Perception des paysans sur la contrainte de la mineuse de l'épi Heliocheilus albipunctella De Joannis, ravageur important du mil en zone sahélienne

Heliocheilus albipunctella De Joannis est un important ravageur des épis du mil en zone sahélienne. Pour documenter la perception des paysans par rapport à ce ravageur, une enquête a été réalisée en avril 2016 avec un échantillon de 732 producteurs dans cinq principales régions agricoles du Niger. Les résultats obtenus ont montré que: 1) 17 % des répondants ont pu décrire le cycle biologique de H. albipunctella; 2) le ravageur cause en moyenne 43 à 82 % de perte de production, une moyenne obtenue depuis 28 ans selon les régions; 3) 37 à 78 % des producteurs savent que les infestations des épis du mil sont favorisées par les semis précoces, les sécheresses et la nature sableuse du sol; 4) d'après la moitié des répondants le plus de dégâts sont observés au stade grenaison du mil; 5) plus de 80 % des producteurs ne connaissent aucune méthode de lutte contre ce ravageur. Ces informations interpellent sur l'incidence négative de H. albipunctella sur le rendement du mil dans ces zones précaires. La nécessité de développer un programme participatif de gestion intégrée de ce ravageur est recommandée

The prevalence and distribution of the amyloidogenic transthyretin (TTR) V122I allele in Africa

Transthyretin (TTR) pV142I (rs76992529-A) is one of the 113 variants in the human TTR gene associated with systemic amyloidosis. It results from a G to A transition at a CG dinucleotide in the codon for amino acid 122 of the mature protein (TTR V122I). The allele frequency is 0.0173 in African Americans

Fractures of the proximal femur in the elderly in a sub-Saharan country

Background: The aim of this study was to describe the epidemiological, radiographic and therapeutic profile of the fractures of the proximal femur in the elderly in a sub-Saharan country.Methods: A retrospective longitudinal study was carried out at the orthopedic trauma department of Idrissa Pouye Hospital in Senegal. Sixty-six patients recruited were aged at least 90 years; and treated for proximal femur fracture between 2008 and 2017.Results: The median age of the patients was 91 years (90-107). Females represented 54.5%. The fracture was located in the right 65.2%. Femoral neck fractures were 53% predominant with 94.3% type IV according to Garden’s classification. Concerning the 31 patients with a pertrochanteric fractures, 61.3% were stable and 38.7% unstable. The time taken for seeking hospital care was an average of 5.8±9.7 days. All patients had a preoperative anesthesic score less than 4 according to the American society of anesthesiologists (ASA). The therapeutic indication was functional in 15.1% of cases, surgical by internal fixation in 39.2% and by arthroplasty in 45.7% of cases. Pertrochanteric fractures were managed by a dynamic hip screw (DHS) in 68.2% and by gamma nail in 18.2%. Femoral neck fractures were managed by Moore's arthroplasty in 93.3% and by bipolar hip prothesis (BHP) in 6.7%.Conclusions: Fractures of the proximal femur represent a growing problem in sub-Saharan Africa. For patients above 90 years, the management remains essentially surgical by internal fixation in pertrochanteric fractures or by arthroplasty in cervical fractures

Timing of releases of the parasitoid Habrobracon hebetor and numbers needed in augmentative biological control against the millet head miner Heliocheilus albipunctella

Heliocheilus albipunctella de Joannis (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is one of the major insect pests of pearl millet in the Sahel. The native parasitoid, Habrobracon hebetor Say (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), is currently being promoted for augmentative biological control of the pest in the Sahel. The current study was carried out to identify the right time for releases of the parasitoid using either pearl millet growing stage, or pest occurrence as reference, and to determine the optimal number of parasitoids needed to cover a given area. Our results indicate that release of parasitoids at the panicle emergence stage or six weeks after first sight of eggs of H. albipunctella lead to highest parasitism of H. albipunctella larvae by H. hebetor. The dose of 800 parasitoids for a distance of 3 km radius was enough for controlling H. albipunctella. The implications of the results are discussed toward cost effective and practical recommendation adapted to the Sahelian conditions

Development of an Optimum Diet for Mass Rearing of the Rice Moth, Corcyra cephalonica (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), and Production of the Parasitoid, Habrobracon hebetor (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), for the Control of Pearl Millet Head Miner

The rice moth, Corcyra cephalonica Stainton, an alternate host for the production of the parasitoid, Habrobracon hebetor Say, was reared on different diets, including pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.] (Poales: Poaceae) flour only, and in combinations of flours of sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] (Poales: Poaceae), peanut (Arachis hypogea L.) (Fabales: Fabaceae), and cowpea [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.] (Fabales: Fabaceae) to identify the optimal and economical proportion to be used under the conditions of Niger. The addition of cowpea or peanut to the pearl millet diet slightly increased C. cephalonica larval development time. Likewise, the addition of cowpea or peanut to cereal diets yielded a higher C. cephalonica larval survival. Female moths emerging from larvae fed on cereal and legume mixed diets produced higher eggs compared to the ones fed on sole and mixed cereals. Among legumes, cowpea addition is most interesting in terms of cost/production of C. cephalonica larvae. However, female moths emerging from larvae fed on different millet cowpea mix (5, 25, and 50%) laid significantly more eggs than those fed on sole pearl millet. Further, individual C. cephalonica larvae fed on 75% pearl millet + 25% cowpea produced significantly more H. hebetor. With an initial 25 C. cephalonica larvae kept for a 3-mo rearing period, the number of H. hebetor parasitoids produced will reach 2.68–10.07 million. In terms of cost/production ratio, the 75% pearl millet: 25% cowpea yielded better results

