An appraisal of the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B virus health system in Nigeria

The study aimed to assess the strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats influencing the achievement of prevention of mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B virus. It also sought to suggest recommendations to improve the current prevention of mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B virus health system in Nigeria. A critical appraisal of the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B virus health system in Nigeria was conducted. The WHO health system framework was used to assess the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B virus system. Considering the recent call by the World Health Organization to eliminate hepatitis and the existence of a robust prevention of mother-to-child transmission of human immunodeficiency virus health system, the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B virus health system in Nigeria is riddled with numerous challenges. These range from a health worker crisis, poor leadership and governance, inadequate health information, medicines, vaccines and technologies and poor service delivery. Urgent action in the Nigerian prevention of mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis B virus health system is required if Nigeria is to achieve its goal of eliminating hepatitis by 2021

Molecular Theory of Hydrophobic Effects: ``She is too mean to have her name repeated.''

This paper reviews the molecular theory of hydrophobic effects relevant to biomolecular structure and assembly in aqueous solution. Recent progress has resulted in simple, validated molecular statistical thermodynamic theories and clarification of confusing theories of decades ago. Current work is resolving effects of wider variations of thermodynamic state, e.g. pressure denaturation of soluble proteins, and more exotic questions such as effects of surface chemistry in treating stability of macromolecular structures in aqueous solutionComment: submitted to Ann. Rev. Phys. Chem., 31 pages, 245 references, 2 figure

On the Globular Cluster IMF below 1 Solar Mass

(Abridged) Accurate luminosity functions (LF) for a dozen globular clusters have now been measured at or just beyond their half-light radius using HST. They span almost the entire cluster main sequence below ~ 0.75 Msolar. All these clusters exhibit LF that rise continuously from an absolute I magnitude M_I ~ 6 to a peak at M_I ~ 8.5-9 and then drop with increasing M_I. Transformation of the LF into mass functions (MF) by means of the most recent mass luminosity relations that are consistent with all presently available data on the physical properties of low mass, low metallicity stars shows that all the LF observed so far can be obtained from MF having the shape of a log-normal distribution with characteristic mass m_c=0.33 +/- 0.03 Msolar and standard deviation sigma = 1.81 +/- 0.19. After correction for the effects of mass segregation, the variation of the ratio of the number of higher to lower mass stars with cluster mass or any simple orbital parameter or the expected time to disruption recently computed for these clusters shows no statistically significant trend over a range of this last parameter of more than a factor of 100. We conclude that the global MF of these clusters have not been measurably modified by evaporation and tidal interactions with the Galaxy and, thus, should reflect the initial distribution of stellar masses. Since the log-normal function that we find is also very similar to the one obtained independently for much younger clusters and to the form expected theoretically, the implication seems to be unavoidable that it represents the true stellar IMF for this type of stars in this mass range.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal. Contains 28 pages with 6 figure

Negative phenotypic and genetic associations between copulation duration and longevity in male seed beetles

Reproduction can be costly and is predicted to trade-off against other characters. However, while these trade-offs are well documented for females, there has been less focus on aspects of male reproduction. Furthermore, those studies that have looked at males typically only investigate phenotypic associations, with the underlying genetics often ignored. Here, we report on phenotypic and genetic trade-offs in male reproductive effort in the seed beetle, Callosobruchus maculatus. We find that the duration of a male's first copulation is negatively associated with subsequent male survival, phenotypically and genetically. Our results are consistent with life-history theory and suggest that like females, males trade-off reproductive effort against longevity

Organic Architecture as an Approach to Resort Hotels Design in the Simalem Park Tourism Area

Indonesian tourism is an industrial sector that is being elevated with the aim of increasing the country's foreign exchange income, and society in general, increase opportunities and employment, encouraging other industrial activities, introducing, empowering the use of natural beauty and Indonesian culture. Karo Regency is a tourist area that many visits, Karo District has nature potentials as a tourist attraction. In general, tourism has the potential for natural and historical tourism. Nature tourism includes lakes, parks, wildlife reserves or nature reserves, and cultural captures. Taman Simalem is one of the tourist areas in Karo Regency. Simalem Park tourist area is currently a tourist area that is a mainstay in Karo district with a large number of visitors who always increase each year. See so many tourism objects in Karo regency; it is necessary to build an accommodation service for tourists who want to vacation and enjoy the tourism objects. In buildings resort hotel accommodation services using organic themes then linking aspects of space that can adapt to the natural environment. The organic architectural theme approach is expected to facilitate the application of concepts that take shape from nature

Mental health in primary care: ways to reach an integral care

A great challenge for the primary healthcare system, implemented by the strategy called the Family Health Program, is to incorporate actions for facing situations of violence and mental health problems. This study analyzed the care delivered to 411 children between five and eleven years of age in a primary care unit in the city of São Paulo. The clinical findings were compared to a standard inventory of symptoms (CBCL). In addition, semi-structured interviews were held with pediatricians. The study shows low capacity of the pediatricians to recognize mental health problems in children. This is mainly due to deficiencies in their training and lack of possibilities for concrete intervention to face a complaint or diagnostic hypothesis. The reorganization process of primary care will need to provide specific technical support in mental health, incorporating more appropriate technologies for intervention such as a humanized approach and qualified listening. The inclusion of psychosocial aspects in the everyday practice of primary care will make it possible to broaden the concept of health and open way for an integrated approach to situations of violence related to children assisted by the primary care network of the Brazilian Health System.A atenção básica de saúde, impulsionada pela estratégia da saúde da família, tem o grande desafio de incorporar de ações de enfrentamento às situações de violência e problemas de saúde mental. O trabalho analisou a atenção prestada a 411 crianças de cinco a onze anos em uma UBS na cidade de São Paulo. Os dados clínicos foram comparados com um inventário de sintomas padronizados Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Entrevistas semi-estruturadas foram aplicadas complementarmente em pediatras. O trabalho mostra que os pediatras têm baixa capacidade de reconhecer problemas de saúde mental em crianças. Os principais fatores relacionados a este baixo desempenho foram: deficiência na formação, carência de possibilidade de atuação concreta frente à queixa ou hipótese diagnóstica. O processo de reorganização do trabalho na atenção básica deveria contemplar a oferta de apoio técnico específico em saúde mental, propiciando a incorporação de tecnologias de intervenção mais apropriadas, como acolhimento e escuta qualificada. A incorporação dos aspectos psicossociais na prática cotidiana da atenção básica possibilitará a ampliação do conceito saúde-doença e abrirá caminho para a abordagem das situações de violência às crianças atendidas na rede básica de serviços de saúde do SUS

