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ObjectivesSotrovimab is one of several therapeutic agents that have been licensed to treat people at risk of severe outcomes following COVID-19 infection. However, there are concerns that it has reduced efficacy to treat people with the BA.2 sub-lineage of the Omicron (B.1.1.529) SARS-CoV-2 variant. We compared individuals with the BA.1 or BA.2 sub-lineage of the Omicron variant treated Sotrovimab in the community to assess their risk of hospital admission.MethodsWe performed a retrospective cohort study of individuals treated with Sotrovimab in the community and either had BA.1 or BA.2 variant classification.ResultsUsing a Stratified Cox regression model it was estimated that the hazard ratios (HR) of hospital admission with a length of stay of two or more days was 1.17 for BA.2 compared to BA.1 (95% CI 0.74-1.86) and for such admissions where COVID-19 ICD-10 codes was recorded the HR was 0.98 (95% CI 0.58-1.65).ConclusionThese results suggest that the risk of hospital admission is similar between BA.1 and BA.2 cases treated with Sotrovimab in the community.

Pioglitazone is one of the thiazolidinedione anti-diabetic drugs which have been used for the treatment of non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus. This study aims at investigating the biochemical effects and safety of pioglitazone (PIO) at various concentrations in female Wistar rats. A total of 28 rats were randomly divided into four groups of seven animals each. Groups 1-4 were given 0.5 mL kgG1 b.wt., dayG1 of distilled water as normal control; 15, 30 and 45 mg kgG1 b.wt., dayG1 of PIO, respectively as treatment groups 2, 3 and 4, respectively for 28 days. Using standard biochemical kits and reported chemical procedures, plasma biochemical parameter and organ lipid peroxidation effects were determined in all the groups. There was significant increase (p

Regional Student Groups (RSGs) of the International Society for Computational Biology Student Council (ISCB-SC) have been instrumental to connect computational biologists globally and to create more awareness about bioinformatics education. This article highlights the initiatives carried out by the RSGs both nationally and internationally to strengthen the present and future of the bioinformatics community. Moreover, we discuss the future directions the organization will take and the challenges to advance further in the ISCB-SC main mission: "Nurture the new generation of computational biologists". ispartof: F1000Res vol:8 pages:ISCB Comm J-1574- ispartof: location:England status: Published online

The H3ABioNet pan-African bioinformatics network, which is funded to support the Human Heredity and Health in Africa (H3Africa) program, has developed node-assessment exercises to gauge the ability of its participating research and service groups to analyze typical genome-wide datasets being generated by H3Africa research groups. We describe a framework for the assessment of computational genomics analysis skills, which includes standard operating procedures, training and test datasets, and a process for administering the exercise. We present the experiences of 3 research groups that have taken the exercise and the impact on their ability to manage complex projects. Finally, we discuss the reasons why many H3ABioNet nodes have declined so far to participate and potential strategies to encourage them to do so., Author summary Many programs have been developed to boost the technical and computational skills of scientists working in low to medium income countries (LMIC), who often struggle to remain competitive with their peers in more developed parts of the world. Typically, these programs rely on intensive workshops where students acquire and exercise these skills under the supervision of experienced trainers. However, when trainees return to their home institutions, even after extensive exposure to state of the art techniques, they often find it difficult to put the skills they have acquired into practice and to establish themselves as fully independent practitioners. We have attempted to build a framework through which teams of scientists in African research groups can demonstrate that they have acquired the necessary skills to analyze different types of genomic datasets. Three teams of scientists who have successfully submitted to this assessment exercise report their positive experiences. Many potential participants have so far declined the opportunity, and we discuss the reasons for their reluctance as well as possible ways to facilitate their engagement and provide them with incentives. We argue that assessments such as this could be part of any program aiming to develop technical skills in scientists wishing to support genomic research programs.

