Comparing population-level humoral and cellular immunity to SARS-Cov-2 in Bangalore, India.

Two types of immunity, humoral and cellular, offer protection against COVID. Humoral protection, contributed by circulating neutralizing antibodies, can provide immediate protection but decays more quickly than cellular immunity and can lose effectiveness in the face of mutation and drift in the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Therefore, population-level seroprevalence surveys used to estimate population-level immunity may underestimate the degree to which a population is protected against COVID. In early 2021, before India began its vaccination campaign, we tested for humoral and cellular immunity to SARS-Cov-2 in representative samples of slum and non-slum populations in Bangalore, India. We found that 29.7% of samples (unweighted) had IgG antibodies to the spike protein and 15.5% had neutralizing antibodies, but at up to 46% showed evidence of cellular immunity. We also find that prevalence of cellular immunity is significantly higher in slums than in non-slums. These findings suggest (1) that a significantly larger proportion of the population in Bangalore, India, had cellular immunity to SARS-CoV-2 than had humoral immunity, as measured by serological surveys, and (2) that low socio-economic status communities display higher frequency of cellular immunity, likely because of greater exposure to infection due to population density.

What drives poor quality of care for child diarrhea? Experimental evidence from India.

Most health care providers in developing countries know that oral rehydration salts (ORS) are a lifesaving and inexpensive treatment for child diarrhea, yet few prescribe it. This know-do gap has puzzled experts for decades. Using randomized experiments in India, we estimated the extent to which ORS underprescription is driven by perceptions that patients do not want ORS, provider's financial incentives, and ORS stock-outs (out-of-stock events). Patients expressing a preference for ORS increased ORS prescribing by 27 percentage points. Eliminating stock-outs increased ORS provision by 7 percentage points. Removing financial incentives did not affect ORS prescribing on average but did increase ORS prescribing at pharmacies. We estimate that perceptions that patients do not want ORS explain 42% of underprescribing, whereas stock-outs and financial incentives explain only 6 and 5%, respectively.

Transgenic sugarcane overexpressing Glyoxalase III improved germination and biomass production at formative stage under salinity and water-deficit stress conditions.

The glyoxalase system, involving Glyoxalase I (GlyI) and Glyoxalase II (Gly II), plays a vital role in abiotic stress tolerance in plants. A novel enzyme Glyoxalase III (Gly III) was found recently from bacteria, yeast, and plant species. This enzyme provides a new way to detoxify Methylglyoxal (MG), a cytotoxic α-oxoaldehyde, which, in excess, can cause complete cell destruction by forming Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) and Advanced Glycation End products (AGEs) or DNA/RNA mutation. In this background, the current study examined sugarcane transgenic events that exhibit an increase in expression of EaGly III, to assess their performance in terms of germination and biomass production during formative stage under stress conditions. Southern blot analysis outcomes confirmed the integration of transgene in the transgenic plants. The results from quantitative RT-PCR analyses confirmed high expression levels of EaGly III in transgenic events compared to wild type (WT) under salinity (100 and 200 mM NaCl) and drought (withholding watering) conditions. Transgenic events exhibited enhanced biomass productivity ranged between 0.141 Kg/pot and 0.395 Kg/pot under 200 mM salinity and 0.262 Kg/pot and 0.666 Kg/pot under drought stress. Further, transgenic events observed significantly higher germination rates under salinity and drought conditions compared to that of WT. Subcellular localization prediction by EaGlyIII-GFP fusion expression in sugarcane callus showed that it is distributed across the cytoplasm, thus indicating its widespread activity within the cell. These results strongly suggest that enhancing EaGly III activity is a useful strategy to improve the salinity and drought-tolerance in sugarcane as well as other crops.

Isolation of 5' regulatory region of COLD1 gene and its functional characterization through transient expression analysis in tobacco and sugarcane.

