Factors Related to Cervical Cancer Screening Experience among Women Aged 15 and above in Eswatini: The World Health Organisation STEP's Data 2014:A Household Cross Sectional Survey.

PURPOSE: To understand factors related to cervical cancer screening behaviors and factors that influence these behaviors among women living in Eswatini. METHODS: Data from the World Health Organization STEP's data - A household cross sectional survey in Eswatini in 2014 for 1217 eligible women aged 15 and above. The dependent variable was binary categorized, into two levels: With or without cervical cancer screening experience and independent variables were factors related to cervical cancer screening. The binary logistic regression models were used to analyze the factors related to cervical cancer screening. RESULTS: Women with cervical cancer screening experience were 15.2%. The multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that women's age, education, employment status, history of cardiovascular disease and community environment were significantly correlated with the cervical cancer screening behavior. CONCLUSION: Screening for cervical cancer is still low among women living in Eswatini. Our findings provide a greater understanding of African women's factors related to cervical cancer screening among African countries which are age, education, employment status and environmental issues. This can particularly be attributed to the limited availability and accessibility of cervical cancer screening services among socio-economically disadvantaged populations.

The microRNAs in an ancient protist repress the variant-specific surface protein expression by targeting the entire coding sequence.

microRNAs (miRNA) have been detected in the deeply branched protist, Giardia lamblia, and shown to repress expression of the family of variant-specific surface proteins (VSPs), only one of which is expressed in Giardia trophozoite at a given time. Three next-generation sequencing libraries of Giardia Argonaute-associated small RNAs were constructed and analyzed. Analysis of the libraries identified a total of 99 new putative miRNAs with a size primarily in the 26 nt range similar to the size previously predicted by the Giardia Dicer crystal structure and identified by our own studies. Bioinformatic analysis identified multiple putative miRNA target sites in the mRNAs of all 73 VSPs. The effect of miRNA target sites within a defined 3'-region were tested on two vsp mRNAs. All the miRNAs showed partial repression of the corresponding vsp expression and were additive when the targeting sites were separately located. But the combined repression still falls short of 100%. Two other relatively short vsp mRNAs with 15 and 11 putative miRNA target sites identified throughout their ORFs were tested with their corresponding miRNAs. The results indicate that; (1) near 100% repression of vsp mRNA expression can be achieved through the combined action of multiple miRNAs on target sites located throughout the ORF; (2) the miRNA machinery could be instrumental in repressing the expression of vsp genes in Giardia; (3) this is the first time that all the miRNA target sites in the entire ORF of a mRNA have been tested and shown to be functional.

Minimal increase in genetic diversity enhances predation resistance.

The importance of species diversity to emergent, ecological properties of communities is increasingly appreciated, but the importance of within-species genetic diversity for analogous emergent properties of populations is only just becoming apparent. Here, the properties and effects of genetic variation on predation resistance in populations were assessed and the molecular mechanism underlying these emergent effects was investigated. Using biofilms of the ubiquitous bacterium Serratia marcescens, we tested the importance of genetic diversity in defending biofilms against protozoan grazing, a main source of mortality for bacteria in all natural ecosystems. S. marcescens biofilms established from wild-type cells produce heritable, stable variants, which when experimentally combined, persist as a diverse assemblage and are significantly more resistant to grazing than either wild type or variant biofilms grown in monoculture. This diversity effect is biofilm-specific, a result of either facilitation or resource partitioning among variants, with equivalent experiments using planktonic cultures and grazers resulting in dominance by a single resistant strain. The variants studied are all the result of single nucleotide polymorphisms in one regulatory gene suggesting that the benefits of genetic diversity in clonal biofilms can occur through remarkably minimal genetic change. The findings presented here provide a new insight on the integration of genetics and population ecology, in which diversity arising through minimal changes in genotype can have major ecological implications for natural populations.

The interferon-gamma-induced GTPase, mGBP-2, inhibits tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) induction of matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) by inhibiting NF-kappaB and Rac protein.

Matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) is important in numerous normal and pathological processes, including the angiogenic switch during tumor development and tumor metastasis. Whereas TNF-α and other cytokines up-regulate MMP-9 expression, interferons (IFNs) inhibit MMP-9 expression. We found that IFN-γ treatment or forced expression of the IFN-induced GTPase, mGBP-2, inhibit TNF-α-induced MMP-9 expression in NIH 3T3 fibroblasts, by inhibiting MMP-9 transcription. The NF-κB transcription factor is required for full induction of MMP-9 by TNF-α. Both IFN-γ and mGBP-2 inhibit the transcription of a NF-κB-dependent reporter construct, suggesting that mGBP-2 inhibits MMP-9 induction via inhibition of NF-κB-mediated transcription. Interestingly, mGBP-2 does not inhibit TNF-α-induced degradation of IκBα or p65/RelA translocation into the nucleus. However, mGBP-2 inhibits p65 binding to a κB oligonucleotide probe in gel shift assays and to the MMP-9 promoter in chromatin immunoprecipitation assays. In addition, TNF-α activation of NF-κB in NIH 3T3 cells is dependent on Rac activation, as evidenced by the inhibition of TNF-α induction of NF-κB-mediated transcription by a dominant inhibitory form of Rac1. A role for Rac in the inhibitory action of mGBP-2 on NF-κB is further shown by the findings that mGBP-2 inhibits TNF-α activation of endogenous Rac and constitutively activate Rac can restore NF-κB transcription in the presence of mGBP-2. This is a novel mechanism by which IFNs can inhibit the cytokine induction of MMP-9 expression.

Application of Weibull model for survival of patients with gastric cancer.

BACKGROUND: Researchers in the medical sciences prefer employing Cox model for survival analysis. In some cases, however, parametric methods can provide more accurate estimates. In this study, we used Weibull model to analyze the prognostic factors in patients with gastric cancer and compared with Cox. METHODS: We retrospectively studied 1715 patients with gastric cancer. Age at diagnosis, gender, family history, past medical history, tumor location, tumor size, eradicative degree of surgery, depth of tumor invasion, combined evisceration, pathologic stage, histologic grade and lymph node status were chosen as potential prognostic factors. Weibull and Cox model were performed with hazard rate and Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) to compare the efficiency of models. RESULTS: The results from both Weibull and Cox indicated that patients with the past history of having gastric cancer had the risk of death increased significantly followed by poorly differentiated or moderately differentiated in histologic grade. Eradicative degree of surgery, pathologic stage, depth of tumor invasion and tumor location were also identified as independent prognostic factors found significant. Age was significant only in Weibull model. CONCLUSION: From the results of multivariate analysis, the data strongly supported the Weibull can elicit more precise results as an alternative to Cox based on AIC.

Colonization of Mansonia dives Schiner in a field insectary.

Successful colonization of Mansonia dives, the principal vector of subperiodic Brugia malayi was established in a field insectary. Mean egg clusters laid on Eichhornia crassipes, Pistia stratiotes, Homalomena cordata and polystyrofoam strips were 12.0, 10.4, 9.5 and 13.7 respectively. However, the mean number of first instar larvae hatched from each egg cluster laid by females on the three plant substrates (range 51.1 to 58.6) was higher than that laid on the polystyrofoam strips (41.8). There were no significant differences in the success pupation and adult emergence rates among the three host plants used as attachment substrates. Adult emergence occurred at a mean of 10.8 days. The first adult emergence was observed at the 25th day after hatching and continued till the 50th day. The 50% mortality rates for the adults were estimated as 8 days for the males and 14 days for the females. The mean gonotrophic cycle ranged from 3.8 to 4.3 days with a mean of 4.04 days. 63.6% of Ma. dives females oviposited in a medium of rat dung and water. The mean incubation period of eggs ranged from 5.2 to 6.5 days with a mean of 5.7 days. The biology of Ma. dives and Ma. bonneae is briefly compared.

Determination of the roles of active sites in F1-ATPase by controlled affinity labeling.

