Comparison of demographic and clinical characteristics between pulmonary and extra-pulmonary tuberculosis patients in Kiambu County, 2012-2015

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) continues to be a public health challenge globally. The most common organ to be involved is the lung although it can affect any organ in the body. The diagnosis of extra-pulmonary TB (EPTB) has faced many challenges mainly due to inadequate expertise to diagnose or lack of equipment for diagnosis.Objective: To compare the demographic and clinical characteristics between pulmonary and extrapulmonary tuberculosis in Kiambu CountyDesign: Retrospective cross-sectional studySetting: Kiambu County, KenyaSubjects: Tuberculosis patients notified in TIBU surveillance systemResults: Of the 15, 833 patients analyzed, 2,704 (17%) had extra-pulmonary tuberculosis. Male to female ratio was 1:1.7 in PTB and 1:1.3 in EPTB patients. There was declining trend of TB cases notified over the years for both PTB and EPTB. Pleural TB accounted for 38% with TB lymphadenitis accounting for 14% of the EPTB subtypes. TB-HIV co-infection was higher among EPTB (36%) compared to PTB (30%). The treatment success rate was 85% and 86% among PTB and EPTB cases respectively. The mortality was 10% among EPTB and 5% in PTB cases. The 5-14 age category were more likely to developing EPTB compared to PTB (AOR 4.67 95% CI (1.5-13.99). Kabete zone was most affected with EPTB (AOR 2.11(1.19-2.74) while a protective factor was observed among the HIV positive clients (AOR 0.58 (0.43 - 0.78)Conclusion: There was a general decline in cases for both EPTB and PTB. However, the age category most affected was 5-14 years. The co-infectivity rate was higher among the EPTB patients compared to the PTB patients. High index of suspicion and appropriate diagnostic tools are needed in evaluation particularly in EPTB which will assist in early management of the patients. ART uptake could play a big role in protecting HIV positive clients from getting EPTB

Effect of dietary replacement of fishmeal by insect meal on growth performance, blood profiles and economics of growing pigs in Kenya

Open Access JournalPig production is one of the fastest growing livestock sectors. Development of this sector is hampered by rapidly increasing costs of fishmeal (FM), which is a common protein source in animal feeds. Here, we explored the potential of substituting FM with black soldier fly larval meal (BSFLM) on growth and blood parameters of pigs as well as economic aspects. At weaning, 40 hybrid pigs, i.e., crossbreeds of purebred Large White and Landrace were randomly assigned to five iso-nitrogenous and iso-energetic dietary treatments: Control (0% BSFLM and 100% FM (T0)), and FM replaced at 25% (T25), 50% (T50), 75% (T75) and 100% (T100) with BSFLM. Average daily feed intake (ADFI), average daily gain (ADG), body weight gain (BWG) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were calculated for the whole trial. Hematological and serum biochemical parameters, the cost–benefit ratio (CBR) and return on investment (RoI) were evaluated. No significant effect of diet type was observed on feed intake and daily weight gain. Red or white blood cell indices did not differ among diets. Pigs fed T25, T75 and T100, had lower platelet counts compared to T0 and T50. Dietary inclusion of BSFLM did not affect blood total cholesterol, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein and high-density lipoprotein. CBR and RoI were similar for the various diets. In conclusion, BSFLM is a suitable and cost-effective alternative to fishmeal in feed for growing pigs

Optimisation of a somatic embryogenesis and transformation protocol for farmer-preferred cassava cultivars in Kenya

