Addressing constraints in promoting wild edible plants’ utilization in household nutrition: case of the Congo Basin forest area

It is worth raising the question, why are wild edible plants (WEPs) which are rich in diverse nutrients and widely abundant underutilized despite the increasing rate of undernourishment in poor regions? One reason is that their culinary uses are not quantified and standardized in nutrition surveys, and therefore, they are not properly included in household diet intensification and diversification across regions and cultures. Active steps are needed to bridge this gap. This paper outlines the constraints to including WEPs in nutritional surveys as the lack of standard ways of food identification of diverse WEPs, lack of specific food categorization and therefore difficult dissemination across regions and cultures. As a way forward, a functional categorization of 11 subgroups for WEPs is introduced and discussed. In labeling these sub-food groups, the paper advocates that more WEPs food items and culinary uses should be enlisted during household nutrition surveys. Food researchers could then capitalize these enlisted species and disseminate them to promote diverse food use of WEPs in other regions where they exist but are not utilized as food

Identification of Novel Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms in Inflammatory Genes as Risk Factors Associated with Trachomatous Trichiasis

infection, the primary cause of trachoma. Despite control programs that include mass antibiotic treatment, reinfection and recurrence of trachoma are common after treatment cessation. Furthermore, a subset of infected individuals develop inflammation and are at greater risk for developing the severe sequela of trachoma known as trachomatous trichiasis (TT). While there are a number of environmental and behavioral risk factors for trachoma, genetic factors that influence inflammation and TT risk remain ill defined. = 0.001] with the combination of TNFA (-308A), LTA (252A), VCAM1 (-1594C), SCYA 11 (23T) minor allele, and the combination of TNFA (-308A), IL9 (113M), IL1B (5′UTR-T), and VCAM1 (-1594C). However, TT risk increased 13.5 times [odds ratio = 13.5 (95% confidence interval 3.3–22), p = 0.001] with the combination of TNFA (-308G), VDR (intron G), IL4R (50V), and ICAM1 (56M) minor allele.Evaluating genetic risk factors for trachoma will advance our understanding of disease pathogenesis, and should be considered in the context of designing global control programs

The geographical distribution and burden of trachoma in Africa.

BACKGROUND: There remains a lack of epidemiological data on the geographical distribution of trachoma to support global mapping and scale up of interventions for the elimination of trachoma. The Global Atlas of Trachoma (GAT) was launched in 2011 to address these needs and provide standardised, updated and accessible maps. This paper uses data included in the GAT to describe the geographical distribution and burden of trachoma in Africa. METHODS: Data assembly used structured searches of published and unpublished literature to identify cross-sectional epidemiological data on the burden of trachoma since 1980. Survey data were abstracted into a standardised database and mapped using geographical information systems (GIS) software. The characteristics of all surveys were summarized by country according to data source, time period, and survey methodology. Estimates of the current population at risk were calculated for each country and stratified by endemicity class. RESULTS: At the time of writing, 1342 records are included in the database representing surveys conducted between 1985 and 2012. These data were provided by direct contact with national control programmes and academic researchers (67%), peer-reviewed publications (17%) and unpublished reports or theses (16%). Prevalence data on active trachoma are available in 29 of the 33 countries in Africa classified as endemic for trachoma, and 1095 (20.6%) districts have representative data collected through population-based prevalence surveys. The highest prevalence of active trachoma and trichiasis remains in the Sahel area of West Africa and Savannah areas of East and Central Africa and an estimated 129.4 million people live in areas of Africa confirmed to be trachoma endemic. CONCLUSION: The Global Atlas of Trachoma provides the most contemporary and comprehensive summary of the burden of trachoma within Africa. The GAT highlights where future mapping is required and provides an important planning tool for scale-up and surveillance of trachoma control

When Can Antibiotic Treatments for Trachoma Be Discontinued? Graduating Communities in Three African Countries

Trachoma, the major cause of infectious blindness in the world, occurs when repeated infections of the ocular strains of Chlamydia trachomatis lead to a cascade of conjunctival scarring, in-turned eyelids and eyelashes, and eventually blindness due to corneal opacity. To reduce the prevalence of infection, the World Health Organization (WHO) advocates at least three annual community-wide distributions of oral antibiotics in affected areas. This approach has proven effective, but there is room to explore other treatment strategies which reduce the use of antibiotics. Here, we used mathematical models and data from three trachoma-endemic countries (Tanzania, The Gambia, and Ethiopia) to analyze different treatment strategies. In the simulations, we show that a graduation strategy can reduce antibiotic distributions more than 2-fold in moderately affected areas. Both treatment strategies provide favorable results in reducing the prevalence of ocular chlamydia, but high costs and the potential for resistance are important issues to consider when administering mass doses of antibiotics

Population-based prevalence survey of follicular trachoma and trachomatous trichiasis in the Casamance region of Senegal.

