382 research outputs found
Mapping urban physical distancing constraints, sub-Saharan Africa : a case study from Kenya
No full textWith the onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, public health measures such as physical distancing were recommended to reduce transmission of the virus causing the disease. However, the same approach in all areas, regardless of context, may lead to measures being of limited effectiveness and having unforeseen negative consequences, such as loss of livelihoods and food insecurity. A prerequisite to planning and implementing effective, context-appropriate measures to slow community transmission is an understanding of any constraints, such as the locations where physical distancing would not be possible. Focusing on sub-Saharan Africa, we outline and discuss challenges that are faced by residents of urban informal settlements in the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. We describe how new geospatial data sets can be integrated to provide more detailed information about local constraints on physical distancing and can inform planning of alternative ways to reduce transmission of COVID-19 between people. We include a case study for Nairobi County, Kenya, with mapped outputs which illustrate the intra-urban variation in the feasibility of physical distancing and the expected difficulty for residents of many informal settlement areas. Our examples demonstrate the potential of new geospatial data sets to provide insights and support to policy-making for public health measures, including COVID-19
DIAMETER DISTRIBUTION OF INDIGENOUS TREES AS INDICATOR OF ADAPTED SPECIES IN SEMI-ARID RANGELANDS OF KENYA
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Food restriction reverses the hyper-muscular phenotype and force generation capacity deficit of the myostatin null mouse
No full textFood restriction has a great impact on skeletal
muscle mass by inducing muscle protein breakdown
to provide substrates for energy production
through gluconeogenesis. Genetic models
of hyper-muscularity interfere with the normal
balance between protein synthesis and breakdown
which eventually results in extreme
muscle growth. Mutations or deletions in the
myostatin gene result in extreme muscle mass.
Here we evaluated the impact of food restriction
for a period of 5 weeks on skeletal muscle size
(i.e., fibre cross-sectional area), fibre type composition
and contractile properties (i.e., tetanic
and specific force) in myostatin null mice. We
found that this hyper-muscular model was more susceptible to catabolic processes than wild type
mice. The mechanism of skeletal muscle mass
loss was examined and our data shows that the
myostatin null mice placed on a low calorie diet
maintained the activity of molecules involved
in protein synthesis and did not up-regulate the
expression of genes pivotal in ubiquitin-mediated
protein degradation. However, we did find
an increase in the expression of genes associated
with autophagy. Surprisingly, the reduction on
muscle size was followed by improved tetanic
and specific force in the null mice compared to
wild type mice. These data provide evidence that
food restriction may revert the hyper-muscular
phenotype of the myostatin null mouse restoring
muscle function
Burkina Faso women empowerment and welfare project
No full textIt has been proven that the poor have the desire and motivation to do something to change their situation. They may be short of ideas of how to wiggle themselves out of an uncomfortable situation but they surely have the inner resource when they are gently nodded in the right direction. This was proven in a project that was carried out in Burkina Faso among poor urban women.
The project further revealed that sustainable development cannot be attained without integration. To address the root causes of poverty; gender inequities, HIV/AIDS and the environment should be addressed together. Activities that provide and permit access to basic necessities like education and health should be integrated in the project too.
To assure sustainability of the project CED practitioner should avoid introducing complex technology or financially unattainable practices but should, to the extent possible, use local resources and build on the local knowledge. In this project local resource persons, locally available material - mostly recycled - were utilized. The project drew largely from local knowledge and values will ensure continuity of the activities even after external support has ceased.