Intermittent preventive treatment of malaria provides substantial protection against malaria in children already protected by an insecticide-treated bednet in Burkina Faso: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Intermittent preventive treatment of malaria in children (IPTc) is a promising new approach to the control of malaria in areas of seasonal malaria transmission but it is not known if IPTc adds to the protection provided by an insecticide-treated net (ITN). METHODS AND FINDINGS: An individually randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of seasonal IPTc was conducted in Burkina Faso in children aged 3 to 59 months who were provided with a long-lasting insecticide-treated bednet (LLIN). Three rounds of treatment with sulphadoxine pyrimethamine plus amodiaquine or placebos were given at monthly intervals during the malaria transmission season. Passive surveillance for malaria episodes was established, a cross-sectional survey was conducted at the end of the malaria transmission season, and use of ITNs was monitored during the intervention period. Incidence rates of malaria were compared using a Cox regression model and generalized linear models were fitted to examine the effect of IPTc on the prevalence of malaria infection, anaemia, and on anthropometric indicators. 3,052 children were screened and 3,014 were enrolled in the trial; 1,505 in the control arm and 1,509 in the intervention arm. Similar proportions of children in the two treatment arms were reported to sleep under an LLIN during the intervention period (93%). The incidence of malaria, defined as fever or history of fever with parasitaemia ≥ 5,000/µl, was 2.88 (95% confidence interval [CI] 2.70-3.06) per child during the intervention period in the control arm versus 0.87 (95% CI 0.78-0.97) in the intervention arm, a protective efficacy (PE) of 70% (95% CI 66%-74%) (p<0.001). There was a 69% (95% CI 6%-90%) reduction in incidence of severe malaria (p = 0.04) and a 46% (95% CI 7%-69%) (p = 0.03) reduction in the incidence of all-cause hospital admissions. IPTc reduced the prevalence of malaria infection at the end of the malaria transmission season by 73% (95% CI 68%-77%) (p<0.001) and that of moderately severe anaemia by 56% (95% CI 36%-70%) (p<0.001). IPTc reduced the risks of wasting (risk ratio [RR] = 0.79; 95% CI 0.65-1.00) (p = 0.05) and of being underweight (RR = 0.84; 95% CI 0.72-0.99) (p = 0.03). Children who received IPTc were 2.8 (95% CI 2.3-3.5) (p<0.001) times more likely to vomit than children who received placebo but no drug-related serious adverse event was recorded. CONCLUSIONS: IPT of malaria provides substantial protection against malaria in children who sleep under an ITN. There is now strong evidence to support the integration of IPTc into malaria control strategies in areas of seasonal malaria transmission. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.govNCT00738946. Please see later in the article for the Editors' Summary

Full-length genome sequence of Ntaya virus

Presentation of pyrosequencing data and phylogenetic analysis for the full genome of Ntaya virus, type virus of the Ntaya virus group of the Flaviviridae isolated in Cameroon in 1966

Native parasitoids recruited by the invaded fall army worm in Niger

Surveys of fall army worm Spodoptera frugiperda (J. S. Smith) on maize and sorghum in Niger revealed the occurrence of egg parasitoids (Trichogrammatoidea sp., Trichogramma sp., and Telenomus sp.), egg-larval parasitoids (Chelonus sp.), and larval parasitoids (Cotesia sp., and Charops sp.)

Cryptococcal meningitis associated HIV infection in the Donka national hospital in Conakry (Guinea)

Background Cryptococcal meningitis (CM) is an infection of the brain parenchyma and subarachnoid space by the encapsulated saprophyte yeast organisms such as Cryptococcus neoformans. Over the last twenty years, HIV has created a large and severely immune compromisized population in whom C. neoformans is a dangerous opportunistic infection. In Guinea, the prevalence of CM is unknown. We hypothesized that the occurrence of CM correlates with AIDS/ HIV prevalence.Method This retrospective observational study was carried out at the national Hospital of Conakry (Guinea) between 2001 and 2002. We describe here the epidemiological and clinical and biological characteristics of CM disease in our national hospital.Results Our data show that, 28.6 % of HIV patients with neurological symptoms had Cryptococcus neoformans in their CSF by using Indian ink staining. The median age was 36±3 years and sex ratio (M/F) was 1.8. The major complaints were fever and cephalgia, giddiness while the major complications were altered consciousness and hemiplegia. CSF was clear with low level of glucose and higher level of albumin. The means of lymphocytes in CSF was 8±2/mm3.Conclusion This data therefore becomes relevant in not only focusing of neurological symptoms associated with HIV to be toxoplasmosis but the possibility of C neoformans in these patients; particularly when they present symptoms such as headaches, giddiness and sniff neck etc. This can easily be carried out with Indian ink staining technique