Chilling Tolerant Divergence 1 (COLD1) gene consists of Golgi pH Receptor (GPHR) as well as Abscisic Acid-linked G Protein-Coupled Receptor (ABA_GPCR), which are the major transmembrane proteins in plants. This gene expression has been found to be differentially regulated, under various stress conditions, in wild Saccharum-related genera, Erianthus arundinaceus, compared to commercial sugarcane variety. In this study, Rapid Amplification of Genomic Ends (RAGE) technique was employed to isolate the 5' upstream region of COLD1 gene to gain knowledge about the underlying stress regulatory mechanism. The current study established the cis-acting elements, main promoter regions, and Transcriptional Start Site (TSS) present within the isolated 5' upstream region (Cold1P) of COLD1, with the help of specific bioinformatics techniques. Phylogenetic analysis results revealed that the isolated Cold1P promoter is closely related to the species, Sorghum bicolor. Cold1P promoter-GUS gene construct was generated in pCAMBIA 1305.1 vector that displayed a constitutive expression of the GUS reporter gene in both monocot as well as dicot plants. The histochemical GUS assay outcomes confirmed that Cold1P can drive expression in both monocot as well as dicot plants. Cold1P's activities under several abiotic stresses such as cold, heat, salt, and drought, revealed its differential expression profile in commercial sugarcane variety. The highest activity of the GUS gene was found after 24 h of cold stress, driven by the isolated Cold1P promoter. The outcomes from GUS fluorimetric assay correlated with that of the GUS expression findings. This is the first report on Cold1P isolated from the species, E. arundinaceus. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13205-023-03650-8.

Does the market reward quality? Evidence from India.

There are two salient facts about health care in low and middle-income countries; (1) the private sector plays an important role and (2) the care provided is often of poor quality. Despite these facts we know little about what drives quality of care in the private sector and why patients seek care from poor quality providers. We use two field studies in India that provide insight into this issue. First, we use a discrete choice experiment to show that patients strongly value technical quality. Second, we use standardized patients to show that better quality providers are not able to charge higher prices. Instead providers are able to charge higher prices for elements of quality that the patient can observe, which are less important for health outcomes. Future research should explore whether accessible information on technical quality of local providers can shift demand to higher quality providers and improve health outcomes.

Visualizing COVID Restrictions: Activity Patterns Before, During, and After COVID-19 Lockdowns in Uttar Pradesh, India.

Globally, restrictions implemented to limit the spread of COVID-19 have highlighted deeply rooted social divisions, raising concerns about differential impacts on members of different groups. Inequalities among households of different castes are ubiquitous in certain regions of India. Drawing on a novel data set of 8,564 households in Uttar Pradesh, the authors use radar plots to examine differences between castes in rates of activity for several typical behaviors before, during, and upon lifting strict lockdown restrictions. The visualization reveals that members of all castes experienced comparable reductions in activity rates during lockdown and recovery rates following it. Nonetheless, members of less privileged castes procure water outside the household more often than their more privileged peers, highlighting an avenue of improvement for future public health efforts.

Overexpression of Glyoxalase III gene in transgenic sugarcane confers enhanced performance under salinity stress.

The glyoxalase pathway is a check point to monitor the elevation of methylglyoxal (MG) level in plants and is mediated by glyoxalase I (Gly I) and glyoxalase II (Gly II) enzymes in the presence of glutathione. Recent studies established the presence of unique DJ-1/PfpI domain containing protein named glyoxalase III (Gly III) in prokaryotes, involved in the detoxification of MG into D-lactic acid through a single step process. In the present study, eleven transgenic sugarcane events overexpressing EaGly III were assessed for salinity stress (100 mM and 200 mM NaCl) tolerance. Lipid peroxidation as well as cell membrane injury remained very minimal in all the transgenic events indicating reduced oxidative damage. Transgenic events exhibited significantly higher plant water status, gas exchange parameters, chlorophyll, carotenoid, and proline content, total soluble sugars, SOD and POD activity compared to wild type (WT) under salinity stress. Histological studies by taking the cross section showed a highly stable root system in transgenic events upon exposure to salinity stress. Results of the present study indicate that transgenic sugarcane events overexpressing EaGly III performed well and exhibited improved salinity stress tolerance.

Ectopic expression of DJ-1/PfpI domain containing Erianthus arundinaceus Glyoxalase III (EaGly III) enhances drought tolerance in sugarcane.

KEY MESSAGE: Sugarcane transgenic overexpressing EaGly III from Erianthus arundinaceus showed enhanced water deficit stress tolerance. Methylglyoxal (MG), an α-ketoaldehyde formed from either glycolysis or TCA cycle, is capable of causing total cellular damage via the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), advanced glycation end products (AGEs) and nucleic acid degradation. Glyoxalase pathway is a ubiquitous pathway known for detoxification of MG, involving key enzymes glyoxalase I (Gly I) and glyoxalase II (Gly II). Recently, a novel and an additional enzyme in glyoxalase pathway, viz., glyoxalase III (Gly III), has been discovered which possesses DJ-1/PfpI domain recognized for detoxifying MG in a single step process without requirement of any coenzyme. In the present study, a Gly III gene isolated from Erianthus arundinaceus, a wild relative of sugarcane, overexpressed in commercially cultivated sugarcane hybrid Co 86032 was assessed for drought tolerance. Morphometric observations revealed that transgenic sugarcane overexpressing EaGly III acquired drought tolerance trait. Oxidative damage caused by triggering generation of ROS has been determined to be low in transgenic plants as compared to wild type (WT). Transgenics resulted in higher relative water content, chlorophyll content, gas exchange parameters, photosynthetic efficiency, proline content and soluble sugars upon water deficit stress. In addition, higher and stable level of superoxide dismutase and peroxidase activities were observed along with minimal lipid peroxidation during drought stress signifying the tolerance mechanism exhibited by transgenic events. There was no significant structural change observed in the root anatomy of transgenic plants. Altogether, EaGly III gene could be considered as a potential candidate for conferring water deficit stress tolerance for sugarcane and other agricultural crops.

