The ongoing structuring of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination in middle schools in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France.

CONTEXT: As is the case throughout France, vaccination coverage against human papillomavirus (HPV) infections in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region is too low to limit viral circulation and to have an impact on the incidence of virus-induced pathologies. INTERVENTION METHODOLOGY: The Nouvelle-Aquitaine Regional Health Agency (ARS) has decided to set up a large-scale vaccination action in the 7th-grade classes of all 643 Nouvelle-Aquitaine middle schools during the 2023-2024 school year. This public health intervention targeting 11-to-13-year-olds shall bring together national education, health Insurance, the regional center for pharmaco-vigilance, and private health professionals. A call for applications (January 2023) led to the recruitment of vaccination centers tasked with the deployment of mobile teams. A tool for dematerialization of parental authorization was devised. A communication agency was recruited (March 2023) to set up targeted social marketing actions and increase the rate of adherence. EXPECTED RESULTS: Close to 25% of parents are likely to respond favorably to the vaccination offer. The project should help not only to increase vaccination coverage of adolescents through intervention in middle schools, but also have an impact on the demand for vaccination among city-based healthcare professionals. CONCLUSION: Increased vaccination coverage should ultimately reduce the incidence of HPV-induced pathologies. A catch-up campaign could be carried out in high schools from the 2027/2028 school year.

Assessment of in vitro pharmacological effect of Neotropical Piperaceae in GABAergic bioassays in relation to plants traditionally used for folk illness by the Yanesha (Peru).

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: A previous pilot ethnobotanical and ethnopharmacological study with the Q'echi׳ Maya identified the family Piperaceae, as an important taxonomic group traditionally used for the treatment of epileptic and culture-bound anxiety disorders and possessing activity in the GABA system. Following that lead, a botanical survey was conducted in Peru, where 47 species of Piperaceae were collected including 21 plants traditionally used for folk illnesses by the Yanesha of Peru, an indigenous Amazonian group. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Two high throughput bioassays were used to quantify the in vitro activity of botanical extracts on the GABA system. RESULTS: Plant extracts demonstrated moderate to high affinity to the γ-aminobutyric acid benzodiazepine (GABA-BZD) receptor. In addition, extracts demonstrated low to moderate activity in the inhibition of the GABA-transaminase, with select plants exhibiting significant activity. Plants indicated by the Yanesha showed comparable activity to the other Piperaceae plants collected. Piper cremii was the most active plant in the GABA-BZD receptor assay, and Drymaria cordata (Caryophyllaceae) in the GABA-T assay. CONCLUSION: The study provides evidence that there is a pharmacological basis behind the use of plants in the treatment of susto and mal aire in both Central and South America, and we propose that the possible mechanism of action includes an interaction with the GABA-T enzyme and/or the GABAA-BZD receptor.