HIV positive status disclosure to sexual partner among women attending ART clinic at Hawassa University Referral Hospital, SNNPR, Ethiopia

Background: Disclosure of HIV positive status has key role in the prevention and control of HIV/AIDS. Reports of non-disclosure and negative outcome of disclosure are common. Thus, disclosure of HIV positive status is a theme that demands investigation.Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the magnitude and outcome of HIV positive status disclosure to sexual partner among women living with HIV/AIDS and attending Hawassa University Referral Hospital, South Nations and Nationalities Peoples Region (SNNPR) during a period of March to April 2008.Methods: A cross sectional survey was conducted at Hawassa University  Referral Hospital. Single population proportion formula was used to determine sample size. Using a structured and pre-tested questionnaire, data on disclosure were collected through interview. After explaining purpose of the survey, data collection was continued until the required sample was obtained. Then, data were entered using EPI info version 2002 statistical package and cross checked for reliability. Using SPSS 12.1 for windows statistical package, analysis was done. Results: Overall 85.7% of the women had disclosed their HIV positive status to sexual partner. Main barriers of disclosure reported by non-disclosed subjects were; fear of abandonment, fear of break-up in relationship and fear of stigma. More than 59% of the women with regular sexual partner faced negative partner reaction after disclosure. Compared with married women, those women who were in a cohabiting relationship were less likely to disclose their HIV status to sexual partners (AOR 0.16; 95% CI 0.04, 0.60); women who did not know HIV status of their sexualpartners were less likely to disclose their HIV positive status than their counter parts (AOR 0.02; 95% CI 0.00, 0.08) and women who had been on ART for more than one year were more likely to disclose their HIV positive status than the reference groups (AOR 8.62; 95% CI 1.35, 55.22).Conclusion: HIV positive status disclosure to sexual partner in this study was higher than what was reported in other studies in Ethiopia, for Mettu and Gore (69%) but slightly lower than the report from Jimma (94.5%) and Addis Ababa (92%). Negative partner reaction following disclosure was higher. Effectively addressing issues of disclosure was recommended to encourage disclosure and cope with negative reactions after disclosure in People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). Besides, currently existing Information Education Communication (IEC) interventions on HIV/AIDS should be strengthened, to reduce negative partner reaction following disclosure. [Ethiop. J. Health Dev. 2010;24(1):9-14

CLIL in the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) University Class: Incorporating Thematic World maps in Learning

CLIL (Content Language Integrated Learning) has increasingly gained recognition as a methodology for teaching mainstream courses at Colombian universities to foster the learning of English through academic subjects in the social sciences. This is a report of how overlaying thematic maps to identify correlating data has been used to develop support for essays which focus on social issues. As students overlaid thematic maps to identify the relationship between social indicators, they were able to sustain a thesis for their essay thesis topics through geographic research. Hence, the exercise demonstrated the simultaneous learning process advocated by CLIL as students acquired map skills to support a thesis in an essay

CLIL in the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) University Class: Incorporating Thematic World maps in Learning

CLIL (Content Language Integrated Learning) has increasingly gained recognition as a methodology for teaching mainstream courses at Colombian universities to foster the learning of English through academic subjects in the social sciences. This is a report of how overlaying thematic maps to identify correlating data has been used to develop support for essays which focus on social issues. As students overlaid thematic maps to identify the relationship between social indicators, they were able to sustain a thesis for their essay thesis topics through geographic research. Hence, the exercise demonstrated the simultaneous learning process advocated by CLIL as students acquired map skills to support a thesis in an essay

Genetic Diversity among and within Accessions of a Lablab (\u3ci\u3eLablab purpureus\u3c/i\u3e) Collection Maintained in the ILRI Forage Genebank

