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IntroductionHIV and syphilis are major public health problems in Morocco. The region of Souss-Massa, south-west of the country, hold more than 24% of HIV seropositive cases registered in Morocco during 2009. The aim of this study is to evaluate the seroprevalence of syphilis among HIV seropositive patients in the region of Souss-Massa, south-west of Morocco.MethodsTo evaluate the seroprevalence of syphilis and neurosyphilis among HIV seropositive patients, we retrospectively investigated the medical records of HIV-infected patients attending the regional hospital located in the city of Agadir, during the period comprised between 2011 and 2016.ResultsThe population studied involved 1381 males (49.18%) and 1427 females (50.82%) HIV seropositive patients. Among them, 481 patients were seropositive for syphilis and three cases were diagnosed with neurosyphilis. The sex ratio distribution was 243 male (52.71%) and 218 female (47.29%). The prevalence of syphilis among the studied population was estimated to 16.42% with a slight dominance in male (17.63%) compared to female (15.28%). By contrast, neurosyphilis was only detected in male patients, with a prevalence estimated to 0.11%.ConclusionEven if the prevalence of HIV and syphilis is stable in the region of Souss-Massa, the prevalence of syphilis among HIV seropositive patients remained high and correlated positively with that of HIV infection. We did not find a significant difference between the genders, in relation to the prevalence of HIV and syphilis. We concluded that it was essential to continue monitoring the population, in order to improve the prevention and the access to the medical care in the south-west of Morocco.

The aim of the present study is the assessment of the utility of Alu insertions in forensic DNA typing within the South Moroccan population. We report on a comprehensive study of seven loci of interest due to the insertion or the deletion of human-specific Alu fragments. The study was carried out on 215 unrelated healthy individuals, including five Souss Berber groups and one Saharawi. The accurate genotype frequency data and other genetic parameters of forensic interest were obtained. The frequencies of the Alu insertion in the total sample population were found to be 0.176 (ACE), 0.455 (TPA25), 0.196 (PV92), 0.697 (APO), 0.267 (FXIIIB), 0.373 (B65) and 0.804 (HS 3.23). The power of discrimination ranged from 0.4540 for ACE to 0.6223 for TPA25. The power of exclusion for these seven loci ranged from 0.1240 to 0.1865. The combined discrimination power and the joint power of exclusion were respectively 0.9959 and 0.6910. The results indicated that the application of Alu insertion polymorphism will assist in forensic identification and paternity testing that is performed by current STR technology.

OBJECTIVES: Assessing Vitamin-D status and checking if low serum 25(OH)D is a factor in breast cancer (BC) for Southern Moroccan women. MATERIALS/METHODS: Study conducted in Morocco about women with BC (n = 90) and controls (n = 90). 25-hydroxy-vitamin-D Biological analyzes executed during the first consultation. Social data and anthropometric parameters were collected for all participants. RESULTS: These women constituted 67.78 % for the cases and 85.6% for the controls. The average age was 48.72±9.71 (cases) and 46.40±12.52 (controls). We found that 53.33% of cases and 40% of controls were postmenopausal and that hypovitaminosis-D affected 80 and 64.4% of cases and controls, respectively. Statistical analysis showed that hypovitaminosis-D was a significative risk factor for BC in Southern Moroccan women. The Odds Ratio was of 5 (p <  0.0001). The BC subtypes had Odds Ratios greater than 1. The highest value was obtained with Luminal B subtype (Odds ratio = 6.25; p = 0.0007). CONCLUSION: This study reinforces the evidence implicating hypovitaminosis-D among modifiable risk factors for BC. Further studies are needed to assess the extent of hypovitaminosis-D in Moroccan women with BC.