Results of the first hydroacoustic survey of the Ugandan waters of Lake Victoria

A lakewide hydroacoustic research programme was designed in the Ugandan waters of Lake Victoria in order to ascertain the status of fish stocks. Data obtained from the hydroacoustic surveys were complemented with by catch data from multi mesh gillnets and frame trawls to validate acoustic estimates. Fish were distributed over the whole survey area, though the densities and species composition varied from place to place. Echo traces showed the fish formed schools during daytime and became more dispersed towards evening. Approximately equivalent indices of abundance were estimated for Rastrineobola argentea and Haplocromines. The distribution of the freshwater prawn, Caridina nilotica and the lakefly Chaoborus sp. was patchy. Dense swarms of Chaoborus larvae were observed to disperse from the lake bottom as the night approached thus assuring echo-traces formed by fish on the echogram and making their interpretation difficult. Caridina nilotica were observed to form dense echo-traces at the thermoclin

Drug resistance mediating Plasmodium falciparum polymorphisms and clinical presentations of parasitaemic children in Uganda.

BackgroundPlasmodium falciparum genetic polymorphisms that mediate altered drug sensitivity may impact upon virulence. In a cross-sectional study, Ugandan children with infections mutant at pfcrt K76T, pfmdr1 N86Y, or pfmdr1 D1246Y had about one-fourth the odds of symptomatic malaria compared to those with infections with wild type (WT) sequences. However, results may have been confounded by greater likelihood in those with symptomatic disease of higher density mixed infections and/or recent prior treatment that selected for WT alleles.MethodsPolymorphisms in samples from paired episodes of asymptomatic and symptomatic parasitaemia in 114 subjects aged 4-11 years were followed longitudinally in Tororo District, Uganda. Paired episodes occurred within 3-12 months of each other and had no treatment for malaria in the prior 60 days. The prevalence of WT, mixed, and mutant alleles was determined using multiplex ligase detection reaction-fluorescent microsphere assays.ResultsConsidering paired episodes in the same subject, the odds of symptomatic malaria were lower for infections with mutant compared to WT or mixed sequence at N86Y (OR 0.26, 95% CI 0.09-0.79, p = 0.018), but not K76T or D1246Y. However, symptomatic episodes (which had higher densities) were more likely than asymptomatic to be mixed (for N86Y OR 2.0, 95% CI 1.04-4.0, p = 0.036). Excluding mixed infections, the odds of symptomatic malaria were lower for infections with mutant compared to WT sequence at N86Y (OR 0.33, 95% CI 0.11-0.98, p = 0.046), but not the other alleles. However, if mixed genotypes were grouped with mutants in this analysis or assuming that mixed infections consisted of 50% WT and 50% mutant genotypes, the odds of symptomatic infection did not differ between infections that were mutant or WT at the studied alleles.ConclusionsAlthough infections with only the mutant pfmdr1 86Y genotype were associated with symptomatic infection, this association could primarily be explained by greater parasite densities and therefore greater prevalence of mixed infections in symptomatic children. These results indicate limited association between the tested polymorphisms and risk of symptomatic disease and highlight the value of longitudinal studies for assessing associations between parasite factors and clinical outcomes

Integrating local knowledge with tree diversity analyses to optimize on-farm tree species composition for ecosystem service delivery in coffee agroforestry systems of Uganda

Coffee agroforestry systems deliver ecosystem services (ES) critical for rural livelihoods like food but also disservices that constrain livelihoods like fostering coffee-pests. Since such ES are tree-based, maximizing ES and limiting constraints requires knowledge on optimizing on-farm tree composition especially trees adapted to local conditions. The study was in three sites along a rainfall gradient in Central Uganda where we: assessed tree diversity in coffee agroforestry; ranked tree suitability for providing ES according to farmers' knowledge; and then proposed an approach for optimizing on-farm tree composition for delivery of ES. We collected data on tree diversity and, farmers' knowledge of tree species and the ES they provide. Farmers ranked ES in order of importance to their livelihoods ('Needs rank') and ranked trees according to suitability for providing ES. Using Bradley Terry modeling, we grouped trees into 'ES groups' according to suitability for providing different ES and ranked 'ES groups' according to tree diversity ('Diversity rank'). Tree-suitability for providing ES and importance of ES to farmers varied with rainfall regime but tree diversity did not match farmers' needs for ES. We propose the FaD–FaN (matching farm tree diversity to farmers' needs) approach for optimizing tree species composition with respect to tree-suitability for farmers' priority ES. Farmers locally prioritize ES needed and identify trees that best serve such ES. The approach then focuses on modifying on-farm tree diversity to match/suit farmers' priority ES. The FaD–FaN approach caters for varying socio-ecological conditions; it's adaptable for other coffee and cocoa-growing areas worldwide

Intermittent preventive treatment with dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine in Ugandan schoolchildren selects for Plasmodium falciparum transporter polymorphisms that modify drug sensitivity.

Dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine (DP) offers prolonged protection against malaria, but its impact on Plasmodium falciparum drug sensitivity is uncertain. In a trial of intermittent preventive treatment in schoolchildren in Tororo, Uganda, in 2011 to 2012, monthly DP for 1 year decreased the incidence of malaria by 96% compared to placebo; DP once per school term offered protection primarily during the first month after therapy. To assess the impact of DP on selection of drug resistance, we compared the prevalence of key polymorphisms in isolates that emerged at different intervals after treatment with DP. Blood obtained monthly and at each episode of fever was assessed for P. falciparum parasitemia by microscopy. Samples from 160 symptomatic and 650 asymptomatic episodes of parasitemia were assessed at 4 loci (N86Y, Y184F, and D1246Y in pfmdr1 and K76T in pfcrt) that modulate sensitivity to aminoquinoline antimalarials, utilizing a ligase detection reaction-fluorescent microsphere assay. For pfmdr1 N86Y and pfcrt K76T, but not the other studied polymorphisms, the prevalences of mutant genotypes were significantly greater in children who had received DP within the past 30 days than in those not treated within 60 days (86Y, 18.0% versus 8.3% [P = 0.03]; 76T, 96.0% versus 86.1% [P = 0.05]), suggesting selective pressure of DP. Full sequencing of pfcrt in a subset of samples did not identify additional polymorphisms selected by DP. In summary, parasites that emerged soon after treatment with DP were more likely than parasites not under drug pressure to harbor pfmdr1 and pfcrt polymorphisms associated with decreased sensitivity to aminoquinoline antimalarials. (This study has been registered at ClinicalTrials.gov under no. NCT01231880.)

Effectiveness of Home Gardening in Reducing Food Insecurity and Improving Health in Chacraseca, Nicaragua: A Pilot Study

Nicaragua has a high rate of food insecurity determined by factors such as, poverty, employment, education, social capital and climate change. Home gardening and nutrition education can decrease food insecurity and improve community health. There is a need to evaluate garden-based nutrition education to determine its effectiveness in improving food security and health in Nicaragua. It is also important to engage stakeholders at all stages of community research studies as it may lead to improved outcomes. The objective for this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of home gardening and nutrition education in improving food security, health, nutrition knowledge and nutrient intake among residents in Chacraseca, a small farming community in Nicaragua. A community needs assessment was conducted using focus group discussions and key-informant interviews to determine home gardening and nutrition education as priority interventions to improve food security and health in Chacraseca. Participants from Chacraseca were randomly recruited into the intervention and control groups. The intervention participants were recruited from residents previously involved in activities with JustHope, Inc., whereas the control group included participants not engaged in JustHope, Inc. activities. A longitudinal study design was used to promote and evaluate the effectiveness of home gardening and nutrition education in improving food security, health, nutrition knowledge and nutrient intake. Research tools including food security questionnaires, anthropometry and blood pressure measures were used to collect baseline data on food security and health. After a year of promoting home gardening to the intervention participants, the same survey tools used at baseline were used to determine changes in food security and health at post-study. Concurrent with home gardening, a longitudinal study of nutrition education was conducted to determine the effect of garden-based nutrition education in improving nutritional knowledge and nutrient intake. Nutrition education questionnaires and 24-hr recalls were used to collect baseline data on food intake and nutrition knowledge. After collection of baseline data, the intervention participants also involved in home gardening received six nutrition education lessons using the community nutrition education model. A year later, nutrition knowledge questionnaires and 24-hr surveys were used to determine changes in nutrition knowledge and nutrient intake. Qualitative data was analyzed using ATLAS.ti version 8.2.4 for iOS, whereas quantitative data was analyzed using SAS version 9.4. Fifty participants were recruited into the intervention and control groups. At post-study, there were no significant changes in body mass index (p = 0.99), systolic blood pressure (p = 0.13), and diastolic blood pressure (p = 0.92) between the intervention and control groups. The average BMI for the intervention and control participants at baseline and post-study was within the overweight range (BMI between 25 and 29.9). The control group showed a greater percentage increase in participants with normal blood pressure (40%, n =18 at baseline to 60%, n = 27 at post-study) compared to the intervention group (48%, n = 23 at baseline to 54%, n = 26 at post-study). In households with children, at baseline and post-study, there was a decline in percentage of participants categorized as having low food security from 52% (n = 26) to 44% (n = 22) in the intervention group. Both the intervention and control groups showed improvements in participants categorized as having high food security from 2% (n = 1) to 6% (n = 3) in the intervention group and from 0% to 8.3% (n = 4) in the control group. At post-study, participants in the intervention group had significant improvement in nutrition knowledge scores. There were non-significant changes in nutrient intake between the intervention and control groups except for vitamin A (p = 0.04) and sodium (p = 0.03). However, there were observed non-significant increase in nutrient intake that were not specific to either the intervention or the control group. Although there was not enough evidence to demonstrate that home gardening improves health status, non-significant evidence pointed to an increase in number of participants with normal blood pressure. This, together with the slight improvement in food security and the significant improvement in nutrition knowledge demonstrated the potential of home gardening to improve health, food security and nutrient intake. Future researchers should focus on using several food security indicators in the evaluation, recruit larger sample sizes and should evaluate older home gardening projects. In addition, future research studies should last longer and include more intensive nutrition education and gardening training