Lablab (Lablab purpureus L.) is an important annual multi-purpose legume used as a vegetable for human consumption, as forage for livestock, and as green manure and a cover crop to improve soil fertility. It has a high feed value with good digestibility and high crude protein content. The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) forage genebank holds a diverse set of 340 lablab accessions collected from different regions of the world. A total of 1,843 plants from 142 lablab accessions (1 to 29 plants per accession genotyped individually) were genotyped by the genotyping-by-sequencing (GBS) method of the DArTseq platform. The genotyping produced a total of 38,824 and 64,793 genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and SilicoDArT high-density markers, respectively. The short sequence reads corresponding to the markers were mapped on the mungbean (Vigna radiata) reference genome, with approximately 37% of the SNPs and 26 % of the SilicoDArTs able to be mapped. A subset of 1,000 robust markers was filtered by different criteria and used for the diversity analysis. Clustering analysis using the discriminant analysis of principal components (DAPC) detected five major groups, each with further subgroups. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) showed a highly significant (P \u3c 0.00001) variation, explaining more than 73 % of the variance among the accessions. A significant variation (P \u3c 0.005) was also observed among plants within accessions, which explained about 27 % of the variation. The results of this study provide a useful guide for the management and rationalization of activities of the lablab germplasm collection at the ILRI genebank. The substantial genetic diversity observed in the collection reveals the potential of the population for further genetic studies

The role of crude human saliva and purified salivary MUC5B and MUC7 mucins in the inhibition of Human Immunodeficiency Virus type 1 in an inhibition assay

BACKGROUND: Despite the continuous shedding of HIV infected blood into the oral cavity and the detectable presence of the AIDS virus at a high frequency, human saliva is reported to inhibit oral transmission of HIV through kissing, dental treatment, biting, and aerosolization. The purpose of this study was to purify salivary MUC5B and MUC7 mucins from crude saliva and determine their anti-HIV-1 activities. METHODS: Following Sepharose CL-4B column chromatography and caesium chloride isopycnic density-gradient ultra-centrifugation, the purity and identity of the mucins was determined by SDS-PAGE and Western blotting analysis respectively. Subsequently an HIV-1 inhibition assay was carried out to determine the anti-HIV-1 activity of the crude saliva and purified salivary mucins by incubating them with subtype D HIV-1 prior to infection of the CD4(+ )CEM SS cells. RESULTS: Western blotting analysis confirmed that the mucin in the void volume is MUC5B and the mucin in the included volume is MUC7. The HIV inhibition assay revealed that both the crude saliva and salivary MUC5B and MUC7 mucins inhibited HIV-1 activity by 100%. CONCLUSION: Although the mechanism of action is not clear the carbohydrate moieties of the salivary mucins may trap or aggregate the virus and prevent host cell entry

Performance of Napier Grass (\u3ci\u3eCenchrus purpureus\u3c/i\u3e L.) Genotypes Grown under Limited Soil Moisture

Napier grass (Cenchrus purpureus Schumach L.) is an important perennial forage native to Africa and grown in many tropical and subtropical countries. It is considered as a short-term drought tolerant forage which is a useful trait in areas that are characterized by low precipitation during the dry season. To exploit the potential of this grass and identify water use efficient (WUE) genotypes, a field drought stress trial was conducted at Bishoftu, Ethiopia. Eighty-four Napier grass genotypes were planted in a p-rep design in four replications. The genotypes were evaluated for forage performance during the dry season of 2019 and 2020 based on agro-morphological traits under two soil moisture regimes- moderate water stress (MWS) and severe water stress (SWS). The results indicated the existence of significant diversity among the genotypes for agro-morphological traits and photosynthetic performance. Consistently high biomass producing genotypes with enhanced water use efficiency were observed across harvests in each soil moisture regime, which indicates the possibility of utilizing these genotypes for high biomass production under low soil moisture conditions after further validation in other environments

Changes in soil properties with long-term organic inputs due to distance from homestead and farm characteristics in southern Ethiopian farmlands

