Exploring experiences of HIV care to optimize patient-centred care in Conakry, Guinea: a qualitative study.

Introduction: Studies on the organisation of care and the power dynamic between providers and patients with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa are rare. This study aims to describe the patient-provider relationship and explore the challenges to optimal and patient-centred care for HIV patients. Methods: This was a qualitative exploratory descriptive study using in-depth individual interviews and focus group discussions. In total, 17 individual interviews and 5 focus group discussions were conducted. This was conducted in four urban health facilities in Conakry, the capital of Guinea. Three group of participants were included in this study namely patients with HIV; health providers including facilities and services managers; and psychosocial counsellors. Psychosocial counsellors provide emotional and psychosocial support to HIV patients. Their role in the organization care in Guinea is new and they contribute to strengthening adherence of patients with HIV to ARV treatment. Results: Patients with HIV, health providers, and psychosocial counsellors have a positive perception of the patient-provider relationship. This relationship was characterized essentially by maintaining confidentiality of HIV status disclosure, caring attitudes towards patients (being available, adjusting locations for accessing ART, based on patients' preferences), and participating in HIV patient's social life. However, scolding and miscommunication about the interpretation of viral load tests were reported. The shortage of human resources, low salaries of health staff, poor infrastructure, and the financial burden borne by patients with HIV impede the implementation of optimal patient-centred care. Conclusion: Integrating psychosocial counsellors in HIV care organization, improving access to ARV, infrastructure, increasing human resources, and removing the financial burden for HIV patients are needed to optimal patient-centred care in Guinea.

Interplay between vaccines and treatment for dengue control: An epidemic model.

Assessing public health intervention strategies is crucial for effectively managing dengue. While numerous studies have explored the impact of dengue interventions on its transmission dynamics, limited research has focused on the combined effects of implementing multiple therapeutic interventions for disease control. This study presents an epidemic model for understanding dengue transmission dynamics, incorporating two critical therapeutic measures: vaccination and treatment of infected individuals. The model is characterized by ordinary differential equations involving seven-state variables. The investigation encompasses both disease-free and endemic equilibria of the model. The findings reveal that the disease-free equilibrium (only) is globally stable when the basic reproduction number is below one. Interestingly, when the vaccine's effectiveness is low, treatment emerges as a more successful approach in reducing dengue cases than vaccination. In contrast, a highly effective vaccine alone significantly curtails dengue occurrences. Moreover, the study introduces an optimal control problem, featuring an objective function integrating two control mechanisms: vaccination and treatment. The analysis strongly suggests that implementing two control strategies outweighs the efficacy of a single approach in effectively mitigating the spread of the disease.

High prevalence of asymptomatic malaria in Forest Guinea: Results from a rapid community survey.

Malaria is endemic in Guinea; however, the extent and role in transmission of asymptomatic malaria are not well understood. In May 2023, we conducted a rapid community survey to determine Plasmodium falciparum (P. falciparum) prevalence among asymptomatic individuals in Middle Guinea (Prefecture Dalaba) and Forest Guinea (Prefecture Guéckédou). In Dalaba, 6 of 239 (2.1%, confidence interval (CI) 0.9-4.8%) individuals tested positive for P. falciparum by a rapid diagnostic test (RDT), while in Guéckédou, 147 of 235 (60.9%, CI 54.5-66.9%) participants tested positive. Asymptomatic malaria needs to be considered more strongly as a driver of transmission when designing control strategies, especially in Forest Guinea and potentially other hyper-endemic settings.

Understanding the mix of services for mental health care in urban DR Congo: a qualitative descriptive study.

