Nous habitons les langues et les langues nous habitent

Who has not his mother, suckles his grandmother. This wolof of Senegal adage tells us that the absence of the native language and the adoption of another language, far from being a handicap, would open more “naturally” to the universal. The author, whose parents are Fulani speaking Pulaar, delivers his experience and his relationship to his two family “second languages”, Wolof and French

Les Diatomées Sub-fossiles de L’estuaire du Saloum, Sénégal: inventaire floristique et paléo-environnement fournis par la carotte de Ndangane Babou

Dans le programme de reconstitution de l’histoire des estuaires et lagunes du Sénégal et de l’inventaire de la microflore à diatomées de la Séné-Gambie, une carotte de sondage de 400 cm de long a été réalisée à Ndangane Babou sur un des bras de l’estuaire du Saloum (14°07′53.86″ N/16°17′40.08″ W) à 95 km de l’embouchure. L’analyse comparée de la lithologie et de la microflore a montré une corrélation significative entre la fraction pélitique, l’abondance absolue des diatomées et leur diversité spécifique. Le faible taux de sable, majoritairement d’origine marine tout au long de la carotte pourrait s’expliquer par l’éloignement du site de prélèvement par rapport à l’embouchure du fleuve. L’étude a permis d’inventorier 89 espèces et variétés de diatomées appartenant à 48 genres. Les genres les plus représentés sont Nitzschia (11 espèces), Coscinodiscus (7 espèces), Amphora et Navicula (4 espèces chacune). Huit espèces sont citées pour la première fois en Séné-Gambie. La dominance des espèces euryhalines tout au long de la carotte ainsi que la présence constante des formes d’eau douce témoignent de variations de la salinité entre les saisons hivernales marquées par des apports d’eau douce et les saisons sèches. D’un milieu deltaïque ouvert aux influences marines (Zone A), le Saloum a été marqué par des upwellings qui ont apportés des sels nutritifs jusqu’à la hauteur de Ndangane Babou durant le dépôt de la zone B. Par la suite, l’installation d’un climat chaud et humide a entrainé une augmentation de la pluviométrie et permis d’atteindre une paléo-productivité primaire et une paléo-biodiversité maximales au sommet de la zone C, avant l’installation d’un climat aride à l’origine du caractère inverse de l’estuaire (zone D). Dans ce milieu, l’hydrodynamisme serait à l’origine de l’augmentation du taux de sable et corrélativement la diminution des diatomées suivie de leur disparition.   As part of the program to rebuilt the estuaries and lagoons history in Senegal and the inventory of the diatom microflora in Senegal and Gambia, a 400 cm long core was taken at Ndangane Babou on one of the arms from the Saloum estuary (14°07′53.86″ N/16°17′40.08″ W), 95 km from the ocean. The comparative analysis of the lithology and the microflora showed a significant correlation between the lutite fraction, the absolute abundance of diatoms and their specific diversity. The low rate of sand, mostly of marine origin throughout the core, could be explained by the distance of the site from the mouth of the estuary. The study allowed to inventory 89 species and varieties of diatom belonging to 48 genera. The most represented genera are Nitzschia (11 species), Coscinodiscus (7 species each), Amphora and Navicula (4 species each). Eight species are cited for the first time in Sene-Gambia. The dominance of euryhaline species throughout the core as well as the constant presence of freshwater forms attest to variations in salinity between the rainy seasons marked by freshwater inflows and the dry seasons. From a delta environment open to marine influences (Zone A), the Saloum estuary was marked by upwellings brought nutritive salts up to the height of Ndangane Babou during Zone B deposit. Subsequently, the installation of a hot and humid climate led to an improvement in rainfall and allowed to achieve maximum primary paleo-productivity and paleo-biodiversity at the top of zone C, before the installation of an arid climate at the origin of the opposite character of the estuary (zone D). In this environment, hydrodynamics would be the cause of the increase in the rate of sand and correlatively the decrease in diatoms followed by their disappearance

Estimation of herbaceous fuel moisture content using vegetation indices and land surface temperature from MODIS data

The monitoring of herbaceous fuel moisture content is a crucial activity in order to assess savanna fire risks. Faced with the difficulty of managing wide areas of vegetated surfaces, remote sensing appears an attractive alternative for terrestrial measurements because of its advantages related to temporal resolution and spatial coverage. Earth observation (EO)-based vegetation indices (VIs) and the ratio between Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and surface temperature (ST) were used for assessment of herbaceous fuel moisture content estimates and validated against herbaceous data collected in 2010 at three open savanna sites located in Senegal, West Africa. EO-based estimates of water content were more consistent with the use of VI as compared to the ratio NDVI/ST. Different VIs based on near-infrared (NIR) and shortwave infrared (SWIR) reflectance were tested and a consistent relationship was found between field measurements of leaf equivalent water thickness (EWT) from all test sites and Normalized Difference Infrared Index (NDII), Global Vegetation Moisture Index (GVMI) and Moisture Stress Index (MSI). Also, strong relationships were found between fuel moisture content (FMC) and VIs for the sites separately; however, they were weaker for the pooled data. The correlations between EWT/FMC and VIs were found to decrease progressively as the woody cover increased. Although these results suggest that NIR and SWIR reflectance can be used for the estimation of herbaceous water content, additional validation from an increased number of study sites is necessary to study the robustness of such indices for a larger variety of savanna vegetation types

