Management of Congenital Tracheosophageal Atrasia and Fistula: A preliminary Bi-Cenre Study in Nigeria

Background: Esophageal atresia and tracheosophageal fistula are congenital abnormalities of the esophagus. The incidence is about 1 in 2,400 to 4,500.It can occur in association with conditions of the VACTERL group. The diagnosis is confirmed by the failure of a nasogastric tube to get to the stomach. Surgery is the mainstay of treatment. There has been remarkable improvement in the outcome following surgery in developed countries. This cannot be said of low resource and developing countries where significant morbidities and mortalities are recorded. This paperhighlights the early postoperative complications seen from two centers in Nigeria. It also raises questions that stimulate further researchMethods: This was a retrospective study done in two tertiary teaching hospitals in Nigeria over a one year period (2012). It was a preliminary work to evaluate the differences in management of neonates with tracheosophageal fistula (TEF) from the two centers over the same period.Results: Two centres were compared.Centre A managed 4 patients and Center B managed 5 patients.Staged repair was done in centre A and primary repair in Centre B.Conclusion: The outcome of management using primary repair and staged repair were comparably the same.Keywords: Atresia, Fistula, Tracheoesophageal, Congenita

Predator-by-Environment Interactions Mediate Bacterial Competition in the \u3ci\u3eDictyostelium discoideum\u3c/i\u3e Microbiome

Interactions between species and their environment play a key role in the evolution of diverse communities, and numerous studies have emphasized that interactions among microbes and among trophic levels play an important role in maintaining microbial diversity and ecosystem functioning. In this study, we investigate how two of these types of interactions, public goods cooperation through the production of iron scavenging siderophores and predation by the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum, mediate competition between two strains of Pseudomonas fluorescens that were co-isolated from D. discoideum. We find that although we are able to generally predict the competitive outcomes between strains based on the presence and absence of either D. discoideum or iron, predator-by-environment interactions result in unexpected competitive outcomes. This suggests that while both cooperation and predation can mediate the competitive abilities and potentially the coexistence of these strains, predicting how combinations of different environments affect even the relatively simple microbiome of D. discoideum remains challenging

Effects of anti-malarial alkaloids on the sperm properties and blood levels of reproductive hormones of adult men

The effects of treatment with the anti-malarial alkaloids quinine and chloroquine on sperm properties and blood levels of selected reproductive hormones (testosterone, follicle stimulating hormone andluteinizing hormones) of adult men were determined. Informed consents were obtained from twenty healthy adult volunteers who were subsequently allotted to groups A and B with 5 subjects each .Whilegroup C had 10 subjects. Group A received 600 mg of quinine 8 hourly for 5 days; group B subjects had 4 tablets of chloroquine (250 mg each) daily for 2 days then 2 tablets for one day. Group C subjects hadneither of these drugs in the study period of 65 days. Venous blood and masturbation specimens of semen were obtained from the subjects before treatment, immediately post-treatment and by the 65thday from commencement of treatment. Blood levels of follicle stimulating hormones, leutinizing hormone and testosterone were determined by Enzyme Linked Imuno Assay. Seminal Fluid Analysiswas carried out on the semen specimens to determine sperm count, percentage forward motility and percentage abnormal sperm morphology. The means of all the variables assessed were within the limits of normal for their respective method of analysis. No statistical significant effect of these drugs on sperm count, percentage sperm forward motility and blood levels of testosterone were observed whenpre-treatment results were compared with post-treatment and 65th day results as well as when results of quinine and chloroquine treated groups were compared with those of control group. The suggestion bydisparate in vivo animal and in vitro studies that the short term use of these drugs to treat malaria may be associated with fertility changes as a result of their inherent anti-spermatogenic effects have notbeen collaborated by this study in adult men

ACCOMMODATING MIXED-SEVERITY FIRE TO RESTORE AND MAINTAIN ECOSYSTEM INTEGRITY WITH A FOCUS ON THE SIERRA NEVADA OF CALIFORNIA, USA

