The genetic diversity of Plasmodium falciparum has been extensively studied in various parts of the world. However, limited data are available from Mauritania. The present study examined and compared ...the genetic diversity of P. falciparum isolates in Mauritania.
Plasmodium falciparum isolates blood samples were collected from 113 patients attending health facilities in Nouakchott and Hodh El Gharbi regions. K1, Mad20 and RO33 allelic family of msp-1 gene were determined by nested PCR amplification.
K1 family was the predominant allelic type carried alone or in association with Ro33 and Mad20 types (90%; 102/113). Out of the 113 P. falciparum samples, 93(82.3%) harboured more than one parasite genotype. The overall multiplicity of infection was 3.2 genotypes per infection. There was no significant correlation between multiplicity of infection and age of patients. A significant increase of multiplicity of infection was correlated with parasite densities.
The polymorphism of P. falciparum populations from Mauritania was high. Infection with multiple P. falciparum clones was observed, as well as a high multiplicity of infection reflecting both the high endemicity level and malaria transmission in Mauritania.
Understanding malaria epidemiology is a critical step toward efficient malaria control and elimination. The objective of this meta-analysis was to derive robust estimates of malaria prevalence and ...Plasmodium species from studies conducted in Mauritania and published since 2000.
The present review followed the PRISMA guidelines. Searches were conducted in various electronic databases such as PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus. To obtain pooled prevalence of malaria, meta-analysis was performed using the DerSimonian-Laird random-effects model. Methodological quality of eligible prevalence studies was assessed using Joanna Briggs Institute tool. Inconsistency and heterogeneity between studies were quantified by the I
index and Cochran's Q test. Publication bias was assessed with funnel plots and Egger's regression tests.
A total of 16 studies with a good individual methodological quality were included and analysed in this study. The overall random effects pooled prevalence of malaria infection (symptomatic and asymptomatic) across all included studies was 14.9% (95% confidence interval 95% CI: 6.64, 25.80, I
= 99.8%, P < 0.0001) by microscopy, 25.6% (95% CI: 8.74, 47.62, I
= 99.6%, P < 0.0001) by PCR and 24.3% (95% CI: 12.05 to 39.14, I
= 99.7%, P < 0.0001) by rapid diagnostic test. Using microscopy, the prevalence of asymptomatic malaria was 1.0% (95% CI: 0.00, 3.48) against 21.46% (95% CI: 11.03, 34.21) in symptomatic malaria. The overall prevalence of Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax was 51.14% and 37.55%, respectively. Subgroup analysis showed significant variation (P = 0.039) in the prevalence of malaria between asymptomatic and symptomatic cases.
Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax are widespread in Mauritania. Results of this meta-analysis implies that distinct intervention measures including accurate parasite-based diagnosis and appropriate treatment of confirmed malaria cases are critical for a successful malaria control and elimination programme in Mauritania.
8-Aminoquinoline antimalarial drugs (primaquine, tafenoquine) are required for complete cure of Plasmodium vivax malaria, but they are contraindicated in patients with glucose-6-phosphate ...dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency. In the absence of spectrophotometry, which is a gold standard for measuring G6PD activity, G6PD genotyping is one of the alternatives to establish a database and distribution map of G6PD enzyme deficiency in Mauritania, which has become a new epicenter of P. vivax malaria in West Africa. The aim of our study was to assess the performance of multiplex allele-specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR) (African-type Diaplex C™ G6PD kit) against PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism and sequencing. Of 146 mutations associated with G6PD A- genotypes in 177 blood samples from Mauritanian patients, all but two samples were identified correctly using multiplex allele-specific PCR (100% sensitivity and 99% specificity; "almost perfect agreement" between allele-specific PCR and PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism/sequencing, with a kappa coefficient of 0.977). Despite a suboptimal PCR protocol for dried blood spots and the inability of the commercial assay to predict unequivocally the G6PD enzyme level in heterozygous females, the African-type Diaplex C™ G6PD genotyping kit seemed to be a valuable screening tool for male subjects and for research purposes in resource-limited countries where spectrophotometer and DNA sequencing are not available.
