Hydro-political assessment of water governance from the top-down and review of literature on local level institutions and practices in the Volta Basin

Water resource management / Governance / River basin development / Water law / Colonialism / Institutions / Social participation / Women / Water use

SMART: Unique splitting-while-merging framework for gene clustering

Copyright @ 2014 Fa et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.Successful clustering algorithms are highly dependent on parameter settings. The clustering performance degrades significantly unless parameters are properly set, and yet, it is difficult to set these parameters a priori. To address this issue, in this paper, we propose a unique splitting-while-merging clustering framework, named “splitting merging awareness tactics” (SMART), which does not require any a priori knowledge of either the number of clusters or even the possible range of this number. Unlike existing self-splitting algorithms, which over-cluster the dataset to a large number of clusters and then merge some similar clusters, our framework has the ability to split and merge clusters automatically during the process and produces the the most reliable clustering results, by intrinsically integrating many clustering techniques and tasks. The SMART framework is implemented with two distinct clustering paradigms in two algorithms: competitive learning and finite mixture model. Nevertheless, within the proposed SMART framework, many other algorithms can be derived for different clustering paradigms. The minimum message length algorithm is integrated into the framework as the clustering selection criterion. The usefulness of the SMART framework and its algorithms is tested in demonstration datasets and simulated gene expression datasets. Moreover, two real microarray gene expression datasets are studied using this approach. Based on the performance of many metrics, all numerical results show that SMART is superior to compared existing self-splitting algorithms and traditional algorithms. Three main properties of the proposed SMART framework are summarized as: (1) needing no parameters dependent on the respective dataset or a priori knowledge about the datasets, (2) extendible to many different applications, (3) offering superior performance compared with counterpart algorithms.National Institute for Health Researc

The Schistosomiasis Control Initiative (SCI): rationale, development and implementation from 2002-2008

Schistosomiasis remains one of the most prevalent parasitic diseases in developing countries. After malaria, schistosomiasis is the most important tropical disease in terms of human morbidity with significant economic and public health consequences. Although schistosomiasis has recently attracted increased focus and funding for control, it has been estimated that less than 20% of the funding needed to control the disease in Africa is currently available. In this article the following issues are discussed: the rationale, development and objectives of the Schistosomiasis Control Initiative (SCI)-supported programmes; the management approaches followed to achieve implementation by each country; mapping, monitoring and evaluation activities with quantifiable impact of control programmes; monitoring for any potential drug resistance; and finally exit strategies within each country. The results have demonstrated that morbidity due to schistosomiasis has been reduced by the control programmes. While challenges remain, the case for the control of schistosomiasis has been strengthened by research by SCI teams and the principle that a national programme using ‘preventive chemotherapy' can be successfully implemented in sub-Saharan Africa, whenever the resources are available. SCI and partners are now actively striving to raise further funds to expand the coverage of integrated control of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) in sub-Saharan Afric

Systèmes de production et pratiques à risque en agriculture urbaine: Cas du maraîchage dans la ville de Yamoussoukro en Côte d’Ivoire

La question de l’impact de l’agriculture urbaine sur l’environnement revient, fréquemment, au coeur des débats dans la gestion des villes africaines, comme Yamoussoukro. Les inquiétudes liées à la préservation de l’environnement urbain, eu égard à l’usage de pesticides et à la qualité des eaux utilisées, constituent une préoccupation prise en compte dans le cadre de cette étude. Celle-ci porte, aussi bien sur l’évaluation du risque sur l’environnement consécutif à de mauvaises pratiques agricoles que sur l’évaluation du risque sanitaire consécutif à l’usage des eaux usées. Pour atteindre cet objectif, la méthodologie utilisée a été d’une part, la collecte de données, à travers une enquête et d’autre part, des analyses au laboratoire. Il ressort que le maraîchage urbain à Yamoussoukro est une activité informelle. Les cultures pratiquées sont dominées par la laitue, l’oignon vert et la carotte. Le recours aux intrants, notamment les pesticides, est très répandu. Les dispositifs règlementaires sur la distribution des produits agrochimiques ne sont pas appliqués. Ainsi, 74% des pesticides recensés ne sont pas homologués pour les cultures maraîchères, 12% sont très toxiques (classe Ib) et 57% nocifs (classe II). Les risques encourus sont accentués par un traitement chimique qui n’est pas suffisamment maîtrisé. Les analyses physico-chimiques et microbiologiques ont mis en évidence, d’une part, des eaux d’irrigation aux caractéristiques très hétérogènes et d’autre part, une grande diversité microbienne et une contamination de ces eaux, suggérant des risques sanitaires avérés.Mots clés: cultures maraîchères, environnement, risque sanitaire, pesticides, eau