Cassava ( Manihot esculenta Crantz ) is a major food crop in developing countries, and holds potential for industrial use. It is, however, affected by various biotic and abiotic stresses that greatly affect its production. The existing regeneration and transformation protocols are not compatible with all cassava cultivars, thus efficient and robust transformation and regeneration protocols for farmer-preferred cultivars need to be optimised for ease of transfer of novel genes. The objective of this study was to develop an efficient transformation and regeneration protocol for a farmer-preferred Kenyan cassava cultivar. We cultured immature leaf lobe and stem explants on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium, supplemented with varying concentrations of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D), Picloram and \ue1-naphthalene acetic acid (NAA). Plants were recovered on media with 6-Benzylaminopurine (BAP) and GA3 under a 16 hour light/8 hour darkness photoperiod regime. Results showed high regeneration and transformation frequencies for both cultivars. High frequencies of callus induction (>98%) for both cultivars, were obtained when 2,4-D and Picloram were used. Similarly, both auxins initiated somatic embryogenesis, with Picloram producing the highest frequency of somatic embryos (>92%) in TMS 60444, using stem explants. Gus assays revealed high frequencies of transformation of >77% (TMS 60444) and 60% (Kibanda meno mkubwa). This protocol offers promising perspectives for rapid improvement of these cultivars and, therefore, provides a platform for cleaning planting materials, as well as cassava genetic improvement programmes such as control of viral diseases.Le manioc ( Manihot esculenta Crantz ) est une culture vivri\ue8re de grande importance pour les pays en d\ue9veloppement, avec un potentiel pour l\u2019usage industriel. N\ue9anmoins, le manioc est sujet \ue0 des stress d\u2019origines biotique et abiotique, affectant sa production. Les protocoles de r\ue9g\ue9n\ue9ration et de transformation existante ne sont pas compatibles avec toutes les accessions de manioc. Ainsi, il est n\ue9cessaire de d\ue9velopper des protocoles de r\ue9g\ue9n\ue9ration et de transformation efficaces pour les accessions adopt\ue9es par les paysans, afin de faciliter les transferts de g\ue8nes d\u2019int\ue9r\ueat. L\u2019objectif de cet etude \ue9tait de d\ue9velopper un protocole de r\ue9g\ue9n\ue9ration et de transformation adapte a la vari\ue9t\ue9 de manioc. Des feuilles et tiges immatures ont \ue9t\ue9 cultiv\ue9es sur des media Murashige et Skoog (MS), auxquels diff\ue9rentes concentrations de 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acide (2,4-D), Picloram et \ue1-naphtal\ue8ne ac\ue9tique acide (NAA). Les plantes ont \ue9t\ue9 recouvertes de 6-Benzylaminopurine (BAP) et GA3 sous une photop\ue9riode de 16h jour/8h nuit. Les r\ue9sultats ont montr\ue9 des fr\ue9quences \ue9lev\ue9es de r\ue9g\ue9n\ue9ration et de transformation pour les deux cultivars Kibanda meno mkubwa et TMS 60444. Des fr\ue9quences \ue9lev\ue9es d\u2019induction de callosit\ue9s (>98%) ont \ue9t\ue9 obtenues pour les deux cultivars, lorsque 2,4-D et Picloram ont \ue9t\ue9 utilis\ue9s. De la m\ueame fa\ue7on, les deux embryogen\ue8ses somatiques initi\ue9es a l\u2019auxine, avec des explants de tiges et du Picloram ont exhibe la fr\ue9quence la plus \ue9lev\ue9e d\u2019embryon somatique (>92%) en TMS 60444. Des essais de Gus ont r\ue9v\ue9l\ue9s des fr\ue9quences \ue9lev\ue9es de transformation >77% (TMS 60444) et 60% (Kibanda meno mkubwa). Ce protocole offre des perspectives pour l\u2019am\ue9lioration rapide de ces cultivars, et par cons\ue9quent, fournit une plateforme pour la production de mat\ue9riels de culture propres, mais aussi servira d\u2019outil dans les programmes d\u2019am\ue9lioration g\ue9n\ue9tique visant la lutte contre les maladies virales

Strengthening women's tenure rights and participation in community forestry in central Uganda