Wheat is an important cereal crop, which is adversely affected by water deficit stress. The effect of induced stress can be reduced by the application of salicylic acid (SA). With the objective to ...combat drought stress in wheat, an experiment was conducted in greenhouse under hydroponic conditions. The treatments consisted of (a) no drought (DD0 = 0 MPa), mild drought (DD1 = -0.40 MPa) and severe drought (DD2 = -0.60 MPa) by applying PEG-8000, (b) two contrasting wheat varieties Barani-17 (drought tolerant) and Anaj-17 (drought-sensitive), and (c) foliar treatments of salicylic acid (0, 50 mM, 75 mM, and 100 mM). Evaluation of wheat plants regarding biochemical, physiological, and morphological attributes were rendered after harvesting of plants. Statistically, maximum shoot and root fresh and dry weights (18.77, 11.15 and 1.99, 1.81 g, respectively) were recorded in cultivar Barani-17 under no drought condition with the application of SA (100 mM). While, minimum shoot and root fresh and dry weights (6.65, 3.14 and 0.73, 0.61 g, respectively) were recorded in cultivar Anaj-2017 under mild drought stress without SA application. The maximum shoot length (68.0 cm) was observed in cultivar Barani-2017 under no drought condition with the application of SA (100 mM). While, maximum root length (59.67 cm) was recorded in cultivar Anaj-17 under moderate drought stress without application of SA. Further, minimum shoot length (28.67 cm) was recorded in Anaj-17 under moderate drought stress without SA application. Minimum root length (38.67 cm) was recorded in cultivar Barani-17 under no drought condition without SA application. Furthermore, maximum physio-biochemical traits, including membrane stability index (MSI), chlorophyl content, photosynthetic rates, stomatal conductance, antioxidant enzymatic activities and relative water content (RWC) were found highest in cultivar Barani-17 under no drought stress and SA application at 100 mM. However, minimum values of these traits were recorded in cultivar Anaj-17 under severe drought stress without SA application. Our results also demonstrated that under severe drought, application of SA at 100 mM significantly increased leaf nitrogen (N), phosphrus (P) and potassium (K) contents and cultivar Barani-17 demonstrated significantly higher values than Anaj-17. The obtained results also indicated that the cultivation of wheat under drought stress conditions noticeably declines the morphological, physiological, and biochemical attributes of the plants. However, the exogenous application of SA had a positive impact on wheat crop for enhancing its productivity.
Duffy blood group polymorphisms are important in areas where Plasmodium vivax is present because this surface antigen is thought to act as a key receptor for this parasite. In the present study, ...Duffy blood group genotyping was performed in febrile uninfected and P. vivax-infected patients living in the city of Nouakchott, Mauritania.
Plasmodium vivax was identified by real-time PCR. The Duffy blood group genotypes were determined by standard PCR followed by sequencing of the promoter region and exon 2 of the Duffy gene in 277 febrile individuals. Fisher's exact test was performed in order to assess the significance of variables.
In the Moorish population, a high frequency of the FYBES/FYBES genotype was observed in uninfected individuals (27.8%), whereas no P. vivax-infected patient had this genotype. This was followed by a high level of FYA/FYB, FYB/FYB, FYB/FYBES and FYA/FYBES genotype frequencies, both in the P. vivax-infected and uninfected patients. In other ethnic groups (Poular, Soninke, Wolof), only the FYBES/FYBES genotype was found in uninfected patients, whereas the FYA/FYBES genotype was observed in two P. vivax-infected patients. In addition, one patient belonging to the Wolof ethnic group presented the FYBES/FYBES genotype and was infected by P. vivax.
This study presents the Duffy blood group polymorphisms in Nouakchott City and demonstrates that in Mauritania, P. vivax is able to infect Duffy-negative patients. Further studies are necessary to identify the process that enables this Duffy-independent P. vivax invasion of human red blood cells.
Primaquine is recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) for radical treatment of Plasmodium vivax malaria. This drug is known to provoke acute hemolytic anemia in individuals with ...glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency. Due to lack of data on G6PD deficiency, the use of primaquine has been limited in Africa. In the present study, G6PD deficiency was investigated in blood donors of various ethnic groups living in Nouakchott, a P. vivax endemic area in Mauritania.
Venous blood samples from 443 healthy blood donors recruited at the National Transfusion Center in Nouakchott were screened for G6PD activity using the CareStart G6PD deficiency rapid diagnostic test. G6PD allelic variants were investigated using DiaPlexC G6PD genotyping kit that detects African (A-) and Mediterranean (B-) variants. Overall, 50 of 443 (11.3%) individuals (49 11.8% men and 1 3.7% woman) were phenotypically deficient. Amongst men, Black Africans had the highest prevalence of G6PD deficiency (15 of 100 15%) and White Moors the lowest (10 of 168, 5.9%). The most commonly observed G6PD allelic variants among 44 tested G6PD-deficient men were the African variant A- (202A/376G) in 14 (31.8%), the Mediterranean variant B- (563T) in 13 (29.5%), and the Betica-Selma A- (376G/968C) allelic variant in 6 (13.6%). The Santamaria A- variant (376G/542T) and A variant (376G) were observed in only one and two individuals, respectively. None of the expected variants was observed in 8 (18.2%) of the tested phenotypically G6PD-deficient men.
This is the first published data on G6PD deficiency in Mauritanians. The prevalence of phenotypic G6PD deficiency was relatively high (11.3%). It was mostly associated with either African or Mediterranean variants, in agreement with diverse Arab and Black African origins of the Mauritanian population.
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► Monitoring of formaldehyde emission from solid wood, plywood, flooring and blockboard. ► Wood species, plywood type and thickness had highly significant effects. ► Engineered ...flooring with PVAc had the lowest amount of formaldehyde. ► Formaldehyde concentrations were dropped at the end of measuring period. ► Painted beech blockboard had the highest amount of released formaldehyde.
