Report on the evaluation of surveillance systems relevant to zoonotic diseases in Kenya, 2015: A basis for design of an integrated human–livestock surveillance system

The Zoonoses in Livestock in Kenya (ZooLinK) is a project that seeks to enable Kenya develop an effective surveillance programme for zoonotic diseases (infectious diseases transmissible between animals and human beings). The surveillance programme will be integrated across both human and animal health sectors. To achieve this goal the project will work in close collaboration with Kenyan government departments in responsible for animal and human health. As a prelude to the start of the project, an evaluation of the existing surveillance systems for human and animal health was carried out. The evaluation focused on the national surveillance system and the systems at the western part of Kenya (Busia county, Kakamega county and Bungoma county) where the initial programme will be developed. In conducting the evaluation the investigators used key informant interviews, focused group discussion participant questionnaires, audio recordings and observation for data collection. Data analysis for the qualitative data focused on generating themes or theory around the responses obtained in the key informants interviews and focused group discussions. Univariate analysis was performed by use of simple proportions in calculation for surveillance system attributes like sensitivity, completeness, PVP and Timeliness for the human health surveillance systems. The findings of the evaluation revealed that there was poor linkage between animal health surveillance and the human health surveillance systems. None of the systems had surveillance structures dedicated to zoonotic diseases. Most practitioners used clinical signs for diagnosis of diseases with little reference to acceptable case definitions. Laboratory diagnosis in animal health services focused more on suspected notifiable diseases as opposed to being a standard operating procedure for diagnosis. In Human health services the health care facilities that had laboratory within the facility conducted laboratory diagnosis for cases referred by the clinicians. However, some clinicians preferred using clinical signs for diagnosis to avoid the wait or turn-around time in the laboratory. For effective surveillance of zoonoses to be realized it would be advisable to establish surveillance structures specific to zoonoses and the necessary resources allocated to the surveillance activities. In addition, an integrated approach that incorporated both human and animal disease surveillance should be employed in the surveillance of zoonoses

Care for Older Persons in Cameroon: Alternatives for Social Development

Care increasingly remains a crucial facet in the lives of older persons in Africa  including Cameroon. Despite its relevance to social development, providing  apposite and effective care services to elderly men and women is still a major   challenge in contemporary Cameroon. This is largely due to the weak institutional  support system and poverty which estranges the elderly and jeopardizes their  well-being. Deconstructing the current care system through the redesigning and  implementation of age-friendly policies will create substantial opportunities that will  predispose the old, irrespective of gender, to valued choices and better quality lives. This article describes the challenges experienced by the aged and examines the Cameroonian institutional framework for care with alternatives for social  development. The article involved thirty-one elderly persons and employed an  ethnographic survey design with interviews, focus group discussions, participant observation and documentary sources as instruments. Data was analysed  qualitatively and the findings show that in as much as organizing the system from a multi-sectorial approach is imperative, the voices of the elderly and the consistent provision of basic needs are also strategic to their social development.Key Words: Care, elderly men and women, alternatives and social development De plus en plus, la prise en charge est une composante cruciale de la vie des personnes âgées en Afrique, y compris au Cameroun. Malgré sa pertinence pour le développement social, la prestation de services de prise en charge adaptée et efficace aux hommes et aux femmes âgés demeure un défi majeur au Cameroun contemporain. Cela s'explique en grande partie par le faible système d’appui institutionnel et la pauvreté qui isolent les personnes âgées et compromettent leur bien-être. La déconstruction du système de prise en charge actuel par la redéfinition et la mise en oeuvre de politiques en faveur des personnes âgées créera des  opportunités substantielles qui prédisposeront ces individus, quel que soit leur  genre, à des choix valorisés et une meilleure qualité de vie. Le présent article décrit les défis rencontrés par les personnes âgées et examine le cadre institutionnel camerounais en matière de prise en charge, en proposant des alternatives de développement social. L'étude a porté sur 31 personnes âgées et s’est fondée sur un sondage ethnographique à travers des entrevues, des groupes de discussion, d'observation des participants et des sources documentaires. Les données ont été analysées qualitativement et les résultats montrent que, dans la mesure où l'organisation du système à partir d'une approche multisectorielle est impérative, la satisfaction des besoins de personnes âgées est également stratégique pour leur développement social.Mots clés : prise en charge, hommes et femmes âgés, alternatives et développement social

