DDPC: Dragon database of genes associated with prostate cancer

Prostate cancer (PC) is one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers in men. PC is relatively difficult to diagnose due to a lack of clear early symptoms. Extensive research of PC has led to the availability of a large amount of data on PC. Several hundred genes are implicated in different stages of PC, which may help in developing diagnostic methods or even cures. In spite of this accumulated information, effective diagnostics and treatments remain evasive. We have developed Dragon Database of Genes associated with Prostate Cancer (DDPC) as an integrated knowledgebase of genes experimentally verified as implicated in PC. DDPC is distinctive from other databases in that (i) it provides pre-compiled biomedical text-mining information on PC, which otherwise require tedious computational analyses, (ii) it integrates data on molecular interactions, pathways, gene ontologies, gene regulation at molecular level, predicted transcription factor binding sites on promoters of PC implicated genes and transcription factors that correspond to these binding sites and (iii) it contains DrugBank data on drugs associated with PC. We believe this resource will serve as a source of useful information for research on PC.DST/NRF Research Chair National Bioinformatics Network grants National Research Foundation of South Afric

Molecular Informatics of Trypanothione Reductase of <em>Leishmania major</em> Reveals Novel Chromen-2-One Analogues as Potential Leishmanicides

Trypanothione reductase (TR), a flavoprotein oxidoreductase is an important therapeutic target for leishmaniasis. Ligand-based pharmacophore modelling and molecular docking were used to predict selective inhibitors against TR. Homology modelling was employed to generate a three-dimensional structure of Leishmania major trypanothione reductase (LmTR). A pharmacophore model used to screen a natural compound library generated 42 hits, which were docked against the LmTR protein. Compounds with lower binding energies were evaluated via in silico pharmacological profiling and bioactivity. Four compounds emerged as potential leads comprising Karatavicinol (7-[(2E,6E,10S)-10,11-dihydroxy-3,7,11-trimethyldodeca-2,6-dienoxy]chromen-2-one), Marmin (7-[(E,6R)-6,7-dihydroxy-3,7-dimethyloct-2-enoxy]chromen-2-one), Colladonin (7-[[(4aS)-6-hydroxy-5,5,8a-trimethyl-2-methylidene-3,4,4a,6,7,8-hexahydro-1H-naphthalen-1-yl]methoxy]chromen-2-one), and Pectachol (7-[(6-hydroxy-5,5,8a-trimethyl-2-methylidene-3,4,4a,6,7,8-hexahydro-1H-naphthalen-1-yl)methoxy]-6,8-dimethoxychromen-2-one) with good binding energies of −9.4, −9.3, 8.8, and −8.5 kcal/mol, respectively. These compounds bound effectively to the FAD domain of the protein with some critical residues including Asp35, Thr51, Lys61, Tyr198, and Asp327. Furthermore, molecular dynamics simulations and molecular mechanics Poisson-Boltzmann surface area (MMPBSA) computations corroborated their strong binding. The compounds were also predicted to possess anti-leishmanial activity. The molecules serves as templates for the design of potential drug candidates and can be evaluated in vitro with optimistic results in producing plausible attenuating infectivity in macrophages

Acceptability and Integration of Dustbins for Waste Collection and Management in the Ho Municipality of Ghana

One of the major tenacious environmental problems is the management of various household waste components. Hence, the objective of this paper was to evaluate the attitude and behavioural intention of households towards acceptability and integration of dustbin for domestic waste collection and management in Ho Municipality, Volta Region, and Ghana in general, using appropriate standard methods. Data obtained and analyzed reveals that most respondents agreed that it is important to accept and integrate dustbin for waste management (M = 4.89; SD = 1.181) and that it is good to accept and integrate dustbin for waste management (M = 4.84; SD = 1.220). They also believed that the benefits of accepting and integrating dustbin for waste management outweigh the associated risks (M = 4.69; SD = 1.223). Overall, most respondents indicated their attitude towards the acceptability and integration of dustbin for waste management, which is positive (M = 4.80; SD = 1.217). Indeed, it was found that the households have high positive attitude and intentions towards the dustbin integration and acceptance for domestic waste collection

Respiratory viruses in children hospitalized for acute lower respiratory tract infection in Ghana

