Concurrent management of HIV and malaria: A comprehensive review of strategies to enhance quality of life.

The co-occurrence of human immunodeficiency virus and malaria presents a complex medical scenario, significantly impacting the quality of life for affected individuals. This comprehensive review synthesizes current knowledge, challenges, and strategies concerning the concurrent management of these infections to improve overall well-being. Epidemiological insights reveal the prevalence and demographic trends, highlighting geographical areas of concern and socioeconomic factors contributing to the burden of co-infection. Pathophysiological interactions elucidate the compounding effects, altering disease progression and treatment outcomes. Healthcare challenges underscore the necessity for integrated care models, evaluating existing healthcare frameworks and their efficacy in addressing dual infections. In-depth analysis of interventions explores pharmacological, behavioral, and preventive measures, evaluating their efficacy and safety in co-infected individuals. Additionally, the review assesses psychosocial support mechanisms, emphasizing community-based interventions and peer networks in enhancing holistic care. Consideration is given to the role of antiretroviral therapy, malaria prevention strategies, and the evolving landscape of healthcare delivery in optimizing outcomes for this vulnerable population. The paper concludes by emphasizing the significance of multidisciplinary approaches and integrated care models, stressing the need for continued research and collaborative efforts to advance interventions and improve the quality of life for those navigating the complexities of human immunodeficiency virus and malaria co-infection.

Investigation of the Bleeding Tendency in Sudanese Female Carriers of Hemophilia B.

Background: Hemophilia (HB) is an X-linked, recessive bleeding disorder characterized by the deficiency or absence of the coagulation factor IX. Usually, females are carriers of the trait, while males are affected. FIX deficiency leads to uncontrollable bleeding events, and the severity is dependent on the levels of the clotting factor. The objective of this research was to measure the prevalence of bleeding tendency in Sudanese carriers of HB. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 88 Sudanese carriers of HB participated. The activated partial thromboplastin time test (APTT) and FIX test were performed for each carrier. The frequencies of DNA polymorphism and FIX-linked restriction fragments BamHI, HhaI, and MnII were also assessed. The study was conducted in Khartoum, Sudan, during the period from 2015 to 2017. Results: The study showed that 55 (62.5%) HB carriers were from the Laban village in the White Nile State, and all of them were members of the Shinkheb tribe. The mean age of the study population was 26.3 years. Among the carriers, 57 (64.7%) had abnormal coagulation profiles. The mean value of the APTT level among carriers was significantly increased (P value: 0.000), while the mean concentration of the FIX levels among the carriers was significantly decreased (P value: 0.000). The study also showed a negative correlation between PTT and F assay with P value of 0.000 and R value of 0.578. Conclusion: The APTT is high in most carriers and the FIX assay level is low in most carriers. Most carriers had no symptoms and were not bleeding. The Shinkheb tribe is the most ethnic tribe carrying HB (62.5%). HhaII is more informative for carrier detection than others, but it is of significant value if both (MnII and HhaII) were performed in parallel. In Sudanese, BamHI was informative but MnII and HhaII were best in the mutation detection and for prenatal diagnosis.

Primary Thyroid Stimulating Hormone Screening for Congenital Hypothyroidism in King Abdullah Hospital, Bisha, Saudi Arabia.

Background Thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) concentration in cord blood measured at birth has been proposed as an indicator of congenital hypothyroidism (CH). Elevated TSH levels at birth were associated with cognitive and psychomotor disorders among young children. Objectives The purpose of this study is to investigate the epidemiology of CH using cord blood TSH screening among 2501 newborn infants in the period from January to November 2016 in Bisha Province, Saudi Arabia. Methodology This cross-sectional, hospital-based study was conducted at King Abdullah Hospital, Bisha, which is a secondary care referral district general hospital with 400 beds. All neonates born in the designed period were included and screened according to the standard CH screening protocol. Data was collected from all neonates born in the designed period. The screening was performed according to the standard CH screening protocol. After birth, cord blood specimens were used. TSH was measured by Perkin Elmer ELISA machine. The data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY). A p-value of less than or equal to 0.05 was considered significant. Main results A total of 1308 (52.3%) neonates were males, while 1193 (47.7%) were females. Serum TSH levels were ranged from 0.01-73.9 µU/ml. The mean ± SD was (7.60 ± 6.02 µU/ml); the cutoff point was 25 µU/ml. Conclusion The prevalence of congenital hypothyroidism among Saudi neonates in Bisha Province is 1:834, which is the highest in the rejoin. The prevalence of hypothyroidism from the total screened population was (0.12%). We recommended screening with special consideration to those with high TSH in the primary screening.

