scholarly journals Dose-Dependent Infectivity of Aseptic, Purified, Cryopreserved Plasmodium falciparum 7G8 Sporozoites in Malaria-Naive Adults

2019 ◽  
Vol 220 (12) ◽  
pp. 1962-1966 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew B Laurens ◽  
Andrea A Berry ◽  
Mark A Travassos ◽  
Kathy Strauss ◽  
Matthew Adams ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Plasmodium Falciparum ◽  
Malaria Infection ◽  
The United States ◽  
Infection Rates ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Dose Escalation Study ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
Controlled Human Malaria Infection ◽  
Dose Dependent

Abstract Direct venous inoculation of 3.2 × 103 aseptic, purified, cryopreserved, vialed Plasmodium falciparum (Pf) strain NF54 sporozoites, PfSPZ Challenge (NF54), has been used for controlled human malaria infection (CHMI) in the United States, 4 European countries, and 6 African countries. In nonimmune adults, this results in 100% infection rates. We conducted a double-blind, randomized, dose-escalation study to assess the infectivity of the 7G8 clone of Pf (PfSPZ Challenge [7G8]). Results showed dose-dependent infectivity from 43% for 8 × 102 PfSPZ to 100% for 4.8 × 103 PfSPZ. PfSPZ Challenge (7G8) will allow for more complete assessment by CHMI of antimalarial vaccines and drugs.

scholarly journals Increase of Dose Associated With Decrease in Protection Against Controlled Human Malaria Infection by PfSPZ Vaccine in Tanzanian Adults

2019 ◽  
Vol 71 (11) ◽  
pp. 2849-2857 ◽  
Author(s):  
Said A Jongo ◽  
L W Preston Church ◽  
Ali T Mtoro ◽  
Tobias Schindler ◽  
Sumana Chakravarty ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Malaria Infection ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction ◽  
The United States ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
Human Malaria ◽  
Cell Responses ◽  
Controlled Human Malaria Infection ◽  
Ideal Tool

Abstract Background A vaccine would be an ideal tool for reducing malaria’s impact. PfSPZ Vaccine (radiation attenuated, aseptic, purified, cryopreserved Plasmodium falciparum [Pf] sporozoites [SPZ]) has been well tolerated and safe in >1526 malaria-naive and experienced 6-month to 65-year-olds in the United States, Europe, and Africa. When vaccine efficacy (VE) of 5 doses of 2.7 × 105 PfSPZ of PfSPZ Vaccine was assessed in adults against controlled human malaria infection (CHMI) in the United States and Tanzania and intense field transmission of heterogeneous Pf in Mali, Tanzanians had the lowest VE (20%). Methods To increase VE in Tanzania, we increased PfSPZ/dose (9 × 105 or 1.8 × 106) and decreased numbers of doses to 3 at 8-week intervals in a double blind, placebo-controlled trial. Results All 22 CHMIs in controls resulted in parasitemia by quantitative polymerase chain reaction. For the 9 × 105 PfSPZ group, VE was 100% (5/5) at 3 or 11 weeks (P < .000l, Barnard test, 2-tailed). For 1.8 × 106 PfSPZ, VE was 33% (2/6) at 7.5 weeks (P = .028). VE of dosage groups (100% vs 33%) was significantly different (P = .022). Volunteers underwent repeat CHMI at 37–40 weeks after last dose. 6/6 and 5/6 volunteers developed parasitemia, but time to first parasitemia was significantly longer than controls in the 9 × 105 PfSPZ group (10.89 vs 7.80 days) (P = .039), indicating a significant reduction in parasites in the liver. Antibody and T-cell responses were higher in the 1.8 × 106 PfSPZ group. Conclusions In Tanzania, increasing the dose from 2.7 × 105 to 9 × 105 PfSPZ increased VE from 20% to 100%, but increasing to 1.8 × 106 PfSPZ significantly reduced VE. Clinical Trials Registration NCT02613520.

scholarly journals Impact of Fatty Acid Supplementation on Cognitive Performance among United States (US) Military Officers: The Ranger Resilience and Improved Performance on Phospholipid-Bound Omega-3’s (RRIPP-3) Study

Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 1854
Author(s):  
Bernadette P. Marriott ◽  
Travis H. Turner ◽  
Joseph R. Hibbeln ◽  
Jill C. Newman ◽  
Marcie Pregulman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
The United States ◽  
Military Officers ◽  
Krill Oil ◽  
Omega 3 ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
Significant Group ◽  
Intention To Treat ◽  
Improved Performance