BACKGROUND: Mental health workers (MHWs) are exposed to conflicts of competence daily when performing tasks related to the provision of mental health services. This may be linked to a lack of understanding of their tasks as caregivers and providers. Furthermore, in most low-income settings, it is unclear how the available services are organized and coordinated to provide mental health care. To understand the above, this study aimed to identify the current mix of services for mental health care in the urban Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). METHODS: A qualitative descriptive study was carried out in Lubumbashi from February to April 2021. We conducted 7 focus group discussions (FGDs) with 74 key informants (family members, primary care physicians, etc.) and 13 in-depth interviews (IDIs) with key informants (traditional healers, psychiatrists, etc.). We performed a qualitative content analysis, guided by an analytical framework, that led to the development of a comprehensive inventory of MHWs from the household level to specialized facilities, exploring their tasks in care delivery, identifying existing services, and defining their current organization. RESULTS: Analysis of transcripts from the FGDs and IDIs showed that traditional healers and family caregivers are the leading providers in Lubumbashi. The exploration of the tasks performed by MHWs revealed that lifestyle, traditional therapies, psychotherapy, and medication are the main types of care offered/advised to patients. Active informal caregivers do not currently provide care corresponding to their competencies. The rare mental health specialists available do not presently recognize the tasks of primary care providers and informal caregivers in care delivery, and their contribution is considered marginal. We identified five types of services: informal services, traditional therapy services, social services, primary care services, and psychiatric services. Analyses pointed out an inversion of the ideal mix of these services. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings show a suboptimal mix of services for mental health and point to a clear lack of collaboration between MHWs. There is an urgent need to clearly define the tasks of MHWs, build the capacity of nonspecialists, shift mental health-related tasks to them, and raise awareness about collaborative care approaches.

Ensuring continuity of care during the COVID-19 pandemic in Guinea: Process evaluation of a health indigent fund.

Background: The emergence of the COVID-19 has disrupted the health and socioeconomic sectors, particularly in resource-poor settings such as Guinea. Like many sub-Saharan countries, Guinea is facing shortcomings related to its fragile health system and is further affected by the passage of the Ebola virus disease. The pandemic has worsened the socio-economic situation of the poorest people, leading to their exclusion from health care. To promote access to care for the most vulnerable populations, a system was set up to provide care for these people who are victims of health marginalization to promote their access to care. This study aimed to analyze access to health services by vulnerable populations during the COVID-19 pandemic in Guinea through the establishment of a health indigent fund (HIF). Methods: This was a qualitative study to assess the project implementation process. A total of 73 in-depth individual interviews were conducted with beneficiaries, health workers, community health workers and members of the HIF management committee, and a few informal observations and conversions were also conducted in the project intervention areas. The data collected were transcribed and coded using the deductive and inductive approaches with the Nvivo software before applying the thematic analysis. Results: A total of 1,987 indigents were identified, of which 1,005 were cared for and 64 referred to all 38 intervention health facilities within the framework of the HIF. All participants appreciated the project's social action to promote access to equitable and quality health care for this population excluded from health care services. In addition, the project has generated waves of compassion and solidarity toward these "destitute" people whose main barrier to accessing health care remains extreme poverty. A state of poverty that leads some to sell their assets (food or animal reserves) or to go into debt to ensure access to care for their children, considered the most at risk. Conclusion: The HIF can be seen as an honest attempt to provide better access to health care for the most vulnerable groups. Some challenges need to be addressed including the current system of acquiring funds before the attempt can be considered scalable.

Improving access to and use of maternal health services during COVID-19: Experience from a health system strengthening project in Guinea.

The purpose of this study was to document the experience of health providers' capacity strengthening during health crises and the contribution of such to the health system and the population resilience in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic in Guinea. We conducted a cross-sectional study using routine data collected from 41 health facilities in the project intervention areas, including associative health centers, community health centers, and district hospitals,. These data covered the period between 2019 and 2021. Results showed that all the community health centers (CMCs) had a clean internal and external environment, compared to health centers (95.2%) and district hospitals (33.3%). Hand washing was systematic among visitors attending CMCs and district hospitals (HPs). However, 28.6% of visitors attending associative health centers (AHCs) did not wash their hands. Temperature taking for visitors was not carried out in all CMCs and in 90.5% of the AHCs; unlike in the HC and HP where the temperature of each patient was taken before entering the consultation room. The obligation to wear masks was higher in the HP and in the HC, compared to the CMC and AHC where the order of non-compliance with the wearing of masks was, respectively 36.4 and 19%. Non-compliance with social distancing in the waiting rooms and between users was observed in all facilities. The project's interventions mainly contributed to improving the utilization of prenatal consultation and institutional delivery services; the beginning of the interventions was marked by an increase of an average of 17 ANC1 per month in CMCs and 116 ANC1 in health centers. Ongoing training on capacity strengthening for providers in infection prevention and control, followed by the offering of delivery kits and materials during epidemics, would contribute to the improvement and utilization of health facilities by the population.

