A validated method for the analysis and profiling of ‘nyaope’ using gas chromatography – mass spectrometry

Nyaope, a Tswana word for a mixture or ‘mish-mash’, describes a drug cocktail consisting of heroin, cannabis, and on occasion other controlled substances and warfarin. It is highly addictive with extremely unpleasant side effects caused by withdrawal from the drug. It is a problem drug especially in townships in South Africa. However, its prevalence in neighbouring southern African states and further afield is not yet known. There is currently no validated method for the analysis and comparison of nyaope. We describe a validated method for the gas chromatography – mass spectrometry analysis of nyaope so that within-batch and between-batch comparisons of nyaope can successfully be made for the first time. The validated method managed an accuracy within the range 80–120%, the precision was less than 20% for all analytes and managed linearity with R2≥0.99. The detection limits for diamorphine, efavirenz, nevirapine and Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol were 14.2, 18.6, 18.7 and 9.94 pg on column, respectively, and the limits of quantitation were 43.1, 56.3, 56.6 and 30.1 pg on column, respectively. The simulated and casework samples were successfully discriminated into original batches using the identified nyaope components, the unsupervised chemometric methods principal component analysis and hierarchical clustering, as well as chromatographic profiles.

Group Game-Based Physical Activity Effects on Positive and Negative Affect of Male Adolescent Prisoners

This report arises from a larger study that aims to investigate the mental health of adolescent prisoners. The Indonesian juvenile justice system locks up more than half of young offenders (Pratiwi & Faridah, 2019). Questions have been rise about the mental well-being of the adolescent. This study, with a sample of 28 male prisoners age between 14 to 18 years old, explored the effects of physical activity using group-based games on mental heath of adolescent prisoners. These participants showed many behavioral and emotional problems before entering and during their time in prison, such as: family problem, drug abuse,problems with peers and officers. The participants had three sessions of game activities in one week. The pretest-posttest design was used to collect the data. This experimental study measured with positive affect and negative affect scale (PANAS) by Watson, Clark, and Carey (1988). Results show that group games-based physical activity can increase positive affect M= 4.750 (Sig = 0.001) from pretest to posttest, and decrease negative affect M= 2.968 (Sig = 0.003) from pretest to posttest. This study aims to show that that group games-based physical activity can make their lives inside the prison would be meaningful.

Use of targeted mobile X-ray screening and computer-aided detection software to identify tuberculosis among high-risk groups in Romania: descriptive results of the E-DETECT TB active case-finding project

ObjectiveTo implement and assess the mobile X-ray unit (MXU) equipped with digital radiography, computer-aided detection (CAD) software and molecular point of care tests to improve early tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis in vulnerable populations in a TB outreach screening programme in Romania.DesignDescriptive study.SettingsPrisons in Bucharest and other cities in the southern part of Romania, homeless shelters and services for problem drug users in Bucharest, and Roma populations in Bucharest and Craiova.Participants5510 individuals attended the MXU service; 5003 persons were radiologically screened, 61% prisoners, 15% prison staff, 11% Roma population, 10% homeless persons and/or problem drug users and 3% other.InterventionsRadiological digital chest X-ray (CXR) screening of people at risk for TB, followed by CAD and human reading of the CXRs, and further TB diagnostics when the pulmonologist classified the CXR as suggestive for TB.Primary and secondary outcome measuresTen bacteriologically confirmed TB cases were identified translating into an overall yield of 200 per 100 000 persons screened (95% CIs of 109 to 368 per 100 000). Prevalence rates among homeless persons and/or problem drug users (826/100 000; 95% CI 326 to 2105/100 000) and the Roma population (345/100 000; 95% CI 95 to 1251/100 000) were particularly high.ResultsThe human reader classified 6.4% (n=317) of the CXRs as suspect for TB (of which 32 were highly suggestive for TB); 16.3% of all CXRs had a CAD4TB version 6 score >50. All 10 diagnosed TB patients had a CAD4TB score >50; 9 had a CAD4TB score >60.ConclusionsGiven the high TB prevalence rates found among homeless persons and problem drug users and in the Roma population, targeted active case finding has the potential to deliver a major contribution to TB control in Romania.

Molecular Basis of the Therapeutical Potential of Clove (Syzygium aromaticum L.) and Clues to Its Anti-COVID-19 Utility

The current COronaVIrus Disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection is enormously affecting the worldwide health and economy. In the wait for an effective global immunization, the development of a specific therapeutic protocol to treat COVID-19 patients is clearly necessary as a short-term solution of the problem. Drug repurposing and herbal medicine represent two of the most explored strategies for an anti-COVID-19 drug discovery. Clove (Syzygium aromaticum L.) is a well-known culinary spice that has been used for centuries in folk medicine in many disorders. Interestingly, traditional medicines have used clove since ancient times to treat respiratory ailments, whilst clove ingredients show antiviral and anti-inflammatory properties. Other interesting features are the clove antithrombotic, immunostimulatory, and antibacterial effects. Thus, in this review, we discuss the potential role of clove in the frame of anti-COVID-19 therapy, focusing on the antiviral, anti-inflammatory, and antithrombotic effects of clove and its molecular constituents described in the scientific literature.