A repurposing strategy for Hsp90 inhibitors demonstrates their potency against filarial nematodes

Novel drugs are required for the elimination of infections caused by filarial worms, as most commonly used drugs largely target the microfilariae or first stage larvae of these infections. Previous studies, conducted in vitro, have shown that inhibition of Hsp90 kills adult Brugia pahangi. As numerous small molecule inhibitors of Hsp90 have been developed for use in cancer chemotherapy, we tested the activity of several novel Hsp90 inhibitors in a fluorescence polarization assay and against microfilariae and adult worms of Brugia in vitro. The results from all three assays correlated reasonably well and one particular compound, NVP-AUY922, was shown to be particularly active, inhibiting Mf output from female worms at concentrations as low as 5.0 nanomolar after 6 days exposure to drug. NVP-AUY922 was also active on adult worms after a short 24 h exposure to drug. Based on these in vitro data, NVP-AUY922 was tested in vivo in a mouse model and was shown to significantly reduce the recovery of both adult worms and microfilariae. These studies provide proof of principle that the repurposing of currently available Hsp90 inhibitors may have potential for the development of novel agents with macrofilaricidal properties

KC 5.1: Traditional Systems and Methods of Rural LandsConservation in Mali and Africa // Systemes et Methodes Traditionnels de Preservations des Paysages Ruraux au Mali et en Afrique