Estimation of Genetic Parameters and Assessment of Genetic Variation for Internal Parasite Resistance Traits in Ruminants

Internal parasites are a major concern to the livestock industry leading to huge losses. Genetic enhancement of ruminants for resistance/tolerance to internal parasites may provide for a lasting solution to the problem of internal parasite infection in livestock. The objective of this study was to estimate heritability and permanent environmental variance for internal parasite resistance traits in sheep and to apply penalties on the records of treated animals, analyzing the effect of such penalties on the genetic parameters. Records from 1008 Dorper sheep in a private South African flock comprised 17,711 FAMACHA scores, 3,758 fecal egg counts (mostly Haemonchus contortus), and 4,209 hematocrit values that were collected from 1997 – 2000. Animal models were used to conduct single trait analyses. Data were analyzed in three sets: 1) untreated records only; 2) all records; no penalties; and 3) all records with treated records penalized. Heritability estimates of Fc (FAMACHA) ranged from 0.33 ± 0.03 to 0.37 ± 0.03; FEC (Fecal egg count) from 0.04 ± 0.02 to 0.05 ± 0.03 and hematocrit from 0.19 ± 0.04 to 0.20 ± 0.05. Permanent environmental variance as a proportion of phenotypic variance was 0.02 ± 0.02 to 0.03 ± 0.02 for Fc, 0.14 ± 0.04 to 0.18 ± 0.05 for Ht and 0.07 ± 0.02 to 0.08 ± 0.03 for FEC. The Inclusion of treated animal records in the analyses, with or without penalization did not change the estimates of heritability and permanent environmental variance as a proportion of phenotypic variance. The objective of the second study was to assess genetic variation in fecal egg count and the associations of fecal egg count with other traits in growing crossbred Nelore-Angus cattle. Records of 201 F2 and F3 ½ Nelore ½ Angus steers in feedlot conditions in a genomics resource population in Central Texas were collected in 2012 and 2013. Helminth egg counts were determined from fecal samples before treatment with an anthelmintic product. The association of fecal egg count with other traits was assessed by modeling each in distinct analyses as a linear covariate. Year explained substantial variation in fecal egg count (P = 0.001). No other investigated covariate (birth weight, weaning weight, weaning temperament score, live weight, temperature, and exit velocity) was important in the different models (P > 0.2). Subsequently, sire (n= 13) was evaluated as a fixed effect (sires with less than 3 steers with records were excluded). Two sire families had significantly lower (P < 0.05) fecal egg counts (1.31 ± 0.28 and 1.57 ± 0.10) than the three sire families with the highest fecal egg counts (1.87 ± 0.10 - 2.06 ± 0.20). These results suggest the presence of additive genetic variation for fecal egg count, implying that selection can be carried out for the ability to suppress parasite worms in cattle. The objective of the second study was to assess genetic variation in fecal egg count and the associations of fecal egg count with other traits in growing crossbred Nelore-Angus cattle. Records of 201 F2 and F3 ½ Nelore ½ Angus steers in feedlot conditions in a genomics resource population in Central Texas were collected in 2012 and 2013. Helminth egg counts were determined from fecal samples before treatment with an anthelmintic product. The association of fecal egg count with other traits was assessed by modeling each in distinct analyses as a linear covariate. Year explained substantial variation in fecal egg count (P = 0.001). No other investigated covariate (birth weight, weaning weight, weaning temperament score, live weight, temperature, and exit velocity) was important in the different models (P > 0.2). Subsequently, sire (n = 13) was evaluated as a fixed effect (sires with less than 3 steers with records were excluded). Two sire families had significantly lower (P < 0.05) fecal egg counts (1.31 ± 0.28 and 1.57 ± 0.10) than the three sire families with the highest fecal egg counts (1.87 ± 0.10 - 2.06 ± 0.20). These results suggest the presence of additive genetic variation for fecal egg count, implying that selection can be carried out for the ability to suppress parasite worms in cattle

Evaluating and improving true and false positive annotations in non-targeted (nano)ESI-DIMS and U(H)PLC-MS based clinical and environmental metabolomics

