3 research outputs found
IdentificaciĂł i anĂ lisi dels compostos orgĂ nics del combretum micranthum (kinkeliba)
Aquest treball Ă©s el fruit de la identificaciĂł i l’anĂ lisi dels compostos lipĂdics del Combretum micranthum conegut com a kinkeliba. En aquesta anĂ lisi hem pogut destacar la gran presència d’alcans, alcohols, Ă cids, terpenoides i esterols com el β- sitosterol( un compost important en la biomedicina) i tambĂ© a part de la presència de la vitamina E comĂş de les plantes verdes, s’ha pogut identificar la vitamina K de gran importĂ ncia que serveix com a cofactor en l'activaciĂł de la proteĂŻna en el cos humĂ .Este trabajo es el fruto de la identificaciĂłn y análisis de los compuestos lipĂdicos del Combretum micranthum conocido como kinkeliba. En este análisis hemos podido destacar la gran presencia de alcanos, alcoholes, ácidos, terpenoides y esteroles como el β- sitosterol (un compuesto importante en la biomedicina) y tambiĂ©n aparte de la presencia de la vitamina E comĂşn de las plantas verdes, se ha podido identificar la vitamina K de gran calado que sirve como cofactor en la activaciĂłn de la proteĂna en el cuerpo humano.This work is the result of the identification and analysis of the lipid compounds of Combretum micranthum known as kinkeliba. In this analysis we have been able to highlight the great presence of alkanes, alcohols, acids, terpenoids and sterols such as β-sitosterol (an important compound in biomedicine) and also apart from the presence of vitamin E common to green plants, we have been able to identify the very important vitamin K which serves as a cofactor in protein activation in the human body
Prevalence and awareness of diabetes in Guinea: findings from a WHO STEPS
Aims: The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence of diabetes, and to assess its awareness and related risk factors among adult Guineans.Methods: A population-based cross-sectional survey was conducted on 1 100 adults (46.6% women) aged 35–64 years from Lower Guinea, during September to December 2009, using the WHO STEPwise approach of surveillance of chronic disease risk factors. Data were collected in three steps: demographic and behavioural risk factors, blood pressure and anthropometric measurements, and fasting blood cholesterol and glucose testing. A multi-stage cluster sample design was applied to generate nationwide representative data.Results: The mean age of all participants was 47.3 years (SD 8.8), similarly in Conakry, rural Lower Guinea and urban Lower Guinea. The prevalence of diabetes was 5.7% (95% CI 4.0–8.1). Among participants with diabetes, only 44.0% were aware of their status. In multivariable logistic regression analysis, determinants of diabetes prevalence were urban residency, male sex, age group 45–64 years, increased waist circumference, hypertension and hypercholesterolemia. Male sex, rural residency, age group 45–54 years, no formal education, waist circumference, hypertension and hypercholesterolemia were independent predictors of screen-detected diabetes.Conclusion: The present study found a high prevalence and low awareness of diabetes, suggesting the need for appropriate actions to strengthen primary healthcare approaches towards non-communicable diseases in Guinea.Keywords: Diabetes, epidemiology, Guine
The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance
INTRODUCTION
Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic.
RATIONALE
We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs).
RESULTS
Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants.
CONCLUSION
Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century