A rapid assessment of health system preparedness and response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Guinea.

Epidemic-prone diseases have high adverse impacts and pose important threats to global health security. This study aimed to assess levels of health facility preparedness and response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Guinea. This was a cross-sectional study in public and private health facilities/services across 13 Guinean health districts. Managers and healthcare workers (HCWs) from departments in each facility/service were interviewed. Descriptive statistics and comparisons were presented using Pearson's Chi-Squared Test or Fischer exact test. Totally, 197 managers and 1020 HCWs participated in the study. Guidance documents and dedicated spaces for management/isolation of suspected COVID-19 cases were available only in 29% and 26% of facilities, respectively. Capacities to collect (9%) and safely transport (14%) samples were low. Intensive care units (5%), dedicated patient beds (3%), oxygenators (2%), and respirators (0.6%) were almost lacking. While 36% of facilities/services had received infection prevention and control supplies, only 20% had supplies sufficient for 30 days. Moreover, only 9% of HCWs had received formal training on COVID-19. The main sources of information for HCWs were the media (90%) and the internet (58%). Only 30% of HCWs had received personal protective equipment, more in the public sector (p<0.001) and in Conakry (p=0.022). This study showed low levels of preparedness of health facilities/services in Guinea and highlighted a lack of confidence among HCWs who felt unsafe at their workplace. Better governance to improve and maintain the capacity of the Guinean health system to respond to current and future epidemics is needed.

[Predictive factors of mortality in intensive care at the Hospital Principal of Dakar / Senegal]. / Facteurs predictifs de mortalite en reanimation a l'Hopital Principal de Dakar/Senegal.

OBJECTIVES: To analyze the main causes and risk factors of death in intensive care. PATIENTS AND METHOD: Prospective observational study in the intensive care units in Hospital Principal of Dakar from July to December 2018 including all patients who died 24 hours after admission. Demographic, clinical, severity (IGSII, APACHE II, MPM) and organ failure (SOFA, LODS) scores were collected. A multiparametric comparison was made between deceased and surviving patients. RESULTS: The overall mortality was 25.86% correlated with the probability of death (MPM): 26.4%. The mean age was 50.98 [8-94 years] with a sex ratio of 1.15. The majority of deaths (79.26%) occurred outside of duty hours and 70.7% had at least one medical history. The mean severity scores were for IGSII 40.12 +/- 17.25 and for APACHE II 18.31 +/- 8.49. The mean visceral failure scores were for SOFA 7.02 +/- 4.44 and for LODS 5.73 +/- 3.35. Complications were dominated by nosocomial infections (48.78%) and are responsible for 37.8% of deaths. The mean length of stay was 7.30 days +/- 7.46. Age, the existence of organ failure, the use of vasopressors, the occurrence of nosocomial infections and the absence of a senior doctor were correlated with mortality. CONCLUSION: The intensive care unit mortality rate is 25.86%. Advanced age, the existence of organ failures and the occurrence of a nosocomial infection are factors in the occurrence of death.

