Unlocking the human factor to increase effectiveness and sustainability of malaria vector control

BACKGROUND: Progress in the fight against malaria has stalled in recent years, highlighting the importance of new interventions and tailored approaches. A critical factor that must be considered across contexts and interventions is human behaviour. MAIN TEXT: Factors such as acceptance of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) and indoor residual spraying (IRS), ability and willingness to consistently use and appropriately care for ITNs and refraining from post-spray wall modifications can all impact the success of core vector control interventions. Understanding factors that can drive or inhibit these behaviours can contribute to improved social and behaviour change strategies and in turn, improved outcomes. Likewise, patterns of nighttime activities can reveal specific gaps in protection that cannot be filled by core interventions and inform development and deployment of complementary tools that meet people's needs and preferences. There is an opportunity to increase use of approaches such as human-centred design to engage affected communities more actively in identifying and developing sustainable solutions that meet their needs and lifestyles. Integration of social and behavioural research with entomological and epidemiological evaluations will provide a more complete picture of malaria transmission dynamics and inform improved targeting of context-appropriate interventions. Finally, for gains to be maintained, interventions must be rooted within systems that support long-term success. This includes a movement toward more sustainable vector control solutions, increased decision-making and ownership of research, implementation, and strategy development at the country level, and inclusive approaches that ensure all men, women, boys, and girls are engaged as part of the solution. CONCLUSIONS: No matter how efficacious, a tool will remain ineffective if communities do not engage with it or use it regularly. Entering the next decade in the fight against malaria there is a critical opportunity to elevate the role of social and behaviour change to increase the impact and sustainability of malaria control and elimination efforts. This includes removing social and structural barriers to use of existing tools at all levels, human-centred and inclusive design and implementation of new tools, and movement toward long-term solutions led by affected communities

GC-MS Analysis, Antimicrobial and Antioxidant Activities of Extracts of the Aerial Parts of Conyza sumatrensis

Phytochemical analyses as well as antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of the extracts of C. sumatrensis aerial parts were investigated in this study. METHODS: The aerial parts of C. sumatrensis were air dried, weighed and exhaustively extracted with hexane, ethyl acetate and methanol successively. The crude extracts were screened for metabolites.  These extracts of the plant were evaluated for antimicrobial and antioxidant activities using agar  diffusion and DPPH method respectively. The extracts were also analysed using Gas chromatography – Mass spectrometry, and the chromatogram coupled with mass spectra of the compounds were matched with a standard library. RESULTS: Preliminary phytochemical investigation of  rude n-hexane, ethyl acetate and methanol extracts of the aerial parts of Conyza sumatrensis revealed the presence of anthraquinones, flavonoids, terpenoids, phenolics, tannin, glycosides and carbohydrate. All the crude  extracts gave a clear zone of inhibition against the growth of the test bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, Pseudomona aeruginosa, Salmonella typhi, Klebsiellae pneumonae) at moderate to high  concentrations, as well as test fungi (Candida albicans, Aspergillus niger, penicillium notatum and  Rhizopus stolonifer) at high concentration. Methanolic extract exhibited significant radical scavenging  property with IC50 of 17.08 μg/mL while n-hexane and ethyl acetate extracts showed no significant antioxidant activity. GC-MS of N-hexane extract showed a total number of eleven chemical constituents with α-Farnesene and spathulenol being the most abundance compounds constituting 20.27 and 22.28% of the extract respectively. Ethyl acetate extract revealed thirteen  compounds with two most abundant compounds, cis-β-farnesene (16.64 %) and cis-pinane (21.09 %). While  methanolic extract affords seventeen compounds with Ephytol being the most abundant compound  (19.36 %). © JASEMKeywords: Antimicrobial activity, Antioxidant, GC-MS analysis, Phytochemicals, Conyza sumatrensi

EFFECT OF CHRONIC ADMINISTRATION OF LEAD (Pb) ON SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR OF MALE ALBINO RATS

ABSTRAC

Correlation of textile ‘resistance to damage’ scores with actual physical survival of long-lasting insecticidal nets in the field

Background Attempts have been made to link procurement of long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLIN) not only to the price but also the expected performance of the product. However, to date it has not been possible to identify a specific textile characteristic that predicts physical durability in the field. The recently developed resistance to damage (RD) score could provide such a metric. This study uses pooled data from durability monitoring to explore the usefulness of the RD methodology. Methods Data from standardized, 3-year, prospective LLIN durability monitoring for six LLIN brands in 10 locations and four countries involving 4672 campaign LLIN were linked to the RD scores of the respective LLIN brands. The RD score is a single quantitative metric based on a suite of standardized textile tests which in turn build on the mechanisms of damage to a mosquito net. Potential RD values range from 0 to 100 where 100 represents optimal resistance to expected day-to-day stress during reasonable net use. Survival analysis was set so that risk of failure only started when nets were first hung. Cox regression was applied to explore RD effects on physical survival adjusting for known net use environment variables. Results In a bivariate analysis RD scores showed a linear relationship with physical integrity suggesting that the proportion of LLIN with moderate damage decreased by 3%-points for each 10-point increase of the RD score (p = 0.02, R2 = 0.65). Full adjustment for net care and handling behaviours as well as other relevant determinants and the country of study showed that increasing RD score by 10 points resulted in a 36% reduction of risk of failure to survive in serviceable condition (p < 0.0001). LLINs with RD scores above 50 had an additional useful life of 7 months. Conclusions This study provides proof of principle that the RD metric can predict physical durability of LLIN products in the field and could be used to assess new products and guide manufacturers in creating improved products. However, additional validation from other field data, particularly for next generation LLIN, will be required before the RD score can be included in procurement decisions for LLINs

AMPA receptor GluA2 subunit defects are a cause of neurodevelopmental disorders.

