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Apopo Annual Report 2018, Apopo

Global CWD Repository

APOPO is a non-profit organization with roots in Belgium. For 20 years we have trained African giant pouched rats to detect landmines and tuberculosis around the world. APOPO trains the ‘HeroRATs’ using positive reinforcement – they receive tasty treats when they identify a target scent. HeroRATs are at the core of the organization and this is reflected in the way we protect them and provide loving care and attention.

The main hub of the organization, the Training and R&D center, is located in Tanzania, where all the HeroRATs are trained before being sent to global operations. This is where all …

Analysis Of Latent Tuberculosis Infection Treatment Adherence In An Inner-City Clinic, Yvonne Washington-Turay

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

More than 10 million people in the United States are known to have latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI), and more than 300,000 begin treatment for LTBI annually. However, many fail to adhere to therapy for numerous reasons. The purpose of this project was to evaluate the impact of a new guideline, Targeted Tuberculin Testing and the Treatment of Latent Tuberculosis, at inner-city tuberculosis (TB) control clinic in the United States. The practice-focused question for the project asked if the implementation of the clinical guideline using a shorter regimen improved LTBI treatment adherence. The health beliefs model was the framework used to …

Determinants And Characteristics Of Tuberculosis In Liver Transplant Recipients, Ayli̇n Özgen Alpaydin, Mücahi̇t Özbi̇lgi̇n, Madina Abdullayeva, Selver Seda Mersi̇n, Tufan Egeli̇, Tarkan Ünek, Oğuz Kilinç, İbrahi̇m Kemal Astarcioğlu, Vi̇ldan Avkan Oğuz

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

Background/aim: Solid organ transplant (SOT) recipients have increased risk of tuberculosis (TB). We aimed to investigate the prevalence and features of TB in liver transplant (LT) recipients at our transplantation canter. Materials and methods: All patients who underwent LT between January 2004 and December 2013 and whose data were accessible were included in the study. Demographic features, tuberculin skin test (TST) results, and TB prevalence were recorded. Characteristics of LT recipients who developed TB were evaluated. Results: A total of 403 patients underwent LT during this period. Mean age was 47.27 ± 11.04 years; 280 (69.47%) were males. The TST …

Vitamin E Status Is Inversely Associated With Risk Of Incident Tuberculosis Disease Among Household Contacts, Omowunmi Aibana, Molly F Franke, Chuan-Chin Huang, Jerome T Galea, Roger Calderon, Zibiao Zhang, Mercedes C Becerra, Emily R Smith, Carmen Contreras, Rosa Yataco, Leonid Lecca, Megan B Murray

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Few studies have previously assessed how pre-existing vitamin E status is associated with risk of tuberculosis (TB) disease progression.

OBJECTIVE: We evaluated the association between baseline plasma concentrations of 3 vitamin E isomers (α-tocopherol, γ-tocopherol, and δ-tocopherol) and TB disease risk.

METHODS: We conducted a case-control study nested within a longitudinal cohort of household contacts (HHCs) of pulmonary TB cases in Lima, Peru. We defined cases as HHCs who developed active TB disease ≥15 d after the diagnosis of the index patient, and we matched each case to 4 control cases who did not develop active TB based on …

Perceptions Of Private Medical Practitioners Towards The Nigerian National Tuberculosis Treatment Guidelines, Chijioke Pius Osakwe

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Tuberculosis (TB) is a major public health problem in many parts of the world. Nigeria is one of the 30 countries in the world that has the highest burden of TB. Private medical practitioners in Nigeria play an important role in health care delivery. Motivating them to adhere to TB treatment guidelines in managing persons suspected of having TB or diagnosed with the disease is one of the strategies employed by the National Tuberculosis Program to Reduce the Burden of TB. Few studies were identified which used qualitative study approaches to study the perceptions of these practitioners towards the TB …

Socio-Economic Predictors And Distribution Of Tuberculosis Incidence In Beijing, China: A Studyusing A Combination Of Spatial Statistics And Gis Technology, Gehendra Mahara, Kun Yang, Sipeng Chen, Wei Wang, Xiuhua Guo

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Evidence shows that multiple factors, such as socio-economic status and access to health care facilities, affect tuberculosis (TB) incidence. However, there is limited literature available with respect to the correlation between socio-economic/health facility factors and tuberculosis incidence. This study aimed to explore the relationship between TB incidence and socio-economic/health service predictors in the study settings. A retrospective spatial regression analysis was carried out based on new sputum smear-positive pulmonary TB cases in Beijing districts. Global Moran’s I analysis was adopted to detect the spatial dependency followed by spatial regression models (spatial lag model, and spatial error model) along with the …