HepacareThe effect of the formulation was estimated in a 28-day study where 25 mice were divided into five groups, and HepacareThe LDThe study established that the herbal formulation may not induce significant pro-inflammatory toxic responses and genotoxic effects, but prolonged intake of higher doses may cause severe biochemical and clinical abnormalities.إن ”هيباكير“ مستحضر عشبي واسع التسويق في نيجيريا لعلاج أمراض الكبد المزمنة. قَيَّمت هذه الدراسة سلامة استخدام ”هيباكير“ بالإضافة إلى آثاره المحفزة للإلتهاب وسُميتة الوراثية في الفيران.قُدِّر تأثير المستحضر في دراسة دامت ٢٨ يوما تم فيها تقسيم ٢٥ فأرا إلى خمس مجموعات وأُعطي ”هيباكير“ عن طريق الفم بتركيز ٢٥٠ و٥٠٠ و٧٥٠ و٢٥٠٠ مجم/كجم من وزن الفأر. حُددت المعلمات الكيميائية الحيوية والدموية وقُدرت أوزان الأعضاء، كما أُجريت التحاليل النسيجية. تم تقدير تعبير الحمض النووي الريبي المرسال بالنسبة للسيتوكاينات المحفزة للإلتهاب وعامل نخر الورم- ألفا وإنترلوكن- 6 باستخدام تفاعل البلمرة المتسلسل بالنسخ العكسي في تجربة التسمم الحاد.تم احتساب الجرعة المميتة للنصف عند ٣٨٠٧.٨٩ مجم/كجم من وزن الفأر. كانت هناك زيادة ذات قيمة في نشاط الفوسفاتيز القلوي في المجموعة التي أُعطيت ٧٥٠ مجم/كجم في حين أن المجموعة التي أُعطيت ٢٥٠٠ مجم/كجم أظهرت زيادة ذات قيمة في مستويات كل من ناقلة أسبارتات وناقلة ألانين والفوسفاتيز القلوي والبيليروبين الكلي والبروتين الكلي، مقارنة مع مجموعة التحكم. ولكن كانت هناك زيادة ذات قيمة ومرتبطة بالجرعة في تعداد الخلايا البيضاء ذات النواة أحادية الفص في المجموعات التي أُعطيت ٧٥٠ و٢٥٠٠ مجم/كجم. لم يكن هناك فرق ذا قيمة في تعبير الحمض النووي الريبي المرسال بالنسبة لكل من عامل نخر الورم -ألفا وإنترلوكن -6 والسُمية الوراثية في جميع المجموعات العلاجية مقارنة مع مجموعة التحكم. إلا أنه تمت ملاحظة بعض الاضطرابات الكبدية والكلوية في المجموعات المُعطاة جرعات أعلى من المستحضر.أكدت الدراسة بأن المستحضر العشبي قد لا يُنتج ردود فعل سامة محفزة للإلتهاب وآثارا سمية وراثية ذات قيمة، إلا أن تناول جرعات أعلى لفترات طويلة قد يسبب اضطرابات كيميائية حيوية وسريرية شديدة.

Regional Student Groups are groups established and managed by the ISCB-Student Council in different regions of the world. The article highlights some of the initiatives and management lessons from our 'top-performing' Spotlight Regional Student Groups (RSGs), RSG-Argentina and RSG-UK, for the current year (2016). In addition, it details some of the operational hurdles faced by RSGs and possible solutions. Fil: Shome, Sayane. Iowa State University; Estados Unidos Fil: Meysman, Pieter. Universiteit Antwerp; Bélgica Fil: Parra, Rodrigo Gonzalo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina. Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry; Alemania Fil: Monzón, Alexander. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Quilmes. Departamento de Ciencia y Tecnología; Argentina Fil: Palopoli, Nicolás. Universidad Nacional de Quilmes. Departamento de Ciencia y Tecnología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; Argentina Fil: White, Benjamen. Earlham Institute; Reino Unido Fil: Rahman, Farzana. University of South Wales; Reino Unido Fil: Hassan, Mehedi. University of South Wales; Reino Unido Fil: Özkeserli, Zeynep. Acibadem University; Turquía Fil: Ashano, Efejiro. National Biotechnology Development Agency; Nigeria. Covenant University; Nigeria Fil: Hughitt, V. Keith. University of Maryland; Estados Unidos Fil: Uzair Khan, Muhammad. CECOS University of Information Technology and Emerging Sciences; Pakistán Fil: Murphy, Denis J.. University of South Wales; Reino Unido