OBJECTIFS: Analyser les principales causes et les facteurs de risque de décès en réanimation. PATIENTS ET MÉTHODE: Etude prospective observationnelle dans les services de réanimation de l'hôpital Principal de Dakar de Juillet à Décembre 2018 incluant tous les patients décédés 24 heures après l'admission.Nous avonsétudiés, les données démographiques, cliniques, les scores de gravité (IGSII, APACHE II, MPM) et de défaillance d'organe (SOFA, LODS).Une comparaison multiparamétrique a été faite entre les patients décédés et survivants. RÉSULTATS: La mortalité globale était de 25,86% corrélée avec la probabilité de décès (MPM) de 26,4%. L'âge moyen était de 50,98 [8-94 ans] avec un sex-ratio H/F : 1,15. La majorité des décès (79,26%) était survenue durant la nuit, les week-end et jours fériés, l'activité étant assurée en ce moment par l'équipe de garde constituée de deux médecins en fin de spécialisation en anesthésie-réanimation et un médecin sénior d'astreinte pouvant être appelé en cas de nécessité. Des antécédents pathologiques avaient été retrouvés chez 70,7% des patients décédés.Le score de gravité IGSII était en moyenne de 40,12 +/- 17,25 et l'APACHE II de 18,31 +/- 8,49. Le score de défaillance viscérale moyen était pour le SOFA de 7,02 +/-4,44 et pour le LODS de 5,73+/-3,35. Les complications étaient dominées par les infections nosocomiales (48,78%) et sont associées à 37,8% des décès (p<0,0001 et OR [IC 95%] 22,8 [7,6-68,2]). La durée moyenne de séjour était de 7,30 jours +/-7,46. L'âge, la défaillance d'organe, l'utilisation de vasopresseurs, l'infection nosocomiale étaient corrélés à la mortalité. CONCLUSION: Le taux de mortalité en réanimation est de 25,86%. L'âge avancé, l'existence de défaillance d'organe et la survenue d'une infection nosocomiale sont des facteurs de survenue de décès.

A rapid assessment of health system preparedness and response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Guinea

Epidemic-prone diseases have high adverse impacts and pose important threats to global health security. This study aimed to assess levels of health facility preparedness and response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Guinea. This was a cross-sectional study in public and private health facilities/services across 13 Guinean health districts. Managers and healthcare workers (HCWs) from departments in each facility/service were interviewed. Descriptive statistics and comparisons were presented using Pearson's Chi-Squared Test or Fischer exact test. Totally, 197 managers and 1020 HCWs participated in the study. Guidance documents and dedicated spaces for management/isolation of suspected COVID-19 cases were available only in 29% and 26% of facilities, respectively. Capacities to collect (9%) and safely transport (14%) samples were low. Intensive care units (5%), dedicated patient beds (3%), oxygenators (2%), and respirators (0.6%) were almost lacking. While 36% of facilities/services had received infection prevention and control supplies, only 20% had supplies sufficient for 30 days. Moreover, only 9% of HCWs had received formal training on COVID-19. The main sources of information for HCWs were the media (90%) and the internet (58%). Only 30% of HCWs had received personal protective equipment, more in the public sector (p<0.001) and in Conakry (p=0.022). This study showed low levels of preparedness of health facilities/services in Guinea and highlighted a lack of confidence among HCWs who felt unsafe at their workplace. Better governance to improve and maintain the capacity of the Guinean health system to respond to current and future epidemics is needed.

Observatoire communautaire sur l'accès aux services de santé : difficultés du processus de responsabilité sociale en Guinée.

INTRODUCTION: The objective of this study was to identify the factors that influenced the poor performance of the Community Observatory on Access to Health Services (OCASS) project during its implementation from 2014 to 2017 in Guinea and to formulate recommendations for the rest of the project. METHODS: This was a qualitative study using the multipolar performance framework of B. Marchal et al. adapted from the ‘Global and Integral Assessment Model of Health Systems Performance, in acronym EGIPSS, from the Sicotte framework. The data was collected using a spreadsheet created in Microsoft Excel developed according to the four functions of the analytical framework: service delivery, goal achievement, interaction with the environment, and safeguarding values and organizational culture. RESULTS: The absence of an initial assessment of the technical, operational and organizational capacities of the implementing body and the failure to take into account the specific needs of the project in terms of resources (financial, material and human) were decisive in the poor performance of OCASS. Also, the weak involvement of national actors, the Ebola epidemic and the multiplicity of actors around the observatory played a significant role in the failure to achieve the objective of the project. CONCLUSION: Our study revealed that the national context must be taken into account when setting up a social responsibility project and carrying out a basic assessment remains a fundamental step to guarantee its success.