A Novel Model Of “Remedy And Elimination Of Tuberculosis”, Akanksha Mishra

Master's Theses

Tuberculosis (TB), is one of the top ten causes of death worldwide. TB is commonly linked to poverty and creates poverty as it is the single largest cause of death in the 15-49-year-old age group in South-East Asia (WHO, 2017). It is also linked to the HIV population, and its leading cause of death. TB is effected by socio-economic factors, cultural factors, and health policy. My goal of this dissertation is to identify systematic approaches that shall support the mission set by World Health Organization (WHO): to eliminate TB globally by the year 2050. Measures might include addressing social barriers …

Discovery, Research, And Development Of New Antibiotics: The Who Priority List Of Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria And Tuberculosis, Evelina Tacconelli, Elena Carrara, Alessia Savoldi, Stephan Harbarth, Marc Mendelson, Dominique L. Monnet, Celine Pulcini, Gunnar Kahlmeter, Jan Kluytmans, Yehuda Carmeli, Marc Ouellette, Kevin Outterson, Jean Patel, Marco Cavaleri, Edward M. Cox, Chris R. Houchens, M Lindsay Grayson, Paul Hansen, Nalini Singh, Ursula Theuretzbacher, Nicola Magrini, Who Pathogens Priority List Working Group

Faculty Scholarship

Summary

Background The spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria poses a substantial threat to morbidity and mortality worldwide. Due to its large public health and societal implications, multidrug-resistant tuberculosis has been long regarded by WHO as a global priority for investment in new drugs. In 2016, WHO was requested by member states to create a priority list of other antibiotic-resistant bacteria to support research and development of effective drugs.

Methods We used a multicriteria decision analysis method to prioritise antibiotic-resistant bacteria; this method involved the identification of relevant criteria to assess priority against which each antibiotic-resistant bacterium was rated. The final priority …

Is Tb Testing Associated With Increased Blood Interferon-Gamma Levels?, Aideen E. Kennedy, Jim O'Mahony, Noel Byrne, John Macsharry, Riona G. Sayers

Department of Biological Sciences Publications

The Republic of Ireland reports a relatively low prevalence of Johne’s disease (JD) compared to international counterparts. Postulated reasons for this include a lower average herd size and a grass-based production system. Ireland also engages in high levels of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) testing. As interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) is believed to play a key role in protecting against JD, it is our hypothesis that administration of purified protein derivative (PPD), as part of the bTB test, is associated with a systemic increase in IFN-γ production, which may potentially limit clinical progression of the disease. We studied 265 cows (202 Friesian and 63 …

Impact Of Vitamin A And Carotenoids On The Risk Of Tuberculosis Progression, Omowunmi Aibana, Molly F Franke, Chuan-Chin Huang, Jerome T Galea, Roger Calderon, Zibiao Zhang, Mercedes C Becerra, Emily R Smith, Alayne G Ronnenberg, Carmen Contreras, Rosa Yataco, Leonid Lecca, Megan B Murray

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Low and deficient levels of vitamin A are common in low- and middle-income countries where tuberculosis burden is high. We assessed the impact of baseline levels of vitamin A and carotenoids on tuberculosis disease risk.

METHODS: We conducted a case-control study nested within a longitudinal cohort of household contacts (HHCs) of pulmonary tuberculosis case patients in Lima, Peru. We defined case patients as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-negative HHCs with blood samples in whom tuberculosis disease developed ≥15 days after enrollment of the index patient. For each case patient, we randomly selected 4 controls from among contacts in whom tuberculosis …

Level Of Exposure Of Childhood Tuberculosis With Adult Pulmonary Tuberculosis Household Contacts, Al Asyary, Tris Eryando, Purwantyastuti Purwantyastuti, Purnawan Junadi, Carol Clark, Edwin Van Teijlingen

Kesmas

Tuberkulosis paru (TB) pada anak kian menjadi masalah kesehatan global yang masih terlupakan seiring dengan peningkatan proporsi TB di Indonesia. Penularan penyakit ini di populasi umum seringkali berdampak pada anak, terlebih ketika kontak TB terjadi di rumah tangga. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk memperoleh faktor protektif sehingga anak tetap sehat meskipun memiliki kontak dengan penderita TB dewasa serumah. Penelitian ini dilakukan dengan pendekatan kasus kontrol pada 132 responden anak yang berasal dari delapan rumah sakit rujukan dan beberapa puskesmas di Provinsi Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta. Penelitian dilakukan dalam periode Januari hingga Desember 2014 yang hasilnya dianalisis dengan uji bivariat (kai kuadrat) dan …

