blood cells (RBC), mean cell hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) of the group fed with hydrolyzed formulated feed of 51.8%, 16.9 g/dl, 8.7 x 105 ƒÊl-1 and 32.7%, respectively, were higher than the experimental animals fed with commercial feed with values of 44.2%, 14.4 g/dl, 7.7 x 10

Diazoxide Promotes Oligodendrocyte Precursor Cell Proliferation and Myelination

Several clinical conditions are associated with white matter injury, including periventricular white matter injury (PWMI), which is a form of brain injury sustained by preterm infants. It has been suggested that white matter injury in this condition is due to altered oligodendrocyte (OL) development or death, resulting in OL loss and hypomyelination. At present drugs are not available that stimulate OL proliferation and promote myelination. Evidence suggests that depolarizing stimuli reduces OL proliferation and differentiation, whereas agents that hyperpolarize OLs stimulate OL proliferation and differentiation. Considering that the drug diazoxide activates K(ATP) channels to hyperpolarize cells, we tested if this compound could influence OL proliferation and myelination.Studies were performed using rat oligodendrocyte precursor cell (OPC) cultures, cerebellar slice cultures, and an in vivo model of PWMI in which newborn mice were exposed to chronic sublethal hypoxia (10% O(2)). We found that K(ATP) channel components Kir 6.1 and 6.2 and SUR2 were expressed in oligodendrocytes. Additionally, diazoxide potently stimulated OPC proliferation, as did other K(ATP) activators. Diazoxide also stimulated myelination in cerebellar slice cultures. We also found that diazoxide prevented hypomyelination and ventriculomegaly following chronic sublethal hypoxia.These results identify KATP channel components in OLs and show that diazoxide can stimulate OL proliferation in vitro. Importantly we find that diazoxide can promote myelination in vivo and prevent hypoxia-induced PWMI

Comparative study of the functional properties of three legume seed isolates: adzuki, pea and soy bean

The aim of this work was to compare functional properties including solubility, emulsifying and foaming properties of native and thermally treated adzuki, soy and pea protein isolates prepared under the same conditions. These functional properties were tested at four pH values: pH 3.0, pH 5.0, pH 7.0 and pH 8.0. The lowest solubility at all pH values were obtained for isolate of adzuki whereas isolates of soybean had the highest values at almost all pHs. Thermal treatment reduced solubility of soy and pea isolates at all pH values, whereas solubility of adzuki isolate was unchanged, except at pH 8. Native isolate of adzuki had the best emulsifying properties at pH 7.0 whereas at the other pH values some of native pea and soybean protein isolates were superior. After thermal treatment, depending on tested pH and selected variety all of three species could be a good emulsifier. Native soy protein isolates formed the most stable foams at all pHs. Thermal treatment significantly improved foaming properties of adzuki isolate, whereas reduced foaming capacity of soy and pea isolates, but could improve foam stability of these isolates at specific pH. Appropriate selection of legume seed as well as variety could have great importance in achievement of desirable functional properties of final products. All three tested species could find specific application in wide range of food products

Global, regional, and national comparative risk assessment of 79 behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risks or clusters of risks, 1990-2015: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015