Interest in the chemical exposome is increasing due to mounting evidence of the ubiquity of chemicals in the environment. Metabolomics informs on biological perturbations in response to stressors, including chemicals. Metabolomics and exposomics can therefore find utility in chemical risk assessment. However, since exposomics, the study of all non-genetic exposures an organism experiences from conception to death, is still emerging, the chemical coverage, detection reproducibility, and limitations of non-targeted analysis (NTA) methods applied are unknown. Moreover, all NTA methods face challenges in providing confident identification of analytes. The current strategy for confident identification is through fragmentation. However, good quality fragmentation requires sufficient ion intensities, yet it is known that ~70% of metabolites are too low intensity to give good quality fragmentation spectra, whilst chemicals found in biological samples are about ~1,000 times lower in concentration than endogenous metabolites. As such, they seldom yield good quality spectra for confident spectral matching. This means a large proportion of NTA rely on MS1 data annotation, yet there have been comparatively few investigations into how annotation parameters affect accuracy of annotations. To characterise NTA chemical coverage, reproducibility, and limitations, direct infusion mass spectrometry (DIMS) and liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS) were applied for analysis of chemical mixtures (standards in solvent, fortified serum, house-dust, and wristband extracts) as part of a global ring trial called the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Non-Targeted Analysis Collaborative Trial (ENTACT). Initially, sample compositions were unrevealed, and annotation was achieved by matching against a suspect screening reference list with 4,462 chemicals (ToxCast library) based on m/z only for both techniques. The second time around, sample compositions were revealed, and this knowledge was used to create small databases containing only chemicals revealed to be in each sample for the DIMS methods, and retention time (RT) databases containing only chemicals detected using the LC-MS methods, against which to match. True and false positive rates (TPR and FPR) were calculated to evaluate method performance. To fill the knowledge gap about how annotation parameters affect accuracy of MS1 annotations, a software called Birmingham mEtabolite Annotation for Mass Spectrometry (BEAMS) was used to annotate four LC-MS datasets (serum), varying all parameters used in the annotation steps to ascertain which parameters impacted annotation the most through calculation of TPR and FPR. For both techniques (DIMS and LC-MS, respectively), using the ToxCast library for annotation, lower sample complexity yielded higher TPRs of (48-74% and 0-94% for analysis of standard mixtures in a clean solvent matrix), which were reduced by increasing sample complexity. LCMS methods yielded higher TPRs than DIMS methods. However, both techniques resulted in high FPRs (254-879% and 650-2031%), which increased with increasing sample complexity. The use of smaller tailored databases during annotation for DIMS and RT databases for LC-MS reduced FPRs (0-24% and 23-130%). However, for LC-MS methods, the TPR of annotation also decreased (0-74%) since RT databases created were incomplete, containing only chemicals that had been detected repeatedly in three MS1 injections. For DIMS methods, annotation against smaller databases increased the TPR (53-84%). Optimisation of BEAMS parameters showed that using RT similarity and correlation analysis to group degenerate features, the maximum RT difference parameter had no big impact on the total annotations achieved. However, tighter correlation thresholds reduced the total number of annotations, including both TPRs and FPRs. Mass error tolerances also affected the number of annotations achieved, with tolerances between 0.5-3ppm reducing both true and false positive annotations, with the former highest between 3-10ppm. Finally, the reference lists used for annotation of degenerate features (adducts, isotopes, and neutral losses) TPRs and FPRs of annotation, with longer, more accurate lists created based on each dataset increasing true positive annotation for the positive ion mode datasets relative to shorter default lists. However, these results also demonstrated the pitfalls of using longer reference lists, as TPRs of annotation were reduced for some negative ion mode datasets. Chemicals in environmental and biological samples can be screened for using both DIMS and LC-MS, yielding high TPRs. However, these techniques do not offer 100% TPRs, therefore new methods are required to increase chemical coverage. The use of smaller tailored reference lists and RT databases for annotation can reduce occurrence of false positive annotations but exemplifies the challenges in creating such small databases. BEAMS optimisations show which parameters affect MS1 data annotation, reduce FPR and maximise TPR. Although these results are specific to datasets and instruments applied herein, they are relevant to anyone using such approaches to group degenerate features, they can be used to guide selection of appropriate annotation parameters. Continued efforts into maximising MS1 data annotation are required

