Drug composition cytotoxic for pancreatic cancer cells (US)

Disclosed herein are compositions comprising a drug combination that comprises ZD and S3I-201, Das and S3I-201, ZD and AG490, or Das and AG490. The disclosed drug combinations target two or more functional elements such as EGFR or Src and Stat3 or Jaks in pancreatic cancer cells. Also disclosed herein are methods of using the disclosed compositions to cytotoxically affect pancreatic cancer cells and methods of making the disclosed compositions

Schizophrenia-The spirit possessed 23 year old male from rural Kpando Dzoanti, Volta region in Ghana: Case report

A case of a twenty-three year old rural Ghanaian male suffering from schizophrenia and presenting as “possessed by spirits” is reported. Treatment, and outcome by physical means with chlorpromazine; and implications for further research are discussed

Participatory epidemiology as an innovative approach in animal health systems research

This paper provides information on a recent innovative approach in animal health research termed “participatory epidemiology”. It seeks to present participatory epidemiology as a tool for research in Ghana, and presents some case studies of the use of participatory epidemiology in Ghana andelsewhere

Use of drugs and antibiotics in poultry production in Ghana

This study was designed to assess the extent of drug and antibiotic use in small and large commercial poultry producers in Ghana, and the extent of the knowledge, perceptions and practice of drug withdrawal period inpoultry production. In all, 483 poultry farmers in Greater Accra, Ashanti and Central regions were interviewed using a prepared questionnaire. The sources of knowledge of which drug to buy and proportions of farmers that used such sources were personal experience, 33.3 per cent (n=481); veterinarians, 21.4 per cent; veterinary technicians, 20.6 per cent; drug sellers or shops, 18.7 per cent; and other farmers, 6.0 per cent. The drugs used by respondents (excluding vitamins and mineral supplements) could broadly be classified as antibacterials (52.0%, n=1559), coccidiostats or coccidicidals (33.7%), and dewormers (14.3%). Among the antibacterials, the tetracyclines formed the largest class (35.7%, n=831), followed by the nitrofurans (23.1%), penicillinstreptomycin combinations (18%), and sulphonamides and sulphonamide combinations (8.3%). For thecoccidiostats, the largest group comprised drugs with sulphonamides or their combination (58.4%, n=539), followed by those with amprolium and amprolium combinations (39.1%). The dewormers were mainly oftwo classes: those containing piperazine (50.7%, n=229) and those with levamisole (49.3%). When asked what they did with eggs when layers were under drug treatment, a significant proportion of respondents (91.1%, n=426) said they sold the eggs. When asked whether they hadheard the term “withdrawal period”, 47.4% (n=479) of the respondents replied in the affirmative. The mean (± SE) days given by respondents (who had heard the term) as the minimum length of the withdrawal period (WP) were 8±0.4 days (n=166) for broilers (range 0-28 days with median of 7 days) and 7±0.4 days (n=171) for eggs (range 0-26 days with median of 5 days). The reasons given for withdrawal period being unnecessary orimpracticable in Ghana were mainly economic or ignorance and lack of knowledge. The study brought out issues on withdrawal period and drug management practices that will help reduce or avoid residues in eggsand meat, and need to be tackled seriously

Animal health care delivery to small ruminants in peri-urban Ghana

The study aimed at defining the problems of small ruminant keepers in peri-urban areas of Ghana regarding animal health care (AHC), and assessing the quality of the structure and process of the AHC system. Small ruminant keepers in four regions were surveyed using a questionnaire. In all 244 respondents in the Central (35.2%), Western (35.2%), Greater Accra (26.2%), and Ashanti (3.3%) regions were interviewed. Feeding animals was the major problem (31%) identified, followed by housing, diseases, destruction of crops by animals, lack of knowledge on management and high mortality, in decreasing importance. Most animal health needs of respondents were met by veterinarians and technical officers (59%), and by animal owners (34%). The majority (61%) said they had experienced no difficulty in getting help from government veterinarians or technical officers. Most services provided by the Veterinary Services Directorate, except meat inspection, were used by most respondents. The indicators of quality of delivery of veterinary services showed significantly higher proportions of respondents finding accessibility or equity to be poor; drug costs being expensive; services, vaccines and drugs being unavailable; and service charges being unaffordable. These are indicative of weaknesses in the AHC delivery system, which ought to be addressed

