Male infertility: A retrospective review of laboratory charts at a tertiary teaching hospital in Nairobi City County

Background: Globally, approximately 50 million couples experience one form of infertility, and 10 million cases of subfertility have been reported in sub-Saharan Africa. Infertility is characterized by a lack of clinical conception among couples who live together for more than one year with regular coitus, without the use of contraception. Factors related to fertility vary by sex and geographical region. These factors include age, lifestyle, infectious diseases, and genetic disorders. In African culture, children are considered a simple inheritance and a measure of masculinity, so efforts are needed to address the growing problem of male infertility in this context. Objective: To determine the prevalence of male infertility among adult men seeking semen analysis services in a tertiary teaching hospital in Nairobi, Kenya. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study that involved a retrospective review of archived electronic data in the hospital information system. These data were from male patients who visited the laboratory with a request for semen analysis between January 2016 and December 2020. A checklist was used to extract data related to sociodemographic factors and laboratory results (age, seminal volume, and diagnosis). Results: The average age of the male clients seen during the review period was 36±8 years, with the majority aged 31–40 years n= 996 (46.7%). The youngest was 21 years old, and the oldest was 70 years old. The total prevalence of seminal abnormalities was 1628 (77%) of the 2131 electronic data that was reviewed. Only 502 (23%) of the patients had a normal seminal diagnosis. Most clients exhibited at least one form of seminal abnormalities, such as asthenospermia 913 (43%), oligospermia 441 (21%), and azoospermia 272 (13%). There was a statistically significant association between age and seminal abnormality (X 2 = 31.393, P=.013). A significant association was also found between seminal volume and abnormalities (X 2 = 94.538, P=.000). Conclusion: Our findings showed that there were some seminal abnormalities among Kenyan men in Nairobi County. More effort is required to identify the cause of this increase in seminal abnormalities. Initiation of health interventions to reduce this burden of infertility may be necessary

Improved Reverse Transcription Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification (RT-LAMP) for the rapid and sensitive detection of Yam mosaic virus

Yam (Dioscorea spp.) productivity is constrained significantly by the lack of a formal seed system. Vegetative propagation, through tuber setts as ‘seed’ yams, encourages the recycling of virus-infected planting materials, contributing to high virus incidence and yield losses. Efforts are ongoing to increase the production of high-quality seed yams in a formal seed system to reduce virus-induced yield losses and enhance the crop’s productivity and food security. Specific and sensitive diagnostic tests are imperative to prevent the multiplication of virus-infected materials contributing to a sustainable seed yam certification system. During routine indexing of yam accessions, discrepancies were observed between the results obtained from the reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) test and those from reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR); RT-LAMP failed to detect Yam mosaic virus (YMV) in some samples that tested positive by RT-PCR. This prompted the design of a new set of LAMP primers, YMV1-OPT primers. These primers detected as little as 0.1 fg/µL of purified RNA obtained from a YMV-infected plant, a sensitivity equivalent to that obtained with RT-PCR. RT-LAMP using YMV1-OPT primers is recommended for all future virus-indexing of seed yams for YMV, offering a rapid, sensitive, and cost-effective approach

Assessment of the quality and quantity of naturally induced antibody responses to EBA175RIII-V in Ghanaian children living in two communities with varying malaria transmission patterns

Abstract Background Recent global reports on malaria suggest significant decrease in disease severity and an increase in control interventions in many malaria endemic countries, including Ghana. However, a major driving force sustaining malaria transmission in recent times is the asymptomatic carriage of malaria parasites, which can enhance immune responses against parasite antigens. This study determined the prevalence and relative avidities of naturally induced antibodies to EBA175RIII–VLl in asymptomatic children living in two communities with varying malaria transmission patterns. Methods An asexual stage Plasmodium falciparum antigen, EBA175RIII–VLl was expressed in Lactococcus lactis, purified and used in indirect ELISA to measure total and cytophilic IgG concentrations and avidities in children aged between 6 and 12 years. The children were selected from Obom and Abura, communities with perennial and seasonal malaria transmission, respectively. Venous blood samples were collected in July and October 2015 and again in January 2016. The multiplicity of infection and the genetic diversity of EBA175RIII circulating in both sites were also assessed using polymerase chain reaction. Results Asymptomatic parasite carriage in the children from Obom decreased from July (peak season), through October and January, however parasite carriage in children from Abura was bimodal, with the lowest prevalence estimated in October. Antibody concentrations over the course of the study remained stable within each study site however, children living in Obom had significantly higher EBA175RIII–VLl antibody concentrations than children living in Abura (P < 0.05, Mann–Whitney test). Over the course of the study, the relative antibody avidities of EBA175RIII–VLl IgG antibodies were similar within and between the sites. Conclusion Naturally acquired IgG concentrations but not relative antibody avidities to EBA175RIII–V were significantly higher in Obom where malaria transmission is perennial than in Abura, where malaria transmission is seasonal

Dynamics of anti-MSP3 and Pfs230 antibody responses and multiplicity of infection in asymptomatic children from southern Ghana

