Enquête sur l’Importance des Ressources Végétales pour la Population Riveraine du Parc National de la Langue de Barbarie (Sénégal)

Les espèces végétales constituent une composante essentielle de la biodiversité. Ainsi au Sénégal plusieurs études ont été effectuées sur ces espèces. Cependant celles qui portent à la fois sur les ligneux et les herbacées sont rares. Ce travail a été réalisé entre 2012 et 2014 pour évaluer l’importance des ressources végétales pour la population riveraine du Parc National de la Langue de Barbarie (PNLB). Une enquête ethnobotanique basée sur un questionnaire a été réalisée. La valeur d’usage, le facteur de consensus et le niveau de fidélité ont été évalués. L’analyse des résultats montre que Prosopis glandulosa (1,05) présente la plus grande valeur d’usage suivie d’Acacia tortilis subsp raddiana (0,83). Les usages les plus courants sont l’alimentation humaine (19,90 %), l’usage médicinal (19,40 %) et l’alimentation animale (16,50 %). Les facteurs de consensus sont plus élevés pour l’alimentation humaine et l’usage médicinal. La flore médicinale utilisée par les riverains du PNLB est plus diversifiée avec 67 espèces réparties dans 32 familles et 56 genres. Elle est suivie de l’alimentation humaine avec 52 espèces réparties dans 32 familles et 45genres. Les résultats sur le niveau de fidélité des espèces aux catégories d’usages les plus citées montrent l’existence d’espèces à usages exclusifs avec 100% de niveaux de fidélité et d’espèces à usages multiples avec moins de 100% de niveau de fidélité. Le niveau de fidélité des espèces utilisées dans l’alimentation humaine, animale ainsi que dans la médecine traditionnelle et leur valeur d’usage sont corrélés négativement. Les ressources végétales sont importantes pour la population riveraine du Parc National de la Langue de Barbarie qui les utilise dans plusieurs catégories d’usages. Cependant une étude plus approfondie sur les espèces médicinales serait bénéfique pour l’humanité.   Plant species are an essential component of biodiversity. Thus in Senegal several studies have been carried out on these species. However, those relating to both ligneous and herbaceous plants are rare. This work was carried out between 2012 and 2014 to assess the importance of plant resources for the local population of the Thongue of Barbarism National Park (TBNP). An ethnobotanical survey based on a questionnaire was carried out. Analysis of the results shows that  Prosopis glandulosa (1.05) shows the highest use value followed by Acacia tortilis subsp raddiana (0.83). The most common use are food (19.90%), medicinal use (19.40%) and animal feed (16.50%). Consensus factor are highest for human food and medicinal use. The medicinal flora used by residents of the NPLB is more diversified with 67 species distributed in 32 families and 56 genera. The families most represented in this medicinal flora are the Fabaceae (22.38%), the Malvaceae (8.95%) and the Combretaceae (5.97%). It is followed by human food with 52 species divided into 32 families and 45 genera. The results on the level of fidelity of species to the most cited use categories show the existence of species for exclusive use with 100% fidelity levels and multiple use species with less than 100% fidelity level. The level of fidelity of species used in human and animal food as well as in traditional medicine and their use value are negatively correlated. Plant resources are important for the local population of the Thongue of Barbarism National Park who use them in several categories of uses. The importance of  plant resources for the population is well known. However, further study of medicinal species would be beneficial to mankind

Grave's disease associated with myasthenia gravis: a case report

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The Drying Kinetics Study of Couscous for its Conservation,Comsumption and Urban Marketing

The combined effects of the devaluation of the CFA franc in 1992, the food crisis of 2008 and the strong demand for grain products developed urban dwellers have proven to be a necessity of development of grain products manufacturing units marketable and storable without any risk of alteration for cereal craftsmen. This contribution conducted at 40 ° C and 55 ° C with air speeds of 1m / s 2m / s and 3m / s is in the kinetic study of a technological process couscous drying to determine the optimum conditions of the process of dehydration. She found that the drying kinetics of couscous takes place in three phases; indicating that couscous is rich in water and that it can be stored at room temperature unless it is dried. Henceforth it is imperative to have a good knowledge and mastery of these three phases that impact on product quality This study showed that the experiments performed at a speed of air 3m / s at 40 ° C temperatures and 55 ° C, show a brown coloration due to Maillard reactions. We see that the browning phenomena are more pronounced at the speed of 3m / s and 55 ° C. It is found that the slow drying is better suited to the quick dry couscous. In addition to further drying the air velocity of 1m / s correlated with the temperature of 40 ° C is the most suitable as well as good monitoring of the evolution of the temperature during the drying phase warm up for a good product.

