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At least 217 records · Page 12Linked to original sources
PubMed1988

Epidemic cholera in Mali: high mortality and multiple routes of transmission in a famine area.

During the 1984 cholera epidemic in Mali, 1793 cases and 406 deaths were reported, a death-to-case ratio of 23%. In four affected villages, the mean clinical attack rate was 1.5 and 29% of affected persons died. In 66% of cases the illness began more than 48 h after the village outbreak began, when supplies from outside the village were potentially available. Deaths occurred because patients failed to seek care or received only limited rehydration therapy when they did. Case-control studies identified two routes of transmission: drinking water from one well in a village outside the drought area, and eating left-over millet gruel in a drought-affected village. Drought-related scarcity of curdled milk may permit millet gruel to be a vehicle for cholera. Cholera mortality in the Sahel could be greatly reduced by rapid intervention in affected villages, wide distribution of effective rehydration materials, and educating the population to seek treatment quickly.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Analysis of nutritional components of eight famine foods of the Republic of Niger.

In the western Sahel, indigenous plants become important staples when cereal harvests are inadequate to support populations inhabiting that region of Africa. The purpose of this study was to assess the nutrient content of several of these edible wild plants. The leaves of the following seven plant foods were analyzed: Ziziphus mauritiana, Cerathotheca sesamoides, Moringa oleifera, Leptadenia hastata, Hibiscus sabdarifa, Amaranthus viridis, and Adansonia digitata. The fatty acid, vitamin E, carotenoid, selected mineral and amino acid contents of these plant foods were determined. These same analyses were performed on the fruit of the Adanisonia digitata. In quantitative and qualitative terms, Amaranthus viridis was found to be an excellent source of protein. Its amino acid composition compared favorably to that of a World Health Organization (WHO) protein standard. It also contained considerable amounts of the two fatty acids that are essential in humans (linoleic and alpha-linolenic) and a number of minerals including iron, magnesium. calcium and zinc. The leaves of Hibiscus sabdarifa contained an appreciable quantity of protein the composition of which was comparable to the WHO standard. The mineral content of the leaves of this plant was also exceptionally high; noteworthy was its high zinc content. H. sabdarifa also contained significant quantities of the two essential fatty acids. Ziziphus mauritiana was an excellent source of the essential fatty acid linoleic acid and several of the metals including iron, calcium, magnesium and zinc. Its content of other essential nutrients, however, was rather low. In general, Adansonia digitata leaves were nutritionally superior to the fruit of the tree; however, the fruit did contain useful quantities of potassium, phosphorus, zinc and alpha-linolenic acid. The Leptadenia hastata leaves were an especially good source of lutein and beta-carotene. These data should be useful to the people who inhabit the western Sahel in helping them devise healthy diets during times when cereal staples are in short supply.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed2002

Feast and famine in plant genomes.

Plant genomes vary over several orders of magnitude in size, even among closely related species, yet the origin, genesis and significance of this variation are not clear. Because DNA content varies over a sevenfold range among diploid species in the cotton genus (Gossypium) and its allies, this group offers opportunities for exploring patterns and mechanisms of genome size evolution. For example, the question has been raised whether plant genomes have a 'one-way ticket to genomic obesity', as a consequence of retroelement accumulation. Few empirical studies directly address this possibility, although it is consistent with recent insights gleaned from evolutionary genomic investigations. We used a phylogenetic approach to evaluate the directionality of genome size evolution among Gossypium species and their relatives in the cotton tribe (Gossypieae, Malvaceae). Our results suggest that both DNA content increase and decrease have occurred repeatedly during evolution. In contrast to a model of unidirectional genome size change, the frequency of inferred genome size contraction exceeded that of expansion. In conjunction with other evidence, this finding highlights the dynamic nature of plant genome size evolution, and suggests that poorly understood genomic contraction mechanisms operate on a more extensive scale that previously recognized. Moreover, the research sets the stage for fine-scale analysis of the evolutionary dynamics and directionality of change for the full spectrum of genomic constituents.

Chromosomes↗
PubMed2003

Adapted to flee famine: adding an evolutionary perspective on anorexia nervosa.

Anorexia nervosa (AN) is commonly attributed to psychological conflicts, attempts to be fashionably slender, neuroendocrine dysfunction, or some combination of these factors. Considerable research reveals these theories to be incomplete. Psychological and societal factors account for the decision to diet but not for the phenomenology of the disorder; theories of biological defects fail to explain neuroendocrine findings that suggest coordinated physiological mechanisms. This article presents evidence that AN's distinctive symptoms of restricting food, denial of starvation, and hyperactivity are likely to be evolved adaptive mechanisms that facilitated ancestral nomadic foragers leaving depleted environments; genetically susceptible individuals who lose too much weight may trigger these archaic adaptations. This hypothesis accounts for the occurrence of AN-like syndromes in both humans and animals and is consistent with changes observed in the physiology, cognitions, and behavior of patients with AN.

Adaptation, Physiological↗
PubMed1992

War against famine, for nutrition.

In Somalia, the world is fighting an unprecedented war in the name of basic nutrition. In the United States, the government has gone overboard on the matter of nutrition and health.

Food Labeling↗
PubMed1998

From famine to feast: the role of methylglyoxal production in Escherichia coli.

The enzyme methylglyoxal synthase (MGS) was partially purified from Escherichia coli extracts, and the amino-terminal sequence of candidate proteins was determined, based on the native protein being a tetramer of about 69 kDa. Database analysis identified an open reading frame in the E. coli genome, YccG, corresponding to a protein of 16.9 kDa. When amplified and expressed from a controlled promoter, it yielded extracts that contained high levels of MGS activity. MGS expressed from the trc promoter accumulated to approximately 20% of total cell protein, representing approximately 900-fold enhanced expression. This caused no detriment during growth on glucose, and the level of methylglyoxal (MG) in the medium rose to only 0.08 mM. High-level expression of MGS severely compromised growth on xylose, arabinose and glycerol. A mutant lacking MGS was constructed, and it grew normally on a range of carbon sources and on low-phosphate medium. However, the mutant failed to produce MG during growth on xylose in the presence of cAMP, and growth was inhibited.

Carbon-Oxygen Lyases↗