Stakeholder engagement in the development of genetically modified mosquitoes for malaria control in West Africa: lessons learned from 10 years of Target Malaria’s work in Mali

From 2012 to 2023, the Malaria Research and Training Center (MRTC), based out of the University of Sciences, Techniques and Technologies of Bamako (USTTB), was part of the Target Malaria research consortium working towards developing novel gene drive-based tools for controlling populations of malaria vector mosquitoes. As part of this work, Target Malaria Mali has undertaken a range of in-depth engagement activities with the communities where their research is conducted and with other stakeholders nationally. These activities were meant to ensure that the project’s activities took place with the agreement of those communities, and that those communities were able to play a role in shaping the project’s approach to ensure that its eventual outcomes were in line with their needs and concerns. This paper aims to conduct a critical assessment of those 10 years of stakeholder engagement in order to identify good practices which can inform future engagement work on gene drive research in West Africa. It sets out a range of approaches and practices that enabled the Target Malaria Mali team to engage a variety of stakeholders, to share information, collect feedback, and determine community agreement, in a manner that was inclusive, effective, and culturally appropriate. These can be useful tools for those working on gene drive research and other area-wide vector control methods in West African contexts to ensure that their research is aligned with the interests of the communities who are intended to be its ultimate beneficiaries, and to allow those communities to play a meaningful role in the research process

Intended Consequences Statement in Conservation Science and Practice

As the biodiversity crisis accelerates, the stakes are higher for threatened plants and animals. Rebuilding the health of our planet will require addressing underlying threats at many scales, including habitat loss and climate change. Conservation interventions such as habitat protection, management, restoration, predator control, trans location, genetic rescue, and biological control have the potential to help threatened or endangered species avert extinction. These existing, well-tested methods can be complemented and augmented by more frequent and faster adoption of new technologies, such as powerful new genetic tools. In addition, synthetic biology might offer solutions to currently intractable conservation problems. We believe that conservation needs to be bold and clear-eyed in this moment of great urgency

Interfacial and micellar behaviour of pyrrole-containing surfactants

International audienceThe physicochemical properties of new electropolymerisable cationic surfactants having a pyrrolyl group attached and unusual counterions have been studied in aqueous solutions and at the air-water interface. The tetrafluoroborate and tosylate anions behave as quite hydrophobic counterions as compared to the conventional bromide. The pyrrolyl group of moderate polarity has a dual behaviour: it behaves as a hydrophobic substituent when it is attached close to the polar head of the surfactants, but its low polarity manifests when it is attached to the end of the hydrophobic chain. Thus, the presence of the pyrrolyl group at the chain end does not affect the cmc value. The pyrrole ring was found located at the micellar surface in the dilute regime; the resulting folding of the hydrophobic chain induces a strong curvature of the interface; small and spherical micelles are formed. A concentrated regime is reached where the interfacial curvature is reduced: the micelles progressively grow in size and change their shape into elongated ellipsoids. The increasing lateral interactions at the level of the headgroups expel the pyrrolyl groups into the hydrophobic micellar core

Effects of Hormones on Breast Development and Breast Cancer Risk in Transgender Women.

Transgender women experience gender dysphoria due to a gender assignment at birth that is incongruent with their gender identity. Transgender people undergo different surgical procedures and receive sex steroids hormones to reduce psychological distress and to induce and maintain desired physical changes. These persons on feminizing hormones represent a unique population to study the hormonal effects on breast development, to evaluate the risk of breast cancer and perhaps to better understand the precise role played by different hormonal components. In MTF (male to female) patients, hormonal treatment usually consists of antiandrogens and estrogens. Exogenous hormones induce breast development with the formation of ducts and lobules and an increase in the deposition of fat. A search of the existing literature dedicated to hormone regimens for MTF patients, their impact on breast tissue (incidence and type of breast lesions) and breast cancer risk provided the available information for this review. The evaluation of breast cancer risk is currently complicated by the heterogeneity of administered treatments and a lack of long-term follow-up in the great majority of studies. Large studies with longer follow-up are required to better evaluate the breast cancer risk and to understand the precise mechanisms on breast development of each exogenous hormone