Reproductive history of cane rat: a review of the reproduction and reproductive performance

This study evaluates in a review the reproduction and reproductive performance of cane rat. Breeding time in cane rat depends on which part of Africa the Animal is found and the weather. In the wild, cane rat lives in groups of males and females during the breeding season. The wet season of the year is the usual breeding season. Cane rat lives in groups of males and females during the breeding season. The wet season of the year is the usual breeding season. The doe when sexually ready or estrus present a perforated vaginal membrane which is sealed or open with a thin membrane. During this period, the vaginal mucus is colourless and the buck mates the doe. When the doe is not sexually ready or in estrus, it may present a closed membrane and the buck do not mate the doe. In captivity, cane rat breed all year round. Immediately after weaning the kits at four weeks, the vulva is still opened and the male is introduced to mate the female. Once there is mating, the doe’s vulva starts to close 5 – 7 days later. The mating ages in males is between 7 – 9 months and females 5 – 7 months with a mating ratio of 1 male to 4 females. Most farmers rely on the shapes and size of the head to differentiate sexes but ano-genital distance is the most popular method of sex determination. Gestation period in cane rat is 132-172 days. At birth, offspring birth weight is between 70 – 130 grammes. The litter size is 4 – 9. Cane rat is an hystricomorphic rodent. Most rodent species have flexible mating system that can vary between monogamy polygyny and promiscuity

Genetic parameters for fecal egg counts and their relationship with body weights in katahdin lambs

© The Author(s) 2018. Reliance on anthelmintic drugs to control internal parasites in sheep is no longer sustainable because of the development of resistance to these drugs in parasite populations. Genetic selection may offer an alternative long-term solution, as differences in parasite resistance exist both within and among sheep breeds. However, selection for parasite resistance may have correlated effects on other production traits. The objectives of this study were to estimate genetic parameters for weaning (WFEC) and postweaning (PWFEC) fecal egg counts (FEC) and assess their relationship with birth (BWT), weaning (WWT), and postweaning (PWWT) BW in Katahdin lambs. The study used WFEC (n = 2,537), PWFEC (n = 3.421), BWT (n = 12,869), WWT (n = 10,961), and PWWT (n = 7,812) from 12,869 lambs measured between 2003 and 2015 in 13 flocks enrolled in the U.S. National Sheep Improvement Program. Animal and sire models were fitted to the data using the ASReml statistical package. Records were corrected for fixed effects of dam age, joint effect of type of birth and rearing, and management group (defined by joint effects of flock, sex, and birth year and season); lamb age in days at each measurement time was fitted as a covari-ate. Maternal additive and maternal permanent environmental effects were not significant (P \u3e 0.05), but litter effects influenced (P \u3c 0.01) both WFEC and PWFEC. Heritability estimates ranged from 0.18 to 0.26 for WFEC and 0.23 to 0.46 for PWFEC, depending on the model used. Heritability estimates from sire models were higher than estimates from animal models. Direct additive, litter, residual, and phenotypic correlations between WFEC and PWFEC were 0.82, 0.25, 0.15, and 0.29, respectively. Bivariate analyses revealed low to moderate correlations between BW and FEC. Moderate heritabilities for FEC in this study indicated that genetic progress for this trait can be achieved in Katahdin lambs and that selection for low FEC should have little or no effect on BW

