[Evaluation of the risks of sexually transmitted diseases and HIV infection in a rural region of Senegal in 1991]. / Evaluation en 1991 des risques de MST et d'infection par VIH en zone rurale sénégalaise.

This study was performed in the Sereer region 150 km to the east of Dakar, the capital of Senegal. The population of the region is characterised by large seasonal migration, a high divorce rate (41% of marriages end in divorce) and frequent polygamy (1.8 married women per married man). We organised the medical centres in the region to monitor actively the epidemiology of HIV infection. Three populations were targeted: pregnant women presenting for their first prenatal consultation; patients presenting with STD; and people with chronic (more than three weeks) cough. The patients consulting for STD were recruited two ways: those presenting spontaneously and those identified during home interviews by the team performing a parallel sociological study of behaviour. Overall, the prevalence of HIV seropositivity was 0.2% of the women and 1.3% of the men (the difference is not significant). The seropositive individuals identified were 2 pregnant women and 5 patients (3 of 409 women and 2 of 84 men) with STD. There was no significant difference between the sex, age, marital status, or type of recruitment (spontaneous or identified by the sociological survey) of the HIV seropositive and seronegative individuals. The prevalence of treponema antibodies was 1.8% among pregnant women, 2% among STD patients and 2.4% among patients with chronic cough. There was no significant difference according to age, sex, marital status or motivation for consultation. More than half the patients consulting for STD presented biomedical disease. The majority of the STD patients were women: 70% of those spontaneous consulting; 90% of those identified by the survey; and 92% of those with biomedical disease were women.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

[Antimicrobial activity of some medicinal species from the Dakar markets]. / Activité antimicrobienne de quelques espèces médicinales des marchés Dakarois.

After drawing up an inventory of Dakar markets popular medicinals plants, antimicrobial activity of 43 species have been screened. With the agar diffusion method, crude extracts of 24 species show an activity against Sarcina lutea or Escherichia coli. The antimicrobial spectrum of these extracts against 11 germs has been evaluated with the agar dilution method. 13 species show M.I.C. lower than 10 mg/ml against some germs. This preliminary study select some plants of potential interest for development of new antibacterial.

[Antibacterial effect of borreverine, an alkaloid isolated from Borreria verticillata (Rubiaceae)]. / Action antibactérienne de la borrévérine, alcaloïde isolé de Borreria verticillata (Rubiacées).

Borreria verticillata, a very common tropical plant, is used in traditional pharmacopeia to recover cutaneous infections. The Borreverine alkaloid extracted from this plant had an antimicrobial action in vitro. The minimal inhibitory concentration is lower than 50 micrograms/ml for Gram positive cocci, (specially Staphylococcus aureus) and than 6 micrograms/ml for Vibrio cholerae and upper than 200 micrograms/ml for several Gram negative rod-bacteria (Enterobacteria and Pseudomonas). These preliminary results underline the interest in the research about the antimicrobial agents from plant origin, in particular concerning naturally or chemically modified alkaloids.