Isolation, characterization and expression analysis of stress responsive plant nuclear transcriptional factor subunit (NF-YB2) from commercial Saccharum hybrid and wild relative Erianthus arundinaceus.

Plant nuclear factor (NF-Y) is a transcription activating factor, consisting of three subunits, and plays a key regulatory role in many stress-responsive mechanisms including drought and salinity stresses. NF-Ys function both as complex and individual subunits. Considering the importance of sugarcane as a commercial crop with high socio-economic importance and the crop being affected mostly by water deficit stress and salinity stress causing significant yield loss, nuclear transcriptional factor NF-YB2 was focused in this study. Plant nuclear factor subunit B2 from Erianthus arundinaceus (EaNF-YB2), a wild relative of sugarcane which is known for its drought and salinity stress tolerance, and commercial Saccharum hybrid Co 86032 (ShNF-YB2) was isolated and characterized. Both EaNF-YB2 and ShNF-YB2 genes are 543 bp long that encodes for a polypeptide of 180 amino acid residues. Comparison of EaNF-YB2 and ShNF-YB2 gene sequences revealed nucleotide substitutions at nine positions corresponding to three synonymous and six nonsynonymous amino acid substitutions that resulted in variations in physiochemical properties. However, multiple sequence alignment (MSA) of NF-YB2 proteins showed conservation of functionally important amino acid residues. In silico analysis revealed NF-YB2 to be a hydrophilic and intracellular protein, and EaNF-YB2 is thermally more stable than that of ShNF-YB2. Phylogenetic analysis suggested the lower rate of evolution of NF-YB2. Subcellular localization in sugarcane callus revealed NF-YB2 localization at nucleus that further evidenced it to be a transcription activation factor. Comparative RT-qPCR experiments showed a significantly higher level of NF-YB2 expression in E. arundinaceus when compared to that in the commercial Saccharum hybrid Co 86032 under drought and salinity stresses. Hence, EaNF-YB2 could be an ideal candidate gene, and its overexpression in sugarcane through genetic engineering approach might enhance tolerance to drought and salinity stresses.

Does improving appropriate use of malaria medicines change population beliefs in testing and treatment? Evidence from a randomized controlled trial.

A major puzzle in malaria treatment remains the dual problem of underuse and overuse of malaria medications, which deplete scarce public resources used for subsidies and lead to drug resistance. One explanation is that health behaviour, especially in the context of incomplete information, could be driven by beliefs, pivotal to the success of health interventions. The objective of this study is to investigate how population beliefs change in response to an experimental intervention which was shown to improve access to rapid diagnostic testing (RDT) through community health workers (CHWs) and to increase appropriate use of anti-malaria medications. By collecting data on individuals' beliefs on malaria testing and treatment 12 and 18 months after the experimental intervention started, we find that the intervention increases the belief that a negative test result is correct, and the belief that the first-line anti-malaria drugs (artemisinin-based combination therapies or ACTs) are effective. Using mediation analysis, we also explore some possible mechanisms through which the changes happen. We find that the experience and knowledge about RDT and experience with CHWs explain 62.4% of the relationship between the intervention and the belief that a negative test result is correct. Similarly, the targeted use of ACTs and taking the correct dose-in addition to experience with RDT-explain 96.8% of the relationship between the intervention and the belief that the ACT taken is effective. As beliefs are important determinants of economic behaviour and might guide individuals' future decisions, understanding how they change after a health intervention has important implications for long-term changes in population behaviour.

Touching beliefs: Using touchscreen technology to elicit subjective expectations in survey research.