The affinity reagents 3'-O-(5-fluoro-2,4-dinitrophenyl) [alpha-32P]ATP (FDNP-[alpha-32P]ATP) and 3'-O-(5-fluoro-2,4-dinitrophenyl) [8-14C]ATP (FDNP-[14C]ATP) were synthesized and used to characterize the structure and function of the three active sites in F1-ATPase. FDNP-[alpha-32P]ATP was found to bind covalently to F1 up to two DNP-[alpha-32P]ATP labels per F1 in the absence of Mg2+ without decreasing the ATPase activity. However, when MgCl2 was subsequently added to the reaction mixture, the enzyme could be further labeled with concomitant decrease in ATPase activity that is consistent with the complete inactivation of one enzyme molecule by an affinity label at the third ATP-binding site. Partial hydrolysis of the FDNP-[14C]ATP-labeled enzyme and sequencing of the isolated peptide indicated that the affinity label was attached to Lys-beta 301 at all three active sites. Samples of F1 with covalent affinity label on Lys-beta 301 were also used to reconstitute F1-deficient submitochondrial particles. The reconstituted particles were assayed for ATPase and oxidative phosphorylation activities. These results show that the catalytic hydrolysis of ATP either by F1 in solution or by F0F1 complex attached to inner mitochondrial membrane takes place essentially at only one active site, but is promoted by the binding of ATP at the other two active sites, and that ATP synthesis during oxidative phosphorylation takes place at all three active sites [corrected].

8-Azido-2'-O-dansyl-ATP. A fluorescent photoaffinity reagent for ATP-binding proteins and its application to adenylate kinase.

The photoaffinity reagent 8-azido-2'-O-[14C]dansyl-ATP (AD-ATP) has been synthesized for labeling and monitoring the active sites of ATPases and kinases. In its first application, the reagent is used to explore the active site of adenylate kinase from rabbit muscle. In the dark, AD-ATP inhibits adenylate kinase reversibly and competitively with KI = 0.25 +/- 0.01 microM. Under weak UV illumination, AD-ATP labels adenylate kinase irreversibly. The photoinactivation data also show KI = 0.25 +/- 0.02 microM. The ratio (r) of the specific activity of AD-ATP-labeled adenylate kinase to that of the unlabeled enzyme has been determined as a function of the number (n) of label/enzyme. The linear plot of r versus n with slope equal to -1 shows that the labeling is very specific, i.e. each label completely inactivates an enzyme molecule. After the labeled enzyme was partially hydrolyzed and the radioactive peptides analyzed and sequenced, it was found that Leu-115, Cys-25, and probably His-36 were labeled, in agreement with previous conclusions on the structure of the active site of this enzyme based on amino acid sequence, x-ray diffraction, and NMR studies. The environment-sensitive fluorescent dansyl group of AD-ATP can function as an in situ probe for monitoring ligand or conformation changes at the active site. The fluorescence of AD-ATP-labeled enzyme with n = 0.9 is not affected by ATP but increases with the concentration of AMP in solution. This observation is also in agreement with the previous conclusion that ATP does not bind to the AMP site of adenylate kinase. The observed enhancement of fluorescence indicates that binding of AMP by this enzyme causes environmental change at its ATP site. The possible usefulness of AD-ATP as an effective biological inhibitor or as a molecular probe for studying the structure and regulation of ATP-binding proteins is discussed.

A potent fluorescent ATP-like inhibitor of cAMP-dependent protein kinase.

