Citations

Abstract The past decade has seen a rise in the availability of breakthrough therapeutic strategies for treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). A tumor microenvironment in HCC is regulated by various immunotolerance mechanisms; therefore, therapeutic strategies aiming at disrupting tumor immune tolerance are becoming attractive curative options in HCC. Immune checkpoint inhibitors have demonstrated impressive effectiveness in HCC, including in sorafenib-unresponsive patients. Synergistic approaches with checkpoint inhibitors (anti-PD-1/PD-L1 and CTLA-4) and antiangiogenic drugs are burgeoning as first-line treatment therapeutic modalities in HCC.

ABSTRACTThere is a high prevalence of blood-borne infections in West Africa. This study sought to determine the seroprevalence of blood-borne infections, including hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), HIV, and syphilis, in blood donors in Burkina Faso. Blood donors were recruited from 2009 to 2013 in four major cities in Burkina Faso of urban area (Ouagadougou) and rural area (Bobo Dioulasso, Fada N’Gourma, and Ouahigouya). Serology tests including hepatitis B surface antigen, anti-HCV, anti-HIV, and rapid plasma reagin test were used for screening and were confirmed with ELISA. Disease prevalence was calculated among first-time donors. Incidence and residual risk were calculated from repeat donors. There were 166,681 donors; 43,084 had ≥ 2 donations. The overall seroprevalence of HBV, HCV, HIV, and syphilis were 13.4%, 6.9%, 2.1%, and 2.4%, respectively. The incidence rates (IRs) of HBV, HCV, HIV, and syphilis infection were 2,433, 3,056, 1,121, and 1,287 per 100,000 person-years. There was lower seroprevalence of HBV and HCV in urban area than in rural area (12.9% versus 14.0%, P < 0.001; and 5.9% versus 8.0%, P < 0.001), and no difference in HIV (2.1% versus 2.1%, P = 0.25). The IRs of new HBV, HCV, HIV, and syphilis were 2.43, 3.06, 1.12, and 1.29 per 100,000 person-years, respectively. The residual risk was one per 268 donations for HBV, one per 181 donations for HCV, and one per 1,480 donations for HIV, respectively. In conclusion, this comprehensive study from four blood donation sites in Burkina Faso showed high HBV and HCV seroprevalence and incidence with high residual risk from blood donation.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) genotype E (HBV‐E) accounts for the majority of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) infections in West Africa. We aimed to determine factors associated with HBV‐E‐induced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in West Africa. Data on patients from Burkina Faso who were hepatitis B surface antigen positive (HBsAg+) and had CHB were analyzed. HBV viral load and hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) status were measured in 3,885 individuals with CHB without HCC (CHB HCC−) and 59 individuals with CHB with HCC (CHB HCC+). HBV genotyping was performed for 364 subjects with CHB HCC− and 41 subjects with CHB HCC+. Overall, 2.5% of the CHB HCC− group was HBeAg+ compared with 0% of the CHB HCC+ group. Of the 364 patients who were CHB HCC− with available genotyping, the frequencies of HBV genotypes E and C/E were 70.3% and 12.9%, respectively. Age (odds ratio [OR] for older age, 1.08; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.06‐1.10 per 1‐year increase in age), male sex (OR, 2.03; 95% CI, 1.11‐3.69), and HBV viremia (OR, 1.48; 95% CI, 1.31‐1.67 per 1 log10 IU/mL) were each associated with HCC diagnosis. Patients with genotype E had a lower HBeAg prevalence (6.3% vs. 14.9%), lower HBV viral load, and higher prevalence of cirrhosis (14.5% vs. 4.8%) than patients with genotype C/E. Conclusion: HBV‐E is the most common circulating strain (70.3%) in West African patients. HCC was associated with older age, male sex, and high HBV viral load. It is expected that these results will further inform guidance on clinical management of HBV infection in West Africa.

Abstract Objectives Natural products commonly used in traditional medicine, such as essential oils (EOs), are attractive sources for the development of molecules with anti-proliferative activities for future treatment of human cancers, e.g., prostate and cervical cancer. In this study, the chemical composition of the EO from Cymbopogon nardus was characterized, as well as its antioxidativeproperties and anti-inflammatory and antiproliferative activities on LNCaP cells derived from prostate cancer. Methods The chemical composition of the EO was determined by GC/FID and GC/MS analyses. The antioxidative properties were assessed using DPPH radical scavenging assay and ABTS+• radical cation decolorization assay, and the anti-inflammatory capacity was determined by the inhibition of the lipoxygenase activity. Antiproliferative activity was evaluated by MTT assay. Results Collectively, our data show that the major constituents of C. nardus EO are citronellal (33.06 %), geraniol (28.40 %), nerol (10.94 %), elemol (5.25 %) and delta-elemene (4.09 %). C. nardus EO shows modest antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity compared to the standard galic acid. C. nardus EO exhibits the best antiproliferative activity on the prostate cancer cell line LNCaP with an IC50 of 58.0 ± 7.9 μg/mL, acting through the induction of the cell cycle arrest. Conclusions This study has determined that C. nardus EO efficiently triggers cytotoxicity and pens a new field of investigation regarding the putative use of this EO in vivo .