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Acute respiratory tract infections are one of the major causes of morbidity and mortality among young children in developing countries. Information on the viral aetiology of acute respiratory infections in developing countries is very limited. The study was done to identify viruses associated with acute lower respiratory tract infection among children less than 5 years.</p> <p>Method</p> <p>Nasopharyngeal samples and blood cultures were collected from children less than 5 years who have been hospitalized for acute lower respiratory tract infection. Viruses and bacteria were identified using Reverse Transcriptase Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction and conventional biochemical techniques.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Out of 128 patients recruited, 33(25.88%%, 95%CI: 18.5% to 34.2%) were positive for one or more viruses. Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) was detected in 18(14.1%, 95%CI: 8.5% to 21.3%) patients followed by Adenoviruses (AdV) in 13(10.2%, 95%CI: 5.5% to 16.7%), Parainfluenza (PIV type: 1, 2, 3) in 4(3.1%, 95%CI: 0.9% to 7.8%) and influenza B viruses in 1(0.8%, 95%CI: 0.0 to 4.3). Concomitant viral and bacterial co-infection occurred in two patients. There were no detectable significant differences in the clinical signs, symptoms and severity for the various pathogens isolated. A total of 61.1% (22/36) of positive viruses were detected during the rainy season and Respiratory Syncytial Virus was the most predominant.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The study has demonstrated an important burden of respiratory viruses as major causes of childhood acute respiratory infection in a tertiary health institution in Ghana. The data addresses a need for more studies on viral associated respiratory tract infection.</p

Molecular Structure-Based Screening of the Constituents of <i>Calotropis procera</i> Identifies Potential Inhibitors of Diabetes Mellitus Target Alpha Glucosidase

Diabetes mellitus is a disorder characterized by higher levels of blood glucose due to impaired insulin mechanisms. Alpha glucosidase is a critical drug target implicated in the mechanisms of diabetes mellitus and its inhibition controls hyperglycemia. Since the existing standard synthetic drugs have therapeutic limitations, it is imperative to identify new potent inhibitors of natural product origin which may slow carbohydrate digestion and absorption via alpha glucosidase. Since plant extracts from Calotropis procera have been extensively used in the treatment of diabetes mellitus, the present study used molecular docking and dynamics simulation techniques to screen its constituents against the receptor alpha glucosidase. Taraxasterol, syriogenin, isorhamnetin-3-O-robinobioside and calotoxin were identified as potential novel lead compounds with plausible binding energies of −40.2, −35.1, −34.3 and −34.3 kJ/mol against alpha glucosidase, respectively. The residues Trp481, Asp518, Leu677, Leu678 and Leu680 were identified as critical for binding and the compounds were predicted as alpha glucosidase inhibitors. Structurally similar compounds with Tanimoto coefficients greater than 0.7 were reported experimentally to be inhibitors of alpha glucosidase or antidiabetic. The structures of the molecules may serve as templates for the design of novel inhibitors and warrant in vitro assaying to corroborate their antidiabetic potential

Vitamin D status and its association with insulin resistance among type 2 diabetics: A case -control study in Ghana.

BACKGROUND:Vitamin D plays a major role in physiological processes that modulate mineral metabolism and immune function with probable link to several chronic and infectious conditions. Emerging data suggests a possible influence of vitamin D on glucose homeostasis. This study sought to provide preliminary information on vitamin D status among Ghanaian type 2 diabetics and assessed its association with glucose homeostasis. METHODS:In a case control study, 118 clinically diagnosed Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) patients attending Diabetic Clinic at the Nkawie Government Hospital were enrolled between October and December 2015. Hundred healthy non-diabetics living in Nkawie district were selected as controls. Structured questionnaires were administered to obtain socio-demographic data. Venous blood samples were taken from both cases and controls to estimate their FBG, Lipid profile spectrophotometrically and IPTH, 25OHD by ELISA. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS v20.0 Statistics. RESULTS:The average age of the study participants was 58.81years for cases and 57.79year for controls. There was vitamin D deficiency of 92.4% among T2DM cases and 60.2% among the non diabetic controls. Vitamin D deficiency did not significantly associate with HOMA-β [T2DM: r2 = 0.0209, p = 0.1338 and Control: r2 = 0.0213, p = 0.2703] and HOMA-IR [T2DM: r2 = 0.0233, p = 0.1132 and Control: r2 = 0.0214, p = 0.2690] in both the controls and the cases. CONCLUSION:Vitamin D deficiency is prevalent in both T2DM and non-diabetics. There is no association between vitamin D deficiency and insulin resistance or beta cell function in our study population. Vitamin D supplementation among type 2 diabetics is recommended

Industrial Applications of Clay Materials from Ghana (A Review)

International audienc

Review of Atypical Organometallic Compounds as Antimalarial Drugs

Organometallic compounds are molecules that contain at least one metal-carbon bond. Due to resistance of the Plasmodium parasite to traditional organic antimalarials, the use of organometallic compounds has become widely adopted in antimalarial drug discovery. Ferroquine, which was developed due to the emergence of chloroquine resistance, is currently the most advanced organometallic antimalarial drug and has paved the way for the development of new organometallic antimalarials. In this review, a general overview of organometallic antimalarial compounds and their antimalarial activity in comparison to purely organic antimalarials are presented. Furthermore, recent developments in the field are discussed, and future applications of this emerging class of therapeutics in antimalarial drug discovery are suggested