Contribution of minerals from fresh kidney bean leaves and grains in meals consumed in East, South and Central Africa

Varieties of legumes are recognized as an important source of protein and dietary minerals by a number of ethnic groups in East, South and Central Africa. Among the legume that is preferred by most Africans are the bean varieties. Beans are consumed in many forms: the young leaves, green pods, and fresh bean grains are used as vegetables; dry bean grains are used in various food preparations, and both are used as relish or side dishes together with the staple food. Apart from alleviating foodinsecurity, the bean leaves, green bean pods and fresh bean grains are good sources of micronutrients especially iron and zinc. Thirty eight varieties of beans deemed to be rich in minerals iron and zinc collected from a number of locations in East and Central Africa were brought from University of Nairobi and multiplied at Sokoine University of Agriculture, Morogoro. Bean leaves and fresh beans grains were picked for analysis after the plants reached three weeks and two months, respectively. Ironand zinc content was determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometer after ashing the samples. Analysis showed that leaves had significantly (P<0.05) more iron than the fresh bean grains. For bean leaves, Maharagi soja had the highest level of iron (1653.9 mg/100g) followed by Nain De Kiondo (1061.1 mg/100g). Similarly, Maharagi soja had the highest level of zinc (40.8 mg/100g), followed by Kiangara (40.5 mg/100g). Variety HRS 545 fresh bean grains, had the highest level of iron (1114.0 mg/100g) followed by Ituri Matata (983.4 mg/100g) while highest zinc content was found in HRS 545 (41.1 mg/100g) followed by RWR 10 (41.1 mg/100g).These levels of minerals are significantly higher than the average amount found in dry bean grains (Fe 5.6 – 8.0 mg/100g) and (Zn 1.7 - 2.0 mg/100g). Creating more awareness and encouraging the utilization of bean leaves and fresh bean grains will contribute in alleviating micronutrient deficiencies especially among the vulnerable groups such as children, pregnant and lactating women, and resource-poor families

Similarities in functional attributes and nutritional effects of magadi soda and bean debris-ash used in cooking African traditional dishes

Magadi soda and bean debris-ash have been used as condiments for a long time by various ethnic groups in East and Central Africa in cooking traditional dishes. The aim of the study was to investigate whether magadi soda and bean debris-ash had similar effects and functional attributes when added to traditional dishes during cooking. Reason for the addition of the two condiments has not been revealed by researchers. Mineral content, in-vitro bioavailability studies and pH of non-ashed and ashed magadi soda and bean debris were evaluated. The results indicated that high concentrations of sodium ions (30.2%) and potassium ions (64.2%) were observed in magadi soda and bean debris-ash, respectively. In-vitro iron and zinc bioavailability decreased significantly with the addition of magadi soda and bean debris-ash in maize, beans and sorghum. Equally, the cooking time was significantly reduced. The mean pH for both magadi soda (9.66) and bean debris-ash (9.75) were not significantly different indicating that both aqueous solutions had alkaline properties. The similarity in properties especially in mineral profile, alkalinity, decreased cooking time and lowered mineral uptake by magadi soda and bean  debris-ash explain similar functionality in foods they are added to during cooking. Despite the similarities  observed, communities should be informed of the negative nutritional effects of these condiments so as to diversify their meal patterns accordingly.Key words: Magadi soda, bean ash, traditional dishes, minerals, in-vitro bioavailabilit

Depression in Visual Impairment Trial (DEPVIT): A Randomized Clinical Trial of Depression Treatments in People With Low Vision

