Involvement of CD95 and ligand in CD4+ T-cell and CD8+ T-cell depletion and hepatic cytolysis in patients with chronic viral hepatitis B.

BACKGROUND: Chronic viral hepatitis B (HBV) is characterised by progressive hepatocyte destruction and T-cell depletion. The mechanisms of the CD95-CD95 ligand (CD95L) signalling pathway during this chronic disease and the cirrhotic process remains unclear. OBJECTIVE: We evaluated the involvement of the CD95-CD95L receptor-ligand system in T-cell depletion and hepatic cytolysis in patients with chronic HBV. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study conducted from September to December 2018 at the Yaoundé General Hospital, Cameroon. Four mL of whole blood was collected and analysed. The CD95 and CD95L levels, as well as the CD4+ T-cell and CD8+ T-cell counts, were performed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and flow cytometry. RESULTS: Of the 130 HBV-positive patients, 36 (27.7%) were cirrhotic and 94 (72.3%) were non-cirrhotic. The cirrhotic patients had significantly elevated CD95 (p < 0.001) and CD95L (p = 0.001) plasma levels, compared with non-cirrhotic patients. The CD4/CD8 ratios were lower in cirrhotic patients, compared to non-cirrhotic patients (p < 0.001). There were statistically significant correlations between CD95 level and CD4+ T-cell counts, between CD95 level and CD8+ T-cell counts, between CD95 level and the CD4/CD8 ratio, between CD95 level and fibrosis score, and between CD95L level and fibrosis score. CONCLUSION: CD95 and CD95L could be involved in T-cell depletion and hepatic cytolysis during the pathogenesis of chronic HBV and could potentially be used as biomarkers for immunological and hepatic monitoring in patients with chronic HBV.

Evidence of Co and Triple Infections of Hepatitis B and C amongst HIV Infected Pregnant Women in Buea; Cameroon

OBJECTIVES. Little data is available on the prevalence of HIV; Hepatitis B and C; Co-and or triple infection during pregnancy in Cameroon as well as many other resource limited settings. HIV and Hepatitis B and C are major public health concerns world wide. Our study aimed at assessing the seroprevalence of Hepatitis B and C amongst HIV infected pregnant women in Buea; located in the Southwest region of Cameroon. METHODS. A cross-sectional study of consented pregnant women were conducted from March 2015 to August 2015. HIV-1 infections were detected using the national HIV-1 test algorithms. Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg); anti-HBe and anti- Hepatitis C (anti-HCV) were detected using Enzyme linked Immunosorbent Assays (ELISAs). RESULTS. Our study group had an HIV prevalence rate of 7.8% (N = 97 / 1230). Of the HIV-1 positive group; 14 women (17.5%; N = 97) were co-infected with HBV and 11 (11.3%; N = 97) were co-infected with HCV. 8 (8.2%; N = 97) were triple infected with HIV; HBV and HCV. Anti-HBe was detected in all 14 HBV-infected pregnant women (100% N= 14) (14/14;(95%CI: 65.8; 100%). CONCLUSION. Co- and triple infections of HIV;Hepatitis B and C were present amongst pregnant women in Buea. Epidemiological data generated from this study are limited due to the existence of triple infected. It will nevertheless serve as a guide to the government policies to reinforce screening; treatment and prevention strategies; through its Mother-to-Child-transmission (pMTCT) Programme nationwi

Resistance pattern of enterobacteriaceae isolates from urinary tract infections to selected quinolones in Yaoundé.

INTRODUCTION: It is estimated that 150 million urinary tract infections (UTIs) occur yearly worldwide, resulting in more than 6 billion dollar in direct healthcare cost. The etiology of UTIs is predictable, with Escherichia coli, an Enterobacteriaceae being the principal pathogen. Quinolones are usually the drug of choice. In this study, we report the resistance pattern of Enterobacteriaceae isolates from UTIs to quinolones among in-patients and out-patients at the Yaoundé Reference Hospital in Cameroon. METHODS: A cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out for a ten-month period. Consecutive clean-catch mid-stream urine samples were collected from 207 in and out-patients. Identification was done using the Api 20E, and susceptibility testing using the Kirby Bauer's disc diffusion method and the MIC was done using the E-test. RESULTS: Out of the 207 isolates, 58(28.0%) were found to be resistant to all the quinolones used in the study. The resistances observed by species were in the order: Enterobacter 4(30.8%); Klebsiella 19(29.7%); Escherichia 25 (29.4%); Proteus 2(11.8%); Serratia 4(25.0%). Quinolone resistance for Escherichia was 42.9% for In-Patients (IP) and 16.3% for Out-Patient (OP) (P-value=0.006); Klebsiella 35.9% for IP and 20% for OP; Proteus 11.1% for IP and 12.5% for OP; Serratia 18.2% for IP and 40% for OP; Enterobacter 22.2 for IP and 50% for OP. CONCLUSION: High resistance rates to quinolones were observed not only for in-patients but also for out-patients with urinary tract enterobacterial infections. These findings demonstrate the importance of antibiotics susceptibility testing in improving quinolones prescription practices in Cameroon.