BACKGROUND: Trachoma, caused by ocular infection with Chlamydia trachomatis, is the leading infectious cause of blindness worldwide. We conducted the first population-based trachoma prevalence survey in the Casamance region of Senegal to enable the Senegalese National Eye Care Programme (NECP) to plan its trachoma control activities. The World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines state that any individual with trachomatous trichiasis (TT) should be offered surgery, but that surgery should be prioritised where the prevalence is >0.1%, and that districts and communities with a trachomatous inflammation, follicular (TF) prevalence of ≥10% in 1-9 year-olds should receive mass antibiotic treatment annually for a minimum of three years, along with hygiene promotion and environmental improvement, before re-assessing the prevalence to determine whether treatment can be discontinued (when TF prevalence in 1-9 year-olds falls 1% in all districts. CONCLUSION: With a prevalence <5%, TF does not appear to be a significant public health problem in this region. However, TF monitoring and surveillance at sub-district level will be required to ensure that elimination targets are sustained and that TF does not re-emerge as a public health problem. TT surgery remains the priority for trachoma elimination efforts in the region, with an estimated 1819 TT surgeries to conduct

Low Prevalence of Conjunctival Infection with Chlamydia trachomatis in a Treatment-Naïve Trachoma-Endemic Region of the Solomon Islands

Trachoma is endemic in several Pacific Island states. Recent surveys across the Solomon Islands indicated that whilst trachomatous inflammation-follicular (TF) was present at levels warranting intervention, the prevalence of trachomatous trichiasis (TT) was low. We set out to determine the relationship between chlamydial infection and trachoma in this population. We conducted a population-based trachoma prevalence survey of 3674 individuals from two Solomon Islands provinces. Participants were examined for clinical signs of trachoma. Conjunctival swabs were collected from all children aged 1-9 years. We tested swabs for Chlamydia trachomatis (Ct) DNA using droplet digital PCR. Chlamydial DNA from positive swabs was enriched and sequenced for use in phylogenetic analysis. We observed a moderate prevalence of TF in children aged 1-9 years (n = 296/1135, 26.1%) but low prevalence of trachomatous inflammation-intense (TI) (n = 2/1135, 0.2%) and current Ct infection (n = 13/1002, 1.3%) in children aged 1-9 years, and TT in those aged 15+ years (n = 2/2061, 0.1%). Ten of 13 (76.9%) cases of infection were in persons with TF or TI (p = 0.0005). Sequence analysis of the Ct-positive samples yielded 5/13 (38%) complete (>95% coverage of reference) genome sequences, and 8/13 complete plasmid sequences. Complete sequences all aligned most closely to ocular serovar reference strains. The low prevalence of TT, TI and Ct infection that we observed are incongruent with the high proportion of children exhibiting signs of TF. TF is present at levels that apparently warrant intervention, but the scarcity of other signs of trachoma indicates the phenotype is mild and may not pose a significant public health threat. Our data suggest that, whilst conjunctival Ct infection appears to be present in the region, it is present at levels that are unlikely to be the dominant driving force for TF in the population. This could be one reason for the low prevalence of TT observed during the study

The effects of feeding triacylglcerols on milk fat composition, lipogenesis and polymer-protomer transition of acetyl-coa carboxylase in rat mammary

Diets rich in fats produce large quantities of milk with high lipid concentrations, which may be important for the growth of neonates. The present study investigates the effect of different fat enriched diets on mammary gland lipogenesis in lactating rats. Rats were fed for 6 weeks during pregnancy through to mid-lactation with diets containing chowsupplemented with 20% (w/w) coconut oil, olive oil or corn oil. The control animals were fed with a low fat (0.5%, w/w) diet, or with chow (6.8%, w/w fat). Rats fed either the 20% (w/w) olive oil-supplemented diet or the 20% (w/w) corn oil-supplemented diet produced milk with significantly lower total fat concentrations (