Integration of mental health care in private not-for-profit health centres in Guinea, West Africa: a systemic entry point towards the delivery of more patient-centred care?

BACKGROUND: Patient-centred care is an essential component of quality of health care. We hypothesize that integration of a mental health care package into versatile first-line health care services can strengthen patient participation, an important dimension of patient-centred care. The objective of this study is to analyse whether consultations conducted by providers in facilities that integrated mental health care score higher in terms of patient participation. METHODS: This study was conducted in Guinea in 12 not-for-profit health centres, 4 of which had integrated a mental health care package (MH+) and 8 had not (MH-). The study involved 450 general curative consultations (175 in MH+ and 275 in MH- centres), conducted by 18 care providers (7 in MH+ and 11 in MH- centres). Patients were interviewed after the consultation on how they perceived their involvement in the consultation, using the Patient Participation Scale (PPS). The providers completed a self-administered questionnaire on their perception of patient's involvement in the consultation. We compared scores of the PPS between MH+ and MH- facilities and between patients and providers. RESULTS: The mean PPS score was 24.21 and 22.54 in MH+ and MH- health centres, respectively. Participation scores depended on both care providers and the health centres they work in. The patients consulting an MH+ centre were scoring higher on patient participation score than the ones of an MH- centre (adjusted odds ratio of 4.06 with a 95% CI of 1.17-14.10, p = 0.03). All care providers agreed they understood the patients' concerns, and patients shared this view. All patients agreed they wanted to be involved in the decision-making concerning their treatment; providers, however, were reluctant to do so. CONCLUSION: Integrating a mental health care package into versatile first-line health services can promote more patient-centred care.

[Study on the integration of mental health support into primary health care in Guinea]. / Expérience d´intégration de la santé mentale en première ligne de soins en Guinée.

INTRODUCTION: the low coverage of specialized mental health services and the shortage of human resources for mental health are enormous challenges for the health care system in Africa. The integration of mental health support into primary health care is a substantial and feasible complementary intervention to specialized services. We collected and analyzed data from 5 Health Care Centers (HCC) that had integrated this care package in Guinea. METHODS: we conducted a descriptive study of new cases of mental health issues between 2012 and 2017. The reasons for consultations and diagnoses were identified and analyzed on the basis of consultation registries and individual medical records. RESULTS: a total of 4.995 patients with mental health problems received consultations (2.8% of general consultations; 0.5 -7.7% according to the centers). The average age of patients was 27,9 years (± 16.1). The most common reasons for consultations were: insomnia 44.4% (n = 2081), seizures 39% (n = 1827), behavioral disorders 31.9% (n = 1263) and hallucinations 26.1% (n = 1224). The most common diagnoses were: epilepsy 36.8% (n = 1773) and psychotic disorders 33.5% (n = 1613). Eighty eight point four per cent (n = 4418) of patients received medical treatment, most often combined with psychological support. CONCLUSION: this study highlights that in the Guinean context, where access to specialized mental health care is very limited, patients with mental ill, even with severe medical conditions, can be followed up in the health centers by non-specialized but trained mental health professionals.

[Integrating mental health in community health centers in Guinea]. / Intégration de la santé mentale dans les centres de santé communautaires en Guinée Conakry.