Studies have assessed omega-3 fatty acids and cognitive decline among older adults and cognitive development among children, although less is known about cognitive or neurological effects among young adults. We examined whether omega-3 supplementation from krill oil could improve cognition and resilience among young military officers compared to a control. This double-blind, placebo-controlled trial enrolled 555 officers (mean age 23.4 ± 2.8, 98.6% male) entering the United States (US) Army Infantry Basic Officer Leaders Course (IBOLC) with the intention to complete the US Ranger Course. Volunteer participants consumed eight dietary supplements daily of krill oil containing 2.3 g omega-3 or control (macadamia nut oil) over an approximate 20-week period. Cognitive functioning, resilience, and mood were assessed during a well-rested period at approximately 14 weeks and after a battlefield simulation at 16 weeks. Blood spot samples were collected to monitor compliance and dietary intake was assessed. All hypotheses were tested using both ‘Intention to Treat’ (ITT) and ‘As Per Protocol’ (APP) approaches. Of the 555 randomized individuals, 245 (44.1%) completed the study. No statistically significant group-by-time interactions indicating treatment effect were found on any outcomes. Poor compliance was indicated by lower than expected omega-3 elevations in the treatment group, and may have contributed to a failure to detect a response.

scholarly journals Efficacy and safety of fremanezumab in patients with migraine and inadequate response to prior preventive treatment: subgroup analyses by country of a randomized, placebo-controlled trial

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Egilius L. H. Spierings ◽  
Mikko Kärppä ◽  
Xiaoping Ning ◽  
Joshua M. Cohen ◽  
Verena Ramirez Campos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Czech Republic ◽  
Adverse Events ◽  
Least Squares ◽  
The United States ◽  
Inadequate Response ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
Monthly Average ◽  
Preventive Medication ◽  
Subgroup Analyses

Abstract Background The FOCUS study evaluated the efficacy of migraine preventive medications across different countries within the same patient population, particularly for patients with difficult-to-treat migraine. These prespecified subgroup analyses evaluated efficacy by country in the FOCUS study of fremanezumab in adults with episodic migraine or chronic migraine and documented inadequate response to 2 to 4 migraine preventive medication classes. Methods Overall, 838 participants were enrolled in the FOCUS study, a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, phase 3b study performed at 104 sites. For 12 weeks of double-blind treatment, patients were randomized (1:1:1) to quarterly fremanezumab, monthly fremanezumab, or matched placebo. The primary efficacy endpoint was the mean change from baseline in monthly average migraine days over 12 weeks of double-blind treatment, evaluated by country in these subgroup analyses. Results Of 14 countries contributing data, the Czech Republic (n = 188/838; 22%), the United States (n = 120/838; 14%), and Finland (n = 85/838; 10%) enrolled the most patients. Changes from baseline in monthly average migraine days over 12 weeks were significantly greater with fremanezumab versus placebo for patients in these countries: Czech Republic (least-squares mean difference versus placebo [95% confidence interval]: quarterly fremanezumab, − 1.9 [− 3.25, − 0.47]; P = 0.009; monthly fremanezumab, − 3.0 [− 4.39, − 1.59]; P < 0.001), the United States (quarterly fremanezumab, − 3.7 [− 5.77, − 1.58]; P < 0.001; monthly fremanezumab, − 4.2 [− 6.23, − 2.13]; P < 0.001), and Finland (quarterly fremanezumab, − 3.0 [− 5.32, − 0.63]; P = 0.014; monthly fremanezumab, − 3.9 [− 6.27, − 1.44]; P = 0.002). Results were comparable for the remaining 9 countries, with the least-squares mean difference versus placebo ranging from – 5.6 to – 2.4 with quarterly fremanezumab and from − 5.3 to − 1.5 with monthly fremanezumab. Incidences of serious adverse events and adverse events leading to discontinuation were low and comparable across countries and treatment groups. Conclusions Monthly and quarterly fremanezumab significantly reduced the monthly average number of migraine days versus placebo regardless of country and continent (North America versus Europe) in migraine patients with documented inadequate response to 2 to 4 migraine preventive medication classes. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03308968.

scholarly journals Политика администрации Д.Трампа в отношении Африки

2021 ◽  
Vol 70 (7) ◽  
pp. 101-108
Author(s):  
Хлопов О.А
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Political Stability ◽  
The United States ◽  
Economic Cooperation ◽  
African Continent ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Assistance Programs ◽  
The Us ◽  
Military Security

