Schistosoma haematobium Treatment in 1–5 Year Old Children: Safety and Efficacy of the Antihelminthic Drug Praziquantel

Urogenital schistosomiasis is an important, but neglected, infectious disease affecting over 100 million people, mainly in Africa. Children carry the heaviest burden of infection with children as young as 1 year old showing signs of infection. Children aged 5 years and below are currently excluded from schistosome control programmes for several reasons, including operational difficulties associated with accessing preschool children, misconceptions about their level of exposure to infective water and lack of safety data on the drug of choice for schistosome control, praziquantel, in children aged 5 years and below. This study was one of a small number of studies recently funded by the World Health Organization to investigate the need for praziquantel treatment in preschool children (aged 1–5 years) and to subsequently assess the safety and efficacy of the drug praziquantel in this age group. This study confirmed that preschool children carry significant levels of schistosome infection, exceeding those carried by their parents/guardians, highlighting the urgent need for their immediate inclusion in schistosome control programmes. The study also showed that praziquantel treatment is as safe and efficacious in children aged 1–5 years as it is in older children aged 6–10 years who are currently the target for mass drug administration

Wax Esters: Chemistry and Biosynthesis

Wax esters are unique surface lipids found on the surface of terrestrial organisms. After a brief review of the composition, the mechanisms used in their biosynthesis by sebaceous glands are summarized. The molecular biology of biosynthesis of methyl-branched, short chain and very long chain acids, and the biochemical mechanism of the loss of the carboxyl carbon of the elongated very long chain acids to generate alkanes are reviewed. The molecular biology of biosynthesis of the major types of molecules contains the hydroxyl group(s) to which the acids are esterified and the molecular biology of the esterification process are reviewed. The molecular bases of seasonal and hormonal regulation of biosynthesis of wax esters that implicate some functions of the wax esters are reviewed