Rural landscapes in Africa and elsewhere constitute a precious heritage for rural communities, which have since the onset of time been able to develop endogenous techniques, systems and practices for the development and preservation of natural and cultural landscapes. Within African territorial entities, culture and nature are harmoniously interconnected and their management and preservation are based on systems created and transmitted from generation to generation according to socio-cultural environments and contexts. Based on ancestral social and religious practices, traditional systems and methods for preserving rural landscapes are more focused on a community-oriented approach. Several traditional methods, systems, practices and approaches to the management and preservation of rural landscapes exist in Mali and other African countries. Among them we can mention: - The sanctuarization of certain areas as places of initiation and sacred rituals: woods, forests and sacred ponds..... This practice, governed by numerous prohibitions, has proved to be very successful in the sustainable conservation of rural areas that contribute to the protection of rare animal and plant species. - The sacralization of landscapes considered as havens of supernatural beings (including the souls of deceased ancestors), protective genies or evil spirits is a method that has proven its efficiency in the preservation of several African ecosystems and rural landscapes. - The consecration of passages, places and spaces dedicated to the celebration of certain ritual ceremonies linked to the tradition of masks and other religious practices is in line with the same principle of respect and safeguarding of spaces by local communities. - The development and implementation of certain local conventions governing pastoral, agricultural and forestry calendars (specific transhumance corridors, harvest and consumption periods for new cereals produced, etc.). This is the case of the tradition of pastoralism in the Niger River delta, developed and carried out under the theocratic empire of the Macina (1820 - 1862). Beyond funeral and agrarian ritual ceremonies, some intangible cultural heritage elements play a cardinal role in the preservation of ecosystems and rural landscapes within territories. Among the practical measures is the protection of vulnerable ecosystems within landscapes. The initiation companies, associations and brigades play an essential role in the protection of landscapes and the environment, which is part of their priority mission. Nowadays, it has to be said that the development of new information technologies and globalisation, climate change, are having a dangerous impact on traditional systems and methods for preserving rural landscapes and constitute obstacles to their sustainability. Their revitalization and adaptation to the current context would certainly contribute to the sustainable conservation of the vital spaces that feed the local community, despite growing anthropic pressure. ________________________________________________________________ Les paysages ruraux en Afrique et ailleurs constituent un patrimoine précieux pour les communautés rurales qui depuis la nuit des temps ont su développer des techniques, systèmes et pratiques endogènes d’aménagement et de préservation des paysages naturels et culturels. Au sein des entités territoriales africaines, culture et nature s’imbriquent harmonieusement et leur gestion et préservation reposent sur des systèmes créés et transmis de génération en génération suivant les milieux et les contextes socioculturels. Basée sur les pratiques sociales et religieuses ancestrales les systèmes et méthodes traditionnels de préservation des paysages ruraux privilégient l’approche communautaire. Plusieurs méthodes, systèmes, pratiques et approches traditionnels de gestion et de préservation des paysages ruraux existent au Mali et dans d’autres pays africains. Parmi ceux-ci on peut citer: La sanctuarisation de certains espaces en lieux d’initiation et de rites sacrés: bois, forêts et mares sacrés…. Cette pratique, régie par des nombreux interdits, s’est avérée efficace pour la conservation durable d’espaces ruraux qui contribuent à la protection d’espèces animales et végétales rares. La sacralisation de paysages considérés comme des repaires d’êtres surnaturels (notamment les âmes des ancêtres défunts), de génies protecteurs ou de mauvais esprits est une méthode qui a fait ses preuves dans la préservation de plusieurs écosystèmes et paysages ruraux africains. La consécration de passages, lieux et espaces dédiés à la célébration de certaines cérémonies rituelles liées à la tradition des masques et d’autres pratiques cultuels, s’inscrit dans le même principe de respect et de sauvegarde des espaces par les communautés locales. L’élaboration et l’application de certaines conventions locales qui régissent les calendriers pastoraux, agricoles et forestiers (couloirs déterminés de transhumance, périodes de récoltes et de consommation des nouvelles céréales produites, etc.). C’est le cas de la tradition du pastoralisme dans le delta du fleuve Niger, élaborée et exécutée sous l’empire théocratique du Macina (1820 – 1862). Au-delà des cérémonies rituelles funéraires et agraires, certains éléments du patrimoine culturel immatériel jouent un rôle cardinal dans la préservation des écosystèmes et des paysages ruraux au sein des territoires. Parmi les mesures pratiques figure la mise en défens des écosystèmes fragiles au sein des paysages. Les sociétés initiatiques, associations et brigades jouent un rôle essentiel dans la protection des paysages et de l\u27environnement qui relève de leur mission prioritaire. De nos jours, force est de constater que le développement des nouvelles technologies de l\u27information et de la globalisation, le changement climatique influent dangereusement sur les systèmes et méthodes traditionnels de préservation des paysages ruraux et constituent des menaces pour leur pérennisation. Leur revitalisation et adaptation au contexte actuel contribueraient à coup sûr à la conservation durable des espaces vitaux qui nourrissent la communauté locale, malgré la pression anthropique grandissante

The geographical distribution and burden of trachoma in Africa.

BACKGROUND: There remains a lack of epidemiological data on the geographical distribution of trachoma to support global mapping and scale up of interventions for the elimination of trachoma. The Global Atlas of Trachoma (GAT) was launched in 2011 to address these needs and provide standardised, updated and accessible maps. This paper uses data included in the GAT to describe the geographical distribution and burden of trachoma in Africa. METHODS: Data assembly used structured searches of published and unpublished literature to identify cross-sectional epidemiological data on the burden of trachoma since 1980. Survey data were abstracted into a standardised database and mapped using geographical information systems (GIS) software. The characteristics of all surveys were summarized by country according to data source, time period, and survey methodology. Estimates of the current population at risk were calculated for each country and stratified by endemicity class. RESULTS: At the time of writing, 1342 records are included in the database representing surveys conducted between 1985 and 2012. These data were provided by direct contact with national control programmes and academic researchers (67%), peer-reviewed publications (17%) and unpublished reports or theses (16%). Prevalence data on active trachoma are available in 29 of the 33 countries in Africa classified as endemic for trachoma, and 1095 (20.6%) districts have representative data collected through population-based prevalence surveys. The highest prevalence of active trachoma and trichiasis remains in the Sahel area of West Africa and Savannah areas of East and Central Africa and an estimated 129.4 million people live in areas of Africa confirmed to be trachoma endemic. CONCLUSION: The Global Atlas of Trachoma provides the most contemporary and comprehensive summary of the burden of trachoma within Africa. The GAT highlights where future mapping is required and provides an important planning tool for scale-up and surveillance of trachoma control