Reemergence of Sylvatic Dengue Virus in Southern Senegal, 2021

As part of the syndromic surveillance of fever in Senegal, the virology department at Institut Pasteur de Dakar (IPD) in collaboration with the Epidemiology Unit and the Senegalese Ministry of Health conducted syndromic surveillance of fever in Senegal. Sample are from all suspected arboviral infections patients attending any of the sentinel sites. Collected blood samples were sent on a weekly basis at WHOCC for arboviruses and hemorrhagic fever viruses for screening of seven medically important arboviruses, including dengue virus (DENV). From January to December 2021, 2010 suspected cases were received among them 124 for confirmed to be DENV+ by RT-qPCR attempt of serotyping led to the detection of atypical DENV case from Sare Yoba area (Kolda region) which is unable to be correctly assigned to a serotype by the available tools (TIB Molbiol Modular Dx Dengue typing kit). Performed genome sequencing et phylogenetic analysis leads to the identification of a sylvatic DENV-2 strain closely related to a virus previously detected in Guinee-Bissau in 2009. This finding constitutes proof of the contemporary circulation of DENV-2 strain belonging to the sylvatic cycle in addition to well-known epidemic strains; this adds a piece of complexity to dengue management in Senegal. Alarmingly, it calls for improved genomic surveillance of DENV to know the genetic diversity of circulating strains in order to strengthen future vaccination policies

Étude in vitro de l’effet antifalcémiant des globules rouges et de l’activité antioxydante d’extraits de la poudre de racines de Maytenus senegalensis Lam (Celestraceae)

La drépanocytose est une hémoglobinopathie largement répandue chez les populations africaines noires. Actuellement, très peu de traitements conventionnels existent sur le marché, d’où le recours à la médecine traditionnelle. Maytenus senegalensis est une plante prescrite par les tradipraticiens dans la prise en charge de la drépanocytose. L’activité antifalcémiante des extraits de la poudre de racines de Maytenus senegalensis a été étudiée dans ce travail. Après obtention de l’extrait hexanique par extraction à l’aide d’un Soxhlet, le marc est macéré dans de l’acétate d’éthyle puis dans du méthanol pour donner les extraits correspondants. L’activité des fractions a été évaluée sur des drépanocytes de type SS. Les activités antifalcémiantes les plus importantes ont été observées pour les fractions polaires du méthanol et de l’acétate d’éthyle avec des taux d’inversion de la falciformation respectivement de 77% et de 65% à 10 mg/mL. Les activités antioxydantes de M. senegalensis (CI50 = 0,195 ± 0,004 mg/mL) et de l’acide ascorbique (CI50 = 0,078 ± 0,002 mg/mL) ont été déterminées. Les pouvoirs antioxydants (PA) montrent que l’activité antiradicalaire de l’acide ascorbique (PA = 12,85) est 2,5 fois meilleure que celle de M. senegalensis (PA = 5,14). Les résultats de l’étude justifient l’utilisation traditionnelle des racines de Maytenus senegalensis dans la prise en charge de la drépanocytose.Mots clés : Hémoglobine, drépanocytose, Maytenus senegalensis, activité antifalcémiante, stress oxydant, radicaux libres, activité antioxydante

L’éléphantiasis vulvo-clitoridien: à propos d’un nouveau cas

L'éléphantiasis vulvo-clitoridien d'origine filarienne est une affection très rare. Nous rapportons un nouveau cas chez une femme de 33 ans suivie dans un service de Maladies Infectieuses pour filariose lymphatique. Elle avait une masse vulvo-clitoridienne qui évoluait depuis plus de 10 ans. Une résection clitoridienne et une plastie vulvaire a été réalisée. Les résultats fonctionnels et esthétiques étaient satisfaisants.Key words: Eléphantiasis, filariose, vulvo-clitoridie

SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in pregnant women during the first three COVID-19 waves in The Gambia

OBJECTIVES: SARS-CoV-2 transmission in Sub-Saharan Africa has probably been underestimated. Population-based seroprevalence studies are needed to determine the extent of transmission in the continent. METHODS: Blood samples from a cohort of Gambian pregnant women were tested for SARS-CoV-2 total receptor binding domain (RBD) IgM/IgG before (Pre-pandemic: October-December 2019), and during the pandemic (Pre-wave1: February-June 2020; Post-wave1: October-December 2020, Post-wave2: May-June 2021; and Post-wave3: October-December 2021). Samples reactive for SARS-CoV-2 total RBD IgM/IgG were tested in specific S1- and nucleocapsid (NCP) IgG assays. RESULTS: SARS-CoV-2 total RBD IgM/IgG seroprevalence was 0.9% 95%CI (0.2, 4.9) in Pre-pandemic; 4.1% (1.4, 11.4) in Pre-wave1; 31.1% (25.2, 37.7) in Post-wave1; 62.5% (55.8, 68.8) in Post-wave2 and 90.0% (85.1, 93.5) in Post-wave3. S-protein IgG and NCP-protein IgG seroprevalence also increased at each Post-wave period. Although S-protein IgG and NCP-protein IgG seroprevalence was similar at Post-wave1, S-protein IgG seroprevalence was higher at Post-wave2 and Post-wave3, [prevalence difference (PD) 13.5 (0.1, 26.8) and prevalence ratio (PR) 1.5 (1.0, 2.3) in Post-wave2; and 22.9 (9.2, 36.6) and 1.4 (1.1, 1.8) in Post-wave3 respectively, p<0.001]. CONCLUSION: SARS-CoV-2 transmission in The Gambia during the first three COVID-19 waves was high, differing significantly from official numbers of COVID-19 cases reported. Our findings are important for policy makers in managing the near-endemic COVID-19

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

INTRODUCTION Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. RATIONALE We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs). RESULTS Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants. CONCLUSION Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century