Detailed description of malaria in low transmission areas is crucial for elimination. The current study aimed to provide a comprehensive description for malaria transmission in Jazan, a low transmission district, southwestern Saudi Arabia. Patients at a tertiary care hospital were recruited in our study between August 2016 and September 2018. Malaria diagnosis was performed through a species-specific nested polymerase chain reaction (nested PCR), microscopy and Paramax-3 TM rapid detection test (RDT). Malaria was detected in 30 patients by the PCR, with point prevalence of 10.9%. Of these malaria infections, 80% was imported, 26.6% was asymptomatic and 23.3% was sub-microscopic. Malaria was reported throughout the year, with February/March and September/October peaks. Infection was significantly more in males than in females (P = 0.01). Likewise, infections were detected more in febrile than in non-febrile patients (P = 0.01). Adult aged 15-24 years, fever and travel were identified as high-risk factors. Malaria was primarily attributed to Plasmodium falciparum mono-infections, followed by P. vivax mono-infections and lastly to falciparum/vivax mixed infections accounting 76.6%, 16.6%, and 6.6% of PCR-confirmed malaria cases, respectively. The nested PCR was superior to the smear microscopy (sensitivity 76.6%; specificity 100%) and the RDT (sensitivity 83.3%, specificity 94.2%). The overall percent agreement between microscopy and the RDT was 92.7% (kappa= 0.63). High proportion of imported malaria including sub-microscopic and sub-patent cases were described. We suggest that incorporation of molecular tool into the conventional malaria diagnosis is beneficial in Jazan district.
The Corona pandemic caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) calls on the Saudi government to take action to control the infection. The government closed borders, prohibited travel, limited outdoor movements, and told primary and secondary care facilities to reduce all regular non-urgent health services. It is not known whether these measures have impacted the prevalence of parasitic intestinal infections. This study has therefore been carried out to investigate this issue. Dataset of 217 stool samples submitted to the King Faisal Medical Complex (KFMC) Microbiology Laboratory in Taif, Saudi Arabia for parasitological examination during the pandemic (January-June 2020) and 649 samples submitted during the corresponding months of the previous year (January-June 2019) were extracted and analyzed. Overall, 24.1% (209/866) of samples were parasitespositives; 26.6% (173/649) before and 16.5% (36/217) during the pandemic, with 79% reduction. There was a significant difference in gender-parasitism between the two periods where the majority of parasitism were for males (p<0.001). Infections were frequent in patients aged 5-14 years both before (84/649; 12.9%) and during (12/217; 5.5%) the pandemic, with significant difference observed between the two cohorts (p<0.002). Moreover, the majority of infected patients were non-Saudi (67.9%; 142/209), with a significant difference in nationality reported, (p=0.024). Protozoa were identified in 21.8% (189) of all samples investigated, of which, Blastocystis hominis, Entamoeba coli, Giardia lamblia, Entamoeba histolytica/dispar and Cryptosporidium species were identified in 6.1% (53), 5.4% (47), 5.0% (44), 2.8% (25), and 2.3% (20), respectively. Helminths were diagnosed in 2.3% (20/866) of samples. Eggs of hookworm, Ascaris, Taenia spp, and Hymenolepis nana were detected in 0.9% (8), 0.5% (5), 0.3% (3) and 0.4% (4), respectively. In parallel with our research hypothesis, a substantial decrease in the burden of intestinal parasitic infections was recorded with the lock-down measures taken during the Corona pandemic.
Background Breast cancer (BC) is one of the leading causes of cancer mortality in women. Glutathione S‐transferase (GSTT1) is involved in activation of detoxification reactions and catalysis of chemicals conjugation with glutathione. GSTT1 genotype is a limiting factor for some environmental diseases. Epigenetic changes have an essential role in BC through inappropriate interaction between genomic and environmental risk factors. Aim This study was directed to explore the association of BC risk with GSTT1 genetic variations and its methylation status in Egyptian women. Design and Methods This study included 100 healthy women as the control group and 100 patients were clinically and histologically diagnosed with breast cancer. All blood samples were used for genomic DNA extraction. GSTT1 genotyping was accomplished by multiplex PCR and methylation‐specific PCR was used to analyze the GSTT1 promoter methylation status. Results Breast cancer patients showed significant incidence of null GSTT1 in relation to controls (p = 0.004). GSTT1 gene promoter methylation status showed significant difference between hypermethylated and unmethylated patients when compared with healthy subjects (p = 0.005). GSTT1 promoter methylation status was not significantly associated with null genotype. There was no significant association between GSTT1‐null genotypes and BC stage in cases with or without family history, but for promotor methylation, there was significant association with stage III and IV breast cancer disease. Conclusion GSTT1 null genetic variant and promoter hypermethylation in the GSTT region of the gene may be considered as critical risk factors for BC in Egyptian women.
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