Substandard medicines: a greater problem than counterfeit medicines?

Substandard medicines are medicines which have failed to pass the quality measurements and standards set for them.1 They should be distinguished from counterfeit (falsified) medicines which are deliberately and fraudulently mislabelled. Combining the two together however is not helpful. They are different problems that require different solutions. Substandard and counterfeit medicines are a widespread problem in low-income and lower–middle-income countries. A systematic review showed that the median prevalence of substandard and counterfeit medicines was 28.5%.1 This ranged from 11% to 48% in individual studies. The 15 studies were all limited to antimicrobial drugs, with the majority (13) including antimalarials. Only 2 of the 15 studies within the systematic review differentiated between substandard and counterfeit medicines. Both studies involved antimalarial drugs in South East Asia. They both found that counterfeit medicines were a greater problem than substandard medicines. The biggest problem in relation to the quality of the medicines tested was an inadequate amount of the active ingredient

Analyse phylogénétique d'isolats du virus marocain de la clavelée basée sur le gène P32

Sheeppox virus (SPPV) is considered a highly contagious disease in sheep by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE). It is classified with Goatpox virus (GTPV) and Lumpy skin disease virus (LSDV) within the Capripoxvirus (CaPV) genus. SPPV causes significant economic losses in endemic regions like Northern and Central Africa, Asia, India and Middle East. In Morocco, little information about the molecular characterization of SPPV is available, hence the objective of the present study is to assess the genomic relationships between Moroccan viral strains isolated from different geographic regions during several outbreaks, vaccine strains and reference strains retrieved from the NCBI Genbank, by sequencing the P32 gene. All sequences were analyzed using MEGA7 software version 7. Phylogenetic tree constructions for this gene sequences were generated using the Neighbor-Joining method. It clearly appeared that SPPV strains reported in many countries, were branched and clustered with the clade of SPPV and displayed a strong genetic relationship between them with nucleotide and amino acid identities respectively of 99-100 % and 98-100 %. These results led us to conclude that P32 gene appears highly conserved among SPPV and Capripoxvirus. For that, more genetic studies are required in order to control and understand the epidemiological situation of SPPV. Keywords: Sheeppox virus, P32 gene, Phylogenetic analysis, Capripoxvirus, Goatpox virus.La clavelée (SP) est une maladie considérée hautement contagieuse par l’Organisation Mondiale de la santé Animale (OIE). L’agent causal de la maladie (SPPV) appartient au genre des Capripoxvirus contenant ainsi le virus de la variole de chèvre (GTPV) et le virus de la maladie nodulaire cutanée (LSDV). Le SPPV cause des pertes économiques considérables dans les zones endémiques telles que l’Afrique du nord et centrale, l’Asie, l’inde et le moyen orient. Au Maroc, peu d’étude de caractérisation moléculaire du SPPV sont disponibles, d’où l’objectif du présent travail qui vise à évaluer la relation génétique entre les souches virales marocaines isolées à partir de différentes régions du Maroc durant les flambées épizootiques, des souches vaccinales et des souches de références publiées sur Genbank, et ce, par le séquençage du gène P32. Toutes les séquences sont analysées par le logiciel MEGA 7.0, l’arbre phylogénétique est généré par la méthode Neighbour-Joining. Il apparaît clairement que tous les SPPV rapportés dans la plupart des pays sont branchés et groupés dans le clade du SPPV, et ont montré une forte relation génétique entre eux avec une identité d’acides nucléiques et d’acides aminés de 99-100 % et 98-100 % respectivement. Ces résultats nous mènent à conclure que le gène P32 apparaît hautement conservé chez tous les SPPV et les Capripoxvirus. Pour cela, plus d’études génétiques sont nécessaires afin de contrôler et expliquer la situation épidémiologique du SPPV. Mots-clés: Sheeppox virus, gène P32, analyse phylogénétique, Capripoxvirus, Goatpox virus

Purification and some properties of a carboxypeptidase B from dogfish Scyliorhinus canicula

International audienceA carboxypeptidase B (CPB) has been purified from dogfish (Scyliorhinus canicula) pancreas and partially characterized. The purification procedure included acetone precipitation, ion-exchange chromatography on a CM-cellulose column and gel filtration on Sephadex G-75. The purified enzyme migrates as a single band both on PAGE and SDS-PAGE. Its molecular mass is estimated to be about 32 kDa. The optimum of activity is obtained at pH 7.5–8.2. The enzyme is inhibited by typical metal-chelating agents (EDTA and o-phenanthroline) and by Hg2+. It is activated by Co2+, l-cysteine and by heat treatment at 40° and 50°C. Kinetic parameters, Km and kcat, of native enzyme, Co2+-activated CPB and heat-treated CPB have been determine