The fluorescent ATP analogue 8-azido-2'-O-[14C]dansyl-ATP ([ 14C]AD-ATP) was used to probe the ATP-binding site in the catalytic (C) subunit of cAMP-dependent protein kinase. AD-ATP was found to inhibit the phosphotransferase activity of C subunit with extremely high specificity. Complete inhibition was observed when each mol of C subunit was covalently labeled with 1 mol of this fluorescent ATP analogue. The labeling can be accelerated by the presence of Mg2+ or Kemptide (Leu-Arg-Arg-Ala-Ser-Leu-Gly), whereas high concentrations of ATP can almost completely protect the enzyme from AD-ATP. Detailed studies indicated that AD-ATP competes with ATP for binding to C subunit. Analysis of the kinetic data gave dissociation constants of 2.9 and 13 microM for AD-ATP and ATP bound to C subunit, respectively. AD-ATP has a fluorescence emission peak at 510 nm in pH 7.0 aqueous buffer containing 25% glycerol. After covalent binding to C subunit this emission peak shifts to 455 nm, which suggests that the label at ATP site is in an endogenous hydrophobic environment. Upon the binding of Mg2+ or Kemptide, the fluorescence of AD-ATP-labeled C subunit can be enhanced by 50 and 45%, respectively. This enhancement suggests that the binding of either the peptide substrate or Mg2+ induces conformational change at the active site of C subunit. Analysis of the fluorescence data shows that the values of Kd for Mg2+ and Kemptide bound to AD-ATP-labeled C subunit are 0.2 mM and 2.1 microM, respectively. The normal procedure for the preparation of the C subunit from the bovine heart muscle has been simplified to require only one-fifth of the usual working time to obtain the homogeneous enzyme with 70% yield from the crude extract.

3'-O-(5-fluoro-2,4-dinitrophenyl)ADP ether and ATP ether. Affinity reagents for labeling ATPases.

The affinity reagents 3'-O-(5-fluoro-2,4-dinitrophenyl)ADP ether (FDNP-ADP) and 3'-O-(5-fluoro-2,4-dinitrophenyl)ATP ether (FDNP-ATP) were synthesized and characterized. FDNP[14C]ADP was found to label the active site of mitochondrial F1-ATPase slowly at room temperature but with high specificity. F1 was effectively protected from the labeling reagent by ATP or ADP. An average number of 1.3 covalent label per F1 is sufficient for 100% inhibition of the ATPase. About 73% of the radioactive label was found covalently attached to beta subunits, 9% on alpha, practically none on gamma, delta, and epsilon. Cleavage of the labeled enzyme by pepsin and sequencing of the major radioactive peptide showed that the labeled amino acid residue in beta subunit was Lys beta 162. These results show that Lys beta 162 is indeed at the active site of F1 as assumed in the recently proposed models (Fry, D. C., Kuby, S. A., and Mildvan, A. S. (1986) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 83, 907-911; Duncan, I. M., Parsonage, D., and Senior, A. E. (1986) FEBS Lett. 208, 1-6).

P1-(5'-adenosyl)-P2-N-(2-mercaptoethyl)diphosphoramidate. An affinity reagent for demonstrating the presence of Tyr-beta 311 at the hydrolytic site of F1-ATPase.

The compound P1-(5'-adenosyl)-P2-N-(2-mercaptoethyl)diphosphoramidate (AMEDA) was synthesized as an ATP analogue for in situ reaction with the 4-nitro-2,1,3-[14C]benzoxadiazolyl group (NBD) in the labeled F1-ATPase (F1). AMEDA was found to reactivate O-[14C]NBD-F1 via a dual-path mechanism. The principal path involves the binding of AMEDA at a site in F1 with Kd = 14.5 microM and subsequent reaction with the [14C]NBD label. The second slower path involves the direct biomolecular reaction of AMEDA with the radioactive label on F1. The rate of reactivation of O-[14C]NBD-F1 by AMEDA was decreased by ADP or ATP which competes with the ATP analogue for binding to the labeled enzyme. The reaction product was found to contain one adenine group, two phosphate groups, and one [14C]NBD label per molecule as expected from the structure of the compound AMEDA-[14C]NBD. Purified AMEDA-[14C]NBD was found to bind to unlabeled F1 with Kd = 2 microM. These observations demonstrate the in situ reaction of bound AMEDA with the nearby [14C]NBD label attached to Tyr-beta 311 and support the assumed presence of Tyr-beta 311 near the phosphate groups of ATP bound at the hydrolytic site of F1-ATPase. The possible locations of Tyr-beta 364, His-beta 427, and Tyr-beta 345 relative to Tyr-beta 311 in F1 are discussed, and the validity of the previously proposed model for F1-ATPase with one hydrolytic site assisted by two auxiliary sites is examined and compared with that of the widely accepted alternating sites model.