Open access via the Elsevier Agreement This original data was collected as part of the project ‘Alternative Carbon Investments in Ecosystems for Poverty Alleviation –below ground versus above ground opportunities for restoration of ecosystem services’ (ALTER), funded with support from the Ecosystem Services for Poverty Alleviation (ESPA) programme (grant no. NE/K010441/1). The analysis of the data and preparation of this paper was undertaken as part of the RALENTIR (Reducing land degradation and carbon loss from Ethiopia's soils to strengthen livelihoods and resilience) project, funded by GCRF (Global Challenges Research Fund) and University of Aberdeen (grant number ES/T003073/1).Peer reviewedPublisher PD

The inhibition of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus type 1 activity by crude and purified human pregnancy plug mucus and mucins in an inhibition assay

Background: The female reproductive tract is amongst the main routes for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) transmission. Cervical mucus however is known to protect the female reproductive tract from bacterial invasion and fluid loss and regulates and facilitates sperm transport to the upper reproductive tract. The purpose of this study was to purify and characterize pregnancy plug mucins and determine their anti-HIV-1 activity in an HIV inhibition assay. Methods: Pregnancy plug mucins were purified by caesium chloride density-gradient ultra-centrifugation and characterized by Western blotting analysis. The anti-HIV-1 activities of the crude pregnancy plug mucus and purified pregnancy plug mucins was determined by incubating them with HIV-1 prior to infection of the human T lymphoblastoid cell line (CEM SS cells). Results: The pregnancy plug mucus had MUC1, MUC2, MUC5AC and MUC5B. The HIV inhibition assay revealed that while the purified pregnancy plug mucins inhibit HIV-1 activity by approximately 97.5%, the crude pregnancy plug mucus failed to inhibit HIV-1 activity. Conclusion: Although it is not clear why the crude sample did not inhibit HIV-1 activity, it may be that the amount of mucins in the crude pregnancy plug mucus (which contains water, mucins, lipids, nucleic acids, lactoferrin, lysozyme, immunoglobulins and ions), is insufficient to cause viral inhibition or aggregation.Peer Reviewe

Abdominal surgical site infections: incidence and risk factors at an Iranian teaching hospital

BACKGROUND: Abdominal surgical site infections are among the most common complications of inpatient admissions and have serious consequences for outcomes and costs. Different risk factors may be involved, including age, sex, nutrition and immunity, prophylactic antibiotics, operation type and duration, type of shaving, and secondary infections. This study aimed to determine the risk factors affecting abdominal surgical site infections and their incidence at Imam Khomeini, a major referral teaching hospital in Iran. METHODS: Patients (n = 802) who had undergone abdominal surgery were studied and the relationships among variables were analyzed by Student's t and Chi-square tests. The subjects were followed for 30 days and by a 20-item questionnaire. Data were collected through pre- and post-operative examinations and telephone follow-ups. RESULTS: Of the 802 patients, 139 suffered from SSI (17.4%). In 40.8% of the cases, the wound was dirty infected. The average age for the patients was 46.7 years. The operations were elective in 75.7% of the cases and 24.7% were urgent. The average duration of the operation was 2.24 hours, the average duration of pre-operative hospital stay 4.31 days and the average length of (pre- and post-operation) hospital stay 11.2 days. Three quarters of the cases were shaved 12 hours before the operation. The increased operation time, increased bed stay, electivity of the operation, septicity of the wound, type of incision, the administration of prophylactic antibiotic, type of operation, background disease, and the increased time lapse between shaving and operation all significantly associated with SSI with a p-value less than 0.001. CONCLUSION: In view of the high rate of SSI reported here (17.4% compared with the 14% quoted in literature), this study suggests that by reducing the average operation time to less than 2 hours, the average preoperative stay to 4 days and the overall stay to less than 11 days, and approximating the timing of shaving to the operation and substituting cefazolin for cefaluthin when prophylactic antibiotic is to be administered, the SSI may be reduced to a more acceptable level