Effects of Hormones on Breast Development and Breast Cancer Risk in Transgender Women

Transgender women experience gender dysphoria due to a gender assignment at birth that is incongruent with their gender identity. Transgender people undergo different surgical procedures and receive sex steroids hormones to reduce psychological distress and to induce and maintain desired physical changes. These persons on feminizing hormones represent a unique population to study the hormonal effects on breast development, to evaluate the risk of breast cancer and perhaps to better understand the precise role played by different hormonal components. In MTF (male to female) patients, hormonal treatment usually consists of antiandrogens and estrogens. Exogenous hormones induce breast development with the formation of ducts and lobules and an increase in the deposition of fat. A search of the existing literature dedicated to hormone regimens for MTF patients, their impact on breast tissue (incidence and type of breast lesions) and breast cancer risk provided the available information for this review. The evaluation of breast cancer risk is currently complicated by the heterogeneity of administered treatments and a lack of long-term follow-up in the great majority of studies. Large studies with longer follow-up are required to better evaluate the breast cancer risk and to understand the precise mechanisms on breast development of each exogenous hormone

Prognostic and predictive values of diffusion and perfusion MRI in paediatric intracranial ependymomas in a large national study

International audienc

Safety and cost of infliximab for the treatment of belgian paediatric patients with crohn disease

Biologicals have become an important component in the treatment of Crohn's disease in children. Their increased and long term use raises safety concerns. We describe safety and cost of infliximab in Belgian pediatric Crohn's disease patients. All patients on infliximab as part of the present or past treatment for Crohn's Disease until January 1st 2011 were selected from an existing database. Information on disease phenotype, medication and adverse events were extracted. Adverse events occurred in 25.9% of patients exposed to infliximab of which 29.6% were severe. In total 31.7% of patients stopped infliximab therapy. The main reasons for discontinuation were adverse events in 45.4% and loss of response in 30.3%. No malignancies or lethal complications occurred over this 241 patient year observation period. Immunomodulators were concomitant medication in 75% of patients and were discontinued subsequently in 38.4% of them. The cost of infliximab infusions per treated patient per year in the Belgian health care setting is approximately 9 474 euro, including only medication and hospital related costs. Even though infliximab is relatively safe in pediatric CD on the short term, close follow-up and an increased awareness of the possible adverse reactions is highly recommended. Adverse reactions appeared in 25.9% of all patients and were the main reason for discontinuation. Treatment cost has to be balanced against efficacy and modifications in disease course. In the Belgian health care system, the medication is available to all patients with moderate to severe CD

Paediatric Crohn's disease : disease activity and growth in the BELCRO cohort after 3 years follow-up

Objective: The Belgian registry for paediatric Crohn disease (BELCRO) cohort is a prospective, multicentre registry for newly diagnosed paediatric patients with Crohn disease (CD) (<18 years) recruited from 2008 to 2010 to identify predictive factors for disease activity and growth. Methods: Data from the BELCRO database were evaluated at diagnosis, 24 and 36 months follow-up. Results: At month 36 (M36), data were available on 84 of the 98 patients included at diagnosis. Disease activity evolved as follows: inactive 5% to 70%, mild 19% to 24%, and moderate to severe 76% to 6%. None of the variables such as age, sex, diagnostic delay, type of treatment, disease location, disease activity at diagnosis, and growth were associated with disease activity at M36. Paediatricians studied significantly less patients with active disease at M36 compared with adult physicians. Sixty percent of the patients had biologicals as part of their treatment at M36. Adult gastroenterologists initiated biologicals significantly earlier. They were the only factor determining biologicals' initiation, not disease location or disease severity at diagnosis. Median body mass index (BMI) z score evolved from -0.97 (range -5.5-2.1) to 0.11 (range -3.4-2) and median height z score from -0.15 (range -3.4-1.6) to 0.12 (range -2.3-2.3) at M36. None of the variables mentioned above influenced growth over time. Conclusions: Present treatment strategies lead to good disease control in the BELCRO cohort after 3 years. Logistic regression analysis did not show any influence of disease location or present treatment strategy on disease activity and growth, but patients under paediatric care had significantly less severe disease at M36