Tackling Immune Targets for Breast Cancer: Beyond PD-1/PD-L1 Axis

The burden of breast cancer is imposing a huge global problem. Drug discovery research and novel approaches to treat breast cancer have been carried out extensively over the last decades. Although immune checkpoint inhibitors are showing promising preclinical and clinical results in treating breast cancer, they are facing multiple limitations. From an immunological perspective, a recent report highlighted breast cancer as an “inflamed tumor” with an immunosuppressive microenvironment. Consequently, researchers have been focusing on identifying novel immunological targets that can tune up the tumor immune microenvironment. In this context, several novel non-classical immune targets have been targeted to determine their ability to uncouple immunoregulatory pathways at play in the tumor microenvironment. This article will highlight strategies designed to increase the immunogenicity of the breast tumor microenvironment. It also addresses the latest studies on targets which can enhance immune responses to breast cancer and discusses examples of preclinical and clinical trial landscapes that utilize these targets.

Workshop: Better prison health for better public health

According to the latest data, in 2018 about 590,000 people were held in prison on any given day in the EU, and more than double in the entire region. People in prison face multiple and complex health care issues, including a higher prevalence of communicable diseases than the general population. These are likely to be the result of a combination of overlapping, and sometimes interlinked, risk factors for infection, ill-health, and incarceration, such as problem drug use. Incarceration may facilitate the offer of quality health care services to people who are otherwise hard to reach and provide an occasion to target socially deprived groups who often have low level of healthcare access when in the community. Delivering health protection and harm reduction programmes in prisons not only benefits the prison population but also has the potential to reduce the risk of transmission of some infectious diseases in the community, intervening earlier in the natural history of disease. They are also likely also to have a knock-on effect in supporting individuals’ reintegration into community life and future health - providing a ‘community dividend’ to health interventions in prisons. Yet, such health gains may be diminished by suboptimal integration with community services. Continuity of care, or throughcare, between prison and community services is a mainstay of any health care interventions delivered in detention, especially when tackling chronic conditions (e.g. HIV, mental illnesses) or problem drug use. The World Health Organization (WHO) has long supported the concept of prison health as an inseparable component of public health. This view is enshrined by the principle of Equivalence of Care between prison and community, endorsed by the United Nations in the Nelson Mandela Rules. During the 2019 WHO Prison Health Conference in Helsinki, it was acknowledged that prisons contribute to achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals through improving health, reducing health inequalities and provide a fairer and safer society for all. However, a number of challenges hampers the successful implementation of such a concept, including the need for evidence-based decision making, inter-sectoral partnerships and adequate monitoring systems. This workshop will provide attendees with a comprehensive overview of prison health and the relevance of a multi-sectorial public health approach to frame and address it. The workshop will be structured around three main topics: governance of prison health and current models in Europe; health issues and disease burden in the prison population; current and future perspectives for evidence-based approaches to prison health. The discussion of two case studies, problem drug use and HCV micro-elimination, will create the context for an in-depth analysis of key challenges for prison health implementation, reflecting on aspects such as health needs, equity, multidisciplinarity, continuity of care, monitoring and community dividend. Key messages Provide a comprehensive picture of the main challenges of prison health in Europe, the public health issues affecting the prison population and how these relate to community public health systems. Reflect on how public health systems need to incorporate prison health into their strategies for reducing inequalities and improving health outcomes of vulnerable and socially deprived populations.

Men and the Drug Buzz: Masculinity and Men’s Motivations for Illicit Recreational Drug Use

The purpose of this article is to explore the motivations behind some men’s recreational use of illicit drugs from a gender standpoint. The rationale for this analysis stems from men’s predominance as illicit drug users and their likelihood of experiencing problem drug use and becoming a part of an over-represented population in drug treatment services. Explanations for men’s problematic/addicted patterns of drug use often point to marginalisation, disadvantage, and/or men’s tendency towards problematic health behaviours. This article argues that men’s illicit recreational drug use is often glossed over as a gendered activity and receives less scrutiny than problematic/addicted patterns of drug taking. It examines the drug-taking motivations of 20 Irish men who identified as illicit recreational drug users to expand on and deepen current explanations for men’s illicit recreational drug use. The article demonstrates how men engage in drug use for complex and contradictory reasons that include embodied quests for pleasure and excitement, achieving connection with other men, and performing or contravening masculinities in homosocial contexts.