A 3- Year Review of Patients with Chronic Empyema Treated Surgically at Tikur Anbessa Specialized Referral Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Background: Empyema thoracic is one of the main causes of morbidity and mortality in developing countries. This study was aimed at determining the causes, clinical presentation, outcomes of surgical intervention and variables associated with adverse outcomes in patients with chronic empyema treated surgically. Methods: This was a cross sectional hospital based longitudinal case series analysis done at Tikur Anbessa Specialized referral hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. All patients admitted and operated for chronic Empyema over a period of three year. (April 01, 2011 - March 30, 2014) were studied. Results: A total of 62 patients were operated for empyema thoracis. The Male to female ratio was 5.9:1 and mean age at presentation was 29.96+/-10.6 years. Patients presented after an average of 8.02 +/- 4.37 months from the onset of symptoms (range from 1-16 months). Shortness of breath 43(69.4%), cough 43(69.4%), chest pain 47(75.8%), fever 30(48.4%), weight loss 21(33.9%) poor appetite 9(14.5%) and haemoptysis 1(1.6%) were the leading causes of symptoms on admission. Thirty seven (59.7%) patients were previously treated for tuberculosis, 11 (17.7%) had pneumonia and 53(85.5%) of them gave history of trauma. The right {32(51.6%)} and left pleural space, {29(46.8%)} were affected with similar incidence. Only one patient was admitted with bilateral empyema. In the majority of patients, 46(74.2%), open thoracotomy with abscess drainage and decortications were done. In addition to this, either lobectomy or pnemonectomy was done for 4 (6.5%) and 7 (11.3%) patients respectively. Three patients were treated by rib resection and open drainage. The average post-operative hospital stay was 12 days (range 3 - 63days). Major complications encounter were lung laceration 15(24.2%), BPF 8(12.9), recurrent empyema 10(16.1%), and persistent air space 14(22.6%). Two (3.2%) patients died in their hospital stay. During follow up visits, 52(83.9%) patients had shown significant subjective improvement of symptoms. Conclusion: In general, our experience on the outcome of open thoracotomy and decortication done for chronic empyema was excellent with low mortality and very good Functional results as majority of patients either returned to normal activities or showed significant improvement of symptoms.Key words: Chronic Empyema, Decortication, Bronchopleural fistul

Biodecolorization of textile azo dye using Bacillus sp. strain CH12 isolated from alkaline lake

© 2017 The Authors Textile azo dye decolorizing bacteria were isolated from alkaline Lakes Abaya and Chamo using Reactive Red 239 (RR239) dye. Through subsequent screening process, strain CH12 was selected to investigate the effects of nutrient supplement, DO, pH, temperature, dye concentration and types on decolorization. Based on 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis, strain CH12 was identified as Bacillus sp. Decolorization efficiencies were significantly enhanced with carbon (≥98%) and organic nitrogen (∼100%) supplements. Complete decolorization was also observed under anoxic and anaerobic conditions, and at the temperature of 30 °C and the pH of 10. However, the azo dye decolorization efficiency of strain CH12 was significantly reduced when NaNO3 (1–8%) was supplemented or under aerobic culturing condition (≤6%), indicating that RR239 was less preferred electron acceptor. Overall, strain CH12 can be a promising candidate for decolorization applications due to its potential to effectively decolorize higher RR239 concentrations (50−250 mg/L) and six additional dyes

Enteropathogens in Under-Five Children with Diarrhea in Health Facilities of Debre Berhan Town, North Shoa, Ethiopia

BACKGROUND: Diarrheal disease is a major cause of mortality and morbidity for under-five children in Ethiopia. The purpose of this study was to investigate the behavioral and socioeconomic risk factors, etiology, and drug susceptibility of bacteria isolated from under-five children with acute diarrhea who were treated at Debre Berhan Referral Hospital or Health Center in Ethiopia.METHODS: A health facility based cross-sectional study design was used to investigate enteropathogens from 163 under-five children with acute diarrhea. After obtaining written consent from parents or guardians, data were collected using a standardized questionnaire. Freshly passed stool samples were collected for microbiological tests for bacteria and parasites. The chi-square test was used for assessing the relationships of variables.RESULTS: Enteropathogens were detected among 55.8% (91/163) participants. There was a 46%(75/163) bacterial culture positivity rate and a 9.8%(16/163) prevalence of parasites. The isolated enteropathogens were Escherchia coli, Klebsiella specie, Proteus species, Salmonella species, Shigella species, Enterobacter species, Giardia lamblia, Enteameba histolytica, Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura and Hymnoleps nana. Level of antimicrobial resistance of bacterial isolates ranged from 0 to 87.2%. Poor hand washing and poor cleaning of feeding utensils showed significant association with the presence of enteropathogens.CONCLUSION: Bacterial enteropathogens with drug resistance were observed in this study. Continuous health education and promotion about diarrheal disease for mothers/caretakers and regular surveillance of entropathogenes are recommended to reduce under-five mortality.