Existing fire policy encourages the maintenance of ecosystem integrity in fire management, yet this is difficult to implement on lands managed for competing economic, human safety, and air quality concerns. We discuss a fire management approach in the mid-elevations of the Sierra Nevada, California, USA, that may exemplify similar challenges in other fire-adapted regions of the western USA. We also discuss how managing for pyrodiversity through mixed-severity fires can promote ecosystem integrity in Sierran mixed conifer and ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Laws) forests. To illustrate, we show how coarse-filter (landscape-level) and complementary fine-filter (species-level) approaches can enhance forest management and conservation biology objectives as related to wildfire management. At the coarse-filter level, pyrodiverse mixed-severity fires provide landscape heterogeneity. Species and ecosystem characteristics associated with pyrodiversity can be maintained or enhanced by accommodating moderately severe fires, which hasten restoration by recreating a complex vegetation mosaic otherwise at risk from suppression. At the fine-filter level, managers can select focal species and species of conservation concern based on the degree to which those species depend on fire and accommodate their specific conservation needs. The black-backed woodpecker (Picoides arcticus [Swainson, 1832]) is an ideal focal species for monitoring the ecological integrity of forests restored through mixed-severity fire, and the California spotted owl (Strix occidentalis occidentalis [Xantus de Vesey, 1860]) is a species of conservation concern that uses post-fire habitat mosaics and is particularly vulnerable to logging. We suggest a comprehensive approach that integrates wildland fire for ecosystem integrity and species viability with strategic deployment of fire suppression and ecologically based restoration of pyrodiverse landscapes. Our approach would accomplish fire management goals while simultaneously maintaining biodiversity

Treatment Pathway of Bone Sarcoma in Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults

When pediatric, adolescent, and young adult patients present with a bone sarcoma, treatment decisions, especially after relapse, are complex and require a multidisciplinary approach. This review presents scenarios commonly encountered in the therapy of bone sarcomas with the goal of objectively presenting a consensus, multidisciplinary management approach. Little variation was found in the authors\u27 group with respect to local control or systemic therapy. Clinical trials were universally prioritized in all settings. Decisions regarding relapse therapies in the absence of a clinical trial had very minor variations initially, but a consensus was reached after a literature review and discussion. This review presents a concise document and figures as a starting point for evidence-based care for patients with these rare diseases. This framework allows prospective decision making and prioritization of clinical trials. It is hoped that this framework will inspire and focus future clinical research and thus lead to new trials to improve efficacy and reduce toxicity

Cowpea as a key factor for a new approach to integrated crop–livestock systems research in the dry savannas of West Africa

Agriculture in the dry savannas is intensifying in response to increasing populations of humans and livestock. As a result, increased productivity demands are placed upon integrated crop–livestock systems and more emphasis is on the roles of legumes such as cowpea. Cowpea has the potential to function as a key integrating factor in intensifying systems through supplying protein in the human diet, and fodder for livestock, and bringing nitrogen into the farming system through nitrogen fi xation. This paper describes the development and evaluation of integrated “best-bet” options which maximize the benefi ts of cowpea and addresses aspects of improved crop varieties, crop and livestock management, nutrient cycling, and soil fertility. The approach used includes a multicenter, multidisciplinary approach to working with farmers which combines complementary strengths of previous component research involving crops and livestock by key international and national research institutions in the region

What Constitutes a Natural Fire Regime? Insight from the Ecology and Distribution of Coniferous Forest Birds in North America

Bird species that specialize in the use of burned forest conditions can provide insight into the prehistoric fire regimes associated with the forest types that they have occupied over evolutionary time. The nature of their adaptations reflects the specific post-fire conditions that occurred prior to the unnatural influence of humans after European settlement. Specifically, the post-fire conditions, nest site locations, and social systems of two species (Bachman\u27s sparrow [Aimophila aestivalis] and red-cockaded woodpecker [Picoides borealis]) suggest that, prehistorically, a frequent, low-severity fire regime characterized the southeastern pine system in which they evolved. In contrast, the patterns of distribution and abundance for several other bird species (black-backed woodpecker [Picoides arcticus], buff-breasted flycatcher [Empidonax fulvifrons], Lewis\u27 woodpecker [Melanerpes lewis], northern hawk owl [Surnia ulula], and Kirtland\u27s warbler [Dendroica kirtlandii]) suggest that severe fire has been an important component of the fire regimes with which they evolved. Patterns of habitat use by the latter species indicate that severe fires are important components not only of higher-elevation and high-latitude conifer forest types, which are known to be dominated by such fires, but also of mid-elevation and even low-elevation conifer forest types that are not normally assumed to have had high-severity fire as an integral part of their natural fire regimes. Because plant and animal adaptations can serve as reliable sources of information about what constitutes a natural fire regime, it might be wise to supplement traditional historical methods with careful consideration of information related to plant and animal adaptations when attempting to restore what are thought to be natural fire regimes

SEED BANKS OF LONG-UNBURNED STANDS OF MARITIME CHAPARRAL: COMPOSITION, GERMINATION BEHAVIOR, AND SURVIVAL WITH FIRE

Volume: 47Start Page: 195End Page: 20