Dual HLA B*42 and B*81-reactive T cell receptors recognize more diverse HIV-1 Gag escape variants

Closely related HLA alleles presenting similar HIV-1 epitopes can be associated with variable clinical outcome. Here the authors report their findings on CD8+ T cell responses to the HIV-1 Gag-p24 TL9 immunodominant epitope in the context of closely related protective and less protective HLA alleles, and their differential effect on viral contro

Turbulence and galactic structure

Interstellar turbulence is driven over a wide range of scales by processes including spiral arm instabilities and supernovae, and it affects the rate and morphology of star formation, energy dissipation, and angular momentum transfer in galaxy disks. Star formation is initiated on large scales by gravitational instabilities which control the overall rate through the long dynamical time corresponding to the average ISM density. Stars form at much higher densities than average, however, and at much faster rates locally, so the slow average rate arises because the fraction of the gas mass that forms stars at any one time is low, ~10^{-4}. This low fraction is determined by turbulence compression, and is apparently independent of specific cloud formation processes which all operate at lower densities. Turbulence compression also accounts for the formation of most stars in clusters, along with the cluster mass spectrum, and it gives a hierarchical distribution to the positions of these clusters and to star-forming regions in general. Turbulent motions appear to be very fast in irregular galaxies at high redshift, possibly having speeds equal to several tenths of the rotation speed in view of the morphology of chain galaxies and their face-on counterparts. The origin of this turbulence is not evident, but some of it could come from accretion onto the disk. Such high turbulence could help drive an early epoch of gas inflow through viscous torques in galaxies where spiral arms and bars are weak. Such evolution may lead to bulge or bar formation, or to bar re-formation if a previous bar dissolved. We show evidence that the bar fraction is about constant with redshift out to z~1, and model the formation and destruction rates of bars required to achieve this constancy.Comment: in: Penetrating Bars through Masks of Cosmic Dust: The Hubble Tuning Fork strikes a New Note, Eds., K. Freeman, D. Block, I. Puerari, R. Groess, Dordrecht: Kluwer, in press (presented at a conference in South Africa, June 7-12, 2004). 19 pgs, 5 figure

The dependence of dijet production on photon virtuality in ep collisions at HERA

The dependence of dijet production on the virtuality of the exchanged photon, Q^2, has been studied by measuring dijet cross sections in the range 0 < Q^2 < 2000 GeV^2 with the ZEUS detector at HERA using an integrated luminosity of 38.6 pb^-1. Dijet cross sections were measured for jets with transverse energy E_T^jet > 7.5 and 6.5 GeV and pseudorapidities in the photon-proton centre-of-mass frame in the range -3 < eta^jet <0. The variable xg^obs, a measure of the photon momentum entering the hard process, was used to enhance the sensitivity of the measurement to the photon structure. The Q^2 dependence of the ratio of low- to high-xg^obs events was measured. Next-to-leading-order QCD predictions were found to generally underestimate the low-xg^obs contribution relative to that at high xg^obs. Monte Carlo models based on leading-logarithmic parton-showers, using a partonic structure for the photon which falls smoothly with increasing Q^2, provide a qualitative description of the data.Comment: 35 pages, 6 eps figures, submitted to Eur.Phys.J.

Host range, symbiotic effectiveness and nodulation competitiveness of some indigenous cowpea bradyrhizobia isolates from the transitional savanna zone of Ghana

To identify indigenous rhizobia with potential as inoculants for increasing cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) yields, we have assessed the host range, symbiotic effectiveness and competitiveness for noduleoccupancy among five (AII-2-1, AII-5-2, AI-4-3, AII-3-4 and BIII-2-2) indigenous cowpea bradyrhizobia isolates from the transitional savanna zone of Ghana. ERIC-PCR DNA fingerprinting patterns were used to identify the isolates occupying nodules. All the isolates nodulated cowpea, groundnut (Arachis hypogeae) and mungbean (Vigna radiata), but only AII-2-1, AII-3-4 and BIII-2-2 nodulated soybean (Glycine max). Apart from cowpea where all the isolates were effective, there were significant differences in the symbiotic effectiveness of the isolates on the other host legumes. Out of a total of about 250 cowpea nodules that were screened for each inoculum-mix, isolate AII-5-2 was the most competitive for nodule occupancy whilst AII-3-4 was the least. Isolate AII-5-2 occupied 71% of the nodules in an inoculum-mix consisting of equal proportions of AII-2-1, AII-5-2 and AI-4-3 (a 3-isolatemix) and 60% of nodules in an inoculum-mix consisting of equal proportions of all the five isolates (a 5- isolate-mix). Therefore, among the isolates tested, AII-5-2 has the best potential for use as inoculant formaximizing cowpea yield in N2- deficient agro-ecological zones of Ghana