SummaryBackground The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2015 provides an up-to-date synthesis of the evidence for risk factor exposure and the attributable burden of disease. By providing national and subnational assessments spanning the past 25 years, this study can inform debates on the importance of addressing risks in context. Methods We used the comparative risk assessment framework developed for previous iterations of the Global Burden of Disease Study to estimate attributable deaths, disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs), and trends in exposure by age group, sex, year, and geography for 79 behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risks or clusters of risks from 1990 to 2015. This study included 388 risk-outcome pairs that met World Cancer Research Fund-defined criteria for convincing or probable evidence. We extracted relative risk and exposure estimates from randomised controlled trials, cohorts, pooled cohorts, household surveys, census data, satellite data, and other sources. We used statistical models to pool data, adjust for bias, and incorporate covariates. We developed a metric that allows comparisons of exposure across risk factors—the summary exposure value. Using the counterfactual scenario of theoretical minimum risk level, we estimated the portion of deaths and DALYs that could be attributed to a given risk. We decomposed trends in attributable burden into contributions from population growth, population age structure, risk exposure, and risk-deleted cause-specific DALY rates. We characterised risk exposure in relation to a Socio-demographic Index (SDI). Findings Between 1990 and 2015, global exposure to unsafe sanitation, household air pollution, childhood underweight, childhood stunting, and smoking each decreased by more than 25%. Global exposure for several occupational risks, high body-mass index (BMI), and drug use increased by more than 25% over the same period. All risks jointly evaluated in 2015 accounted for 57·8% (95% CI 56·6–58·8) of global deaths and 41·2% (39·8–42·8) of DALYs. In 2015, the ten largest contributors to global DALYs among Level 3 risks were high systolic blood pressure (211·8 million [192·7 million to 231·1 million] global DALYs), smoking (148·6 million [134·2 million to 163·1 million]), high fasting plasma glucose (143·1 million [125·1 million to 163·5 million]), high BMI (120·1 million [83·8 million to 158·4 million]), childhood undernutrition (113·3 million [103·9 million to 123·4 million]), ambient particulate matter (103·1 million [90·8 million to 115·1 million]), high total cholesterol (88·7 million [74·6 million to 105·7 million]), household air pollution (85·6 million [66·7 million to 106·1 million]), alcohol use (85·0 million [77·2 million to 93·0 million]), and diets high in sodium (83·0 million [49·3 million to 127·5 million]). From 1990 to 2015, attributable DALYs declined for micronutrient deficiencies, childhood undernutrition, unsafe sanitation and water, and household air pollution; reductions in risk-deleted DALY rates rather than reductions in exposure drove these declines. Rising exposure contributed to notable increases in attributable DALYs from high BMI, high fasting plasma glucose, occupational carcinogens, and drug use. Environmental risks and childhood undernutrition declined steadily with SDI; low physical activity, high BMI, and high fasting plasma glucose increased with SDI. In 119 countries, metabolic risks, such as high BMI and fasting plasma glucose, contributed the most attributable DALYs in 2015. Regionally, smoking still ranked among the leading five risk factors for attributable DALYs in 109 countries; childhood underweight and unsafe sex remained primary drivers of early death and disability in much of sub-Saharan Africa. Interpretation Declines in some key environmental risks have contributed to declines in critical infectious diseases. Some risks appear to be invariant to SDI. Increasing risks, including high BMI, high fasting plasma glucose, drug use, and some occupational exposures, contribute to rising burden from some conditions, but also provide opportunities for intervention. Some highly preventable risks, such as smoking, remain major causes of attributable DALYs, even as exposure is declining. Public policy makers need to pay attention to the risks that are increasingly major contributors to global burden. Funding Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Exploring service providers’ perspectives on the prevention and management of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders in South Africa: a qualitative study

BACKGROUND: Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is among the leading causes of developmental and intellectual disabilities in individuals. Although efforts are being made toward the prevention and management of FASD in South Africa, the prevalence remains high. The sustained high prevalence could be attributed to several factors, including the lack of policy for a coordinated effort to prevent, diagnose and manage FASD nationally. In this study, our aim was to explore the perspectives of service providers (health and allied professionals, teachers, social workers) on the prevention and management of FASD towards developing a guideline to inform policy. METHOD: Guided by the exploratory qualitative research design, we purposively sampled relevant service providers in the field of FASD prevention and management for focus group discussions. Nine of these discussions were conducted with to eight participants per discussion session. The discussants were asked various questions on the current and required interventions and practices for the prevention and management of FASD. Following the Framework Method, data were transcribed verbatim and analysed using the thematic content analysis approach. RESULTS: Our findings show that aspects of the prevention and management of alcohol-related conditions are present in various policies. However, there is no clear focus on coordinated, multi-sectoral efforts for a more comprehensive approach to the prevention and management of FASD. The participants recognized the need for specific requirements on broad-based preventive awareness programs, training and support for parents and caregivers, inclusive education in mainstream schools and training of relevant professionals. CONCLUSION: Comprehensive and coordinated prevention and management programs guided by a specific policy could improve the prevention and management of FASD. Policy formulation demonstrates commitment from the government, highlights the importance of the condition, and elaborates on context-specific prevention and management protocols.IS

Estimates of global, regional, and national incidence, prevalence, and mortality of HIV, 1980-2015 : the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015