Age Appropriate Treatment Of Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis In South Africa, Brittney Jayne Sullivan

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to describe the time from DR-TB diagnosis to treatment initiation for people in South Africa with DR-TB with and without HIV and to evaluate the influence of age on the timing of treatment initiation after controlling for patient and health system characteristics. It was hypothesized that younger patients would have a greater number of days from DR-TB diagnosis to DR-TB treatment initiation. Additionally, we address the knowledge gaps pertaining to prescription of guideline-based treatment for DR-TB at treatment initiation and the influence of individual and health system factors on prescribed treatment for youth and …

Evaluation Of T-Spot Tb Test To Detection Tuberculosis In Al- Muthanna Province, Haider Hameed Mitab

Muthanna Medical Journal

Tuberculosis (TB) stands as a major public health problem worldwide. The rapid diagnosis of individuals with active TB and detection of individuals with latent TB and rapid introduction of effective treatment to prevent them from spreading of disease. The aim of study was to evaluation the IGRA in the diagnosis of TB in comparison to other tests (conventional and molecular tests) during the period from October/2015 to June/2016 in advisory clinic for respiratory diseases and thoracic in Al-Samawa city in Al- Muthanna province. Sixty sputum and blood specimens were taken in this study was conducted with randomly selected people for …

Factors Associated With Non-Acceptance Of Testing And Evaluation Of Household Contacts Exposed To Tuberculosis, Elvy G. Barroso

International Nursing Research Congress (INRC)

Purpose: The WHO reports that the incidence of TB is approximately 9.0 million new cases globally each year and approximately 3.3 million cases are missed by health systems as either undiagnosed or not reported. A single index case can infect up to 10 to 15 contacts over the course of a year. Thus, complete and timely evaluation of all contacts exposed to TB is crucial for decreasing the transmission and incidence of TB. Several barriers to testing of contacts have been identified, however, no studies specifically address contacts" non-acceptance to TB testing and evaluation. Both nurses and non-nurse managers conduct …

The Role Of Bhlhe40 In Autoimmune Neuroinflammation And Mycobacterial Infection, Chih-Chung Lin

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

The mammalian immune system is composed of innate and adaptive compartments, which cooperate with each other to maintain homeostasis and protect the host from the invasion by a variety of pathogens. The tight control of immune responses is extremely important for all individuals. Here, we discovered that the transcription factor basic helix-loop-helix family, member e40 (Bhlhe40) is a critical protein that regulates the autoimmune ("against self") and anti-microbial ("against non-self") responses of myeloid cells and T lymphocytes. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a human neuroinflammatory disease in the central nervous system with an autoimmune etiology. We have reported that Bhlhe40 positively …

Tuberculosis Contact Investigation In An Urban Omaha High School, Kyra L. Crepin

Theses & Dissertations

In November 2016, a 15-19 year old high school student was diagnosed with active pulmonary Tuberculosis (TB) and reported to the Douglas County Health Department (DCHD) in Omaha, Nebraska. A contact investigation led the health department to a local urban high school with a diverse and mobile population. A modified point of dispensing (POD) clinic was determined to be the efficient method to test the 196 faculty and students that were exposed to the index case. Emergency response coordinators (ERC’s) at DCHD adapted the POD dispensing plan with an embedded Incident Command System (ICS) to fit a smaller incident as …

Tuberculosis And Risk Of Acute Myocardial Infarction: A Propensity Score-Matched Analysis, Moises A. Huaman, Richard J. Kryscio, Carl J. Fichtenbaum, David Henson, Elizabeth G. Salt, Timothy R. Sterling, Beth A. Garvy

Biostatistics Faculty Publications

Several pathogens have been associated with increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. Whether this occurs with Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection is unclear. We assessed if tuberculosis disease increased the risk of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). We identified patients with tuberculosis index claims from a large de-identified database of ~15 million adults enrolled in a U.S. commercial insurance policy between 2008 and 2010. Tuberculosis patients were 1:1 matched to patients without tuberculosis claims using propensity scores. We compared the occurrence of index AMI claims between the tuberculosis and non-tuberculosis cohorts using Kaplan–Meier curves and Cox Proportional Hazard models. Data on 2026 patients with …

Translational Pharmacokinetic-Pharmacodynamic Modeling And Simulation In The Development Of Spectinamides, A Novel Class Of Anti-Tuberculosis Agents, Chetan Rathi