Perceived quality of healthcare delivery in a rural District of Ghana

Objective: The study aimed at finding out clients’ perceptions of the quality of healthcare delivery at the district level in rural Ghana, using the Komenda-Edina- Eguafo-Abrem District as a case study.Design: 803 patients were purposively selected and interviewed after visits to health facilities using a pretested questionnaire, while focus group discussions were held in 13 communities. The study was done between October 2003 and August 2004. Results: The majority of respondents (70%) were females. The mean expected maximum waiting time for seeking medical help was 1 hr. About 98% said they were asked to explain their problem. However, lower proportions, 74%, 43% and 46% were physically examined, told what was wrong, or given advice about their illness, respectively. About 90% of the respondentswere satisfied or very satisfied with the care given during their visit to the health facility. The participants perceived poor attitude of some health workers, long waiting times, high cost of services, inadequatestaff, policy of payment for health services, frequent referrals to hospitals, and lack of ambulances at facilities as being detrimental to effective delivery of quality healthcare. Conclusions: The study found that generally the quality of healthcare delivery was perceived to be high for most of the indicators used. There were, however, some concerns that patients were not told the diagnosis or informed about the management of their illness. These need to be addressed. The level of satisfaction with quality of healthcare was high

In vitro and in vivo Activity of Mist Amen Fevermix and Edhec Malacure, Polyherbal Antimalarial Products on Field Isolates of Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium berghei

BackgroundMalaria is a life-threatening infectious disease, which pose a public health challenge. Currently, reports of parasites resistance to artemisinin-based combination therapies is widespread. This has renewed calls for new antimalarial medications including  herbal products for the treatment of malaria. This study was undertaken to scientifically assess the antiplasmodial potentials of Mist Amen Fevermix and Edhec Malacure, two polyherbal antimalarial products used for the management of uncomplicated malaria, and establish their phytochemical constituents.MethodsQualitative phytochemical screening based on standard analytical methods. The antiplasmodial activity was assessed in vitro by using Plasmodium falciparum. The SYBR® Green assay was used to measure parasite growth inhibition. In vivo activity was assessed with Plasmodium berghei parasites using the Rane’s curative method with artesunate as positive control.ResultsThe phytochemical screening of the products revealed the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, tannin, steroid and saponin. In the in vitro studies, the IC50 values for Edhec Malacure was 70.89 ng/mL and 112.5ng/mL for Mist Amen Fevrmix. Artesunate exhibited an IC50 value of 1.571ng/mL. Edhec Malacure suppressed parasitemia by 76.17% (at 4.25mg/kg-1) and Mist Amen Fevermix by 69.03% (at 1.56 mg/kg-1) in vivo.  ConclusionMist Amen Fevrmix and Edhec Malacure Mixture demonstrated antiplasmodial activity and may be useful alternative antimalarial agents.Â

Principal Pipeline Development in Ghana: A Look at Komenda Edina Eguafo Abriem (KEEA) District in the Central Region

There is no doubt that principals’ roles are important in setting the direction for successful schools, however, current knowledge on the best ways to prepare and develop highly qualified and effective school leaders is sparse (Darling-Hammond, LaPointe, Meyerson, Orr, & Cohen, 2007; Mendels, 2012). As such, the recognition of the importance of school leaders in teaching and learning coupled with a growing shortage of high-quality leaders in American schools, increased the interest in leadership development as a major reform strategy (Darling-Hammond et al., 2007). The investment of tremendous amount of time and resources on school leadership therefore help them to be successful on the job (Mendels, 2012). This mixed methods study is a look at principal leadership pipeline development in Komenda Edina Eguafo Abriem (KEEA) District in the Central Region of Ghana, West Africa, to understand how the school district develops its principal preparation program or pipeline for aspiring and current school leaders. A sample of 50 participants made up of district leaders, principals, assistant principals, and aspiring leaders from schools in the KEEA District were randomly selected to participate in the study. Data were generated through Survey Monkey Cloud and semi-structured interviews with 10% of the sample participants. The two research questions associated with this study are: 1. Is there a principal preparation program or pipeline in KEEA District? 2. To what degree does the program align with research-based elements

Predictors of Clients' Satisfaction with Delivery of Animal Health Care Services in Periurban Ghana

The study used logistic regression modelling to determine predictors of satisfaction with delivery of animal health care services for 889 clients (livestock and poultry keepers) in periurban Ghana. Of the 15 indicators tested as predictors of satisfaction in this study, 8 were included in the best fit model. These were accessibility, availability of services, service charge, effectiveness, efficiency, quality of services, meeting client needs, and getting help. Efficiency and effectiveness were perceived by the respondents to be synonymous, as were service quality and effectiveness, as suggested by ORs > 10 when cross tabulated. Therefore, one or the other could be used in future studies but not both to avoid collinearity. The identified predictors could be targeted for improvement in quality of service delivery to livestock and poultry keepers in Ghana