Finally, following the principle of subsidiarity the management of the project activities should to the extent feasible be left to the beneficiaries. The targeted women in this project managed the savings and loan project, using the self help group model, to improve their personal businesses. (Author abstract)Macharia, D. G. (2007). Burkina Faso women empowerment and welfare project. Retrieved from http://academicarchive.snhu.eduMaster of Science (M.S.)School of Community Economic Developmen
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Propeptide-Mediated Inhibition of Myostatin Increases Muscle Mass Through Inhibiting Proteolytic Pathways in Aged Mice
No full textMammalian aging is accompanied by a progressive loss of skeletal muscle, a process called sarcopenia. Myostatin, a secreted member of the transforming growth factor-β family of signaling molecules, has been shown to be a potent inhibitor of muscle growth. Here, we examined whether muscle growth could be promoted in aged animals by antagonizing the activity of myostatin through the neutralizing activity of the myostatin propeptide. We show that a single injection of an AAV8 virus expressing the myostatin propeptide induced an increase in whole body weights and all muscles examined within 7 weeks of treatment. Our cellular studies demonstrate that muscle enlargement was due to selective fiber type hypertrophy, which was accompanied by a shift toward a glycolytic phenotype. Our molecular investigations elucidate the mechanism underpinning muscle hypertrophy by showing a decrease in the expression of key genes that control ubiquitin-mediated protein breakdown. Most importantly, we show that the hypertrophic muscle that develops as a consequence of myostatin propeptide in aged mice has normal contractile properties. We suggest that attenuating myostatin signaling could be a very attractive strategy to halt and possibly reverse age-related muscle loss
National and sub-national variation in patterns of febrile case management in sub-Saharan Africa
No full textGiven national healthcare coverage gaps, understanding treatment-seeking behaviour for fever is crucial for the management of childhood illness and to reduce deaths. Here, we conduct a modelling study triangulating household survey data for fever in children under the age of five years with georeferenced public health facility databases (n = 86,442 facilities) in 29 countries across sub-Saharan Africa, to estimate the probability of seeking treatment for fever at public facilities. A Bayesian item response theory framework is used to estimate this probability based on reported fever episodes, treatment choice, residence, and estimated travel-time to the nearest public-sector health facility. Findings show inter- and intra-country variation, with the likelihood of seeking treatment for fever less than 50% in 16 countries. Results highlight the need to invest in public healthcare and related databases. The variation in public sector use illustrates the need to include such modelling in future infectious disease burden estimation. © 2018, The Author(s)
Paraoxonase 1 genetic polymorphisms in a mixed ancestry African population
No full textCITATION: Macharia, M., Kengne, A. P., Blackhurst, D. M., Erasmus, R. T. & Matsha, T. E. 2014. Paraoxonase 1 genetic polymorphisms in a mixed ancestry African population. Mediators of Inflammation, 2014:1-9 (Article ID 217019), doi:10.1155/2014/217019.The original publication is available at http://www.hindawi.com/journals/miParaoxonase 1 (PON1) activity is markedly influenced by coding polymorphisms, Q/R at position 192 and M/L at position 55 of the PON1 gene. We investigated the frequencies of these polymorphisms and their effects on PON1 and antioxidant activities in 844 South African mixed ancestry individuals. Genotyping was done using allele-specific TaqMan technology, PON1 activities were measured using paraoxon and phenylacetate, oxidative status was determined by measuring the antioxidant activities of ferric reducing antioxidant power and trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity, and lipid peroxidation markers included malondialdehyde and oxidized LDL. The frequencies of Q192R and L55Mwere 47.6% and 28.8%, respectively, and the most common corresponding alleles were 192R (60.4%) and 55M (82.6%).The Q192 was significantly associated with 5.8 units’ increase in PON1 concentration and 15.4 units’ decrease in PONase activity after adjustment for age, sex, BMI, and diabetes, with suggestion of differential effects by diabetes status.The PON1 L55 variant was associated with none of the measured indices. In conclusion, we have shown that the Q192R polymorphism is a determinant of both PON1 concentration and activity and this association appeared to be enhanced in subjects with diabetes.http://www.hindawi.com/journals/mi/2014/217019/Publisher's versio
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Lymph heart in chick - somitic origin, development and embryonic oedema
