CEFADES: An impact evaluation of a vocational and rehabilitation program for at-­‐risk youth in Eastern DRC

In the fall of 2013, a group of students at the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University were approached to design and implement a survey to gauge the effectiveness of a youth employment program in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. At the fundamental level, it was necessary to know if the program was helping the children find employment and if that employment was increasing the incomes earned by participants. Vocational programs such as the one described in this paper, are not uncommon and have been shown to be quite effective in setting around the world. For the first time though, an analysis of this type of program was implemented in the unique setting of Butembo, DR Congo. Butembo, as will be described later, is a unique hub of peace within an area that has been ravaged by civil conflict in recent decades. In this particular context, the conflict affects youth in the area through displacement, loss of education, as well as through recruitment into the conflict or other activities that support rebel groups. The research within this paper uses survey instruments in an effort to determine the level of effectiveness of the vocational program in the region that focuses on at risk and vulnerable youth. In this paper, our research team will describe the setting of both conflict in DRC and its effects on institutions and programs as well as the setting of this analysis. In addition, information on the program, CEFADES, will be given along research design and the analysis of our findings.The Center for the Animation and the Formation of Solitary Developmen

Prevalence of Child Malnutrition in North Kivu, DRC: Evidence from Bunyuka Parish

Sub-Saharan Africa is the second most undernourished region in the world, with an estimated 265 million people in 2009. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has the highest percentage of undernourished people in the region, 75% from 2004 to 2006. The Kivu region in Eastern DRC, in particular, has suffered through decades of conflict and lack of security and infrastructure obstruct data collection in this region. The main contribution of this paper is to present primary survey evidence on the prevalence of malnutrition in the village of Bunyuka in North Kivu. From a sample of over 700 mothers and 1400 children, we find significant prevalence of malnutrition and high dependence on nutritionally deficient food sources

Clinical and epidemiologic characteristics of hospitalized patients with laboratory-confirmed respiratory syncytial virus infection in eastern china between 2009 and 2013: a retrospective study

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide in children aged <5 years and older adults with acute lower respiratory infections (ALRIs). However, few studies regarding the epidemiology of hospitalizations for RSV infection have been performed previously in China. Here, we aimed to describe the clinical and epidemiologic characteristics of hospitalized patients with laboratory-confirmed RSV infection in eastern China. Active surveillance for hospitalized ALRI patients using a broad case definition based on symptoms was performed from 2009-2013 in 12 sentinel hospitals in eastern China. Clinical and epidemiologic data pertaining to hospitalized patients of all ages with laboratory-confirmed RSV infection by PCR assay were collected and analyzed in this study. From 2009 to 2013, 1046 hospitalized patients with laboratory-confirmed RSV infection were enrolled in this study, and 14.7% of patients had subtype A, 24.2% of patients had subtype B, 23.8% of patients with subtype not performed, and 37.3% of patients had RSV coinfections with other viruses. RSV and influenza coinfections (33.3%) were the most common coinfections noted in this study. Moreover, young children aged <5 years (89.1%, 932/1046), particularly young infants aged <1 year (43.3%, 453/1046), represented the highest proportion of patients with RSV infections. In contrast, older adults aged ?60 years (1.1%, 12/1046) represented the lowest proportion of patients with RSV infections among enrolled patients. The peak RSV infection period occurred mainly during autumn and winter, and 57% and 66% of patients exhibited symptoms such as fever (body temperature ?38°C) and cough separately. Additionally, only a small number of patients were treated with broad-spectrum antiviral drugs, and most of patients were treated with antimicrobial drugs that were not appropriate for RSV infection. RSV is a leading viral pathogen and a common cause of viral infection in young children aged <5 years with ALRIs in eastern China. Effective vaccines and antiviral agents targeting RSV are needed to mitigate its large public health impact

Mechanism and Function of Circular RNA in Regulating Solid Tumor Radiosensitivity

Radiotherapy is an important tool in the treatment of malignant tumors, and exploring how to make radiotherapy more effective is a new way to break through the current bottleneck in the development of radiation oncology. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a special class of endogenous non-coding RNAs. Numerous studies have shown that circRNAs have shown great potential in regulating the biological functions of tumors, including proliferation, migration, invasion, and treatment resistance, and that differences in their expression levels are closely related to the clinical prognosis of tumor patients. This review systematically compares the mechanisms of circRNAs in the process of tumor development and radiosensitivity and provides insight into the clinical translation of circRNAs in radiotherapy

Walking Environment and Obesity: A Gender-Specific Association Study in Shanghai

Walking environment is commonly cited as an element that reduces the risk of obesity. Many literatures have shown that the impact of walking environment on the incidence rate of obesity may vary across gender, but few studies have conducted in-depth investigations. The present study aimed to provide empirical evidence for a cross-sectional association between the built community environment and the incidence of obesity among male and female residents. Thus, we collected height and weight level of 1355 residents and constructed seven walking environment indicators around 54 communities. Also, BMI was calculated and categorized to define overweight and obesity. We used generalized estimation equation to evaluate the gender-specific association between walking environment on obesity based on a diverse population sample. The study showed that female residents who lived in neighborhoods with higher road sky view index (p = 0.033; OR = 0.002 [95% CI = 0.001–0.619]) and increased intersection density (p = 0.009; OR = 0.979 [95% CI = 0.963–0.995]) showed lower risk of increased BMI, but the advantage does not successfully radiate significant obesity consequences. In addition, the increased density of bus stops can also reduce the risk of obesity in women groups (p = 0.035; OR = 0.910 [95% CI = 0.836–0.990]). These findings suggest that women were more sensitive and were more likely to make different behavioral choices and physiological responses due to distinct walking environments. This provides useful evidence for future obesity prevention and urban planning

Motor neuron and pancreas homeobox 1/HLXB9 promotes sustained proliferation in bladder cancer by upregulating CCNE1/2

Abstract Background Uncontrolled proliferation is thought to be the most fundamental characteristic of cancer. Detailed knowledge of cancer cell proliferation mechanisms would not only benefit understanding of cancer progression, but may also provide new clues for developing novel therapeutic strategies. Methods In vitro function of MNX1 (Motor neuron and pancreas homeobox 1) in bladder cancer cell was evaluated using MTT assay, colony formation assay, and bromodeoxyuridine incorporation assay. Real-time PCR and western blotting were performed to detect MNX1 and CCNE1/2 expressions. In vivo tumor growth was conducted in BALB/c-nu mice. Results We reported that MNX1 is responsible for sustaining bladder cancer cell proliferation. Abnormal MNX1 upregulation in bladder cancer cell lines and 167 human tissue specimens; high MNX1 expression levels correlated significantly with shorter 5-year overall and relapse-free survival in the bladder cancer patients. Furthermore, MNX1 overexpression accelerated bladder cancer cell proliferation and tumorigenicity both in vitro and in vivo, whereas MNX1 downregulation arrested it. In addition, MNX1 transcriptionally upregulated CCNE1 and CCNE2 by directly bounding to their promoters, which promoted G1–S transition in the bladder cancer cells. Conclusion These findings reveal an oncogenic role and novel regulatory mechanism of MNX1 in bladder cancer progression and suggest that MNX1 is a potential prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target