When making decisions under uncertainty, individuals may form subjective expectations about probabilities of events relevant for their choice. Accurate measurement of subjective expectations is critical for high-quality data needed to analyze individual behavior. This paper reports the development and validity of a new method of eliciting point subjective expectations in developing countries. We developed a touchscreen-based application that combines an animated slider along with dynamic images that change relative sizes based on the probability indicated by the respondent. We compare our method to the more traditional approach of using beans as visual aids. First, we find that respondents have a sound understanding of basic concepts of probability. Second, we test for equality of the distributions elicited with the different methods and find them highly comparable. Third, we provide evidence that respondents report a more favorable opinion about the slider method and more willingness to complete long surveys using the slider rather than beans. Our findings suggest that the slider could be a viable elicitation method for empirical researchers who aim to collect data on subjective expectations in developing countries.

Improving rational use of ACTs through diagnosis-dependent subsidies: Evidence from a cluster-randomized controlled trial in western Kenya.

BACKGROUND: More than half of artemisinin combination therapies (ACTs) consumed globally are dispensed in the retail sector, where diagnostic testing is uncommon, leading to overconsumption and poor targeting. In many malaria-endemic countries, ACTs sold over the counter are available at heavily subsidized prices, further contributing to their misuse. Inappropriate use of ACTs can have serious implications for the spread of drug resistance and leads to poor outcomes for nonmalaria patients treated with incorrect drugs. We evaluated the public health impact of an innovative strategy that targets ACT subsidies to confirmed malaria cases by coupling free diagnostic testing with a diagnosis-dependent ACT subsidy. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We conducted a cluster-randomized controlled trial in 32 community clusters in western Kenya (population approximately 160,000). Eligible clusters had retail outlets selling ACTs and existing community health worker (CHW) programs and were randomly assigned 1:1 to control and intervention arms. In intervention areas, CHWs were available in their villages to perform malaria rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) on demand for any individual >1 year of age experiencing a malaria-like illness. Malaria RDT-positive individuals received a voucher for a discount on a quality-assured ACT, redeemable at a participating retail medicine outlet. In control areas, CHWs offered a standard package of health education, prevention, and referral services. We conducted 4 population-based surveys-at baseline, 6 months, 12 months, and 18 months-of a random sample of households with fever in the last 4 weeks to evaluate predefined, individual-level outcomes. The primary outcome was uptake of malaria diagnostic testing at 12 months. The main secondary outcome was rational ACT use, defined as the proportion of ACTs used by test-positive individuals. Analyses followed the intention-to-treat principle using generalized estimating equations (GEEs) to account for clustering with prespecified adjustment for gender, age, education, and wealth. All descriptive statistics and regressions were weighted to account for sampling design. Between July 2015 and May 2017, 32,404 participants were tested for malaria, and 10,870 vouchers were issued. A total of 7,416 randomly selected participants with recent fever from all 32 clusters were surveyed. The majority of recent fevers were in children under 18 years (62.9%, n = 4,653). The gender of enrolled participants was balanced in children (49.8%, n = 2,318 boys versus 50.2%, n = 2,335 girls), but more adult women were enrolled than men (78.0%, n = 2,139 versus 22.0%, n = 604). At baseline, 67.6% (n = 1,362) of participants took an ACT for their illness, and 40.3% (n = 810) of all participants took an ACT purchased from a retail outlet. At 12 months, 50.5% (n = 454) in the intervention arm and 43.4% (n = 389) in the control arm had a malaria diagnostic test for their recent fever (adjusted risk difference [RD] = 9 percentage points [pp]; 95% CI 2-15 pp; p = 0.015; adjusted risk ratio [RR] = 1.20; 95% CI 1.05-1.38; p = 0.015). By 18 months, the ARR had increased to 1.25 (95% CI 1.09-1.44; p = 0.005). Rational use of ACTs in the intervention area increased from 41.7% (n = 279) at baseline to 59.6% (n = 403) and was 40% higher in the intervention arm at 18 months (ARR 1.40; 95% CI 1.19-1.64; p < 0.001). While intervention effects increased between 12 and 18 months, we were not able to estimate longer-term impact of the intervention and could not independently evaluate the effects of the free testing and the voucher on uptake of testing. CONCLUSIONS: Diagnosis-dependent ACT subsidies and community-based interventions that include the private sector can have an important impact on diagnostic testing and population-wide rational use of ACTs. Targeting of the ACT subsidy itself to those with a positive malaria diagnostic test may also improve sustainability and reduce the cost of retail-sector ACT subsidies. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02461628.

Differential gene expression profiling through transcriptome approach of Saccharum spontaneum L. under low temperature stress reveals genes potentially involved in cold acclimation.

