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Abstract Background BIPCOM aims to (1) identify medical comorbidities in people with bipolar disorder (BD); (2) examine risk factors and clinical profiles of Medical Comorbidities (MC) in this clinical group, with a special focus on Metabolic Syndrome (MetS); (3) develop a Clinical Support Tool (CST) for the personalized management of BD and medical comorbidities. Methods The BIPCOM project aims to investigate MC, specifically MetS, in individuals with BD using various approaches. Initially, prevalence rates, characteristics, genetic and non-genetic risk factors, and the natural progression of MetS among individuals with BD will be assessed by analysing Nordic registers, biobanks, and existing patient datasets from 11 European recruiting centres across 5 countries. Subsequently, a clinical study involving 400 participants from these sites will be conducted to examine the clinical profiles and incidence of specific MetS risk factors over 1 year. Baseline assessments, 1-year follow-ups, biomarker analyses, and physical activity measurements with wearable biosensors, and focus groups will be performed. Using this comprehensive data, a CST will be developed to enhance the prevention, early detection, and personalized treatment of MC in BD, by incorporating clinical, biological, sex and genetic information. This protocol will highlight the study's methodology. Discussion BIPCOM's data collection will pave the way for tailored treatment and prevention approaches for individuals with BD. This approach has the potential to generate significant healthcare savings by preventing complications, hospitalizations, and emergency visits related to comorbidities and cardiovascular risks in BD. BIPCOM's data collection will enhance BD patient care through personalized strategies, resulting in improved quality of life and reduced costly interventions. The findings of the study will contribute to a better understanding of the relationship between medical comorbidities and BD, enabling accurate prediction and effective management of MetS and cardiovascular diseases. Trial registration: ISRCTN68010602 at https://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN68010602 . Registration date: 18/04/2023.

Background: HIV infection occurs predominantly in the mucosal surfaces of the gastrointestinal tract and is associated with compromised intestinal barrier integrity and dysbiosis that is not reversed by current antiretroviral therapy (ART). Innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) orchestrate mucosal barrier defences and are involved in the regulation of tissue homeostasis. However, the impact of HIV-1 infection on ILCs in the human intestinal mucosa and gut draining lymphoid tissue is unknown. Methods: Here, we present a large cohort of patients from a gastrointestinal clinic in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa recruited within extremely high HIV endemic areas. Human gut draining lymph nodes and intestinal biopsies were collected during surgical procedures. Phenotypic characterization of ILCs was done using flow cytometry and immunohistochemistry. Moreover, we employed single-cell transcriptomics of pre-sorted ILCs to examine the gene expression profile and ex vivo response to HIV infection. Results: Total ILC levels in the gut of HIV uninfected individuals were comparable. However, we found ILC subtype-specific and regional changes between the small and large intestine. Intraepithelial ILC1 (p < 0.0001) and NK cells (p < 0.0001) were significantly enriched in the duodenum compared to the colon, whereas ILC3s were significantly expanded in the colon compared to the duodenum (p < 0.0001) in HIV uninfected individuals. In HIV infected participants, we observed expansion of duodenal ILC3s (p = 0.03) that was not found within the colon compared to HIV uninfected participants. The gut compartment-specific difference in ILC3 levels was independent of CD4 T-cell depletion observed in both compartments (p < 0.0001). We found modest changes in ILC3 levels within gut lymph nodes in HIV infected and uninfected individuals. Single-cell RNAseq of presorted ILCs from lymph nodes reveals tissue-specific transcriptional profiles between NK, ILC1 and ILC3 subsets with pending analysis of their response to HIV infection ex vivo. Conclusions: Compartment-specific differences in ILC subsets suggest distinct roles for these cells throughout the small and large intestine. Strikingly, ILC subset change in response to HIV infection within the small intestine with enriched ILC3s in HIV infected duodenal biopsies, irrespective of CD4 T cell depletion, suggests that ILC3s may play important roles in intestinal epithelial homeostasis that should be explored further for therapeutic potentials during chronic HIV-1 infection., OA05.03 O.E. Asowata (1); R. Fardoos (2); A. Singh (1); Y. Zungu (1); A. Ngoepe (1); F. Nene (1); A. Ntuli (1); F. Karim (1); A. Shalek (3); F. Anderson [...]

