Lemba

BACKGROUND: Unintended pregnancies can pose significant public health concerns for both maternal and child health because of their associated risks and implications. Experience of unintended pregnancies may lead to delay in seeking antenatal care, thus leading to increased risk of complications during pregnancy and childbirth. Globally, the prevalence of unintended pregnancies has declined. However, the problem remains acute in sub-Saharan Africa. This study was conducted to examine the factors associated with an experience of unintended pregnancy among women of reproductive ages in Zambia...

Human Papillomavirus (HPV)-35 accounts for up 10% of cervical cancers in Sub-Saharan Africa. We herein assessed the genetic diversity of HPV35 in HIV-negative women from Chad (identified as #CHAD) and HIV-infected men having sex with men (MSM) in the Central African Republic (CAR), identified as #CAR. Ten HPV35 DNA from self-collected genital secretions (n = 5) and anal margin samples (n = 5) obtained from women and MSM, respectively, were sequenced using the ABI PRISM® BigDye Sequencing technology. All but one HPV35 strains belonged to the A2 sublineage, and only #CAR5 belonged to A1...

The developments in HIV treatments have increased the life expectancy of people living with HIV (PLWH), a situation that makes cardiovascular disease (CVD) in that population as relevant as ever. PLWH are at increased risk of CVD, and our understanding of the underlying mechanisms is continually increasing. HIV infection is associated with elevated levels of multiple proinflammatory molecules, including IL-6, IL-1β, VCAM-1, ICAM-1, TNF-α, TGF-β, osteopontin, sCD14, hs-CRP, and D-dimer. Other currently examined mechanisms include CD4 + lymphocyte depletion, increased intestinal permeability, microbial translocation, and altered cholesterol metabolism...

In recent years, especially as a result of war in Ukraine, enormous movements of migration to Poland from eastern European countries have been reported, including people living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). We have conducted multi-center, prospective study, which aimed to establish HIV-1 subtype and assess the presence of primary drug resistance mutations to nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors and protease inhibitors in antiretroviral treatment naïve patients...

BACKGROUND: The effectiveness of community delivery of intermittent preventive treatment (C-IPT) of malaria in pregnancy (IPTp) with sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine has been evaluated in selected areas of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Madagascar, Mozambique, and Nigeria. We aimed to assess the effect of C-IPTp on the potential development of Plasmodium falciparum resistance to sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine, since it could threaten the effectiveness of this strategy. METHODS: Health facility-based cross-sectional surveys were conducted at baseline and 3 years after C-IPTp implementation in two neighbouring areas per country, one with C-IPTp intervention, and one without, in the four project countries...

INTRODUCTION: Although breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma (BIA-ALCL) is infrequent, with less than 1000 noted cases worldwide, patients consenting for breast implant surgery should be aware of its risk. We describe the first Polish multicenter case-series data on BIA-ALCL patients and present diagnostic and treatment recommendation for breast surgeons. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In cooperation with the Polish Society of Surgical Oncology and Polish Lymphoma Research Group, we collected BIA-ALCL cases in Poland...

BACKGROUND: Even though evidence shows that fertility transition has begun almost everywhere in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), the decline has been slower than in other parts of the world. Research shows that there is a positive relationship between fertility levels and fertility preference. Therefore, many countries in the region are implementing family planning education campaigns targeting at influencing reproductive behavior of women. Thus, this study aimed to examine the extent to which exposure to family planning communication influences fertility preferences of adolescent girls in SSA...

BACKGROUND: Early childbearing remains a public health concern in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) because it has substantial implications for women's and children's health and population control. However, little is known about recent changes in early childbearing in the region following the implementation of the Family Planning 2020 initiative (FP2020) national-level interventions. Thus, this study examined factors associated with early childbearing among women in SSA. METHODS: The study used data from the most recent Demographic and Health Surveys conducted in 31 countries in sub-Saharan Africa between 2010 and 2021...

INTRODUCTION: Cervical cancer related to high risk-human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) is the second female cancer in the Republic of Congo (Congo). We herein evaluated the molecular epidemiology of cervical HPV infection and associated risk factors in Congolese women living in urban (Brazzaville) and rural (Plateaux department) settings. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A population-based, cross-sectional survey was conducted to collect demographic and behavioral data among Congolese women, and to obtain endocervical swab samples for HPV DNA molecular detection (Anyplex II HPV28, Seegene, Seoul, South Korea)...

BACKGROUND: Violence against women and girls is a major public health issue, a violation of human rights, and is linked to a number of harmful effects on one's physical, mental, sexual, and reproductive health. Studies conducted in other parts of sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) suggest that there is an association between contextual factors and experience of intimate partner violence. However, in Zambia, this association is not well documented. Thus, this study was conducted to examine how individual and community-level characteristics influence spousal violence against women in Zambia...