The article reveals the reasons for the formation and change of the US policy towards African countries during the period of the activity of the President D. Trump. The author analyzes the features and reveals the directions of US policy towards the African continent: economic cooperation, assistance programs in the field of strengthening the socio-political stability of military security and the fight against terrorism. Under the new administration of J. Biden, the United States will have to reckon with the changes taking place in Africa and revise a number of principles of selective engagement with African countries.

scholarly journals Association Between HIV-Related Tweets and HIV Incidence in the United States: Infodemiology Study

10.2196/17196 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (6) ◽  
pp. e17196 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robin Stevens ◽  
Stephen Bonett ◽  
Jacqueline Bannon ◽  
Deepti Chittamuru ◽  
Barry Slaff ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Hiv Infection ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Hiv Risk ◽  
Intraclass Correlation ◽  
Hiv Infections ◽  
The United States ◽  
Infection Rates ◽  
Age Range

Background Adolescents and young adults in the age range of 13-24 years are at the highest risk of developing HIV infections. As social media platforms are extremely popular among youths, researchers can utilize these platforms to curb the HIV epidemic by investigating the associations between the discourses on HIV infections and the epidemiological data of HIV infections. Objective The goal of this study was to examine how Twitter activity among young men is related to the incidence of HIV infection in the population. Methods We used integrated human-computer techniques to characterize the HIV-related tweets by male adolescents and young male adults (age range: 13-24 years). We identified tweets related to HIV risk and prevention by using natural language processing (NLP). Our NLP algorithm identified 89.1% (2243/2517) relevant tweets, which were manually coded by expert coders. We coded 1577 HIV-prevention tweets and 17.5% (940/5372) of general sex-related tweets (including emojis, gifs, and images), and we achieved reliability with intraclass correlation at 0.80 or higher on key constructs. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify the spatial patterns in posting HIV-related tweets as well as the relationships between the tweets and local HIV infection rates. Results We analyzed 2517 tweets that were identified as relevant to HIV risk and prevention tags; these tweets were geolocated in 109 counties throughout the United States. After adjusting for region, HIV prevalence, and social disadvantage index, our findings indicated that every 100-tweet increase in HIV-specific tweets per capita from noninstitutional accounts was associated with a multiplicative effect of 0.97 (95% CI [0.94-1.00]; P=.04) on the incidence of HIV infections in the following year in a given county. Conclusions Twitter may serve as a proxy of public behavior related to HIV infections, and the association between the number of HIV-related tweets and HIV infection rates further supports the use of social media for HIV disease prevention.

scholarly journals Can Routine Neonatal Circumcision Help Prevent Human Immunodeficiency Virus Transmission in the United States?

2008 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao Xu ◽  
Divya A. Patel ◽  
Vanessa K. Dalton ◽  
Mark D. Pearlman ◽  
Timothy R. B. Johnson
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Human Immunodeficiency Virus ◽  
Clinical Trials ◽  
Virus Transmission ◽  
The United States ◽  
Scientific Data ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Immunodeficiency Virus ◽  
Neonatal Circumcision ◽  
Considerable Benefit

Primary prevention of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) continues to pose an important challenge in the United States. Recent clinical trials conducted in Kenya, South Africa, and Uganda have demonstrated considerable benefit of male circumcision in reducing HIV seroincidence in males. These results have ignited debate over the appropriateness of implementing routine provision of neonatal circumcision in the United States for HIV prevention. This article discusses major contextual differences between the United States and the three African countries where the clinical trials were conducted, and cautions that the applicability of the scientific data from Africa to this country must be carefully considered before rational policy recommendations regarding routine neonatal circumcision can be made as a strategy to prevent the spread of HIV in the United States.

The Diplomatic Campaign, 1963–1966

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregg A. Brazinsky
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Third World ◽  
The United States ◽  
Great Powers ◽  
African Countries ◽  
The Third ◽  
United Front ◽  
The Third World

During the early 1960s, Beijing launched a new diplomatic effort to raise its visibility and promote its viewpoints in the Third World. Its goal was to assemble a radical coalition (or united front) of Afro-Asian states that opposed imperialism and revisionism. The PRC took advantage of the frustrations with the Great Powers harbored by Indonesia, Cambodia, Pakistan and some of the newly independent African countries to win allies in the Third World. The United States constantly sought to undermine these efforts by advocating more moderate versions of nonalignment and mobilizing public opinion against Chinese officials when they travelled abroad.

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