Polyphenolic composition, enzyme inhibitory effects ex-vivo and in-vivo studies on two Brassicaceae of north-central Italy.

In this study, three different extracts (soxhlet, microwave and decoction) from two species of broccoli: Brassica oleracea L. convar. Italica botrytis (L.) Alef. var. cymosa Duch. (Broccolo Fiolaro) and Brassica oleracea acephala L. convar. acephala (DC.) Alef. var. sabellica L. (Cavolo Nero), which are commonly spread in north-central Italy, were tested for their enzyme inhibitory effects. Enzyme inhibitory effects were investigated against cholinesterases, tyrosinase, α-amylase and α-glucosidase. The soxhlet extracts had the highest inhibitory AChE effects with 1.08 mgGALAE/g (in Cavolo Nero) and 0.90 mgGALAE/g (in Broccolo Fiolaro). The significant tyrosinase inhibitory effect was observed in the soxhlet extract of Cavolo Nero with 11.93 mgKAE/g. In addition, we evaluated the antioxidant activity of Broccolo Fiolaro and Cavolo Nero on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated bladder, kidney and liver specimens, ex vivo. We observed a significant reduction of both nitrite and malondialdehyde (MDA) following treatment that indicates a significant inhibitory effect on oxidative/nitrosative stress and lipoperoxidation, respectively. Additionally, the blunting effect induced by extracts on LPS-induced lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity further support a protective effect by both Broccolo Fiolaro and Cavolo Nero in bladder, kidney and liver. HPLC analysis revealed that catechin, epicatechin, vanillic and 3-hydroxy benzoic acids were the major components. The phenolic components may contribute to the observed enzyme inhibitory effects. in vivo tests also demonstrated that the extracts decreased the biochemical parameters in diabetic rats. Particularly, we observed the reduction of plasma glucose levels, urea and total cholesterol following oral administration, with the higher inhibitory effects exerted by Broccolo Fiolaro compared to Cavolo Nero. Overall, our results could provide new insights on the use of these Broccoli species not only as foods but also as functional and nutraceutical supplements.

The Prevalence of Multi-Drug Resistance-1 Gene of Plasmodium Falciparum Malaria in Gezira State-Central Sudan

Abstract:Malaria parasite resistance to chloroquine poses a severe and increasing health problem in tropical countries. Implementing molecular markers for monitoring the drug resistance may be essential to overcome the problem. The aim of the present study is to investigate the prevalence of multi-drug resistance of p. falciparum parasite in malaria patients. Blood samples for DNA extraction were collected from the positive malaria patients. The prevalence of mutations in P. falciparum multi-drug resistant gene-1 (pfmdr-1) was detected by polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) methods. Approximately; 74.1 of study populations are adults and 25.9 are children. Regression analysis shows a decrease in malaria incidence with increasing age. The prevalence of malaria is higher in males (58.6) compared to females (41.4). There were no statistical differences between malaria incidence and the socioeconomic level within the study population. The frequency of homozygous N/86 and Y/86 alleles were 51.7 and 37.9; respectively; and the heterozygous N/Y86 allele was 10.3.In conclusion the frequency of Pfmdr-1 N/Y86 allele among P. falciparum multi-drug resistant isolates support the hypothesis that Pfmdr-1 N/Y86 allele could be used as predictive marker to monitor multi-drug susceptibility in epidemiological surveys