Cholera outbreak at a city hotel in Kenya, 2017: a retrospective cohort study

Introduction: The Ministry of Health, Kenya (MOH) investigated a report on acute watery diarrhea (AWD) cases at a city hotel to confirm the cause, characterize, and identify associated factors. Methods: A suspected case of cholera was defined as AWD in any person aged &gt;2 years at the hotel from August 31, 2017, to September 6, 2017. We took rectal swabs for laboratory confirmation and summarized the AWD data by person, place, and time. We defined a cohort of hotel staff with those who ate dinner on August 31, 2017, considered exposed and conducted a retrospective cohort study. We calculated attack rates (AR) and risk ratios (RR) with 95% confidence interval. Variables with p&lt;0.1 at bivariate analysis were entered into a multivariate model and those with p&lt;0.05 in the final model considered independently associated with the AWD. Results: Vibrio cholera was isolated from seven (10.1%) out of 69 samples. Line listed 139 cases with a median age of 32 years (Range: 20–58 years) included 127 (91.4%) male and 127 (91.4%) guests. Index case was reported on August 31, 2017, cases peaked at 95 cases on September 3, 2017, and declined to three on September 6, 2017. A total of 30 (81.1%) of 37 hotel staff were exposed with 17 (56.7%) cases. Food specific ARs were: steamed spinach 78.6% and pineapples 26.3%. Spinach (RR: 3.0 (95%CI: 1.76-72.97)) was a risk factor while pineapples (RR: 0.4 (95%CI: 0.01-0.58)) was protective. Conclusion: This was a point source cholera outbreak likely due to eating contaminated spinach

Comparing use and acceptability of menstrual cups and sanitary pads by schoolgirls in rural Western Kenya

Background: Girls in low and middle-income countries (LMIC) lack access to hygienic and affordable menstrual products. We explore Kenyan schoolgirls’ use and views of the cup compared to girls provided with disposable sanitary pads for a feasibility study.Methods: Schoolgirls aged 14-16 years, received a menstrual cup in 10 schools or 16 pads/month in another10 schools. All were trained by nurses on puberty, hand washing, and product use. They self-completed a net book survey at baseline and twice a term during a year follow-up. We examined their reported ease of insertion and removal, also comfort, soreness, and pain with product use. An aggregate ‘acceptability’ score was compiled for each product and girls’ socio-demographic and menstrual characteristics were compared.Results: 195 participants received cups and 255 pads. Mean age was 14.6 years, menarchial age was 13.6 years, with an average 3.8 days menses per month. Cup use was 39% in month 1, rising to 80% by month 12 (linear trend p<0.001). Pad use rose from 85% to 92% (linear trend p=0.15). Measures of cup acceptability demonstrated girls had initial problems using the cup but reported difficulties with insertion, removal and comfort reduced over time. Girls using pads reported fewer acceptability issues. At baseline, approximately a quarter of girls in the pad arm reported inserting pads intravaginally although this was significantly lower among girls with prior experience of pad use (aRR 0.62; 0.45-0.87).Conclusions: While a smaller proportion of girls provided with cups used them in the first months compared to girls given pads, reported use was similar by study-end, and early acceptability issues reduced over time. Girls in LMIC may successfully and comfortably use cups, but require instruction, support and some persistence

Rabies vaccine and immunoglobulin supply and logistics: Challenges and opportunities for rabies elimination in Kenya

Prompt provision of post-exposure-prophylaxis (PEP) including vaccines and rabies immunoglobulin (RIG) to persons bitten by suspect rabid dogs is a key strategy to eliminating human deaths from dog-mediated rabies in Kenya by 2030. We assessed the availability, forecasting and supply chain logistics for rabies PEP in Kenya, compared with the system used for vaccines in the expanded program of immunization (routine vaccines). Semi-structured questionnaires capturing data on forecasting, procurement, distribution, cold chain and storage, monitoring and reporting for routine vaccines and rabies vaccines and RIG were administered to 35 key personnel at the national, county, sub-county and health facility levels in five counties. Results showed large variability in PEP availability (stockouts ranged from 3 to 36 weeks per year) with counties implementing rabies elimination activities having shorter stockouts. PEP is administered intramuscularly using the 5-dose Essen regimen (day 0, 3, 7, 14 and 28). PEP costs to bite patients were reported to range from 10 to 15 US dollars per dose; RIG was seldom available. A less robust supply and logistics infrastructure is used for rabies PEP compared to routine vaccines. Forecasting and monitoring mechanisms for rabies PEP was poor in the study counties. The supply of vaccines from the national to the sub-national level is mainly through two government agencies and a private agency. Since government decentralization, the National Vaccine and Immunization Program has remained as the main supplier of the routine vaccines, playing a lesser role in the supply of rabies biologicals. Adoption of the dose-saving intradermal route for PEP administration, reduction of PEP costs to patients, and placing rabies vaccines within the routine vaccines supply and logistics system would significantly improve PEP availability and accessibility to persons at risk of rabies; a critical step to achieving elimination of human deaths from rabies