It runs several league and cup competitions in the city.
BACKGROUND:Aedes aegypti is the main vector of arboviral diseases worldwide. The species invaded and became established in southern Iran in 2020. Insecticide-based interventions are primarily used for its control. With insecticide resistance widespread, knowledge of resistance mechanisms is vital for informed deployment of insecticidal interventions, but information from Iranian Ae. aegypti is lacking. METHODS:Fifty-six Ae. aegypti specimens were collected from the port city of Bandar Lengeh in Hormozgan Province in the South of Iran in 2020 and screened for kdr mutations. The most common kdr mutations in Latin America and Asia (V410L, S989P, V1016G/I and F1534C), especially when present in combinations, are highly predictive of DDT and pyrethroid resistance were detected. Phylogenetic analyses based on the diversity of S989P and V1016G/I mutations were undertaken to assess the phylogeography of these kdr mutations. RESULTS:Genotyping all four kdr positions of V410L, S989P, V1016G/I and F1534C revealed that only 16 out of the 56 (28.57%) specimens were homozygous wild type for all kdr mutation sites. Six haplotypes including VSVF (0.537), VSVC (0.107), LSVF (0.016), LSIF (0.071), VPGC (0.257) and LPGC (0.011) were detected in this study. For the first time, 11 specimens harbouring the V410L mutation, and 8 samples with V1016I mutation were found. V410L and V1016I were coincided in 8 specimens. Also, six specimens contained 1016G/I double mutation which was not reported before. CONCLUSIONS:The relatively high frequency of these kdr mutations in Iranian Ae. aegypti indicates a population exhibiting substantial resistance to pyrethroid insecticides, which are used widely in control operations and household formulations. The detection of the 410L/1016I kdr mutant haplotype in Iranian Ae. aegypti suggests possible convergence of invasive populations from West Africa or Latin America. However, as Iran has very limited maritime/air connections with those African countries, a Latin American origin for the invasive Ae. aegypti in Iran is more plausible.
BACKGROUND: Cryptococcal meningitis (CM) is the commonest neurological complication in patients with advanced HIV. Visual disturbance is a frequent presenting symptom. Papilloedema is commonly reported but other ophthalmic findings are not well described. METHODS: We performed an observational study comparing severely immunocompromised HIV-infected patients with and without CM to determine the nature and prevalence of retinal pathology attributable to CM. 70 adult patients were enrolled in Blantyre Malawi, 35 with CM and 35 HIV-infected patients without CM. RESULTS: 79% (19/24) of CM patients examined on day one had evidence of retinal abnormalities compared to 17% (6/35) of HIV-infected controls (p <0.001). In the CM group, retinal whitening was the commonest abnormality (50%), followed by optic disc swelling (29%), haemorrhage (25%) and vascular abnormalities (7%). Retinal whitening was the only abnormality observed in the comparator group (17%). In CM, there was no significant difference between those with and without retinal abnormalities in fungal burden (13,550 cfu/ml vs. 9,150 cfu/ml; p = 0.65), CD4 count (28 cells/µl vs. 76 cells/µl; p = 0.79) or CSF opening pressure (21cm H20 vs. 27cm H20; p = 0.5). There was no association between presence/absence of retinal abnormalities and death (40% 10-week mortality vs. 26%; p = 0.6). CONCLUSIONS: Whether the presence of CM retinopathy could be used as a marker of disease severity warrants further investigation. The observed ophthalmic findings provide a descriptive framework for CM retinopathy to be utilised in future CM studies. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN (ISRCTN45035509) 19/06/2012.
Background:The mosquito's gut microbiota plays a crucial role in determining its capacity to transmit harmful viruses and parasites. Accordingly, manipulating mosquito gut microbiota is a promising avenue towards reducing mosquito-borne human pathogen transmission. A successful microbial control campaign will require a thorough understanding of how bacteria are transmitted through mosquito populations. Through two parallel but complementary studies using the yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti as a focal host species, we surveyed vertical transmission of bacteria from individual mothers to cohorts of offspring maintained in a closed system. Results:Laboratory- and field-derived mothers deposited bacteria that support offspring development, and the relative abundance of commonly transmitted taxa correlated with offspring fitness. Maternally transmitted bacteria were detected in both larval and adult offspring, and the relative abundances of specific taxa differed between life stages. Microbiota composition in adult offspring closely resembled microbiota composition in mothers, despite dramatic shifts in the relative abundance of specific microbial community members during the larval stage. Variability in microbiota composition in offspring was also greater than variability across the population of egg-laying mothers. Eggs that underwent a period of desiccation before hatching produced larval communities dominated by endospore-forming bacteria that were rare in maternal samples. Conclusions:Overall, our results demonstrate the vertical transmission of mosquito-associated microbiota across generations, including bacterial taxa that could potentially be leveraged for mosquito and mosquito-borne disease control.
BackgroundPersistent human-to-mosquito parasite transmission hinders malaria control in high burden settings. Understanding the human transmission reservoir can support the design of targeted interventions to reduce transmission.MethodsIn a year-long cohort study in rural Malawi, we used molecular methods to detect all Plasmodium falciparum (Pf) infections and those containing gametocytes, the parasite stage required for transmission, longitudinally at routine surveillance and sick visits. Using population-level analyses, we determined the demographic, temporal, and spatial clustering of infections containing gametocytes and gametocyte density, which predicts transmission.ResultsHere we show that gametocytes are not randomly distributed among the population or among individuals with Pf infections; gametocytes are detected in only 23% of the population. Among all participants, school-age children have significantly higher incidence of gametocyte-containing infections and high-density gametocyte infections compared to other groups. The presence of school-age children is a key driver of gametocyte frequencies and densities within households, even after adjusting for Pf infection levels. Based on the total gametocyte abundance in the population, we estimate that clearing infections from asymptomatic school-age children in the rainy season would decrease gametocyte abundance by 67% in the population.ConclusionsSchool-age children are the primary driver of ongoing Pf transmission in Malawi and interventions targeting school-age children are needed to effectively reduce Pf infection risk at a population level.
The global refugee population has nearly doubled in the last decade, and many of these populations face chronic displacement, often in neighbouring countries with limited resources. Emergency, short-term responses are being transitioned to longer term approaches, including a focus on inclusion through coverage in national health systems. However, analysis of empirical and comparative evidence on how to enact these approaches has been limited. In this article, we analyse the inclusion of refugees in six low and middle-income country (LMIC) health systems (Kenya, Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), Mauritania, Pakistan, Peru and Zambia). Using a shared framework and tools, we collected data over 2023 to 2025, using document reviews, key informant interviews, focus group discussions and participatory workshops. Analysis was carried out separately for each setting, validated locally, and later compared for synthesis. We focus on key health system domains-governance, health financing, service delivery (including the health workforce) and health information systems-outlining the attributes of refugee inclusion and system integration in each, identifying patterns across the case studies and barriers and enablers. We identify leverage points for improving integration but highlight that inclusion of refugees into national health systems is complex and does not guarantee improved outcomes, especially when refugees previously benefited from a higher level of resources and are being included in strained host health systems. However, committed government leadership, coordinated international support, and multi-year investments in strengthening key components of the local health system, including enabling refugee health staff to engage effectively in it, can make the transition to an integrated system a beneficial one for both refugee and host communities.