Hernies Ombilicales Étranglées De L’enfant Au Centre Hospitalier Régional De Ziguinchor (Sénégal)

The umbilical hernia is a well-known pathology even though, its strangulation has been subject to much controversy. The aim of this work is to report our experience in the management of strangulated hernia of the child at the Ziguinchor regional hospital and to compare our results with those of the literature through a retrospective and descriptive study over a four years period. During the study period 24 patients with high male predominance were received. The mean age of the patients was 2.1 years. 45% of patients had a chronic cough. The average time for consultation was 27.6 hours. A notion of abdominal abrupt was found in 45% of the cases. The vast majority of patients arrived at the hospital during the dry season. Abdominal pain and vomiting were the main symptoms. An occlusive syndrome was present in about half of the patients. The diameter of the collar of the hernia varied between 1.5 and 2.5 cm and no intestinal necrosis was found during exploration. The surgery was simple in the majority of cases. Umbilical hernia is a reality in under-developed environment some factors promotes its complications

Evaluation of determinants of the use of health mutuals by the population of the Ziguinchor region in Senegal

Access to health services is a concern around the world. Different strategies were developed, but Africa’s rate remains the lowest. This article aims to contribute to the population's access to healthcare, and to assess the determinants of the use of mutual health insurance by the population of the Ziguinchor region in Senegal.    Methods: The study is transversal and descriptive, carried out from July to August 2018. Through the quota method we defined the number of patients to be interviewed. Thus, by a geographic stratification according to the departments and a second-degree stratification taking into account the staff of the different hospital departments, 392 patients were selected.   Results: 73% at the Regional Hospital Center and 27% at the Regional Peace Hospital. Response rate: 97%, women 60% and men 40%. The enrollment for women (24%) is slightly higher than that for men (21%). Socio-economic factors. The rate of adherence is the highest of for patients with university level, followed by high school; income:  the highest rate for patients with a monthly income between 200,000 and 500,000 FCFA, followed by patients with an income monthly between 100,000 and 200,000 FCFA. Factors linked to the provision of care: the rate of Mutual Health Insurance adherence follows distances from patients' homes. Concerning the relation to satisfaction, education, distance and information are more determining than adherence rate.    Recommendations: 1) State: actions on education and distance; 2) Sensitizing the population on mutual health insurance; 3) Urging healthcare providers to reduce waiting times and respect schedules as well as appointments.&nbsp

Human IgG response to a salivary peptide, gSG6-P1, as a new immuno-epidemiological tool for evaluating low-level exposure to Anopheles bites

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Human populations exposed to low malaria transmission present particular severe risks of malaria morbidity and mortality. In addition, in a context of low-level exposure to <it>Anopheles </it>vector, conventional entomological methods used for sampling <it>Anopheles </it>populations are insufficiently sensitive and probably under-estimate the real risk of malaria transmission. The evaluation of antibody (Ab) responses to arthropod salivary proteins constitutes a novel tool for estimating exposure level to insect bites. In the case of malaria, a recent study has shown that human IgG responses to the gSG6-P1 peptide represented a specific biomarker of exposure to <it>Anopheles gambiae </it>bites. The objective of this study was to investigate if this biomarker can be used to estimate low-level exposure of individuals to <it>Anopheles </it>vector.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The IgG Ab level to gSG6-P1 was evaluated at the peak and at the end of the <it>An. gambiae </it>exposure season in children living in Senegalese villages, where the <it>Anophele</it>s density was estimated to be very low by classical entomological trapping but where malaria transmission occurred during the studied season.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Specific IgG responses to gSG6-P1 were observed in children exposed to very low-level of <it>Anopheles </it>bites. In addition, a significant increase in the specific IgG Ab level was observed during the <it>Anopheles </it>exposure season whereas classical entomological data have reported very few or no <it>Anopheles </it>during the studied period. Furthermore, this biomarker may also be applicable to evaluate the heterogeneity of individual exposure.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The results strengthen the hypothesis that the evaluation of IgG responses to gSG6-P1 during the season of exposure could reflect the real human contact with anthropophilic <it>Anopheles </it>and suggest that this biomarker of low exposure could be used at the individual level. This promising immuno-epidemiological marker could represent a useful tool to assess the risk to very low exposure to malaria vectors as observed in seasonal, urban, altitude or travellers contexts. In addition, this biomarker could be used for the surveillance survey after applying anti-vector strategy.</p