The measurements of formaldehyde emission (FE) from solid wood, plywood, flooring and blockboard used for building and furnishing materials were obtained using the European small-scale chamber (EN 717-1) and gas analysis (EN 717-2) methods to identify the major sources of formaldehyde among construction and wood products in the Czech Republic. The differences in the FE values reported for various wood products were a function of their structural differences. These results showed that the wood species, plywood type and thickness significantly affected the FE measured by EN 717-2 (P<0.001). The FE values from solid wood ranged between 0.0068 and 0.0036ppm and 0.084–0.014mg/m2h. The initial FE ranged from 0.006mg/m3 for engineered flooring with polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) to 0.048mg/m3 for painted birch blockboard. Furthermore, the FE dropped noticeably by the end of the measuring period, ranging between 0.006mg/m3 for engineered flooring with PVAc and 0.037mg/m3 for painted beech blockboard. Additionally, the initial FE was higher for the painted blockboard (0.035–0.048mg/m3) than for the uncoated boards (0.022–0.032mg/m3). In the first week after manufacturing, the FE was high, but the decrease in FE was noticeable at the two-week measurement for all of the materials, especially for the painted blockboards.
In this study, for the environmental development, the antifungal, antibacterial, and antioxidant activities of a water extract of flowers from
(Labill.) H. L. Wendl. were evaluated. The extract ...concentrations were prepared by dissolving them in 10% DMSO. Wood samples of
were treated with water extract, and the antifungal activity was examined at concentrations of 0%, 1%, 2%, and 3% against three mold fungi;
MH352452,
MH352450, and
MH352451 that cause root rot, cankers, and green fruit rot, respectively, isolated from infected
L. Antibacterial evaluation of the extract was assayed against four phytopathogenic bacteria, including
and
, using the micro-dilution method to determine the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs). Further, the antioxidant capacity of the water extract was measured via 2,2'-diphenylpicrylhydrazyl (DPPH). Phenolic and flavonoid compounds in the water extract were analyzed using HPLC: benzoic acid, caffeine, and
-coumaric acid were the most abundant phenolic compounds; while the flavonoid compounds naringenin, quercetin, and kaempferol were identified compared with the standard flavonoid compounds. The antioxidant activity of the water extract in terms of IC
was considered weak (463.71 μg/mL) compared to the standard used, butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) (6.26 μg/mL). The MIC values were 200, 300, 300, and 100 µg/mL against the growth of
,
,
, and
, respectively, which were lower than the positive control used (Tobramycin 10 μg/disc). By increasing the extract concentration, the percentage inhibition of fungal mycelial was significantly increased compared to the control treatment, especially against
, suggesting that the use of
flower extract as an environmentally friendly wood bio-preservative inhibited the growth of molds that cause discoloration of wood and wood products.
Although mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) are important disease vectors, information on their biodiversity in Mauritania is scarce and very dispersed in the literature. Data from the scientific ...literature gathered in the country from 1948 to 2016 were collected and analyzed. Overall 51 culicid species comprising 17 Anopheles spp., 14 Aedes spp., 18 Culex spp. and two Mansonia spp. have been described in Mauritania among which Anopheles arabiensis, Aedes vexans, Culex poicilipes and Culex antennatus are of epidemiological significance. Anopheles arabiensis is widely distributed throughout the country and its geographic distribution has increased northwards in recent years, shifting its northern limit form 17°32'N in the 1960s to 18°47'N today. Its presence in the central region of Tagant highlights the great ecological plasticity of the species. Conversely, the distribution of Anopheles gambiae (s.s.) and Anopheles melas has shrunk compared to that of the 1960s. Anopheles rhodesiensis and An. d'thali are mainly confined in the mountainous areas (alt. 200-700 m), whereas Anopheles pharoensis is widely distributed in the Senegal River basin. Culex poicilipes and Cx. antenattus were naturally found infected with Rift valley fever virus in central and northern Mauritania following the Rift valley outbreaks of 1998 and 2012. Recently, Ae. aegypti emerged in Nouakchott and is probably responsible for dengue fever episodes of 2015. This paper provides a concise and up-to-date overview of the existing literature on mosquito species known to occur in Mauritania and highlights areas where future studies should fill a gap in knowledge about vector biodiversity. It aims to help ongoing and future research on mosquitoes particularly in the field of medical entomology to inform evidence-based decision-making for vector control and management strategies.
Dehydrohelicene-based molecules stand out as highly promising scaffolds and captivating chiroptical materials, characterized by their unique chirality. Their quasi-helical π-conjugated molecular ...architecture, featuring successively
-annulated aromatic rings, endows them with remarkable thermal stability and optical properties. Over the past decade, diverse approaches have emerged for synthesizing these scaffolds, reinvigorating this field, with anticipated increased attention in the coming years. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the historical evolution of dehydrohelicene chemistry since the pioneering work of Zander and Franke in 1969 and highlights recent advancements in the synthesis of various molecules incorporating dehydrohelicene motifs. We elucidate the intriguing structural features and optical merits of these molecules, occasionally drawing comparisons with their helicene or circulene analogs to underscore the significance of the bond between the helical termini.
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