Molecular detection of Aspergilli from commercial chicken in selected areas of Bangladesh.

Objectives: This study was designed to isolate, identify, and determine the prevalence of Aspergilli in commercial chicken in selected areas of Bangladesh. Materials and Methods: A total of 50 lung samples from suspected dead chickens, comprising broilers (n = 32) and layers (n = 18), aged between 5 days and 45 weeks, were collected from poultry farms located in the Gazipur district in Bangladesh. Fungi were primarily identified based on the colony morphology using potato dextrose agar (PDA). DNA was extracted from the suspected colonies. Aspegillus spp. was detected by genus-specific ASAP-1 and ASAP-2. Aspergillus spp. were then screened by polymerase chain reaction targeting Aspergillus flavus (FLA-1 and FLA-2), Aspergillus fumigatus (ASPU and Af3r), and Aspergillus niger (ASPU and Nilr). Results: The overall prevalence of Aspergillus spp. was 44% (n = 22/50; p < 0.05). Among the Aspergilli, A. flavus was detected in 10% (n = 5/50) of the samples. Similarly, A. fumigatus and A. niger were detected at 26% (n = 13/50) and 8% (n = 4/50) respectively. Three samples were associated with more than one fungus; two fungi (A. flavus and A. niger) were in two samples, and three fungi (A. flavus, A. fumigatus, and A. niger) were in one sample. Conclusion: Isolation and prevalence of Aspergillus spp. in commercial chicken were studied for the first time in Bangladesh.

Oral health knowledge, practice, and oral health status among rohingya refugees in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh: A cross-sectional study.

Oral health is a critical component of human health but is sometimes forgotten, particularly during humanitarian crises. This research aimed to ascertain the state of oral health among Rohingya refugees living in one of the largest refugee camps and evaluate their knowledge and practice of oral health. A multicenter cross-sectional survey was conducted among 477 participants from July to September 2021 using a structured questionnaire. There were 34 Rohingya camps and out of those 14 camps were accessible for data collection. The study participants were between 18-82 years residing in the refugee camps under Cox's Bazar. The majority of participants (53.88%) were female and between the ages of 25 and 45. Around 46.12% of respondents did not have basic oral health knowledge, while 53.67% were in need of dental care. Nearly half of the participants demonstrated poor oral health practices. Participants' age and educational level were positively associated with oral health knowledge (p = 0.02 and p<0.001). Furthermore, the knowledge level was positively associated with oral health practice (p = .025). Participants with a history of teeth pain and discomfort in the last 12 months were ten times more likely to seek treatment (OR = 9.93, CI: 5.591-17.64). The study indicated a growing demand for dental care among Rohingya refugees staying in Bangladesh. To reduce the severity of oral health issues, use of minimally invasive restorative procedures can be suggested in camps. New oral health promotion campaigns should be emphasized and proper education, ideally in their original language, can be beneficial.

COVID-19 vaccine acceptance in South Asia: a multi-country study.

OBJECTIVES: With COVID-19 vaccination underway, this study aimed to understand belief, attitude and intention of the people in the South Asia region towards the vaccine. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study using semi-structured questionnaires among 18201 individuals in four South Asian countries; Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Nepal between January 17 and February 2, 2021. We used the Health Belief Model (HBM) to identify the predictors related to vaccine acceptance. STATA (v16.1) was used for all analyses. RESULTS: The percentage of respondents willing to be vaccinated against COVID-19 was 65%, 66%, 72% and 74% for Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Nepal, respectively. Perceived destructive impact of COVID-19, positive perception of vaccines and concern about possible side effects were significant in modifying respondents' intentions.. In multivariable logistic regression, age, sex, marital status, education, comorbidities, worry about getting infected, perceived COVID-19 impact, belief regarding vaccine efficacy, positive attitude towards mandatory measures, and vaccine availability were found to be associated with vaccine acceptance across countries. CONCLUSION: Nearabout two-third of the respondants were willing to take COVID-19 vaccine in the four South Asia countries.

Quality of life of COVID-19 recovered patients in Bangladesh.

Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) quickly surged the whole world and affected people's physical, mental, and social health thereby upsetting their quality of life. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the quality of life (QoL) of COVID-19 positive patients after recovery in Bangladesh. This was a study of adult (aged ≥18 years) COVID-19 individuals from eight divisions of Bangladesh diagnosed and confirmed by Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) from June 2020 to November 2020. Given a response rate of 60% in a pilot study, a random list of 6400 COVID-19 patients was generated to recruit approximately 3200 patients from eight divisions of Bangladesh and finally a total of 3244 participants could be recruited for the current study. The validated Bangla version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life Brief (WHOQOL-BREF) questionnaire was used to assess the QoL. Data were analyzed by STATA (Version 16.1) and R (Version 4.0.0). All the procedures were conducted following ethical approval and in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. The mean scores of QoL were highest for the physical domain (68.25±14.45) followed by social (65.10±15.78), psychological (63.28±15.48), and environmental domain (62.77±13.07). Psychological and physical domain scores among females were significantly lower than the males (p<0.001). The overall quality of life was lower in persons having a chronic disease. Participants over 45 years of age were 52% less likely to enjoy good physical health than the participants aged below 26 years (AOR: 0.48, CI: 0.28-0.82). The quality of life of employed participants was found 1.8 times higher than the unemployed (AOR: 1.80, CI: 1.11-2.91). Those who were admitted to hospitals during infection had a low QoL score in physical, psychological, and socials domains. However, QoL improved in all aspect except the psychological domain for each day passed after the diagnosis. These findings call for a focus on the quality of life of the COVID-19 affected population, with special emphasis given to females, older adults, unemployed, and people with comorbidities.

Seromonitoring of Peste des Petits Ruminants in goats and molecular characterization of PPR virus from field cases.

OBJECTIVES: The study was undertaken with the objectives to perform seromonitoring of Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR) antibodies in goats vaccinated with PPR vaccine and molecular characterization of PPR virus (PPRV) from field cases in Bangladesh. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seromonitoring work was conducted in Char Kalibari, Mymensingh Sadar, Mymensingh. For this, a total of 50 goats were randomly selected and were divided into two groups; vaccinated (Group A; n = 25) and non-vaccinated (Group B; n = 25). The goats of both groups were again sub-divided into four age groups; (i) 0-6 months (n = 5), (ii) 6-12 months (n = 5), (iii) 12-24 months (n = 10), and (iv) >24 months (n = 5). Blood samples were collected on Day-0 and after 21 days of post-vaccination (DPV), and the sera were prepared. The sera were examined for the presence of antibodies against PPRV by competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. For molecular characterization, nasal swabs (n = 10) were collected from PPR infected goats in Jessore during PPR outbreak (February 2016). The causative agent, PPRV isolated from field cases were confirmed by N gene based on reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), followed by sequencing, phylogenetic analysis, and multiple sequence alignment analyses. RESULTS: In the case of seromonitoring, the results revealed that before vaccination (at Day-0), overall, 44% (n = 22/50) goats were seropositive for PPRV. In Group A, 48% (n = 12/25) goats were seropositive, but after 21 DPV, 96% (n = 24/25) goats become seropositive. On the other hand, in Group B, 40% (n = 10/25) and 16% (n = 04/25) seropositive goats found at Day-0 and after 21 DPV, respectively, indicating that the antibody titer was increasing after vaccination and decreasing in convalescent goats. Out of 10 nasal swab samples, 40% (n = 4/10) was confirmed by RT-PCR targeting nucleocapsid (N gene). Phylogenetically, our isolate (KY039156/PPRV/BDG/Jes/2016) was similar to the other strains of PPRV under lineage IV. However, there was a unique amino acid substitution, where glycine (G) was recorded in place of arginine (R). The strain is closely related with other Chinese or Indian strains. The nucleotide sequence homology by NCBI BLAST search of the isolated strain ranged from 95% to 99% with other strains circulating in Bangladesh. CONCLUSION: The PPRV is prevailing in the Mymensingh and Jessore regions of Bangladesh. Effective control of PPR in goats may depend on vaccination with PPR vaccine. Molecular characterization of PPRV in Jessore reveals that the virus is differing from the strain prevalent in other regions of Bangladesh and the world.