ABSTRACT Human immunodeficiency virus-1(HIV-1) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) co-infection are two rapidly growing epidemics and health concerns strongly driven by injection drug use (IDU) in Kenya and the entire world. Inflammatory cytokines are important mediators of the host response to HIV-1 and HCV infections including injection drugs. However, the molecular interaction between HIV-1 and HCV co-infection and correlation with injection drug use is largely undefined. Therefore, this cross-sec...
ABSTRACT Malaria is a major contributor of ill health and death particularly among infants and pregnant women in sub-Saharan Africa. The infected erythrocytes sequester in the placenta and may be present throughout the whole pregnancy period. Although microscopy is the gold standard method currently acceptable in diagnosis of malaria in hospital, it is unreliable because during pregnancy, malaria parasites disappear from peripheral circulation and remain undetectable through microscopic exami...
ABSTRACT Malaria in pregnancy has been linked to utero-placental vascular insufficiency and fetal fatalities. The immunity to placental malaria may be mediated in part by monocytes and T cells that accumulate in the placenta intervillous space. The immunological basis for retention of anti-malarial effector cells in the intervillous space and the role of leucocyte integrins in the intervillous space is not well understood. Leucocytes use surface receptors to mediate binding on endothelial vil...
ABSTRACT Food borne infections are an important public health concern worldwide with most being caused by pathogens that are zoonotic in nature. Among the most common food borne infection is listeriosis, caused by Listeria monocytogenes, a bacterium that is widely distributed in nature and which has been isolated in a wide array of foods. It mainly affects immunocompromised individuals including pregnant women, neonates and the elderly. Currently, in Kenya, there is no published data on the ...
ABSTRACT Ailments such as malaria, measles, pneumonia, common cold and HIV/AIDS are the major cause of death in infants and children. worldwide, it was estimated that 1.8 million children below 15 years were HIV infected by 2017. Over 90% were infected through mother to child transmission (MTCT) during pregnancy, at birth and during breast-feeding. During that period, Kenya had about 12,940 children who had the infection and 1,480 of these were from Kirinyaga County. The Kenyan government ha...
ABSTRACT Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is the main pandemic in the world today. Sub-Saharan Africa bears the brunt of the catastrophe. Although it harbours less than 10% of the world‟s population, it comprises 60% of all people living with HIV/AIDS globally. Kenya has a National adult HIV/AIDS prevalence of 7.4%. In recent times, expansion of access to antiretroviral therapy in resource-limited settings has gained prominence. However, it is estim...
ABSTRACT Anaemia is a disease, according to the World Health Organization, in which the haemoglobin concentration is below 12 g/dl of blood. The prevalence of anaemia in school going children in Africa is 64.6% while in Asia it is 47.7%. Anaemia is also prevalent among women and infants and threatens the life of millions of people every year. Modern therapies in management of anaemia are either too expensive or unavailable to many communities. Use of plants in the management of anaemia is no...
ABSTRACT Pre-school children represent the population most vulnerable to malaria and malnutrition in Sub-Saharan Africa. The available data is conflicting as to whether malnutrition is associated with an increased or decreased risk of malaria. This study sought to determine the impact of child malnutrition on anti-P. falciparum IgG response in a comparative cross-sectional approach. Anthropometric measurements of height and weight plus standard deviation in Z-scores were determined in 380 ch...
ABSTRACT Pneumococcal disease remains the biggest killer of children living in Kenya. This is true despite inclusion of the 10-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in the Kenya Expanded Program on Immunization. Serotype replacement, emergence of antibiotic resistance, inaccurate laboratory diagnosis due to optochin resistant bacterial types and a range of environmental and host related risk factors have been touted to be the cause of these statistics elsewhere. This study sought to establis...
ABSTRACT Human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) appeared on the scene over twenty years ago and has since caused many deaths; left millions orphaned and created uncertainty in any families. The virus has also created a socio-economic burden to many countries. The entry into and tropism of the host immune cells by the HIV-1 depends on chemokine receptors and coreceptor interactions among other factors. Genetic polymorphism in chemokine receptors and coreceptor genes influences susceptibi...
ABSTRACT Zoonotic nontuberculous Mycobacteria (NTM) cross infect a wide range of domestic animals, wildlife and man causing various diseases. Despite the public health implications associated with mycobacterial infection and the existing close interaction of pastoralists and camels, information on diagnosis and epidemiology of zoonotic NTM amongst camels and closely associated community members is scanty. The present study was a one-health approach study involving diagnosis and epidemiology o...
ABSTRACT Schistosomiasis is a parasitic disease caused by trematode worms. The most prevalent species of the worm in Kenya is Schistosoma mansoni. The disease is endemic in parts of Nyanza, Eastern and Coast provinces. Its prevalence in primary school children in Asembo area near Lake Victoria in Rarieda district of Nyanza province is about 17%. Children are more susceptible to infection than adults and thus bear a greater burden of schistosomiasis in terms of morbidity and intensity of infe...
ABSTRACT Neonatal infections mostly sepsis and meningitis currently cause about 4.9 million deaths annually in developing countries. According to World Health Organization (WHO) estimates, there are about 5 million neonatal deaths that occur in the world per year due to sepsis, with 98% occurring in developing countries. Neonatal sepsis is the leading cause of neonatal mortality in Nakuru County Referral Hospital (NCRH) according to the hospital records, yet no study has been done in the hos...
ABSTRACT In mammals, the surface respiratory macrophages (SM) play a critical role in protecting the respiratory system by providing first line defense through engulfing and destroying inhaled pathogens and harmful particulates. During adaptive immune responses, SM process and present antigens to T lymphocytes. Paucity of SM has been reported in the avian respiratory system. It has been reported that the pulmonary cellular defenses in birds are inadequate. In particular susceptibility to res...
ABSTRACT Antenatal syphilis is a major cause of perinatal morbidity and mortality. Programmes to control syphilis in developing countries are hampered by lack of laboratory services, delayed diagnosis and doubts about the accuracy of the current screening methods. In Kenya, the Venereal Disease Research Laboratory (VDRL) test is currently used as the primary screening test for syphilis in health facilities. This method is labour intensive in the screening of large numbers of serum specimens a...