Contamination du lait caillé et de l’oeuf consommé en Côte d’Ivoire par des pesticides organochlorés

La présente étude vise à évaluer l’aspect sanitaire de l’alimentation humaine à travers deux produits à forte consommation en Côte d’Ivoire : le lait caillé et l’oeuf. Ainsi, 30 échantillons de lait caillé ont été achetés et 30 échantillons d’oeufs de poulet ont été collectés dans trois fermes dans la ville d’Abidjan. Ces échantillons ont été traités dans le but de déterminer les résidus de 12 POC (Pesticides OrganoChlorés). Les analyses ont été réalisées au CG sur colonne capillaire avec un détecteur à capture d'électrons. Les résultats observés révèlent une contamination du lait caillé et de l’oeuf par 5 POC. Ainsi, des charges moyennes en μg/kg des isomères hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) allant de 0,125 à 0,997 et de 1,870 à 35,907, de l’endosulfan allant de 0,045 à 0,563 et non détecté, de la dieldrine allant de 0,025 à 0,263 et de 5,727 à 69,710 et du Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) et métabolites allant de 0,133 à 0,813 et de 21,105 à 75,22, ont été respectivement déterminées dans le lait caillé et dans l’oeuf. La teneur résiduelle moyenne des isomères HCH, des cyclodiènes (dieldrine, et endosulfane) et du DDT et ses métabolites constituent respectivement 40%, 40% et 20% de la moyenne du total des POC mesurés dans le lait caillé et respectivement 20%, 20% et 60% de celle mesurée dans l’oeuf.Mots-clés: pesticides organochlorés, lait caillé, oeuf, Côte d’Ivoire. Contamination of the curdled milk and the egg consumed in Ivory Coast by organochlorinated pesticides This study aims to determine the levels of organochlorinated pesticides (OCPs) in the curdled milk and egg. Thus, 30 samples of curdled milk were purchased and 30 egg samples were collected from three farms in the area of the lagoons. These samples were processed in order to determine the residues 12 OCPs. Analyses were performed by GC capillary column with electron capture detector. The observed results indicate contamination of curdled milk and egg by 5 OCPs. Thus, average loads in μg/kg of hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) isomers ranging from 0.125 to 0.997 and 1.870 to 35.907, endosulfan ranging from 0.045 to 0.563 and undetected, dieldrin ranging from 0.025 to 0.263 and 5.727 to 69.710 and dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and metabolites ranging from 0.133 to 0.813 and 21, 105 to 75.22, respectively, were determined in the curdled milk and egg. The average residual HCH isomers, cyclodiene (dieldrin and endosulfan) and DDT and its metabolites is respectively 40%, 40% and 20% of the average total OCPs measured in curdled milk and respectively 20%, 20 % and 60% of that measured in the bud.Keywords: organochlorinated pesticides, curdled milk, egg, Ivory Coast

