Carriage of Neisseria meningitidis Serogroup W135 ST-2881

Serogroup W135 ST-2881 meningococci caused a cluster of meningitis cases in Niger in 2003. Of 80 healthy persons in the patients' villages, 28 (35%) carried meningococci; 20 of 21 W135 carrier strains were ST-2881. Ten months later, 5 former carriers were still carriers of W135 ST-2881 strains. The serum bactericidal antibody activity changed according to carrier status

Variabilité morphologique du baobab (Adansonia digitata L.) au Mali

Introduction Le baobab (Adansonia digitata L.) est un arbre caractéristique du paysage agricole dans les zones semi-arides d’Afrique. Il est utilisé quotidiennement par la population locale africaine. La diversité des services et des produits du baobab suggère d’effectuer une évaluation de sa variabilité morphologique afin d’avoir une meilleure connaissance de son potentiel. Notre article a cherché à identifier des descripteurs morphologiques discriminants chez le baobab en relation avec la diversité agro-écologique du Mali. Matériel et méthodes Notre évaluation a concerné huit provenances de baobab reparties sur l’ensemble de son aire de distribution géographique au Mali. Elle a porté sur les caractères foliaires, fruitiers et sur ceux liés aux graines. Le coefficient de variation a été utilisé pour évaluer la variabilité. Les données ont été analysées par analyse de variance et analyse multi-variée. Résultats Une importante variabilité a été observée selon les provenances et les descripteurs utilisés. Les descripteurs morphologiques discriminants pour les baobabs que nous avons échantillonnés ont été la longueur et la largeur des fruits, la longueur du pédoncule des fruits, la longueur, la largeur et le nombre de lobes des feuilles

Temporal variation in body measurements in three Taurine cattle populations of Burkina Faso supports introgression of Zebu genes into West African Taurine cattle

A total of 769 adult females belonging to 3 taurine and one zebu cattle populations sampled in 3 provinces of Burkina Faso were assessed for 19 body measurements during two different years (2014 and 2018). The aim of this research was to identify temporal morphological variation in cattle bred in the humid southern zones to obtain empirical evidence supporting a possible introgression of zebu cattle genes into Gourounsi and Lobi taurine cattle breeds. Zebu cattle samples were used as out-group for both 2014 and 2018 subsets. Least square means of body measurements allowed to classify Burkina Faso taurine cattle into three subgroups according to body size (Gourounsi–Sanguié –GourS-, Gourounsi-Nahouri –GourN- and Lobi from the tallest to the smallest respectively). Principal Component Analysis suggested that in 2014, taurine populations were structured. Dispersion map constructed using the two first factors informed that the GourS population was well separated from both the Lobi and the GourN, which, in turn, overlapped. However, in 2018 a strong signal of homogenization was identified, with GourN partially overlapping the other two populations. Linear Discriminant Analysis suggested that about 20% of both GourS and GourN individuals were reciprocally misclassified. Clues for such increase have been pointed out by MANOVA analysis. Although on 2014, Lobi cattle was clearly smaller than Gourounsi and both GourS and GourN populations showed clear differences on body traits, on 2018 it could be assessed an increase in size in Lobi cattle and a strong homogenization signal within Gourounsi cattle. Zebu cattle gene flow southwards in Burkina Faso is likely to have caused these changes, suggesting a fast erosion of taurine cattle genetic background. Keywords: Body traits, quantitative traits, Gourounsi cattle, Lobi, Burkina Faso

Minimizing disruptions to immunization services in the context of COVID-19 in Senegal: lessons learnt and policy options

The COVID-19 pandemic revealed the vulnerability of essential health services globally and caused major disruptions, particularly in immunization services. In 2020, an estimated two thirds of 105 countries reported disruptions to routine facility-based and/or outreach immunization services (WHO, 2020b). Within the same year, an estimated 23 million children missed out on basic childhood vaccinations, accounting for the highest number since 2009 and representing a significant increase from 2019 (UNICEF, 2021; WHO, 2021a). Some settings experienced an upsurge in deadly diseases, such as measles outbreaks observed in Nigeria and Côte d’Ivoire between late 2020 and early 2021 (WHO, 2022a). The indirect effects of the pandemic on routine immunization services will likely lead to increased illness and death for many years, particularly among vulnerable populations such as women and children

Efficacy of Artesunate + Sulfamethoxypyrazine/Pyrimethamine versus Praziquantel in the Treatment of Schistosoma haematobium in Children

BACKGROUND:This study was conducted to determine the efficacy of the antimalarial artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) artesunate +sulfamethoxypyrazine/pyrimethamine (As+SMP), administered in doses used for malaria, to treat Schistosoma haematobium in school aged children. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:The study was conducted in Djalakorodji, a peri-urban area of Bamako, Mali, using a double blind setup in which As+SMP was compared with praziquantel (PZQ). Urine samples were examined for Schistosoma haematobium on days -1, 0, 28 and 29. Detection of haematuria, and haematological and biochemical exams were conducted on day 0 and day 28. Clinical exams were performed on days 0, 1, 2, and 28. A total of 800 children were included in the trial. The cure rate obtained without viability testing was 43.9% in the As+SMP group versus 53% in the PZQ group (Chi(2) = 6.44, p = 0.011). Egg reduction rates were 95.6% with PZQ in comparison with 92.8% with As+SMP, p = 0.096. The proportion of participants who experienced adverse events related to the medication was 0.5% (2/400) in As+SMP treated children compared to 2.3% (9/399) in the PZQ group (p = 0.033). Abdominal pain and vomiting were the most frequent adverse events in both treatment arms. All adverse events were categorized as mild. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE:The study demonstrates that PZQ was more effective than As+SMP for treating Schistosoma haematobium. However, the safety and tolerability profile of As+SMP was similar to that seen with PZQ. Our findings suggest that further investigations seem justifiable to determine the dose/efficacy/safety pattern of As+SMP in the treatment of Schistosoma infections. TRIAL REGISTRATION:ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00510159

Impact of different mass drug administration strategies for gaining and sustaining control of <i>Schistosoma mansoni</i> and <i>Schistosoma haematobium</i> infection in Africa

This report summarizes the design and outcomes of randomized controlled operational research trials performed by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation-funded Schistosomiasis Consortium for Operational Research and Evaluation (SCORE) from 2009 to 2019. Their goal was to define the effectiveness and test the limitations of current WHO-recommended schistosomiasis control protocols by performing large-scale pragmatic trials to compare the impact of different schedules and coverage regimens of praziquantel mass drug administration (MDA). Although there were limitations to study designs and performance, analysis of their primary outcomes confirmed that all tested regimens of praziquantel MDA significantly reduced local; Schistosoma; infection prevalence and intensity among school-age children. Secondary analysis suggested that outcomes in locations receiving four annual rounds of MDA were better than those in communities that had treatment holiday years, in which no praziquantel MDA was given. Statistical significance of differences was obscured by a wider-than-expected variation in community-level responses to MDA, defining a persistent hot spot obstacle to MDA success. No MDA schedule led to elimination of infection, even in those communities that started at low prevalence of infection, and it is likely that programs aiming for elimination of transmission will need to add supplemental interventions (e.g., snail control, improvement in water, sanitation and hygiene, and behavior change interventions) to achieve that next stage of control. Recommendations for future implementation research, including exploration of the value of earlier program impact assessment combined with intensification of intervention in hot spot locations, are discussed