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare two interventions for depression, problem solving treatment (PST) and referral to the patient\u27s physician, with a waiting-list control group in people with sight loss and depressive symptoms. Methods: This was an assessor-masked, exploratory, multicenter, randomized clinical trial, with concurrent economic analysis. Of 1008 consecutive attendees at 14 low-vision rehabilitation centers in Britain, 43% (n = 430) screened positive for depressive symptoms on the Geriatric Depression Scale and 85 of these attendees participated in the trial. Eligible participants were randomized in the ratio 1:1:1 to PST, referral to their physician, or a waiting-list control arm. PST is a manualized talking intervention delivered by a trained therapist who teaches people over six to eight sessions to implement a seven-step method for solving their problems. Referral to the physician involved sending a referral letter to the person\u27s physician, encouraging him or her to consider treatment according to the stepped care protocol recommended by the U.K.\u27s National Institute of Health and Care Excellence. The primary outcome was change in depressive symptoms (6 months after baseline) as determined by the Beck Depression Inventory. Results: At 6 months, Beck Depression Inventory scores reduced by 1.05 (SD 8.85), 2.11 (SD 7.60), and 2.68 (SD 7.93) in the waiting-list control, referral, and PST arms, respectively. The cost per patient of the PST intervention was £1176 in Wales and £1296 in London. Conclusions: Depressive symptoms improved most in the PST group and least in the control group. However, the change was small and the uncertainty of the measurements relatively large

Food intake and dietary diversity of farming households in Morogoro region,Tanzania

The Tanzanian economy depends heavily on agriculture and hence human labor provides much of the power needed for farming activities. This study was carried out to determine the diversity and dietary adequacy of farming households in four selected districts of Morogoro region in Tanzania. Adult household members from 140 households participated in the study. A 24-hour dietary recall, dietary diversity score and frequency of food consumption tools were used to assess and quantify nutrient intake and adequacy of consumed diets in farming households. Tanzania food composition tables were used to compute estimates of the energy intake, macro and micronutrients consumed by farming households. Analysis was done using SPSS version 18 and Microsoft excel version 10. Cereal food group was consumed in relatively large quantities compared to other food groups in the surveyed households. The contribution of cereal group to energy intake was 75-82%, protein 8-16% and fat 9-14%. Stiff porridge made of maize flour was the mostly consumed cereal dish followed by rice. The mean intake of energy per day was inadequate; the intake of energy for men was 1402 kcal/day while for female was 1347 kcal/day meeting only 52% and 72%, respectively of the recommended energy intake. Generally, the consumption of protein from the animal sources was significantly low in all districts. Ninety-nine percent of the households rarely consumed eggs; 83% rarely consumed meat and poultry. Consumption of milk and milk products was inadequate as 92% of the households indicated that they rarely consumed these products. The intake of fat was also low by 53% compared to the recommended intake for adults. The intake of iron, zinc, and calcium was 40, 53 and 64%, respectively, which was not sufficient to meet daily requirements. Low intake of nutrients was generally attributed to inadequate food intake due to low feeding frequency, poorly diversified diets and sub-optimal practices in food preparation and cooking. The results from surveyed areas indicated that all districts are rich in terms of bio-diversity and food availability, nevertheless the consumption of these foods in the study communities was inadequate with regards to quantity and quality. This situation compromises nutritional status and pre-disposes farming households to diseases and infections hence affects work output, labor productivity and wealth generation. Educating farmers on the importance of consuming diversified and adequate diets from different food groups will improve their nutrition situation and stimulate more production hence increased agricultural productivity.Key words: Dietary adequacy, Dietary diversity, Nutrition status, Tanzania farming household

Insights into the impacts of rural honey hunting in Zambia

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Wiley via the DOI in this recordData Availability Statement: The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request

The roles and values of wild foods in agricultural systems

Almost every ecosystem has been amended so that plants and animals can be used as food, fibre, fodder, medicines, traps and weapons. Historically, wild plants and animals were sole dietary components for hunter–gatherer and forager cultures. Today, they remain key to many agricultural communities. The mean use of wild foods by agricultural and forager communities in 22 countries of Asia and Africa (36 studies) is 90–100 species per location. Aggregate country estimates can reach 300–800 species (e.g. India, Ethiopia, Kenya). The mean use of wild species is 120 per community for indigenous communities in both industrialized and developing countries. Many of these wild foods are actively managed, suggesting there is a false dichotomy around ideas of the agricultural and the wild: hunter–gatherers and foragers farm and manage their environments, and cultivators use many wild plants and animals. Yet, provision of and access to these sources of food may be declining as natural habitats come under increasing pressure from development, conservation-exclusions and agricultural expansion. Despite their value, wild foods are excluded from official statistics on economic values of natural resources. It is clear that wild plants and animals continue to form a significant proportion of the global food basket, and while a variety of social and ecological drivers are acting to reduce wild food use, their importance may be set to grow as pressures on agricultural productivity increase.</jats:p