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

New chemotherapeutic agents are urgently needed to control the spread of multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) forms of tuberculosis, which still remains an important public health challenge globally. Recently, spectinamides have emerged as a novel class of anti-tuberculosis agents that overcomethe native drug efflux. Spectinamides bind to the 30S bacterial ribosomal subunit which interferes with ribosomal translocation, and ultimately results in inhibition of protein synthesis. They have potent in vitro activity against drug resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), and also demonstrated sustained efficacy in (Mtb)-infected mouse models. Pharmacokinetic (PK)/ pharmacodynamic (PD) analyses play a critical role in identifying …

Disease Introduction By Aboriginal Humans In North America And The Pleistocene Extinction, Zachary D. Nickell, Matthew D. Moran

Journal of Ecological Anthropology

While overhunting and climate change have been the major hypotheses to explain the late-Pleistocene New World megafaunal extinctions, the role of introduced disease has only received brief attention. Here, we review pre-Columbian diseases endemic to aboriginal Americans and evaluate their potential to cause large-scale mortality in Pleistocene mammals. Of the probable communicable diseases present in pre-Columbian times, we regard anthrax and tuberculosis as viable candidates. These two diseases demonstrate characteristics that could have made them deadly to immunologically naïve populations. Introduced disease, as a primary cause or interacting with overhunting and climate change, could have contributed to the decline and …

The Effect Of Anti-Tuberculosis Drugs On The Effectiveness Of Anti-Retroviral Therapy In Hiv-Aids Patients, Hasriana Hasriana, Sofa D. Alfian, Tiana Milanda, Rizky Abdulah

Pharmacology and Clinical Pharmacy Research

Tuberculosis is the most common opportunistic infection and a leading cause of death among patients who infected by Humman Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) in developing countries. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of anti-tuberculosis drugs (ATB) on the effectiveness of anti-retroviral (ARV) therapy in HIV–AIDS infected patients.This study was a prospective cohort study conducted at outpatient clinic of Abepura Hospital during April-June 2015. The data were taken from medical records, which include CD4 level, gen-der, age, education and stage of disease. Statistical analysis was performed using bivariateand multiple regression analysis. A total of 28 subjects was included …

Economic Burden Of Tuberculosis Among Bangladeshi Population And Economic Evaluation Of The Current Approaches Of Tuberculosis Control In Bangladesh, Mohammad Rifat Haider

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Tuberculosis (TB) is major scourge for human history and causes profound economic burden. Bangladesh is a high burden TB country with 12% of its annual death is caused and 362 thousand people are infected by TB. DS-TB is the most prominent type of TB found in Bangladesh and a 6 month drug regimen (2 month intensive and 4 month continuation phase) is followed. But the directly observed treatment short-course (DOTS) differ in delivery through community health workers (CHW) and community members (CM). Bangladesh has also experienced surge in the number of MDR-TB cases with a 29% of MDR-TB cases …

Appendicular Mass – A Rare Form Of Tuberculosis, Petrisor Banu, Vlad D. Constantin, Florian Popa, Mircea Bratucu, Teodora Vladescu, Cristian Balalau

Journal of Mind and Medical Sciences

Tuberculosis is in the top 10 causes of death worldwide, being one of the most deadly infectious diseases. It is estimated that one of three people from the entire earth population has a latent infection with M tuberculosis. This aerobic bacterium possesses the ability to persist in host tissues for years and to begin replication once immunity declines.

The lungs are most frequent site of infection as the Mycobacterium tuberculosis is carried by aerosol droplets and is commonly transmitted by respiratory route. The second way of transmission is by contaminated food.

Intestinal contamination coexists with pulmonary tuberculosis and only 10% …

Th1 Differentiation Drives The Accumulation Of Intravascular, Non-Protective Cd4 T Cells During Tuberculosis, Michelle A. Sallin, Shunsuke Sakai, Keith D. Kauffman, Howard A. Young, Jinfang Zhu, Daniel L. Barber

United States Public Health Resources

Recent data indicate that the differentiation state of Th1 cells determines their protective capacity against tuberculosis. Therefore, we examined the role of Th1-polarizing factors in the generation of protective and non-protective subsets of Mtb-specific Th1 cells. We find that IL-12/23p40 promotes Th1 cell expansion and maturation beyond the CD73+CXCR3+T-betdim stage, and T-bet prevents deviation of Th1 cells into Th17 cells. Nevertheless, IL- 12/23p40 and T-bet are also essential for the production of a prominent subset of intravascular CX3CR1+KLRG1+ Th1 cells that persists poorly and can neither migrate into the lung parenchyma nor control Mtb growth. Furthermore, T-bet suppresses development of …