Abstract Objectives A cluster of specialized KIR genes of specialized KIR genes has been shown to be associated with susceptibility or resistance to viral infections in humans. Therefore, this pilot study, this pilot investigation sought to determine the frequencies of KIR genes human immunodeficiency virus type 1( HIV-1) patients and establish their potential clinical involvement in disease progression and staging. Methods HIV-1 infected and healthy individuals were selected for this study. Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), anti-HCV antibodies and anti-HIV-1/2 antibody/ antigen were screened using a 4 th generation ELISA assay (Cobas e 411 Analyzer, Roche Diagnostics GmbH Mannheim, Germany). SSP-PCR was used to evaluate the frequencies of KIR genes. CD4 + T counts and HIV-1 viral load were measured in patients using respectively BD FACSCount and Abbott m2000rt instruments. Results We found a significant association between the frequencies of KIR2DL2 (OR=4.41; p < 0.001), KIR2DS2 (OR=4.76; p < 0.001), KIR2DS3 (OR=2.27; p=0.004), KIR2DS4 (OR=1.76; p=0.026), KIR3DS1 (OR=2.43; p=0.016) and HIV-1 infection; whilst the KIR3DL1 gene (OR= 0.39; p < 0.001) was associated with protection against HIV-1 infection. HIV-1 replication was found to be associated with the presence of KIR2DS2 (OR=6.08, p = 0.024). In contrary the pseudogene KIR2DP1 (OR=0.39; p=0.026) were linked to a protective status with the highest number of lymphocyte T CD4 counts. Conclusion Our data showed that KIR2DL2, KIR2DS2, KIR2DS3, KIR2DS4 , and KIR3DS1 were significantly associated with HIV-1 infection whereas KIR3DL1 was associated with protection against HIV-1 infection. Further investigations are needed to fully comprehend the clinical significance of KIR genes in HIV disease progression.

AbstractBackgroundBlood transfusion is a pathway for the transmission of blood‐borne pathogens such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV) from donors to recipients in most countries in sub‐Saharan Africa, including Gabon. The study aimed to compare the performance of four rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs: Alere DETERMINE, BIOSYNEX Exacto Pro HIV, MEDIFF HIV 1&2, and BIOSYNEX IMMUNOQUICK HBsAg) with results of 4th‐generation immunoenzymatic assays COBAS 6000 e601 and EVOLIS BioRad for the detection of HIV and hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) in blood donors in Libreville, Gabon.MethodsReactive and nonreactive blood samples for HIV and HBsAg were selected using fourth‐generation ELISA COBAS 6000 e601 and EVOLIS BioRad. The sensitivities of RDTs were calculated using Epi Info version 6.04dfr (CDC, Atlanta, USA).ResultsSensitivities for the detection of HIV in blood donors were 90.9% for Alere DETERMINE, 81.8% for BIOSYNEX Exacto Pro HIV, and 81.8% for MEDIFF HIV 1&2 Serum/sang Total Cassette compared with COBAS 6000 e601. The sensitivity of Alere DETERMINE compared to the semi‐automated ELISA Bio‐Rad for HIV detection was 65.6%. The sensitivity of BIOSYNEX IMMUNOQUICK HBsAg compared to ELISA tests for the detection of HBsAg was 78.0%. The specificity of all RDTs for the detection of HIV and HBsAg was 100%.ConclusionAlere DETERMINE HIV‐1/2, MEDIFF HIV 1&2 Serum/sang Total Cassette, BIOSYNEX Exacto Pro HIV, and BIOSYNEX IMMUNOQUICK HBsAg are not recommended for determining whether donors qualify to donate blood because of their low sensitivity for the detection of HIV antibodies and HBsAg in blood donors in Gabon.

Gastrointestinal malignancies are challenging cancers with considerable economic and societal impacts on health care systems worldwide. While advances in surgical approaches have provided benefits to a proportion of patients, only modest improvements have been attained in the treatment of patients with advanced disease, resulting in limited improvement in survival rates in these patients. Oncolytic adenoviruses are being developed to address gastrointestinal malignancies. Each platform has evolved to maximize tumor-cell killing potency while minimizing toxicities. Tumor-specific bioengineered adenoviruses using chimeric promoters, prodrug convertase enzymes, lethal genes, tumor suppressor genes, and pseudo-typed capsids can provide the innovations for eventual success of oncolytic virotherapy. This article will review the developments in adenoviral platforms in the context of specific gastrointestinal cancers. From the bench to the implementation of clinical trials, this review aims to highlight advances in the field from its early days to the current state of affairs as it pertains to the application of adenoviral oncolytic therapy to gastrointestinal cancers.