This study investigates effects of integrating mental health on staff attitudes in 5 community health centers in Guinea: more specifically, on destigmatizing mental health problems and on adopting patient-centered care approaches. It is based on semi-structured interviews with 27 health workers from health centers having integrated mental health care (Santé Mentale +, with acronym SM+); and, as a comparison group, with 11 health workers working in facilities that do not have integrated mental health (SM-). Attitudinal change among SM+ health workers contrasts sharply with the stigmatizing discourse of SM- health workers. The former, strengthened by their successes in treating mental health patients, have overcome their fears and developed positive attitudes vis-à-vis mental health patients. Furthermore, part of the SM+ workers discovered and adopted a patient-centered approach to care, whereas others remained confined to a biomedical logic. A facilitating factor of change has been the organization of an in-service training program (joint consultations, teamwork and community action) taking into account health workers' emotional needs and providing patient-centered role models. However, this training set-up only functioned optimally in the non-bureaucratic organizational context of a community health center staffed with a stable and qualified team. Our study indicates that, beyond improved access to psychiatric care, integrating mental health in health centers can also reinforce the quality of the therapeutic relationship in general. The contents and modalities of the training program in mental health are crucial; but so is the way the health services are being organized.

[Stigmatisation of mental illness by medical students in Conakry, Guinea]. / Stigmatisation de la maladie mentale par les étudiants en médecine en Guinée, Conakry.

INTRODUCTION: Stigmatisation of mental illness constitutes a major problem in the development of mental healthcare programs, especially when it originates from health professionals themselves. The aim of this research is to investigate possible attitudes of stigmatisation among first and final year medical students registered at the University of Conakry faculty of medicine in Guinea-Conakry (West Africa). METHODS: Focus group discussions identified students' attitudes and perceptions in relation to mental illness, their explanatory models, their opinions concerning traditional and modern therapeutic practices with regard to mental illness, and their interest to possibly incorporate psychiatry in their future medical practice. RESULTS: Many students explicitly regret the stigmatisation of mental health patients, but nevertheless share the general population's prevailing attitudes of discrimination. The dominant stereotype of mental illness is that of madness, although final year medical students describe a more diverse spectrum of mental health problems. There is strong adherence to secular occult explanations of mental illness and advocacy for traditional medicine in addressing these illnesses, including among final year medical students. DISCUSSION: No student would opt for psychiatry as a specialisation, although some expressed interest in integrating psychiatry into their future medical practice. However, this research indicates that stigmatising attitudes are not cut in stone. Under the impetus of specific teaching programmes, attitudes can evolve to create room for tolerance and compassion.

Variations in agronomic and grain quality traits of rice grown under irrigated lowland conditions in West Africa.

Rice breeding in West Africa has been largely skewed toward yield enhancement and stress tolerance. This has led to the variable grain quality of locally produced rice in the region. This study sought to assess variations in the agronomic and grain quality traits of some rice varieties grown in this region, with a view to identifying sources of high grain yield and quality that could serve as potential donors in their breeding programs. Forty-five varieties were grown under irrigated conditions in Benin and Senegal with two trials in each country. There were wide variations in agronomic and grain quality traits among the varieties across the trials. Cluster analysis using paddy yield, head rice yield, and chalkiness revealed that 68% of the total variation could be explained by five varietal groupings. One group comprising seven varieties (Afrihikari, BG90-2, IR64, Sahel 108, WAT311-WAS-B-B-23-7-1, WAT339-TGR-5-2, and WITA 10) had high head rice yield and low chalkiness. Of the varieties in this group, Sahel 108 had the highest paddy yield in three of the four trials. IR64 and Afrihikari had intermediate and low amylose content, respectively, with the rest being high-amylose varieties. Another group of varieties consisting of B6144F-MR-6-0-0, C74, IR31851-96-2-3-2-1, ITA222, Jaya, Sahel 305, WITA 1, and WITA 2 had high paddy yield but poor head rice yield and chalkiness. The use of materials from these two groups of varieties could accelerate breeding for high yielding rice varieties with better grain quality for local production in West Africa.

Crop-model assisted phenomics and genome-wide association study for climate adaptation of indica rice. 2. Thermal stress and spikelet sterility.