Risk Factors For Poor Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis Treatment Outcomes In Kyiv Oblast, Ukraine, Omowunmi Aibana, Mariya Bachmaha, Viatcheslav Krasiuk, Natasha Rybak, Timothy P Flanigan, Vasyl Petrenko, Megan B Murray

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Ukraine is among ten countries with the highest burden of multidrug- resistant TB (MDR-TB) worldwide. Treatment success rates for MDR-TB in Ukraine remain below global success rates as reported by the World Health Organization. Few studies have evaluated predictors of poor MDR-TB outcomes in Ukraine.

METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of patients initiated on MDR-TB treatment in the Kyiv Oblast of Ukraine between January 01, 2012 and March 31st, 2015. We defined good treatment outcomes as cure or completion and categorized poor outcomes among those who died, failed treatment or defaulted. We used logistic regression analyses to identify …

Afghanistan : Tuberculosis, Emily Fulk

Global Public Health

Afghanistan, a country in the Middle East, faces the epidemic of an infectious bacterial lung disease called Tuberculosis, or TB. Tuberculosis is fairly easy to spread, as the bacteria that causes it are spread from one person to another through tiny droplets released into the air via coughs and sneezes. Despite the widespread amounts of individuals affected with TB, it is known to be easily curable using a six month treatment. And so public health officials have implemented a program called DOTS, or Directly Observed Treatment Short Course in Kabul City to test the effectiveness of this treatment. The DOTS …

Apopo Annual Report 2017, Apopo

Global CWD Repository

APOPO is a global nonprofit organization that researches, develops, and implements scent-detection technology to combat global humanitarian issues. APOPO’s detection rats currently detect landmines or tuberculosis in 5 affected countries around the world.

The rats are trained through clicker/reward methods, receiving tasty food treats when they identify explosives or tuberculosis. They are never harmed, because they are too light to actually set off any landmines and are cared for under strict animal welfare guidelines.

APOPO has mine action programmes in Angola, Cambodia, and Mozambique and is preparing operations in Zimbabwe and Colombia. APOPO also detects tuberculosis in Tanzania and Mozambique, …

Possible Risk Factors For Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis Infection In The Philippines, Molovon Jr Pasagui Azores

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the Philippines. The purpose of this study was to gain knowledge about the relationship between potential risk factors and MDR-TB. Risk factors (the independent variables) for MDR-TB (the dependent variable) include previous TB treatment, infection with HIV, exposure to patients with drug-susceptible TB/MDR-TB, delays in diagnosis and treatment, employment status, smoking, imprisonment, alcohol abuse, and poor compliance with TB treatment regimens. The study was based on the epidemiological approach to causal inference work. A case-control study design was used wherein a quantitative method was applied in data …

Determining The Effects Of Methanol, Ethanol, Isopropanol, And Glycerol On Both Thermal Stability And Catalytic Activity Of Rv0045c, An Enzyme From M. Tuberculosis, Katelyn Baumer

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Tuberculosis (TB) is a highly infectious respiratory disease contracted through the inhalation of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Serine hydrolases are abundant in M. tuberculosis and serve as a model for studying the inhibition of TB. Rv0045c is an example of such with little known regarding its biological function. Rv0045c was exposed to methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, or glycerol and the effects of varying concentration of these alcohols on the catalytic efficiency and thermal stability of the enzyme was determined. The thermal stability of Rv0045c was found to decrease with concentration of methanol, ethanol, or isopropanol. The opposite was true of the thermal stability …

A Tale Of Two Regulators : Characterization Of The Novel Transcription Factor Abmr And The Small Non-Coding Rna Mcr11 In Mycobacterium Tuberculosis, Roxanne Candice Girardin

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Genes of unknown function make up nearly one third of Mtb’s genome (Cole,

Validating Drug Targets Through Inhibition Of Protein-Protein Interactions In Mycobacterium Tuberculosis, Erin C. Driscoll

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Tuberculosis is the leading cause of death by single infectious disease worldwide; novel antibiotics are needed to continue to treat this disease. To goal of this project is to provide proof-of-principle support for the idea that targeting protein-protein interactions (PPI) is an appropriate course for the discovery of new drugs. This study optimized the M-PFC assay, which allows detection of PPI in Mycobacteria, through the use of stronger promoters and inducible expression of a peptide blocker by riboswitch. To accomplish this, promoter induction studies were used to find stronger promoters for the M-PFC, optimization of the riboswitch as a …