Globin chains analysis: Improved resolution by electrophoresis in urea-acetic acid-Triton X-100

SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

La spherocytose hereditaire :Bilan d'une annee d'experience de l'etude des proteines de la membrane erythrocytaire

SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Newborn screening for haemoglobinopathies: The Brussels experience

SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Neonatal screening and clinical care programmes for sickle cell disorders in sub-Saharan Africa: lessons from pilot studies.

Despite the widespread use of neonatal screening programmes for sickle cell disease in Western regions, few studies have focused on the special healthcare needs in sub-Saharan African countries. The purpose of this review is to evaluate the need for a neonatal screening programme for sickle cell disease, and if justified, to propose a realistic healthcare programme for sickle cell newborns in those countries based on personal experiences in Kinshasa (Democratic Republic of the Congo) and Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) as well as from a review of the literature.Journal ArticleResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tReviewSCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Neonatal screening for sickle cell anaemia in the Democratic Republic of the Congo: Experience from a pioneer project on 31 204 newborns

Despite the high prevalence of sickle cell disease in Africa, a neonatal screening programme is available in only a few countries in the sub-Saharan region.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Genetic diversity of human head lice and molecular detection of associated bacterial pathogens in Democratic Republic of Congo

International audienc

Pediatric pleural empyema: one of the management challenges in children of Democratic Republic of Congo

Empyema is a serious complication characterized by purulent exudate and bacteria in the pleural space, which may progress to necrosis, cavitations or fistulas in the thoracic cavity. It remains a major challenge throughout low-income countries. Objectives were to emphasize the role of basic medical and radiologic approach and to resolve a severe lung complication when facilities are inadequate. A five-year-old female was referred with distress respiratory to the Emergency Unit of Monkole, a large public-private missionary hospital in Kinshasa, Congo. Chest X-ray showed a massive empyema that was resolved by immediate drainage and antibiotiocs. Results were rapid improvement and discharge after 3 weeks. A classic medical and imaging approach is a winning return in low-income countries. According to the British Thoracic Society guidelines, pleural effusion with compromising respiratory function can be managed by drainage and antibiotics

Structural and functional studies of hemoglobin Moabit (α86(F7) Leu → Arg

SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Pre-Pandemic Cross-Reactive Immunity against SARS-CoV-2 among Central and West African Populations

For more than two years after the emergence of COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease-2019), significant regional differences in morbidity persist. These differences clearly show lower incidence rates in several regions of the African and Asian continents. The work reported here aimed to test the hypothesis of a pre-pandemic natural immunity acquired by some human populations in central and western Africa, which would, therefore, pose the hypothesis of an original antigenic sin with a virus antigenically close to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). To identify such pre-existing immunity, sera samples collected before the emergence of COVID-19 were tested to detect the presence of IgG reacting antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 proteins of major significance. Sera samples from French blood donors collected before the pandemic served as a control. The results showed a statistically significant difference of antibodies prevalence between the collected samples in Africa and the control samples collected in France. Given the novelty of our results, our next step consists in highlighting neutralizing antibodies to evaluate their potential for pre-pandemic protective acquired immunity against SARS-CoV-2. In conclusion, our results suggest that, in the investigated African sub-regions, the tested populations could have been potentially and partially pre-exposed, before the COVID-19 pandemic, to the antigens of a yet non-identified Coronaviruses

A dashboard for monitoring preventive measures in response to COVID-19 outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo

International audienceBackground: In most health areas, an information system is necessary for an effective fight against COVID-19. Current methods for surveillance of diseases with epidemic potential do not include monitoring the adherence to preventive measures. Furthermore, modern data collection methods depend often on technologies (e.g., cameras or drones) that are hardly available in low-income countries. Simpler solutions could be just as effective. Methods: A dashboard was used over a whole week to monitor preventive measures in Bukavu (DRC) by mid-May 2020. It was designed to collect from street passers-by information on the adherence to barrier measures, the level of awareness of these measures, the opinion on their usefulness, and the health status of people in the households.Results: Creating a dashboard and collecting the necessary data proved feasible. The use of barrier measures was very limited and that of masks practically nil despite repeated recommendations from the health authorities. The end of each day was the worst moment due to clearly insufficient distancing. Barrier measures were significantly more used in areas where they were best known and most acknowledged. At the time of the study, there were few sick people and only rare severe cases were attributed to COVID-19.Conclusions: Creating COVID-19 situation dashboards in limited-resource metropoles is feasible. They give real-time access to data that help fight the epidemic. The findings of this pilot study call for a rapid community awareness actions to back national media-based prevention campaigns