Intestinal antimicrobial gene expression: impact of micronutrients in malnourished adults during a randomized trial.

BACKGROUND: Because both micronutrients and antimicrobial peptides protect against diarrhea, we looked for an effect on intestinal antimicrobial peptide gene expression during a randomized controlled trial of multiple micronutrient (MM) supplementation. METHODS: Consenting adults (n=287) in Lusaka, Zambia, were randomized to receive a daily MM supplement or placebo and were followed up for 3.3 years, with a crossover after 2 years. Intestinal biopsy samples were obtained at annual intervals, and messenger RNA of the intestinal antimicrobial peptides human alpha defensin (HD) 5, HD6, human beta-defensin (hBD) 1, hBD2, and LL-37 were quantified by real-time reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. Samples were also obtained during diarrhea episodes and after convalescence. RESULTS: There was no effect overall of treatment allocation. However, in malnourished adults (body mass index < or =18.5), HD5 mRNA was increased by 0.8 log transcripts/microg total RNA in MM recipients, compared with HD5 mRNA in placebo recipients (P=.007). During diarrhea, HD5 expression was reduced by 0.8 log transcripts in placebo recipients (P=.02) but was not reduced in MM recipients, nor was it reduced after the crossover. Correlations between HD5 and nutritional status were found that were sex-specific but not explained by serum leptin or adiponectin concentrations. CONCLUSIONS: Micronutrient supplementation was associated with up-regulation of HD5 only in malnourished adults. Interactions between antimicrobial gene expression and nutritional status may help to explain the increased risk of infection in individuals with malnutrition

African Customary Law, Customs, and Women\u27s Rights

The sources of law in most African countries are customary law, the common law and legislation both colonial and post-independence. In a typical African country, the great majority of the people conduct their personal activities in accordance with and subject to customary law. Customary law has great impact in the area of personal law in regard to matters such as marriage, inheritance and traditional authority, and because it developed in an era dominated by patriarchy some of its norms conflict with human rights norms guaranteeing equality between men and women. While recognizing the role of legislation in reform, it is argued that the courts have an important role to play in ensuring that customary law is reformed and developed to ensure that it conforms to human rights norms and contributes to the promotion of equality between men and women. The guiding principle should be that customary law is living law and cannot therefore be static. It must be interpreted to take account of the lived experiences of the people it serves

Keynote Address: Remarks at the Workshop on Tapping into the World of Electronic Legal Knowledge

Professor Muna Ndulo of Cornell Law School presented the keynote address at the 2007 Starr Workshop, “Tapping into the World of Electronic Legal Knowledge.” The workshop took place at Cornell Law School October 7-10, 2007 and was co-sponsored by the Starr Foundation, New York University Law Library, and Cornell Law Library. Professor Ndulo addresses the topic of new information technologies and their importance to legal research and teaching

United Nations Peacekeeping Operations and Security and Reconstruction

Several studies show that despite recent increases in the number of minor conflicts, long-term trends suggest that international and civil wars are declining. Analyzing the causes of the improvement in global security since 1990, the 2006 Human Security Report argues that the United Nations played a critically important role in spearheading a huge upsurge of international conflict prevention, peacekeeping and peacebuilding activities. Although the number of wars has decreased, far too many remain — and there are still several places of instability around the globe that could easily turn into conflict areas. In August 2000, a famous UN report, the Brahimi Report, acknowledged the shortcomings of the UN peacekeeping efforts and recommended wide-ranging reforms aimed at strengthening the operations and making them more effective. This article builds on that report and discusses the broad challenges facing United Nations peacekeeping missions today and the role of the United Nations peacekeeping operations in the resolution of conflicts and in the reconstruction of post conflicts states. The objective of the article is to identify areas that need attention to make peacekeeping missions more effective. The article is broken down into the following sections: (II) peacekeeping in theory and practice; (III) the peacekeeping mandate; (IV) conditions and factors that can help determine the success or failure of a peacekeeping mission; and (IV) the broad challenges that face peacekeeping missions

Judicial Reform, Constitutionalism and the Rule of Law in Zambia: From a Justice System to a Just System

In Zambia it is generally agreed on by all stakeholders that the judicial system needs reform to make it more accountable, independent, and able to deliver justice efficiently and effectively. This article discusses judicial reform in the context of the independence of the judiciary. It tries to unpack the term judicial reform. It argues that for the rule of law and constitutionalism to prevail it is crucial that the judiciary is independent and there is separation of powers between the executive and the judiciary, and legislature and the judiciary. For judges to be personally and substantively independent they need security of tenure, and an appointment system that is transparent, takes merit and competence seriously and minimizes political influence in the appointments. While judges need to be accountable for their judgments there is need to guard against those who interpret accountability as getting judges who will deliver desired outcomes in judgments