Evaluating the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of the Smoking Treatment Optimisation in Pharmacies (STOP) intervention: protocol for a cluster randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: NHS community pharmacies provide effective smoking cessation services; however, there is scope for increasing throughput and improving quit rates. This trial examines whether the Smoking Treatment Optimisation in Pharmacies (STOP) intervention can improve smoker engagement to increase service throughput, retention and quitting. METHODS: This study is a pragmatic, cluster randomised controlled trial in 60 pharmacies in England and Wales. All workers in intervention pharmacies are offered STOP training while control pharmacies provide usual care. The STOP intervention, based on behavioural and organisational theories, comprises educational sessions for staff and environmental prompts in the pharmacy. Intervention fidelity is assessed by actors visiting pharmacies posing as smokers. The primary outcome is throughput, defined as the number of smokers who join the programme, set a firm quit date and undergo at least one stop smoking treatment session, and is measured using routinely collected data. Secondary outcomes include retention and quit rates at 4 weeks and continuous abstinence at 6 months verified by salivary cotinine. Cost-effectiveness is estimated using quality-adjusted life years and the probability that the intervention is effective at different levels of willingness to pay is calculated. DISCUSSION: The trial will generate evidence to inform the public health smoking cessation strategy in England and Wales, and may help to shape service commissioning decisions. The STOP intervention model may help inform the undertaking of a range of health behaviour change tasks in community pharmacies. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, ISRCTN16351033. Retrospectively registered on 21 March 2017

Use of Quantitative Pharmacology in the Development of HAE1, a High-Affinity Anti-IgE Monoclonal Antibody

HAE1, a high-affinity anti-IgE monoclonal antibody, is discussed here as a case study in the use of quantitative pharmacology in the development of a second-generation molecule. In vitro, preclinical, and clinical data from the first-generation molecule, omalizumab, were heavily leveraged in the HAE1 program. A preliminary mechanism-based pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) model for HAE1 was developed using an existing model for omalizumab, together with in vitro binding data for HAE1 and omalizumab. When phase I data were available, the model was refined by simultaneously modeling PK/PD data from omalizumab studies with the available HAE1 phase I data. The HAE1 clinical program was based on knowledge of the quantitative relationship between a pharmacodynamic biomarker, suppression of free IgE, and clinical response (e.g., lower exacerbation rates) obtained in pivotal studies with omalizumab. A clinical trial simulation platform was developed to predict free IgE levels and clinical responses following attainment of a target free IgE level (≤10 IU/ml). The simulation platform enabled selection of four doses for the phase II dose-ranging trial by two independent methods: dose-response non-linear fitting and linear mixed modeling. Agreement between the two methods provided confidence in the doses selected. Modeling and simulation played a large role in supporting acceleration of the HAE1 program by enabling data-driven decision-making, often based on confirmation of projections and/or learning from incoming new data

Exploring Cell Tropism as a Possible Contributor to Influenza Infection Severity

Several mechanisms have been proposed to account for the marked increase in severity of human infections with avian compared to human influenza strains, including increased cytokine expression, poor immune response, and differences in target cell receptor affinity. Here, the potential effect of target cell tropism on disease severity is studied using a mathematical model for in-host influenza viral infection in a cell population consisting of two different cell types. The two cell types differ only in their susceptibility to infection and rate of virus production. We show the existence of a parameter regime which is characterized by high viral loads sustained long after the onset of infection. This finding suggests that differences in cell tropism between influenza strains could be sufficient to cause significant differences in viral titer profiles, similar to those observed in infections with certain strains of influenza A virus. The two target cell mathematical model offers good agreement with experimental data from severe influenza infections, as does the usual, single target cell model albeit with biologically unrealistic parameters. Both models predict that while neuraminidase inhibitors and adamantanes are only effective when administered early to treat an uncomplicated seasonal infection, they can be effective against more severe influenza infections even when administered late