Abstract Background During a Plasmodium infection, exposure of human host immune cells to both the asexual and the sexual stages of the parasite elicit immune responses. These responses may be protective and prevent the development of high parasitaemia and its associated clinical symptoms, or block the transmission of malaria to an uninfected person. This study aimed at examining the dynamics of naturally acquired immune responses against the asexual and sexual forms of Plasmodium falciparum as well as assessing differences in the multiplicity of infection (MOI) in asymptomatic Ghanaian children living in two communities with varying malaria transmission intensities. Methods School children aged between 6 and 12 years were recruited from Obom, a high malaria prevalence setting and Abura, a low malaria prevalence setting and enrolled in monthly multiple cross sectional surveys between February and May 2015. Filter paper blood blots (DBS) as well as thick and thin blood smears were made from finger-pricked blood at each visit. Plasmodium falciparum parasite prevalence was determined by microscopy and PCR. Serum eluted from the DBS were used to assess anti-Pfs230 (sexual stage) and anti-MSP3 (asexual stage) antibody levels using indirect ELISA and DNA extracted from the DBS used to assess MOI. Results Malaria parasite point prevalence and MOI throughout the study was higher in Obom than Abura. The trend of parasite prevalence estimated by microscopy was similar to that determined by PCR in Obom but not in Abura. The trend of MSP3 antibody seroprevalence followed that of PCR-estimated parasite prevalence in Obom, while in Abura the trend of Pfs230 antibody seroprevalence followed that of PCR-estimated parasite prevalence. Conclusions Microscopy can more accurately predict changes in parasite prevalence in high transmission settings than low transmission settings. In high transmission settings, P. falciparum parasite prevalence can predict antibody seroprevalence to MSP3, whilst in low transmission settings, seroprevalence against Pfs230 may be a useful predictor of parasite prevalence

Viruses of yams (Dioscorea spp.): current gaps in knowledge and future research directions to improve disease management

Viruses are a major constraint for yam production worldwide. They hamper the conservation, movement, and exchange of yam germplasm and are a threat to food security in tropical and subtropical areas of Africa and the Pacific where yam is a staple food and a source of income. However, the biology and impact of yam viruses remains largely unknown. This review summarizes current knowledge on yam viruses and emphasizes gaps that exist in the knowledge of the biology of these viruses, their diagnosis, and their impact on production. It provides essential information to inform the implementation of more effective virus control strategies

Namibian Sign Language to English and Oshiwambo

A group of six deaf black Namibians worked with Gallaudet University linguists, Ruth Morgan and Scott Liddell, to make this dictionary.https://digitalcommons.wou.edu/oerbooks_namibiansign/1000/thumbnail.jp

A mentorship and incubation program using project-based learning to build a professional bioinformatics pipeline in Kenya

The demand for well-trained bioinformaticians to support genomics research continues to rise. Unfortunately, undergraduate training in Kenya does not prepare students for specialization in bioinformatics. Graduates are often unaware of the career opportunities in bioinformatics, and those who are may lack mentors to help them choose a specialization. The Bioinformatics Mentorship and Incubation Program seeks to bridge the gap by laying the foundation for a bioinformatics training pipeline using project-based learning. The program selects six participants through an intensive open recruitment exercise for highly competitive students to join the program for four months. The six interns undergo intensive training within the first one and a half months before being assigned to mini-projects. We track the progress of the interns weekly through code review sessions and a final presentation at the end of the four months. We have trained five cohorts, most of whom have secured master’s scholarships within and outside the country and job opportunities. We demonstrate the benefit of structured mentorship using project-based learning in filling the training gap after undergraduate programs to generate well-trained bioinformaticians who are competitive in graduate programs and bioinformatics jobs

The composition and determinants of rural non-farm income diversification in Nigeria

Farming has been considered as main source of income for rural households in Nigeria, despite their involvement in other income generating activities. Focusing on income derivable from farming alone may be partially responsible for the ineffective poverty reduction strategies in Nigeria. Using the National Living Standard Survey data collected by the National Bureau of Statistics, this paper investigated the composition and determinants of non-farm incomes of rural households in Nigeria. The results show that the share of farm, non-farm wage (NFW)- and self-employment (NFS) incomes in total household incomes were 24.3%, 43.0% and 23.7% respectively. Households whose heads are male (0.647), had formal education (0.522), increased the likelihood of households’ participation in NFW activities, while access to credit (-0.307) and having larger farm size (-0.221) decreased it. Access to credit (0.379); community participation (0.103); larger family size (0.193) and possession of capital assets (0.069) increased the likelihood of participation in NFS-employment activities, while having larger farm size (-0.211) decreased it. The study concludes that policy targeting poverty reduction should focus on providing enabling environment for poor households’ access to non-farm activities in the study area

MOESM1 of Prevalence of G6PD deficiency and Plasmodium falciparum parasites in asymptomatic school children living in southern Ghana

Additional file 1. Additional tables

MOESM1 of Assessment of the quality and quantity of naturally induced antibody responses to EBA175RIII–V in Ghanaian children living in two communities with varying malaria transmission patterns

Additional file 1. Primers for cloning P. falciparum eba175RIII–V as well as for detecting and genotyping P. falciparum parasites