New crop and fodder genotypes for sustainable intensification in semi-arid agro-ecologies of Tanzania

United States Agency for International Developmen

Africa RISING genetic intensification in Central Tanzania and Zambia

United States Agency for International Developmen

Harnessing innovation platforms for sustainable intensification R4D experiences from Kongwa and Kiteto, Tanzania

United States Agency for International Developmen

A Spatial Analysis of Rift Valley Fever Virus Seropositivity in Domestic Ruminants in Tanzania

Rift Valley fever (RVF) is an acute arthropod-borne viral zoonotic disease primarily occurring in Africa. Since RVF-like disease was reported in Tanzania in 1930, outbreaks of the disease have been reported mainly from the eastern ecosystem of the Great Rift Valley. This cross-sectional study was carried out to describe the variation in RVF virus (RVFV) seropositivity in domestic ruminants between selected villages in the eastern and western Rift Valley ecosystems in Tanzania, and identify potential risk factors. Three study villages were purposively selected from each of the two Rift Valley ecosystems. Serum samples from randomly selected domestic ruminants (n = 1,435) were tested for the presence of specific immunoglobulin G (IgG) and M (IgM), using RVF enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay methods. Mixed effects logistic regression modelling was used to investigate the association between potential risk factors and RVFV seropositivity. The overall RVFV seroprevalence (n = 1,435) in domestic ruminants was 25.8% and species specific seroprevalence was 29.7%, 27.7% and 22.0% in sheep (n = 148), cattle (n = 756) and goats (n = 531), respectively. The odds of seropositivity were significantly higher in animals sampled from the villages in the eastern than those in the western Rift Valley ecosystem (OR = 1.88, CI: 1.41, 2.51; p<0.001), in animals sampled from villages with soils of good than those with soils of poor water holding capacity (OR = 1.97; 95% CI: 1.58, 3.02; p< 0.001), and in animals which had been introduced than in animals born within the herd (OR = 5.08, CI: 2.74, 9.44; p< 0.001). Compared with animals aged 1-2 years, those aged 3 and 4-5 years had 3.40 (CI: 2.49, 4.64; p< 0.001) and 3.31 (CI: 2.27, 4.82, p< 0.001) times the odds of seropositivity. The findings confirm exposure to RVFV in all the study villages, but with a higher prevalence in the study villages from the eastern Rift Valley ecosystem

Performance of the 2007 WHO Algorithm to diagnose Smear-negative Pulmonary Tuberculosis in a HIV prevalent setting

The 2007 WHO algorithm for diagnosis of smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) including Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) culture was evaluated in a HIV prevalent area of Kenya

Poly (D,L-lactide-co-glycolide) nanoparticles: Uptake by epithelial cells and cytotoxicity

This research article published by eXPRESS Polymer Letters Vol.8, No.3 (2014)Nanoparticles as drug delivery systems offer benefits such as protection of the encapsulated drug against degradation, site-specific targeting and prolonged blood circulation times. The aim of this study was to investigate nanoparticle uptake into Caco-2 cell monolayers, their co-localization within the lysosomal compartment and their cytotoxicity in different cell lines. Rhodamine-6G labelled poly(D,L-lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) nanoparticles were prepared by a double emulsion solvent evaporation freeze-drying method. Uptake and co-localisation of PLGA nanoparticles in lysosomes were visualized by confocal laser scanning microscopy. The cytotoxicity of the nanoparticles was evaluated on different mammalian cells lines by means of Trypan blue exclusion and the MTS assay. The PLGA nanoparticles accumulated in the intercellular spaces of Caco-2 cell monolayers, but were also taken up transcellularly into the Caco-2 cells and partially co-localized within the lysosomal compartment indicating involvement of endocytosis during uptake. PLGA nanoparticles did not show cytotoxic effects in all three cell lines. Intact PLGA nanoparticles are therefore capable of moving across epithelial cell membranes partly by means of endocytosis without causing cytotoxic effects