OBJECTIVES: Smoking habit is known to be a risk factor for the development of multiple diseases and conditions, premature death, and worse quality of life. The prevalence of smoking in PLWH is 2-3 times higher than in the general population. The study aimed to evaluate how the prevalence of smoking has changed among PLWH over the past decade. METHODS: The data of n=204 PLWH hospitalized from November 2018 to November 2019 was analyzed. All patients filled out the survey including age, gender, the number of cigarettes smoked, the number of years as a smoker, and the impact of HIV diagnosis on the number of cigarettes smoked...

PURPOSE: This study aimed to identify serum glycoprotein biomarkers for early detection of high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC), the most common and aggressive histotype of ovarian cancer. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: The glycoproteomics pipeline lectin magnetic bead array (LeMBA)-mass spectrometry (MS) was used in age-matched case-control serum samples. Clinical samples collected at diagnosis were divided into discovery (n = 30) and validation (n = 98) sets...

Aberrant protein glycosylation is a characteristic of diverse diseases which has been explored as biomarkers. To support translational serum glycoprotein biomarker discovery and validation, we developed a semi-automated workflow using individual lectin-coupled magnetic beads to conduct lectin pulldowns in a high-throughput format. Lectins are naturally occurring glycoprotein binding proteins widely used in glycobiology. While lectin-affinity isolation has been coupled to mass spectrometry-based proteomics, the lectin magnetic bead array (LeMBA) platform allows technically robust screening and measurement of clinical cohorts...

BACKGROUND: Child marriage has long been a public health concern around the world, because it has the potential to deprive adolescent girls of their sexual reproductive health rights and limits their ability to reach their full potential in life. The prevalence of child marriage has been consistently higher in sub-Saharan Africa than elsewhere. However, fewer studies have explored the influence of both individual and community-level influences on early marriage in sub-Saharan Africa. This study, therefore, examined individual and community-level factors associated with child marriages in Zambia...

Human Immunodeficiency Virus infection leads to the impairment of immune system function. Even long-term antiretroviral therapy uncommonly leads to the normalization of CD4 count and CD4:CD8 ratio. The aim of this study was to evaluate possible clinical biomarkers which may be related to CD4 and CD4:CD8 ratio recovery among HIV-infected patients with long-term antiretroviral therapy. The study included 68 HIV-infected patients undergoing sustained antiretroviral treatment for a minimum of 5 years. Clinical biomarkers such as age, gender, advancement of HIV infection, coinfections, comorbidities and applied ART regimens were analyzed in relation to the rates of CD4 and CD4:CD8 increase and normalization rates...

Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), particularly Southern and East Africa, has the highest AIDS deaths and HIV-infected people in the world. Even though considerable effort has been made over the years to study HIV transmission risk behaviours of different population groups in SSA, there is little evidence of studies that have looked at pooled effects of associated HIV risk factors among men, particularly in Southern Africa. Thus, this study sought to fill this gap in knowledge by investigating the variations in HIV risk behaviours among men in the region...

The Human Immunodeficiency Virus and retroviral therapy are both known risk factors for cardiovascular disease. It remains an open question whether HIV or ARV leads to increased arterial inflammation. The objective of this study was to investigate the changes in endothelial activation by measuring VCAM-1 levels among HIV-infected patients who were and were not treated with antiretroviral therapy. It is a retrospective study that included 68 HIV-infected patients, 23 of whom were never antiretroviral-treated, 15 who were ART-treated for no longer than a year, and 30 who were ART-treated for longer than a year...

Malaria, one of the most serious parasitic diseases, kills thousands of people every year, especially in Africa. São Tomé and Príncipe are known to have stable transmission of malaria. Indoor residual spraying (IRS) of insecticides and long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLIN) are considered as an effective malaria control interventions in these places. The resistance status of Anopheles gambiae s.s. from Agua Grande, Caue, and Lemba of São Tomé and Príncipe to insecticides, such as dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) (4...

Visceral hemangiosarcoma (HSA) is one of the more frequent cancers in dogs and has a high metastatic rate and poor prognosis, as clinical signs only become apparent in advanced stages of tumor development. In order to improve early and differential diagnostic capabilities and hence, prognosis for dogs with HSA, two types of biomarker are needed: a point-of-care diagnostic biomarker and a prognostic biomarker-preferentially based on samples obtained with minimally invasive methods. In this study, we applied a lectin magnetic bead array-coupled tandem mass spectrometry (LeMBA-MS/MS) workflow through discovery and validation phases to discover serum glycoprotein biomarker candidates for canine HSA...

A new species and a key to 10 species of the genus Lemba Huang, 1983, namely Lemba wushanensis sp. nov. is described in this paper from China. The new species is similar to L. sichuanensis Ma et al, 1994, but differs from the latter by the length of tegmen 2.7 times width in male, length of interspace of mesosternum 3.5 times width in male, posterior margin of epiproct straight; ancorae of epiphallus not inward tilt and vertical diameter 1.8 times subocular furrow in female. The type specimens are deposited in the Northwest Plateau Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xining, China...