Background Timely assessment of the burden of HIV/AIDS is essential for policy setting and programme evaluation. In this report from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015 (GBD 2015), we provide national estimates of levels and trends of HIV/AIDS incidence, prevalence, coverage of antiretroviral therapy (ART), and mortality for 195 countries and territories from 1980 to 2015. Methods For countries without high-quality vital registration data, we estimated prevalence and incidence with data from antenatal care clinics and population-based seroprevalence surveys, and with assumptions by age and sex on initial CD4 distribution at infection, CD4 progression rates (probability of progression from higher to lower CD4 cell-count category), on and off antiretroviral therapy (ART) mortality, and mortality from all other causes. Our estimation strategy links the GBD 2015 assessment of all-cause mortality and estimation of incidence and prevalence so that for each draw from the uncertainty distribution all assumptions used in each step are internally consistent. We estimated incidence, prevalence, and death with GBD versions of the Estimation and Projection Package (EPP) and Spectrum software originally developed by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). We used an open-source version of EPP and recoded Spectrum for speed, and used updated assumptions from systematic reviews of the literature and GBD demographic data. For countries with high-quality vital registration data, we developed the cohort incidence bias adjustment model to estimate HIV incidence and prevalence largely from the number of deaths caused by HIV recorded in cause-of-death statistics. We corrected these statistics for garbage coding and HIV misclassification. Findings Global HIV incidence reached its peak in 1997, at 3.3 million new infections (95% uncertainty interval [UI] 3.1-3.4 million). Annual incidence has stayed relatively constant at about 2.6 million per year (range 2.5-2.8 million) since 2005, after a period of fast decline between 1997 and 2005. The number of people living with HIV/AIDS has been steadily increasing and reached 38.8 million (95% UI 37.6-40.4 million) in 2015. At the same time, HIV/AIDS mortality has been declining at a steady pace, from a peak of 1.8 million deaths (95% UI 1.7-1.9 million) in 2005, to 1.2 million deaths (1.1-1.3 million) in 2015. We recorded substantial heterogeneity in the levels and trends of HIV/AIDS across countries. Although many countries have experienced decreases in HIV/AIDS mortality and in annual new infections, other countries have had slowdowns or increases in rates of change in annual new infections. Interpretation Scale-up of ART and prevention of mother-to-child transmission has been one of the great successes of global health in the past two decades. However, in the past decade, progress in reducing new infections has been slow, development assistance for health devoted to HIV has stagnated, and resources for health in low-income countries have grown slowly. Achievement of the new ambitious goals for HIV enshrined in Sustainable Development Goal 3 and the 90-90-90 UNAIDS targets will be challenging, and will need continued efforts from governments and international agencies in the next 15 years to end AIDS by 2030. Copyright (C) The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY licensePeer reviewe

Global, regional, and national levels of maternal mortality, 1990-2015 : a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015

Background In transitioning from the Millennium Development Goal to the Sustainable Development Goal era, it is imperative to comprehensively assess progress toward reducing maternal mortality to identify areas of success, remaining challenges, and frame policy discussions. We aimed to quantify maternal mortality throughout the world by underlying cause and age from 1990 to 2015. Methods We estimated maternal mortality at the global, regional, and national levels from 1990 to 2015 for ages 10-54 years by systematically compiling and processing all available data sources from 186 of 195 countries and territories, 11 of which were analysed at the subnational level. We quantified eight underlying causes of maternal death and four timing categories, improving estimation methods since GBD 2013 for adult all-cause mortality, HIV-related maternal mortality, and late maternal death. Secondary analyses then allowed systematic examination of drivers of trends, including the relation between maternal mortality and coverage of specific reproductive health-care services as well as assessment of observed versus expected maternal mortality as a function of Socio-demographic Index (SDI), a summary indicator derived from measures of income per capita, educational attainment, and fertility. Findings Only ten countries achieved MDG 5, but 122 of 195 countries have already met SDG 3.1. Geographical disparities widened between 1990 and 2015 and, in 2015, 24 countries still had a maternal mortality ratio greater than 400. The proportion of all maternal deaths occurring in the bottom two SDI quintiles, where haemorrhage is the dominant cause of maternal death, increased from roughly 68% in 1990 to more than 80% in 2015. The middle SDI quintile improved the most from 1990 to 2015, but also has the most complicated causal profile. Maternal mortality in the highest SDI quintile is mostly due to other direct maternal disorders, indirect maternal disorders, and abortion, ectopic pregnancy, and/or miscarriage. Historical patterns suggest achievement of SDG 3.1 will require 91% coverage of one antenatal care visit, 78% of four antenatal care visits, 81% of in-facility delivery, and 87% of skilled birth attendance. Interpretation Several challenges to improving reproductive health lie ahead in the SDG era. Countries should establish or renew systems for collection and timely dissemination of health data; expand coverage and improve quality of family planning services, including access to contraception and safe abortion to address high adolescent fertility; invest in improving health system capacity, including coverage of routine reproductive health care and of more advanced obstetric care-including EmOC; adapt health systems and data collection systems to monitor and reverse the increase in indirect, other direct, and late maternal deaths, especially in high SDI locations; and examine their own performance with respect to their SDI level, using that information to formulate strategies to improve performance and ensure optimum reproductive health of their population.Peer reviewe