A review of cassava semolina (gari and eba) end‐user preferences and implications for varietal trait evaluation

The purpose of this review is to support breeders and food scientists by examining research carried out on end-user preferences for gari and its derived dough product, eba, in Africa. The review focused on gari regarding the physical and chemical composition of raw cassava roots, methods of storage, the composition of gari with or without enrichment, and the sensory evaluation of gari and eba. The primary sensory attributes identified to describe gari are colour, taste, texture, aroma and flavour. Texture attribute of importance is crispiness for uncooked gari, and hand feel before consumption for eba. There was a significant correlation between the sensory characteristics of gari and the starch and cyanogenic potential (CNP) contents of the raw roots. Hence, the correlation of the end-user preferences with the chemical composition of the cassava roots could be helpful to breeders in refining selection criteria and developing high-throughput screening methods

Campagne globale épilepsie dans une communauté rurale au Nord du Bénin en 2015

International audienceIntroduction L’épilepsie est un problème majeur de santé publique et la lutte contre cette maladie passe par une action globale.Objectifs Rapporter l’expérience d’une campagne globale contre l’épilepsie dans une communauté rurale au Bénin.Patients et méthodes Plusieurs actions concertées sont réalisées dans la communauté de Nikki au nord-est du Bénin du 25 au 31 mai 2015 : une enquête neuroépidémiologique associée à une enquête CAP de type porte-à-porte utilisant le questionnaire de l’IENT, séances de sensibilisation, consultations foraines réalisées par des médecins généralistes membres du réseau préalablement formés par un expert, distribution de médicaments, des séances de formation des agents de santé sur la prise en charge de l’épilepsie.Résultats L’enquête neuroépidémiologique a concerné 310 sujets âgés de 12 à 84ans. La prévalence de l’épilepsie était de 2,9 % (9/310), et 55,5 % considéraient l’épilepsie comme maladie contagieuse, 77,7 % attribuaient l’épilepsie à des causes surnaturelles ou sorcellerie ou envoûtement. Au total 87 sujets ont été vus en consultations et 77 étaient épileptiques. Parmi eux 92,7 % faisaient des crises généralisées parfois associées aux crises focales, et 6,5 % des cirses focales pures.Discussion Le nombre moyen de crises était de 13,3 crises/an. Seuls 10 (13,0 %) suivaient un traitement antiépileptique. Tous les patients au décours de la consultation ont reçu un traitement antiépileptique à base de phénobarbital et ou valproate de sodium et sensibilisés sur la maladie et l’observance. Au cours de la mission 21 agents de santé de niveau périphérique ont été formés.Conclusion L’épilepsie est fréquente dans la communauté de Nikki et une répétition des actions de campagne globale pourrait permettre d’en réduire la charge

Baseline hedgehog pathway activation and increase of plasma wnt1 protein are associated with resistance to immune checkpoint inhibitors in advanced non-small-cell lung cancer

International audienceHedgehog (Hh) and Wingless-type (Wnt) pathways are associated with resistance to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in preclinical studies. This study aimed to assess the association between expression and activation levels of Wnt and Sonic Hedgehog (Shh) pathways and resistance to ICIs in advanced NSCLC patients treated with ICI. Hh and Wnt pathways activation was assessed by immunohistochemistry (Gli1 and beta-catenin) on corresponding tumor tissues, and by plasma concentrations of Shh and Wnt (Wnt1, Wnt2 and Wnt3) at ICI introduction and at the first clinical evaluation. Sixty-three patients were included, with 36 patients (57.1%) with available tissue. Response rate was lower in Gli1+ NSCLC (20.0%) compared to Gli1 negative (Gli-) NSCLC (55.6%) (p = 0.015). Rate of primary resistance was 69.8%, vs. 31.2%, respectively (p = 0.04), and median progression-free survival (PFS) was 1.9 months (interquartile range (IQR) 1.2–5.7) vs. 6.1 months (1.6–26.0), respectively (p = 0.08). Median PFS and overall survival were shorter in case of increase of Wnt1 concentration during ICI treatment compared to other patients: 3.9 months vs. 11.2 months (p = 0.008), and 15.3 months vs. not reached (p = 0.003). In conclusion, baseline activation of Hh pathway and increase of Wnt1 concentrations during ICI treatment were associated with poor outcome in NSCLC patients treated with ICIs

Sequential ctDNA whole-exome sequencing in advanced lung adenocarcinoma with initial durable tumor response on immune checkpoint inhibitor and late progression

International audienceBACKGROUND: Despite prolonged tumor response to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) for a subset of patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), a secondary resistance will occur for a majority of these patients. The understanding of late progression mechanisms with ICIs is important to improve future treatment strategies. METHODS: We performed whole-exome sequencing (WES) on circulating tumor DNA and compared molecular profiles between the beginning of ICI treatment and tumor progression in patients with advanced NSCLC treated with ICIs and who had initial and prolonged tumor response with secondary progression, after at least 6 months of treatment. RESULTS: We identified eight patients who experienced initial and durable tumor response, and secondary tumor progression after 6 months of treatment, with available paired blood samples (diagnosis and progression). All had lung adenocarcinoma, three had programmed-death ligand-1 expression ≥50% in immunohistochemistry and all presented low blood tumor mutational burden (bTMB). Seven patients received nivolumab in second-line or more, and one received pembrolizumab as first-line treatment. WES at progression showed clonal selection with molecular alterations of Wnt pathway-related genes, increase of copy number aberrations in cancer-related genes and loss of tumor-suppressor genes (such as PTEN) or of genes associated with immune response (such as B2M). No difference in term of bTMB was observed at progression. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study describing putative molecular mechanisms associated with late progression under ICI in lung cancer. Studies on treatment strategies adapted to these mechanisms are needed