Artemether-Lumefantrine to treat Malaria in pregnancy is associated with reduced placental Haemozoin deposition compared to Quinine in a randomized controlled trial

Data on efficacy of artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) to treat Plasmodium falciparum during pregnancy in sub-Saharan Africa is scarce. A recent open label, randomized controlled trial in Mbarara, Uganda demonstrated that artemether-lumefantrine (AL) is not inferior to quinine to treat uncomplicated malaria in pregnancy. Haemozoin can persist in the placenta following clearance of parasites, however there is no data whether ACT can influence the amount of haemozoin or the dynamics of haemozoin clearance

TRANSNATIONAL HIGHER EDUCATION PARTNERSHIPS IN THE COVID-19 ERA; STUDENTS’ RATING OF AN ONLINE AND MODULAR LEARNING PROGRAMME

Transnational educational partnerships among tertiary institutions have been around for a long time all over the world. There will always be cases where some institutions or countries have a better capacity and operational advantage over others. It is because of this rationale that educational institutions from two or more countries through collaborative partnerships and or relationships, rally or agree to counter contemporary challenges in their countries and they have been very successful in this for a long time. The COVID-19 pandemic created a disruption of education systems, affecting over 1.6 billion learners globally and hence the numerous surges of transnational educational partnerships. The study investigated the rating of a programme that is running under a transnational higher education partnership between two institutions in two different countries. An exploratory study of a qualitative design was adopted for this research and by use of a closed and open-ended questionnaire, data was collected. The questionnaire was designed to benchmark the three instructional strategies of the Community of Inquiry framework model, and these are cognitive presence, social presence, and teaching presence. Results reveal positive students’ ratings of the programme on all instructional strategies social, teaching, and cognitive presence with a few outliers. The study portrays an effective switch from a face-to-face lecture learning session programme, to online-modular learning without so many obstacles to affect the teaching-learning process. Future research could pick interest in more detailed experiences of students on such programmes, and this is in addition to the detailed responses for other stakeholders like instructors, administrators, and possibly parents.  Article visualizations

Effects of Public Private Partnerships on Education Service Delivery in Uganda: a comparative analysis of technical efficiency of secondary schools in Mukono District

In many countries globally including Uganda, governments have partnered with the private actors to deliver education services traditionally delivered by the private sector. This paper explored whether secondary schools under Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement are more efficient in respect to pass rate and enrollment.  The study adopting a comparative research design compared secondary schools under Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement and those schools which are not under PPP arrangement.  The analysis was based on sample of 95 secondary schools randomly selected from Mukono district.  The results show that Non-PPP schools were more efficient than secondary schools under PPP arrangement in respect to pass rates. However, in respect to enrollment, secondary school schools under PPP were found to be more efficient.  This implies that PPP arrangement impacts school enrollment by increasing the number of supported students to join the private school but this does not translate into school performance.   Thus, although government efforts to partner with private secondary schools increases student enrollment, it has implications on school efficiency in respect to pass rate. The study recommends that PPP arrangement between government and private sector schools need to be revised to reflect the realities of the schools with respect to enrollment and performance outcomes