In this study, we interpreted RNA-seq time-course data of three developmental stages of Plasmodium species by clustering genes based on similarities in their expression profile without prior knowledge of the gene function. Functional enrichment of clusters of upregulated genes at specific time-points reveals potential targetable biological processes with information on their timings. We identified common consensus sequences that these clusters shared as potential points of coordinated transcriptional control. Five cluster groups showed upregulated profile patterns of biological interest. This included two clusters from the Intraerythrocytic Developmental Cycle (cluster 4 = 16 genes, and cluster 9 = 32 genes), one from the sexual development stage (cluster 2 = 851 genes), and two from the gamete-fertilization stage in the mosquito host (cluster 4 = 153 genes, and cluster 9 = 258 genes). The IDC expressed the least numbers of genes with only 1448 genes showing any significant activity of the 5020 genes (~29%) in the experiment. Gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis of these clusters revealed a total of 671 uncharacterized genes implicated in 14 biological processes and components associated with these stages, some of which are currently being investigated as drug targets in on-going research. Five putative transcription regulatory binding motifs shared by members of each cluster were also identified, one of which was also identified in a previous study by separate researchers. Our study shows stage-specific genes and biological processes that may be important in antimalarial drug research efforts. In addition, timed-coordinated control of separate processes may explain the paucity of factors in parasites.

Background: Although pockets of bioinformatics excellence have developed in Africa, generally, large-scale genomic data analysis has been limited by the availability of expertise and infrastructure. H3ABioNet, a pan-African bioinformatics network, was established to build capacity specifically to enable H3Africa (Human Heredity and Health in Africa) researchers to analyze their data in Africa. Since the inception of the H3Africa initiative, H3ABioNet’s role has evolved in response to changing needs from the consortium and the African bioinformatics community.Objectives: H3ABioNet set out to develop core bioinformatics infrastructure and capacity for genomics research in various aspects of data collection, transfer, storage, and analysis.Methods and Results: Various resources have been developed to address genomic data management and analysis needs of H3Africa researchers and other scientific communities on the continent. NetMap was developed and used to build an accurate picture of network performance within Africa and between Africa and the rest of the world, and Globus Online has been rolled out to facilitate data transfer. A participant recruitment database was developed to monitor participant enrollment, and data is being harmonized through the use of ontologies and controlled vocabularies. The standardized metadata will be integrated to provide a search facility for H3Africa data and biospecimens. Because H3Africa projects are generating large-scale genomic data, facilities for analysis and interpretation are critical. H3ABioNet is implementing several data analysis platforms that provide a large range of bioinformatics tools or workflows, such as Galaxy, the Job Management System, and eBiokits. A set of reproducible, portable, and cloud-scalable pipelines to support the multiple H3Africa data types are also being developed and dockerized to enable execution on multiple computing infrastructures. In addition, new tools have been developed for analysis of the uniquely divergent African data and for downstream interpretation of prioritized variants. To provide support for these and other bioinformatics queries, an online bioinformatics helpdesk backed by broad consortium expertise has been established. Further support is provided by means of various modes of bioinformatics training.Conclusions: For the past 4 years, the development of infrastructure support and human capacity through H3ABioNet, have significantly contributed to the establishment of African scientific networks, data analysis facilities, and training programs. Here, we describe the infrastructure and how it has affected genomics and bioinformatics research in Africa.HighlightsH3ABioNet is building capacity to enable analysis of genomic data in Africa.Infrastructure has been built for clinical and genomic data storage, management, and analysis.New algorithms and pipelines for African genomic data analysis have been developed.Data are being harmonized using ontologies to enable easy search and retrieval.Genomics training is implemented using various online and face-to-face approaches.