Photocatalytic Nanolithography of Self-Assembled Monolayers and Proteins

Self-assembled monolayers of alkylthiolates on gold and alkylsilanes on silicon dioxide have been patterned photocatalytically on sub-100 nm length-scales using both apertured near-field and apertureless methods. Apertured lithography was carried out by means of an argon ion laser (364 nm) coupled to cantilever-type near-field probes with a thin film of titania deposited over the aperture. Apertureless lithography was carried out with a helium–cadmium laser (325 nm) to excite titanium-coated, contact-mode atomic force microscope (AFM) probes. This latter approach is readily implementable on any commercial AFM system. Photodegradation occurred in both cases through the localized photocatalytic degradation of the monolayer. For alkanethiols, degradation of one thiol exposed the bare substrate, enabling refunctionalization of the bare gold by a second, contrasting thiol. For alkylsilanes, degradation of the adsorbate molecule provided a facile means for protein patterning. Lines were written in a protein-resistant film formed by the adsorption of oligo(ethylene glycol)-functionalized trichlorosilanes on glass, leading to the formation of sub-100 nm adhesive, aldehyde-functionalized regions. These were derivatized with aminobutylnitrilotriacetic acid, and complexed with Ni2+, enabling the binding of histidine-labeled green fluorescent protein, which yielded bright fluorescence from 70-nm-wide lines that could be imaged clearly in a confocal microscope

Postoperative outcomes in oesophagectomy with trainee involvement

BACKGROUND: The complexity of oesophageal surgery and the significant risk of morbidity necessitates that oesophagectomy is predominantly performed by a consultant surgeon, or a senior trainee under their supervision. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of trainee involvement in oesophagectomy on postoperative outcomes in an international multicentre setting. METHODS: Data from the multicentre Oesophago-Gastric Anastomosis Study Group (OGAA) cohort study were analysed, which comprised prospectively collected data from patients undergoing oesophagectomy for oesophageal cancer between April 2018 and December 2018. Procedures were grouped by the level of trainee involvement, and univariable and multivariable analyses were performed to compare patient outcomes across groups. RESULTS: Of 2232 oesophagectomies from 137 centres in 41 countries, trainees were involved in 29.1 per cent of them (n = 650), performing only the abdominal phase in 230, only the chest and/or neck phases in 130, and all phases in 315 procedures. For procedures with a chest anastomosis, those with trainee involvement had similar 90-day mortality, complication and reoperation rates to consultant-performed oesophagectomies (P = 0.451, P = 0.318, and P = 0.382, respectively), while anastomotic leak rates were significantly lower in the trainee groups (P = 0.030). Procedures with a neck anastomosis had equivalent complication, anastomotic leak, and reoperation rates (P = 0.150, P = 0.430, and P = 0.632, respectively) in trainee-involved versus consultant-performed oesophagectomies, with significantly lower 90-day mortality in the trainee groups (P = 0.005). CONCLUSION: Trainee involvement was not found to be associated with significantly inferior postoperative outcomes for selected patients undergoing oesophagectomy. The results support continued supervised trainee involvement in oesophageal cancer surgery

Chemical Composition, Physicochemical And Functional Properties Of Lupin (Lupinus Albus) Seeds Grown In Ethiopia

White lupin (Lupinus albus) seeds collected from the local markets of Debretabor (DT) and Dembecha (DB) in Ethiopia were studied for their chemical composition, physicochemical and functional properties. Moisture, total ash, crude protein, crude fat, crude fiber and minerals were determined. Mean values for protein, crude fat, total carbohydrates, crude fiber, and crude ash content of the two samples were 40.22, 8.92, 47.73, 10.08 and 3.15 g/100g, respectively on dry weight basis. The mean values of minerals such as phosphorus, iron, zinc and calcium contents for the samples were 248.90, 12.51, 4.68 and 82.56 mg/100g, respectively on dry weight basis. There was significant difference (p < 0.05) on physicochemical properties such as seed mass, seed volume, hull content, hydration coefficient, swelling capacity, cooking time, and seed hardness. However, the mean diameter, bulk density, sphericity, water absorption, swelling coefficient and swelling index were not significantly different between the two lupin seed samples. There was strong positive correlation between calcium content and the cooking time of lupin. The lower calcium concentration leads to a better cook ability and shorter cooking time. Hardness was negatively correlated with water absorption, and positively correlated with cooking time of the lupin seed. The flour obtained from Dembecha lupins was found to be superior to that of Debretabor in terms of the foaming capacity and bulk density. Lupin flour from Debretabor exhibited significantly higher dispersibility and water absorption than Dembecha, while the oil absorption was practically the same for the two lupins. Furthermore, a relationship exists between a water absorption capacity and the least gelation concentration. The results of chemical composition, physicochemical and functional properties for both lupin samples indicated that lupins can be used as a raw material for various food products manufacturing and provide consistency in food processing, analogous to other food legumes. Therefore, the research findings can be used by food companies in recipe development of lupin-based processed foods, including fortified food products to combat the protein-energy malnutrition (PEM) problem in Ethiopia and other East African countries