AMPA receptors (AMPARs) are tetrameric ligand-gated channels made up of combinations of GluA1-4 subunits encoded by GRIA1-4 genes. GluA2 has an especially important role because, following post-transcriptional editing at the Q607 site, it renders heteromultimeric AMPARs Ca2+-impermeable, with a linear relationship between current and trans-membrane voltage. Here, we report heterozygous de novo GRIA2 mutations in 28 unrelated patients with intellectual disability (ID) and neurodevelopmental abnormalities including autism spectrum disorder (ASD), Rett syndrome-like features, and seizures or developmental epileptic encephalopathy (DEE). In functional expression studies, mutations lead to a decrease in agonist-evoked current mediated by mutant subunits compared to wild-type channels. When GluA2 subunits are co-expressed with GluA1, most GRIA2 mutations cause a decreased current amplitude and some also affect voltage rectification. Our results show that de-novo variants in GRIA2 can cause neurodevelopmental disorders, complementing evidence that other genetic causes of ID, ASD and DEE also disrupt glutamatergic synaptic transmission

Cultural and perception dimensions of faecal waste applications for sustainable reuse in Ogun State, Nigeria

The generationof biogas from faecal wastes currently offers limited economic and environmental benefits to low-income households. The production of biochar from faecal waste is a sustainable alternative to firewood to replace charcoal that is widely utilised for cooking in households in Nigeria. Similarly, biochar production from faecal wastes presents a clean and renewable alternative approachfor creating value from faecal waste. Furthermore, this presents cost-effective recovery, containment, and management of faecal waste. Therefore, the objective of this study is to investigate the existing faecal waste management practices by households in Ogun State, Nigeria. It will also examine perceptions of households to faecal waste as a valuable resource, in either its raw or processed form for energy applications. Based on the multi-stage sampling approach, a total of 165 questionnaires were administered to representative households in the study area. Consequently, a total of 55, 50, and 60 questionnaires were administered in Surulere, Ilaro I, and Sodeke/Sale‐Ijeun I, in the ratio 1.1:1.0:1.23.The selected criteria reflect the variance in the populations of 1,250,435 (33 %), 1,112,761 (30 %), and 1,387,944 (37 %) for Ogun East, Ogun West, and Ogun Central.The study revealed that the most important reason for the prevalence of unsustainable non-recovery faecal waste management in the study area is the perception that households could be exposed to danger as recovered sludge could be used for fetish purpose. Furthermore, at p=0.00, knowledge of faecal waste reuse expressed by respondents strongly associated with their choice of faecal waste emptying method. Lastly, adequate awareness of good sanitation practices and the economic gains of recovering and reusing faecal waste in households requires sustainable enforcement in Nigeria

Isolation and antiproliferative activity of triterpenoids and fatty acids from the leaves and stem of <i>Turraea vogelii</i> Hook. f. ex benth

<p>Chloroform extract from the leaves of <i>Turraea vogelii</i> Hook f. ex Benth demonstrated cytotoxic activity against a chronic myelogenous leukemia cell, K-562 with IC₅₀ of 14.27 μg/mL, while chloroform, ethyl acetate and methanol extracts from the stem of the plant inhibited K-562 cells growth with IC₅₀ of 19.50, 24.10 and 85.40 μg/mL respectively. Bioactive chloroform extract of <i>Turraea vogelii</i> leaves affords two triterpenoids: oleana-12,15,20-trien-3β-ol <b>(1)</b>, and oleana-11,13-dien-3β,16α,28-triol <b>(2)</b>, with six fatty esters, ethyl hexaeicos-5-enoate <b>(3)</b>, 3-hydroxy-1,2,3-propanetriyltris(tetadecanoate) <b>(4)</b>, 1,2,3-propanetriyl(7Z,7′Z,7′′Z)tris(-7-hexadecenoate) <b>(5)</b>, 1,2,3-propanetriyl(5Z,5′Z,5′′Z)tris(-5-hexadecenoate) <b>(6)</b>, 1,2,3-propanetriyltris(octadecanoate) <b>(7)</b>, and 2β-hydroxymethyl tetraeicosanoate <b>(8).</b> Tetradecane (<b>9)</b>, four fatty acids: hexadecanoic acid (<b>10)</b>, tetradecanoic acid (<b>11)</b>, <b><i>(</i></b><i>Z)</i>-9-eicosenoic acid <b>(12)</b>, and ethyl tetradec-7-enoate <b>(13)</b> were isolated from chloroform extract of <i>Turraea vogelii</i> stem. 1,2,3-propanetriyltris(heptadecanoate) <b>(14)</b>, <i>(Z)</i>-9-octadecenoic acid <b>(15)</b> and <i>(Z)</i>-7-tetradecenoic acid <b>(16)</b> were isolated from ethyl acetate extract while <i>(Z)</i>-5-pentadecenoic acid <b>(17)</b> was obtained from methanol extract of the plant stem. Compounds <b>1</b>, <b>2</b>, <b>5</b>, <b>6</b>, <b>11</b>, <b>12</b>, <b>15</b>, <b>16</b> and <b>17</b> exhibited pronounced antiproliferative activity against K-562 cell lines.</p