Although women’s rights and participation in forestry are recognized and addressed in Uganda policy and law, the actual practice on the ground still excludes women from participating in decision making and benefiting from forest and tree resources. Cultural norms, beliefs and practices constrain women’s access and control of forest and tree resources. This undermines their investments in sustainable forest use and management and further limits their participation in decision making and benefit sharing. This research explored ways in which women’s rights and access to forests could be strengthened, and mechanisms for enhancing their participation in forest resource management, decision making and benefits sharing. We present lessons from and outcomes of processes of facilitation and negotiation using an adaptive collaborative management (ACM) approach in six randomly selected communities in four districts in Central Uganda. After six years of implementing ACM activities, our findings suggest that despite being usually regarded as “sticky,” with careful facilitation and negotiation, change of gender-based customary norms can be speeded up. These processes can also help determine more just directions of cultural change thereby offering potential for enhancing gender equity over a short period of time. We have learnt that the involvement of men, the provision of safe platforms for women to express themselves, exposure through exchange programmes, leadership training (for both men and women) and support from collaborating partners are essential for enabling gender-transformative outcomes

Gender and adaptive collaborative management in forested Ugandan landscapes

Forestry management in Uganda has traditionally been a masculine field, although recent years have seen a number of changes in such management. With the introduction of participatory approaches such as adaptive collaborative management (ACM) and collaborative forest management (CFM), today, women more commonly own forest and work in the forestry sector. Despite this, the degree of women’s involvement remains low in comparison to their male counterparts. In order to address this gender gap, this chapter examines three questions: (1) what determines men’s and women's participation in forest management under different forest management approaches? (2) How do men and women rate their quality of participation in forest management in public or private forestry spaces? (3) What do women and men harvest from the forest and how do they use the income earned from the sale of forest products? To answer these questions data were collected from a nationwide intra-household survey from 1052 respondents across four agro-ecological zones, under multiple forest tenure regimes. The analyses show that the gender gap in participation and representation in community forestry in Uganda was minimized in communities where ACM was being implemented. The study recommends that forest adjacent communities should 1) enter into participatory forest management arrangements with the forest owners/managers (national forest authority, local government or private forest owners) or 2) be facilitated to form tree-planting groups or associations by NGOs and local government forestry officials, as a means to increase women’s participation in forestry

Black Soldier Fly Larval Meal in Feed Enhances Growth Performance, Carcass Yield and Meat Quality of Finishing Pigs

Using black soldier fly (BSF, Hermetia illucens) larvae as a novel protein source substituting fishmeal (FM) in animal feeds is globally gaining momentum. BSF can be reared on agro-industrial residues. However, incorporating BSF larval meal (BSFLM) into finisher pig diets has received inadequate attention. This study evaluated the effects of replacing dietary FM with BSFLM on growth, carcass traits and meat quality of finisher pigs. A control diet (including FM: 0% BSFLM) was compared with four dietary levels of replacement of FM with BSFLM at 25, 50, 75 or 100%. Forty hybrid pigs (crossbreeds of purebred Large White and Landrace) were randomly allocated to the five different dietary treatments. Feed intake, body weight gain and feed conversion ratio were measured. After 98 days of feeding, all pigs were slaughtered for the evaluation of carcass and nutritional content of the organ and muscle tissues. Diet significantly affected pig growth performance. Carcass weight of pigs fed diets with BSFLM replacing FM by 50, 75 or 100% (w/w) was higher than for pigs fed control diet with 100% FM as protein source. Crude protein content of pork tissues was high (65-93% on dry-matter basis) across all dietary groups. Therefore, BSFLM can replace FM in pig feed. This is relevant for commercial pig feed production and provides for the first time a nutritional analysis of pork derived from pigs raised on BSFLM.</p

Exploiting host immunity and parasite genomics to develop a robust sub-unit vaccine against East Coast fever in cattle - Where are we?

Theileria parva, a tick-borne api-complexan protozoan parasite, causes East Coast fever (ECF) in cattle. Control of the disease by improved vaccination is believed to provide a sustainable solution. Class I MHC-restricted CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) directed at schizontinfected cells constitute the effector immune mechanism against ECF in cattle recovering from a single or multiple infection(s). Schizont antigens recognised by CTL are therefore prime vaccine candidates. We describe a rational approach used to identify 8 CTL target antigens as vaccine candidates. The genes encoding the target antigens have been engineered in plasmid DNA and viral vectors for evaluating their immunogenicity and efficacy in cattle. In a preliminary trial, five of the candidate vaccines demonstrated the capacity to induce CTL responses that correlated with survival and reduced disease severity following a lethal parasite challenge