Renewable Polymers: Processing and Chemical Modifications

The utilization of bio-resourced macromolecules for polymer applications has been the subject of increasing interest, mainly for sustainability and functionality reasons. This Special Issue of Processes brings together nine papers from leading scientists and researchers active in the area of “Sustainable and Renewable Polymers, Processing, and Chemical Modifications”. The collected papers include seven original research and two review articles related to renewable feedstock for polymer applications, processes for the fabrication of renewable polymer-based nanomaterials, the design and modification of renewable polymers, and applications of renewable polymers. The journal Processes will continue to nurture progress in this field through its position as an open access platform

The sanitary condition of food and drink establisment in Awash-Sebat Kilo town, Afar region, Ethiopia

No Abstract

Effect Of Germination On Mineral Bioavailability Of Sorghum-Based Complementary Foods

Many people living in developing countries depend on diets based on cereal staples. Such diets lack diversity, which may result in micronutrient deficiencies. A complementary food made from cereals is often low in mineral content and contains significant quantities of mineral absorption inhibitors like phytic acid and condensed tannins. Anti-nutritional factors are plant constituents, which play an important role in humans, reducing the digestibility of nutrients and the absorption of minerals.Infant malnutrition due to nutritionally inadequate diets is one of the major concerns in Ethiopia. Children in rural Ethiopia are especially prone to micronutrient deficiencies as they eat from the family dish, which is predominantly plant-based. The main objective of this study is, therefore, to investigate the effect of germination on bio-availability of minerals of sorghum-based complementary foods. Two varieties of sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) grains (varieties 76T1#23 and Meko) were collected, cleaned, soaked for 22 hours at room temperature (22±2°C) and germinated for 36 and 48 hours at the soaking temperature. The germinated seeds were dried at 55°C for 24 hours and the ungerminated sorghum seeds were also dried at 55°C for 2 hours to facilitate milling. Both ungerminated and germinated sorghum grains weremilled into a homogeneous fine powder.Germination of sorghum grainsfor 36 and 48 hours decreased phytic acid levels (mg/100g) significantly (p<0.05) for variety 76T1#23 from 399.12 to 255.66 and 190.11, and from 464.94 to 293.18 and 203.76for variety Meko, respectively. During germination of sorghum grains for 36 and 48 hours, molar ratio of phytate: iron was decreased significantly (p<0.05) from 4.12 to 2.06 and 1.35 for variety 76T1#23, and from 5.49 to 2.35 and 1.58 for variety Meko, respectively. Similarly, germination of sorghum grains for 36 and 48 hours decreased significantly (p<0.05) phytate:zinc molar ratio of sorghum flour from 21.18 to 12.76 and 9.31 for variety 76T1#23; and from 25.72 to 15.54 and 10.64 for variety Meko, respectively. In contrast, germination of sorghum grains for 36 and 48 hours increased significantly (p<0.05) the contents of total phosphorus, non-phytate phosphorous, iron, zinc and calcium.Hence, germination appeared to be a promising food processing method to improve bioavailabilityof mineralsand to decrease phytate levels, and therefore to decrease deficiencies of minerals in infants

The new and recurrent FLT3 juxtamembrane deletion mutation shows a dominant negative effect on the wild-type FLT3 receptor

In acute myeloid leukemia (AML), the Fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) is one of the most frequently mutated genes. Recently, a new and recurrent juxtamembrane deletion mutation (p.Q569Vfs*2) resulting in a truncated receptor was identified. The mutated receptor is expressed on the cell surface and still binds its ligand but loses the ability to activate ERK signaling. FLT3 p.Q569fs-expressing Ba/F3 cells show no proliferation after ligand stimulation. Furthermore, coexpressed with the FLT3 wild-type (WT) receptor, the truncated receptor suppresses stimulation and activation of the WT receptor. Thus, FLT3 p.Q569Vfs*2, to our knowledge, is the first FLT3 mutation with a dominant negative effect on the WT receptor