A qualitative study of community perception and acceptance of biological larviciding for malaria mosquito control in rural Burkina Faso

Background: Vector and malaria parasite’s rising resistance against pyrethroid-impregnated bed nets and antimalarial drugs highlight the need for additional control measures. Larviciding against malaria vectors is experiencing a renaissance with the availability of environmentally friendly and target species-specific larvicides. In this study,we analyse the perception and acceptability of spraying surface water collections with the biological larvicide Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis in a single health district in Burkina Faso. Methods: A total of 12focus group discussions and 12key informant interviews were performed in 10 rural villages provided with coverage of various larvicide treatments (all breeding sites treated, the most productive breeding sites treated, and untreated control). Results: Respondents’ knowledge about the major risk factors for malaria transmission was generally good. Most interviewees stated they performed personal protective measures against vector mosquitoes including the use of bed nets and sometimes mosquito coils and traditional repellents. The acceptance of larviciding in and around the villages was high and the majority of respondents reported a relief in mosquito nuisance and malarial episodes. There was high interest in the project and demand for future continuation. Conclusion: This study showed that larviciding interventions received positive resonance from the population. People showed a willingness to be involved and financially support the program. The positive environment with high acceptance for larviciding programs would facilitate routine implementation. An essential factor for the future success of such programs would be inclusion in regional or national malaria control guidelines

The Assembly of Supermassive Black Holes at <i>z</i> < 1 in Early-type Galaxies from Scaling Relations

The assembly of supermassive black hole (SMBH) mass (M•) and stellar mass (M*) in galaxies can be studied via the redshift evolution of the M•–M* relation, but the ways in which selection bias and physical assembly channels affect this evolution are uncertain. To address this, we compare the M•–M* relation for local massive (M* > 1010.5 M⊙) quiescent early-type galaxies (ETGs) to that for massive ETGs hosting active galactic nuclei (AGN) at z ∼ 0.8. The restrictions on stellar mass and galaxy type limit the assembly channels that may connect the two relations. For the local sample we find log(M•) = 8.80 + 1.10(logM* − 11), in line with prior work. For the z ∼ 0.8 sample we find a bias-corrected relation: log(M•) = 7.80 + 1.25(logM* − 11) . We show, however, that this relation depends on the stellar and SMBH mass functions used to compute the selection bias, the virial relation, the virial factor, and the active fraction, which together introduce uncertainty of up to ​​​​​​∼0.6 dex in the z ∼ 0.8 relation. Adopting reasonable choices of these parameters then our z ∼ 0.8 relation lies above that for z ∼ 0 AGN by ∼0.5 dex, but below our z ∼ 0 ETG relation by 0.4–1 dex in SMBH mass. We discuss possible sources of this offset, including further bias corrections, “downsizing” in SMBH mass assembly, and preferential SMBH growth. Our results highlight the need to reduce uncertainties from selection and measurement bias in SMBH and stellar masses at all redshifts

Divergent Effects of Human Cytomegalovirus and Herpes Simplex Virus-1 on Cellular Metabolism

Viruses rely on the metabolic network of the host cell to provide energy and macromolecular precursors to fuel viral replication. Here we used mass spectrometry to examine the impact of two related herpesviruses, human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) and herpes simplex virus type-1 (HSV-1), on the metabolism of fibroblast and epithelial host cells. Each virus triggered strong metabolic changes that were conserved across different host cell types. The metabolic effects of the two viruses were, however, largely distinct. HCMV but not HSV-1 increased glycolytic flux. HCMV profoundly increased TCA compound levels and flow of two carbon units required for TCA cycle turning and fatty acid synthesis. HSV-1 increased anapleurotic influx to the TCA cycle through pyruvate carboxylase, feeding pyrimidine biosynthesis. Thus, these two related herpesviruses drive diverse host cells to execute distinct, virus-specific metabolic programs. Current drugs target nucleotide metabolism for treatment of both viruses. Although our results confirm that this is a robust target for HSV-1, therapeutic interventions at other points in metabolism might prove more effective for treatment of HCMV