Determination of Natural Radioactivity Level and Hazard Assessment of Groundwater Samples from Mining Area in the North Region of Burkina Faso

The activity concentrations of Natural Radionuclides 238U. 232Th and 40K in groundwater samples were measured using a Gamma Spectrometry with High Purity Germanium detector. Also. Radiological Hazard due to these Natural Radionuclides through water ingestion is investigated. The mean activity concentrations of 238U, 232Th and 40K in water samples from boreholes were found to be 0.36 ± 0.07 Bq.L-1. 0.50 ±0.09 Bq.L-1 and 5.32 ± 0.76 Bq.L-1 respectively.  The average Annual Committed Effective Dose was 0.16 ± 0.02 mSv. The  results obtained are below the recommended levels of 10.0 Bq.L-1   and 1.0 Bq.L-1  for 238U and 232Th  respectively for drinking water quality established by the WHO and 1 mSv per year dose limit recommended by the ICRP for public radiation exposure. These results indicate insignificant radiological hazard due to ingestion of NORMS in drinking water from boreholes by the communities in this area. 

Additional Screening and Treatment of Malaria During Pregnancy Provides Further Protection Against Malaria and Nonmalarial Fevers During the First Year of Life.

Background: Although consensus exists that malaria in pregnancy (MiP) increases the risk of malaria in infancy, and eventually nonmalarial fevers (NMFs), there is a lack of conclusive evidence of benefits of MiP preventive strategies in infants. Methods: In Burkina Faso, a birth cohort study was nested to a clinical trial assessing the effectiveness of a community-based scheduled screening and treatment of malaria in combination with intermittent preventive treatment with sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (CSST/IPTp-SP) to prevent placental malaria. Clinical episodes and asymptomatic infections were monitored over 1 year of follow-up to compare the effect of CSST/IPTp-SP and standard IPTp-SP on malaria and NMFs. Results: Infants born during low-transmission season from mothers receiving CSST/IPTp-SP had a 26% decreased risk of experiencing a first clinical episode (hazard ratio, 0.74 [95% confidence interval, .55-0.99]; P = .047). CSST/IPTp-SP interacted with birth season and gravidity to reduce the incidence of NMFs. No significant effects of CSST/IPTp-SP on the incidence of clinical episodes, parasite density, and Plasmodium falciparum infections were observed. Conclusions: Our findings indicate that CSST/IPTp-SP strategy may provide additional protection against both malaria and NMFs in infants during the first year of life, and suggest that malaria control interventions during pregnancy could have long-term benefits in infants

Lignins and their potential for use as biopolymers in pharmaceutical engineering - a review

Nature offers a diverse set of renewable biopolymers, among them the variety of natural polyphenols, whose structural diversity provides opportunities for further manipulation like the generation of chemicals and novel functional materials. These land‑based renewable biomaterials exhibit also a wide range of heterogeneous intrinsic reactivities and activities that render them ideal starting oligomeric and polymeric materials for the generation of multifunctional supramolecular structures as well as the development of high value-added materials. Lignins in particular display a variety of common physico‑chemical features that can be of enormous interest with respect to their eventual use in the pharmaceutical area. These natural polyphenols possess some interesting pharmaceutical properties such as antioxidant, anti‑inflammatory, antibacterial and eventually antiviral activities. In addition, based on their chemical features, i.e., oligomers and/or polymers of monolignol C9-building blocks. lignins can be exploited in the pharmaceutical sector mainly as material for generation of matrices and carriers for drug delivery. The present work attempts a review of the state of the art in lignin use in pharmaceutical applications.   Keywords biopolymers, lignins, microcapsules, nanoparticles, renewable resource

Lignins and their potential for use as biopolymers in pharmaceutical engineering - a review

Nature offers a diverse set of renewable biopolymers, among them the variety of natural polyphenols, whose structural diversity provides opportunities for further manipulation like the generation of chemicals and novel functional materials. These land‑based renewable biomaterials exhibit also a wide range of heterogeneous intrinsic reactivities and activities that render them ideal starting oligomeric and polymeric materials for the generation of multifunctional supramolecular structures as well as the development of high value-added materials. Lignins in particular display a variety of common physico‑chemical features that can be of enormous interest with respect to their eventual use in the pharmaceutical area. These natural polyphenols possess some interesting pharmaceutical properties such as antioxidant, anti‑inflammatory, antibacterial and eventually antiviral activities. In addition, based on their chemical features, i.e., oligomers and/or polymers of monolignol C9-building blocks. lignins can be exploited in the pharmaceutical sector mainly as material for generation of matrices and carriers for drug delivery. The present work attempts a review of the state of the art in lignin use in pharmaceutical applications.   Keywords biopolymers, lignins, microcapsules, nanoparticles, renewable resource