The Effects Of Feeding Triacylglycerols On Milk Fat Composition, Lipogenesis And Polymer-Protomer Transition Of Acetyl-Coa Carboxylase In Rat Mammary Gland

Diets rich in fats produce large quantities of milk with high lipid concentrations, which may be important for the growth of neonates. The present study investigates the effect of different fat enriched diets on mammary gland lipogenesis in lactating rats. Rats were fed for 6 weeks during pregnancy through to mid-lactation with diets containing chow supplemented with 20% (w/w) coconut oil, olive oil or corn oil. The control animals were fed with a low fat (0.5%, w/w) diet, or with chow (6.8%, w/w fat). Rats fed either the 20% (w/w) olive oil-supplemented diet or the 20% (w/w) corn oil-supplemented diet produced milk with significantly lower total fat concentrations (p<0.05) than rats fed the low-fat (0.5% (w/w) corn oil) control diet or with chow (6.8% (w/w) fat. Rats on the olive oil- and corn oil-supplemented diets produced milk that had significantly lower concentrations of total fat and of C8:0 - C18:0 fatty acids and higher concentrations of C18:1 - C18:3 acids compared to the low-fat diet, chow, or the coconut oil-supplemented diets. Compared with the low-fat control diet, all the other dietary regimes suppressed overall fatty acid synthesis in both the lactating mammary gland and liver, with the highest suppression being produced by the olive oil- and corn oil-supplemented diets on mammary fatty acid synthesis. Measurements of the total activity in the mammary gland of the rate-limiting enzyme, acetyl-CoA carboxylase, and of the proportions of the polymeric (active) and protomeric (inactive) forms of this enzyme, showed that the total activity decreased in parallel with the overall rate of fatty acid synthesis. This trend was, however, not noticed for fatty acid synthetase (another lipogenic enzyme). By contrast, a constant proportion of polymeric to protomeric forms was maintained at mid-lactation irrespective of the diet, indicating a possible role of prolactin in mammary gland acetyl-CoA carboxylase polymerization. This study, therefore, showed that the fatty acid composition of the diet as well as hormones involved in lactation may affect mammary gland and liver fatty acid synthesis, through a modification of the rate limiting enzyme of fatty acid synthesis – acetyl-CoA carboxylase

Preheated (roasting) Aframomum citratum (C. Pereira) K. Schum and Tetrapleura tetraptera (Schumach & Thonn.) fruits beverage in vivo hypoglycaemic activity on streptozotocin-induced rats

Tetrapleura tetraptera and Aframomum citratum fruits are used as spices and in the traditional pharmacopeia in Cameroon. They are mostly combined and preheated for many purposes while cooking. The effects of roasting on the phenolic content of spices, phenolic profile of a beverage made with the mix of roasted spices and its hypoglycaemic activity on diabetes complications were investigated. Aqueous extract (infusion: 100°C; 1/5 g/ml) was prepared, and the total polyphenols and flavonoids contents before and after heat treatment were quantified. Four formulations of T. tetraptera/A. citratum (95/5; 90/10; 85/15; 80/20) were assessed and the in vitro glucose adsorption capacity of the extracts was studied to retain the most effective formulation (AEF). Phenolic and derivatives compounds of AEF were analysed using HPLC-DAD methodology. The AEF hypoglycaemic activity (250 mg/kg bw) and the various complications of hyperglycaemia after Streptozotocin induction (55 mg/kg) were examined on rats. Significant (p<0.05) improvements in phytochemical content were noticed for T. tetraptera and AEF extracts after heat treatment. Among the phenolic compounds identified, flavone, protocatechic, chlorogenic, p-Coumaric acids, and naringin showed the highest concentrations. Significantly, the effect of AEF is the same as the administration of AEF-Daonil (Glibenclamide) and Acarbose after 4h when assessing the anti-hyperglycaemic test. The influence of Daonil (the reference drug) is significantly improved by AEF, and this synergy has the best anti-hyperglycaemic, hypoglycaemic, hypotriglyceridaemic potential and boosts catalase, superoxide dismutase activities while reducing Malondialdehyde (liver, pancreas, haemolysates) and hydroperoxide (liver, plasma, and kidney) contents compared with the use of single AEF