BackgroundResistance of Plasmodium falciparum to anti-malarial drugs has hampered efforts to eradicate malaria. Recent reports of a decline in the prevalence of chloroquine-resistant P. falciparum in several countries, including Malawi and Zambia, is raising the hope of reintroducing chloroquine in the near future, ideally in combination with another anti-malarial drug for the treatment of uncomplicated malaria. In Côte d’Ivoire, the decrease in the clinical efficacy of chloroquine, in addition to a high proportion of clinical isolates carrying the Thr-76 mutant allele of the pfcrt gene, had led to the discontinuation of the use of chloroquine in 2004. Previous studies have indicated the persistence of a high prevalence of the Thr-76 mutant allele despite the withdrawal of chloroquine as first-line anti-malarial drug. This present study is conducted to determine the prevalence of the Thr-76T mutant allele of the Pfcrt gene after a decade of the ban on the sale and use of chloroquine in Côte d’Ivoire.ResultsAnalysis of the 64 sequences from all three study sites indicated a prevalence of 15% (10/64) of the Thr-76 mutant allele against 62% (40/64) of the Lys-76 wild-type allele. No mutation of the allele Thr-76 was observed at Anonkoua Kouté while this mutant allele was in 31% (5/16) and 25% (5/20) of isolate sequences from Port-Bouët and Ayamé respectively.ConclusionMore than a decade after the discontinuation of the use of chloroquine in Côte d’Ivoire, the proportion of parasites sensitive to this anti-malarial seems to increase in Anonkoua-kouté, Port-bouët and Ayamé.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12936-018-2551-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Purpose: Drug resistance is probably the greatest challenge to most malaria-control programmes. The goal of this study was to evaluate polymorphisms in parasite resistance gene markers, pfcft and dhfr, from falciparum malaria isolates collected in Adzopé City, Côte d'Ivoire in 2007. Methods: Blood samples were collected in filter paper from 72 children infected with Plasmodium falciparum living in Adzopé area. Plasmodium falciparum DNA was extracted and nested PCRs were performed using specific primers of pfcrt and dhfr-ts. During the study, chloroquine and sulphadoxinepyrimethamine (which previously were the first-and second-line treatments, respectively, for malaria in Côte d'Ivoire) were not given to the enrolled children, having been withdrawn in 2004. Results: The results revealed the presence of the mutant-type pfcrt and dhfr-ts in 51 (62.2 %) and 29 (35.4 %) samples, respectively. The mutant-type pfcrt alleles consisted of four single mutations (Met74/Asn75/Thr76) and 47 triple mutations (Ile74/Glu75/Thr76). However, the frequency distribution of mutations in dhfr-ts was 35.4 % for dhfr-Asn108, 17 % for dhfr-Ile51 and 21 % for dhfr-Arg59. Conclusion: The results of this study show high presence of chloroquine (CQ) resistance markers while for sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP), a much lower prevalence was detected for the markers under study. Chloroquine remains an inadequate drug for malaria therapy in the study region. Furthermore, in spite of the official withdrawal of CQ and SP in favour of the arteminisin-based combinations (ACTs), it appears the population of this area continues to use the drugs via self-medication. ; Tel: +225-22 50 35 60 Ouattara et al Trop J Pharm Res, December 2010; 9(6): 566

Trema guineensis is a woody plant distributed in tropical forest of which leaf and bark extracts are traditionally used for the treatment of various diseases including fever, bronchitis, and gastrointestinal disorders. Previous studies have highlighted their antibacterial activity. So, present work was designed to examine the phytochemical and antifungal properties of aqueous crude extract of T. guineensis leaves. The bioactive components extracted from leaves were tested against pathogenic fungi using the agar tube dilution method. Antifungal activity of aqueous leaves extracts was carried out against selected pathogenic fungal strains as Aspergillus fumigatus, Cryptococcus neoformans and Candida albicans. The phytochemical analysis of the aqueous crude extract revealed the presence of secondary metabolites widely reported as antifungal such as flavonoids, saponins, quinones, alkaloids, polyphenols. The results showed that the aqueous crude leaves extract of T. guineensis was effective in inhibiting the fungal growth and were active against A. fumigatus, C. neoformans and C. albicans with MIC and MFC ranged from 20 to 200 mg/mL and 100 to 400 mg/mL, respectively. The efficient antifungal activity of T. guineensis from the present investigation revealed that aqueous leaf crude extract of the selected plant had a moderate potential to inhibit the growth of pathogenic fungal strains. This finding showed that the aqueous extract of T. guineensis exerted an antifungal effect on C. albicans, A. fumigatus and C. neoformans and supports its traditional use in herbal medicine.

The present paper aimed to determine the seroprevalence and associated risk factors of Toxoplasmosis among pregnant women and domestic carnivores. A Cross sectional study was designed among 262 carnivores (141 cats, and 121 dogs) and 100 women attended antenatal care from August 2011 to February 2012 in health centers of Dakar. Venous blood was collected from each women and domestics carnivores. Sera were tested for anti-Toxoplasma gondii antibodies using modified agglutination test (MAT). Moreover, participants were interviewed using a structured questionnaire to identify the potential risk factors of Toxoplasmosis. The overall seroprevalence of T. gondii infection was 52.3±9.7%. Toxoplasmosis was around 53% among women having history of abortion (43%). After analysis of risk factors, only fresh milk consumption predisposes women to be contaminated. In carnivores, the prevalence of infestation was higher in adults than in young animals. Toxoplasmosis prevalence was 55.37±9% in cats with sex and age as risk factors, and 43.97±8% in the dogs with only age as risk factor. These results are therefore a signal to competent health authorities for a better awareness of the real incidence of this disease in Dakar.

The neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis are characterized by a significant increase in oxidative stress that can lead to cellular damage to neurons. In recent years, the antioxidant activity of medicinal plants has become important in research against cancer and neurodegenerative diseases. Terminalia mantaly and Terminalia ivorensis are two plants traditionally used to treat lesions, wounds, ulcers and hemorrhoids, malaria and yellow fever. In the present work, we evaluated the antioxidant power and determined the secondary metabolites contained in these two plants. The results show that Terminalia mantaly and Terminalia ivorensis have a good antioxidant activity. They can be studied in the search for drugs against neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease. Keywords : Alzheimer's disease, Neurons, Parkinson's disease, Terminalia ivorensis and Terminalia mantaly

Safou (Dacryodes edulis) is a fruit with very interesting nutritional and pharmacological properties. However, this fruit remains rather unknown to the Ivorian population. Aims: The objective of this study was to highlight the antioxidant and antimicrobial potential of the seed and pulp of Safou (Dacryodes edulis) cultivated in Côte d'Ivoire for its valorization. Study Design: Microbiological and biochemical studies Place and Duration of Study: Laboratory of Biotechnology and Food Microbiology,Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, between September 2020 and February 2021. Methodology: Aqueous, ethanolic and methanolic extracts of the pulp and seed of Safou were prepared. Moisture content, pH, yield, total polyphenols,diphényl-2-picrylhydrazyle (DPPH) radical scavenging testof the different extracts were determined.Aqueous, ethanolicand methanolicextracts of the seed and pulp at varying concentrations of 200 mg/mL, 100 mg/mL, 50 mg/mL, 25 mg/mL, 12.5mg/mL and 6.25 mg/mL was tested against human pathogens such asEscherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiellapneumoniae, Proteus mirabilis, Aspergillus fumigatus and Penicilliumchrysogenum. Results: pH, moisture content and yield ranged from 3.16 to 4.74; 9 to 18.30%; and 10.79 to 18.78%, respectively. Total polyphenol content ranged from 1.45 mgEAG/g to 4.56 mgEAG/g. The highest levels of total polyphenols were observed for the methanolic extracts of pulp. The different extracts strongly scavenged the DPPH radical with percentages of anti-free radical activity that varied from 50.76 to 64.43%.The antimicrobial susceptibility results of the methanolic extracts of D. edulis seed showed highest zones of inhibition to the microbial isolates tested. The microorganisms were resistant to the aqueous extracts of pulp and seed. Conclusion: The presence of bioactive compounds and the antimicrobial activity of Safou extracts could justify its use in the food and pharmaceutical fields.

In this study, we aimed to analyse the spoilage potential of the isolated yeast, LAB and AAB species. Thus, 11 strains were inoculated at 0·3% (v/v) into a sterile filtered tchapalo and stored for 3 days at ambient temperature (27–30°C). All the tested strains grew well or remained stable except for Limosilactobacillus fermentum and Pediococcus acidilactici, which decreased throughout the storage time. A significant decrease of total soluble solids was observed only for Saccharomyces cerevisiae (from 7·8 to 5·8 °Brix) and Meyerozyma guilliermondii (from 7·8 to 5·5 °Brix). The tchapalo samples inoculated with the LAB strains Weissella paramesenteroides, P. acidilactici, L. fermentum and the yeast strain Candida tropicalis were judged similar to the control by the panellists. However, the strains of Lacticaseibacillus paracasei and Latilactobacillus curvatus (LAB), S. cerevisiae, M. guilliermondii and Kluyveromyces marxianus (yeasts) and Acetobacter pasteurianus and A. cerevisiae (AAB) induced the spoilage of the tchapalo appearance, smell and/or taste. In the spoiled tchapalo quantitative and qualitative modification of some volatile compounds (VOCs), such as lilac aldehyde, ethyl acetate, ethyl hexanoate, ethyl octanoate and phenethyl acetate, were observed. These results provide information about the microorganisms that need to be removed to extend the shelf life of tchapalo.

Amylases play an important role in biotechnology and find applications in several industrial fields such as pharmaceutical, food, paper, cosmetics and detergents. Thus, it appears necessary to identify new sources of amylase, especially from microbial origin, due to the low energy consumption, cost-effective, high metabolic diversity, rapid cell growth, non-toxic and eco-friendly characteristics. In the present report, we carried out the production and partial purification of α-amylase by Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains isolated from Tchapalo, a traditional alcoholic beverage of Côte d'Ivoire. Five fungal isolates were screened initially for α-amylase production by using method of wells on Yeast Extract Peptone Dextrose Agar medium, a complete medium for yeast growth. One step DEAE-Sepharose Fast Flow was achieved for partial purification of α-amylase obtained. Among yeasts, isolate S. cerevisiae YOP 1/2-2 was able to provoke starch hydrolysis halo of 15.067±0.12 mm on starch agar plate after 48 h of incubation at 30°C. The partial purification of resulting enzyme showed two protein peaks, designated α-amylase 1 (AMY1) and α-amylase 2 (AMY2) with amylolytic activity and specific activities of 1.57-1.58 U/mg protein. Both isoforms (AMY1 and AMY2) were thermostable with optimal activity at 50 and 55°C, respectively, and at pH ranged from 4.5 to 5.3 in 0.1 M sodium acetate buffer. EDTA and Cd2+ strongly inhibited α-amylase activity by 72-75% and 64-65%, respectively, whereas cations Ca2+ and Mn2+ showed 85-99% and 71% increased amylolytic activity, respectively. All these properties show the potential uses of α-amylases from S. cerevisiae in the industrial transformation of starch.