Low night and high day temperatures during sensitive reproductive stages cause spikelet sterility in rice. Phenotyping of tolerance traits in the field is difficult because of temporal interactions with phenology and organ temperature differing from ambient. Physiological models can be used to separate these effects. A 203-accession indica rice diversity panel was phenotyped for sterility in ten environments in Senegal and Madagascar and climate data were recorded. Here we report on sterility responses while a companion study reported on phenology. The objectives were to improve the RIDEV model of rice thermal sterility, to estimate response traits by fitting model parameters, and to link the response traits to genomic regions through genome-wide association studies (GWAS). RIDEV captured 64% of variation of sterility when cold acclimation during vegetative stage was simulated, but only 38% when it was not. The RIDEV parameters gave more and stronger quantitative trait loci (QTLs) than index variables derived more directly from observation. The 15 QTLs identified at P<1 × 10-5 (33 at P<1 × 10-4) were related to sterility effects of heat, cold, cold acclimation, or unexplained causes (baseline sterility). Nine annotated genes were found on average within the 50% linkage disequilibrium (LD) region. Among them, one to five plausible candidate genes per QTL were identified based on known expression profiles (organ, stage, stress factors) and function. Meiosis-, development- and flowering-related genes were frequent, as well a stress signaling kinases and transcription factors. Putative epigenetic factors such as DNA methylases or histone-related genes were frequent in cold-acclimation QTLs, and positive-effect alleles were frequent in cold-tolerant highland rice from Madagascar. The results indicate that epigenetic control of acclimation may be important in indica rice genotypes adapted to cool environments.

Crop-model assisted phenomics and genome-wide association study for climate adaptation of indica rice. 1. Phenology.

Phenology and time of flowering are crucial determinants of rice adaptation to climate variation. A previous study characterized flowering responses of 203 diverse indica rices (the ORYTAGE panel) to ten environments in Senegal (six sowing dates) and Madagascar (two years and two altitudes) under irrigation in the field. This study used the physiological phenology model RIDEV V2 to heuristically estimate component traits of flowering such as cardinal temperatures (base temperature (Tbase) and optimum temperature), basic vegetative phase, photoperiod sensitivity and cold acclimation, and to conduct a genome-wide association study for these traits using 16 232 anonymous single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers. The RIDEV model after genotypic parameter optimization explained 96% of variation in time to flowering for Senegal alone and 91% for Senegal and Madagascar combined. The latter was improved to 94% by including an acclimation parameter reducing Tbase when the crop experienced low temperatures during early vegetative development. Eighteen significant (P<1.0 × 10-5) quantitative trait loci (QTLs) were identified, namely ten for RIDEV parameters and eight for climatic index variables (difference in time to flowering between key environments). Co-localization of QTLs for different traits were rare. RIDEV parameters gave QTLs that were mostly more significant and distinct from QTLs for index variables. Candidate genes were investigated within the estimated 50% linkage disequilibrium regions of 39 kB. In addition to several known flowering network genes, they included genes related to thermal stress adaptation and epigenetic control mechanisms. The peak SNP for a QTL for the crop parameter Tbase (P=2.0 × 10-7) was located within HD3a, a florigen that was recently identified as implicated in flowering under cool conditions.

Gay men and other men who have sex with men in West Africa: evidence from the field.

This paper presents a synthesis of lessons learned from field experiences in HIV prevention, treatment and care services for men who have sex with men in the four contiguous West African countries of the Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea-Conakry and Senegal. Service provision for men who have sex with men in these countries is contextualised by the epidemiology of HIV, as well as the socio-political environment. These countries share notable commonalities in terms of social structures and culture, though past approaches to the needs of men who have sex with men have varied greatly. This synthesis includes three distinct components. The first focuses on what is known about HIV epidemiology among men who have sex with men in these countries and provides an overview of the data gaps affecting the quality of service provision. The second aspect describes the HIV prevention and treatment services currently available and how organisations and strategies have evolved in their approach to working with men who have sex with men. Finally, an examination of the political and cultural climate highlights socio-cultural factors that enable or impede HIV prevention and treatment efforts for men who have sex with men. The review concludes with a series of recommendations for impactful research, advocacy and service provision to improve the health and human rights context for men who have sex with men in West Africa.