Seasonality of Plasmodium falciparum transmission: a systematic review

This article is fully open access and the published version is available free of charge from the jounal website.http://www.malariajournal.com/content/14/1/343Background Although Plasmodium falciparum transmission frequently exhibits seasonal patterns, the drivers of malaria seasonality are often unclear. Given the massive variation in the landscape upon which transmission acts, intra-annual fluctuations are likely influenced by different factors in different settings. Further, the presence of potentially substantial inter-annual variation can mask seasonal patterns; it may be that a location has “strongly seasonal” transmission and yet no single season ever matches the mean, or synoptic, curve. Accurate accounting of seasonality can inform efficient malaria control and treatment strategies. In spite of the demonstrable importance of accurately capturing the seasonality of malaria, data required to describe these patterns is not universally accessible and as such localized and regional efforts at quantifying malaria seasonality are disjointed and not easily generalized. Methods The purpose of this review was to audit the literature on seasonality of P. falciparum and quantitatively summarize the collective findings. Six search terms were selected to systematically compile a list of papers relevant to the seasonality of P. falciparum transmission, and a questionnaire was developed to catalogue the manuscripts. Results and discussion 152 manuscripts were identified as relating to the seasonality of malaria transmission, deaths due to malaria or the population dynamics of mosquito vectors of malaria. Among these, there were 126 statistical analyses and 31 mechanistic analyses (some manuscripts did both). Discussion Identified relationships between temporal patterns in malaria and climatological drivers of malaria varied greatly across the globe, with different drivers appearing important in different locations. Although commonly studied drivers of malaria such as temperature and rainfall were often found to significantly influence transmission, the lags between a weather event and a resulting change in malaria transmission also varied greatly by location. Conclusions The contradicting results of studies using similar data and modelling approaches from similar locations as well as the confounding nature of climatological covariates underlines the importance of a multi-faceted modelling approach that attempts to capture seasonal patterns at both small and large spatial scales. Keywords: Plasmodium falciparum ; Seasonality; Climatic driversAcknowledgements This work was supported by the Research and Policy for Infectious Disease Dynamics (RAPIDD) program of the Science and Technology Directory, Department of Homeland Security, and Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health. DLS is funded by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (OPP1110495), which also supports RCR. PMA is grateful to the University of Utrecht for supporting him with The Belle van Zuylen Chair. PWG is a Career Development Fellow (K00669X) jointly funded by the UK Medical Research Council (MRC) and the UK Department for International Development (DFID) under the MRC/DFID Concordat agreement and receives support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (OPP1068048, OPP1106023)

Seasonality and shift in age-specific malaria prevalence and incidence in Binko and Carrière villages close to the lake in Selingué, Mali

BACKGROUND: Malaria transmission in Mali is seasonal and peaks at the end of the rainy season in October. This study assessed the seasonal variations in the epidemiology of malaria among children under 10 years of age living in two villages in Selingué: Carrière, located along the Sankarani River but distant from the hydroelectric dam, and Binko, near irrigated rice fields, close to the dam. The aim of this study was to provide baseline data, seasonal pattern and age distribution of malaria incidence in two sites situated close to a lake in Selingué. METHODS: Geographically, Selingué area is located in the basin of Sakanrani and belongs to the district of Yanfolila in the third administrative region of Mali, Sikasso. Two cross-sectional surveys were conducted in October 2010 (end of transmission season) and in July 2011 (beginning of transmission season) to determine the point prevalence of asymptomatic parasitaemia, and anaemia among the children. Cumulative incidence of malaria per month was determined in a cohort of 549 children through active and passive case detection from November 2010 through October 2011. The number of clinical episodes per year was determined among the children in the cohort. Logistic regression was used to determine risk factors for malaria. RESULTS: The prevalence of malaria parasitaemia varied significantly between villages with a strong seasonality in Carrière (52.0–18.9 % in October 2010 and July 2011, respectively) compared with Binko (29.8–23.8 % in October 2010 and July 2011, respectively). Children 6–9 years old were at least twice more likely to carry parasites than children up to 5 years old. For malaria incidence, 64.8–71.9 % of all children experienced at least one episode of clinical malaria in Binko and Carrière, respectively. The peak incidence was observed between August and October (end of the rainy season), but the incidence remained high until December. Surprisingly, the risk of clinical malaria was two- to nine-fold higher among children 5–9 years old compared to younger children. CONCLUSIONS: A shift in the peak of clinical episodes from children under 5–9 years of age calls for expanding control interventions, such as seasonal malaria chemoprophylaxis targeting the peak transmission months