This study sets out to determine the influence of recognition of information need on the research practices of graduate students in the university libraries of South East, Nigeria. The objective was to ascertain how information recognition need abilities as provided by libraries and librarians can enhance research practices of graduate students. As a guide to the study, three specific objectives which reflect essential components of the recognition of information need standards namely; recognition of nature of information need, and recognition of scope of information need are formulated. Also, three research questions and one hypothesis are also formulated to direct the study. The study adopts ex- post facto research design. Proportionate sampling technique was used to select a sample size of 556 graduate students out of a population of 5,565 registered graduate student users in the university libraries of South East Nigeria. The instrument for data collection is a researcherdeveloped and validated questionnaire. The reliability coefficient of the instrument was .742. The research questions were answered using mean and standard deviation, while regression method was used to test the hypothesis at .05 level of significance. Findings of the study showed that the individual recognition of information need indicators (recognition of nature of information need, and recognition of scope of information need) investigated, all have significant influence on graduate students' research practices in the university libraries of South East, Nigeria, though at varying degrees. Findings of the study also showed a significant combined influence of information need indicators on the graduate students' research practices. It is recommended among others that Librarians should collaborate with faculty members by sensitizing them on the need to engage students in regular information problem-solving tasks so that the students will be adequately trained on recognizing and defining their information need in their learning and research tasks and to do that early in the research process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ovarian cancer exhibits the highest mortality rate among gynecological malignancies. Antimitotic agents, such as paclitaxel, are frontline drugs for the treatment of ovarian cancer. They inhibit microtubule dynamics and their efficiency relies on a prolonged mitotic arrest and the strong activation of the spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC). Although ovarian cancers respond well to paclitaxel, the clinical efficacy is limited due to an early onset of drug resistance, which may rely on a compromised mitosis exit associated with weakend intrinsic apoptosis. Accordingly, we aimed at overcoming SAC silencing that occurs rapidly during paclitaxel‐induced mitotic arrest. To do this, we used a specific anaphase‐promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) inhibitor to prevent a premature mitotic exit upon paclitaxel treatment. Furthermore, we investigated the role of the antiapoptotic BCL‐2 family member MCL‐1 in determining the fate of ovarian cancer cells lines with CCNE1 amplification that are challenged with clinically relevant dose of paclitaxel. Using time‐laps microscopy, we demonstrated that APC/C and MCL‐1 inhibition under paclitaxel prevents mitotic slippage in ovarian cancer cell lines and restores death in mitosis. Consistent with this, the combinatorial treatment reduced the survival of ovarian cancer cells in 2D and 3D cell models. Since a therapeutic ceiling has been reached with taxanes, it is of utmost importance to develop alternative strategies to improve the patient's survival. Thus, our study provides not only elements to understand the causes of taxane resistance in CCNE1‐amplified ovarian cancers but also suggests a new combinatorial strategy that may improve paclitaxel‐based efficacy in this highly lethal gynecological disease. What's new? About one‐fifth of patients with high‐grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) exhibit CCNE1‐amplification, which is associated with resistance to paclitaxel and other antimitotic agents used as frontline therapies against HGSOC. Here, to reinforce mitotic arrest and overcome spindle assembly checkpoint silencing, a major resistance mechanism in ovarian cancer, paclitaxel was combined with inhibition of both anaphase‐promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) and the pro‐survival protein MCL‐1. This combination successfully reduced cell proliferation and reactivated apoptosis in ovarian cancer cell lines and patient‐derived tumor cells. The findings warrant further investigation of paclitaxel and inhibition of APC/C and MCL‐1 as a therapeutic strategy in HGSOC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electronic medical records (EMR) are extensively used in developed countries to manage patient records and facilitate consultations and follow-up of treatment. This has resulted in centralised databases where different services and clinicians can quickly access patient data to support healthcare delivery. However, adoption and usage of EMR in developing countries is not common and, in most cases, non-existent. Clinicians are dependent on patients keeping their own records manually with no centralised database to manage and control the patient medical history. The key objective of this study was to investigate the propensity of clinicians and senior management personnel in healthcare facilities to adopt EMR and evaluate the contextual factors that impact or impede adoption. Using Davis's technology adoption model extended with other factors, this study determined if contextual or situational factors are associated with barriers that impede adoption of EMRs in developing countries. Using a cross-sectional quantitative research approach, a questionnaire was designed to collect data across four states in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. Stratified random sampling was used to select healthcare facilities that participated in the survey and selection of respondents from each healthcare facility. Data was collected by trained research assistants and a total of 1,177 valid responses were received and analysed using factor analysis and multiple regression analysis. The results from the analysis show that usefulness, critical success factors, awareness and relative advantage significantly influence clinicians' intention to adopt EMRs. Surprisingly, infrastructure availability was not statistically significant. Meanwhile, risk and data security both negatively influence adoption, indicating that user perception of risk and safety of their data decreases their propensity to adopt EMRs. The results from this study suggests that usefulness and anticipated success factors in facilitating operations within healthcare facilities have a great influence on user adoption of EMRs. Awareness, training and education of users on the effectiveness of EMRs and their usefulness will increase adoption. The results will be beneficial in helping government and healthcare leaders formulate policies that will guide and support adoption of EMR. Other policy recommendations and suggestions for future research were also proffered.

HIV infection in the human gastrointestinal (GI) tract is thought to be central to HIV progression, but knowledge of this interaction is primarily limited to cohorts within Westernized countries. Here, we present a large cohort recruited from high HIV endemic areas in South Africa and found that people living with HIV (PLWH) presented at a younger age for investigation in the GI clinic. We identified severe CD4+ T cell depletion in the GI tract, which was greater in the small intestine than in the large intestine and not correlated with years on antiretroviral treatment (ART) or plasma viremia. HIV-p24 staining showed persistent viral expression, particularly in the colon, despite full suppression of plasma viremia. Quantification of mucosal antiretroviral (ARV) drugs revealed no differences in drug penetration between the duodenum and colon. Plasma markers of gut barrier breakdown and immune activation were elevated irrespective of HIV, but peripheral T cell activation was inversely correlated with loss of gut CD4+ T cells in PLWH alone. T cell activation is a strong predictor of HIV progression and independent of plasma viral load, implying that the irreversible loss of GI CD4+ T cells is a key event in the HIV pathogenesis of PLWH in South Africa, yet the underlying mechanisms remain unknown.