No full textThe lymph heart is a sac-like structure on either side of avian tail. In some adult birds, it empties the lymph from the copulatory organ; however, during embryonic development, it is thought to circulate extra-embryonic lymph. Very little is known about the origin, innervation and the cellular changes it undergoes during development. Using immunohistochemistry and gene expression profiling we show that the musculature of the lymph heart is initially composed solely of striated skeletal muscle but later develops an additional layer composed of smooth myofibroblasts. Chick-quail fate-mapping demonstrates that the lymph heart originates from the hypaxial compartments of somites 34-41. The embryonic lymph heart is transiently innervated by somatic motoneurons with no autonomic input. In comparison to body muscles, the lymph heart has different sensitivity to neuromuscular junction blockers (sensitive only to decamethonium). Furthermore, its abundant bungarotoxin-positive acetylcholinesterase receptors are unique as they completely lack specific acetylcholinesterase activity. Several lines of evidence suggest that the lymph heart may possess an intrinsic pacing mechanism. Finally, we assessed the function of the lymph heart during embryogenesis and demonstrate that it is responsible for preventing embryonic oedema in birds, a role previously thought to be played by body skeletal muscle contractions
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Symmorphosis through Dietary Regulation: A Combinatorial Role for Proteolysis, Autophagy and Protein Synthesis in Normalising Muscle Metabolism and Function of Hypertrophic Mice after Acute Starvation
No full textAnimals are imbued with adaptive mechanisms spanning from the tissue/organ to the cellular scale which insure that processes of homeostasis are preserved in the landscape of size change. However we and others have postulated that the degree of adaptation is limited and that once outside the normal levels of size fluctuations, cells and tissues function in an aberant manner. In this study we examine the function of muscle in the myostatin null mouse which is an excellent model for hypertrophy beyond levels of normal growth and consequeces of acute starvation to restore mass. We show that muscle growth is sustained through protein synthesis driven by Serum/Glucocorticoid Kinase 1 (SGK1) rather than Akt1. Furthermore our metabonomic profiling of hypertrophic muscle shows that carbon from nutrient sources is being channelled for the production of biomass rather than ATP production. However the muscle displays elevated levels of autophagy and decreased levels of muscle tension. We demonstrate the myostatin null muscle is acutely sensitive to changes in diet and activates both the proteolytic and autophagy programmes and shutting down protein synthesis more extensively than is the case for wild-types. Poignantly we show that acute starvation which is detrimental to wild-type animals is beneficial in terms of metabolism and muscle function in the myostatin null mice by normalising tension production
Exercise training attenuates the hypermuscular phenotype and restores skeletal muscle function in the myostatin null mouse
No full textMyostatin regulates both muscle mass and muscle metabolism. The myostatin null (MSTN-/-) mouse has a hypermuscular phenotype owing to both hypertrophy and hyperplasia of the myofibres. The enlarged muscles display a reliance on glycolysis for energy production; however, enlarged muscles that develop in the absence of myostatin have compromised force-generating capacity. Recent evidence has suggested that endurance exercise training increases the oxidative properties of muscle. Here, we aimed to identify key changes in the muscle phenotype of MSTN-/- mice that can be induced by training. To this end, we subjected MSTN-/- mice to two different forms of training, namely voluntary wheel running and swimming, and compared the response at the morphological, myocellular and molecular levels. We found that both regimes normalized changes of myostatin deficiency and restored muscle function. We showed that both exercise training regimes increased muscle capillary density and the expression of Ucp3, Cpt1a, Pdk4 and Err?, key markers for oxidative metabolism. Cross-sectional area of hypertrophic myofibres from MSTN-/- mice decreased towards wild-type values in response to exercise and, in this context, Bnip3, a key autophagy-related gene, was upregulated. This reduction in myofibre size caused an increase of the nuclear-to-cytoplasmic ratio towards wild-type values. Importantly, both training regimes increased muscle force in MSTN-/- mice. We conclude that impaired skeletal muscle function in myostatin-deficient mice can be improved through endurance exercise-mediated remodelling of muscle fibre size and metabolic profil
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