Sugarcane (Saccharum sp.) is predominantly grown in both tropics and subtropics in India, and the subtropics alone contribute more than half of sugarcane production. Sugarcane active growth period in subtropics is restricted to 8-9 months mainly due to winter's low temperature stress prevailing during November to February every year. Being a commercial crop, tolerance to low temperature is important in sugarcane improvement programs. Development of cold tolerant sugarcane varieties require a deep knowledge on molecular mechanism naturally adapted by cold tolerant genotypes during low temperature stress. To understand gene regulation under low temperature stress, control and stressed (10 °C, 24 h) leaf samples of cold tolerant S. spontaneum IND 00-1037 collected from high altitude region in Arunachal Pradesh were used for transcriptome analysis using the Illumina NextSeq 500 platform with paired-end sequencing method. Raw reads of 5.1 GB (control) and 5.3 GB (stressed) obtained were assembled using trinity and annotated with UNIPROT, KEGG, GO, COG and SUCEST databases, and transcriptome was validated using qRT-PCR. The differential gene expression (DGE) analysis showed that 2583 genes were upregulated and 3302 genes were down-regulated upon low temperature stress. A total of 170 cold responsive transcriptional factors belonging to 30 families were differentially regulated. CBF6 (C-binding factor), a DNA binding transcriptional activation protein associated with cold acclimation and freezing tolerance was differentially upregulated. Many low temperature responsive genes involved in various metabolic pathways, viz. cold sensing through membrane fluidity, calcium and lipid signaling genes, MAP kinases, phytohormone signaling and biosynthetic genes, antioxidative enzymes, membrane and cellular stabilizing genes, genes involved in biosynthesis of polyunsaturated fatty acids, chaperones, LEA proteins, soluble sugars, osmoprotectants, lignin and pectin biosynthetic genes were also differentially upregulated. Potential cold responsive genes and transcriptional factors involved in cold tolerance mechanism in cold tolerant S. spontaneum IND 00-1037 were identified. Together, this study provides insights into the cold tolerance to low temperature stress in S. spontaneum, thus opening applications in the genetic improvement of cold stress tolerance in sugarcane.

Evaluation of a social franchising and telemedicine programme and the care provided for childhood diarrhoea and pneumonia, Bihar, India.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the impact on the quality of the care provided for childhood diarrhoea and pneumonia in Bihar, India, of a large-scale, social franchising and telemedicine programme - the World Health Partners' Sky Program. METHODS: We investigated changes associated with the programme in the knowledge and performance of health-care providers by carrying out 810 assessments in a representative sample of providers in areas where the programme was and was not implemented. Providers were assessed using hypothetical patient vignettes and the standardized patient method both before and after programme implementation, in 2011 and 2014, respectively. Differences in providers' performance between implementation and nonimplementation areas were assessed using multivariate difference-in-difference linear regression models. FINDINGS: The programme did not significantly improve health-care providers' knowledge or performance with regard to childhood diarrhoea or pneumonia in Bihar. There was a persistent large gap between knowledge of appropriate care and the care actually delivered. CONCLUSION: Social franchising has received attention globally as a model for delivering high-quality care in rural areas in the developing world but supporting data are scarce. Our findings emphasize the need for sound empirical evidence before social franchising programmes are scaled up.

Innovative public-private partnership to target subsidised antimalarials: a study protocol for a cluster randomised controlled trial to evaluate a community intervention in Western Kenya.

INTRODUCTION: There are concerns of inappropriate use of subsidised antimalarials due to the large number of fevers treated in the informal sector with minimal access to diagnostic testing. Targeting antimalarial subsidies to confirmed malaria cases can lead to appropriate, effective therapy. There is evidence that community health volunteers (CHVs) can be trained to safely and correctly use rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs). This study seeks to evaluate the public health impact of targeted antimalarial subsidies delivered through a partnership between CHVs and the private retail sector. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: We are conducting a stratified cluster-randomised controlled trial in Western Kenya where 32 community units were randomly assigned to the intervention or control (usual care) arm. In the intervention arm, CHVs offer free RDT testing to febrile individuals and, conditional on a positive test result, a voucher to purchase a WHO-qualified artemisinin combination therapy (ACT) at a reduced fixed price in the retail sector.Study outcomes in individuals with a febrile illness in the previous 4 weeks will be ascertained through population-based cross-sectional household surveys at four time points: baseline, 6, 12 and 18 months postbaseline. The primary outcome is the proportion of fevers that receives a malaria test from any source (CHV or health facility). The main secondary outcome is the proportion of ACTs used by people with a malaria-positive test. Other secondary outcomes include: the proportion of ACTs used by people without a test and adherence to test results. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The protocol has been approved by the National Institutes of Health, the Moi University School of Medicine Institutional Research and Ethics Committee and the Duke University Medical Center Institutional Review Board. Findings will be reported on clinicalstrials.gov, in peer-reviewed publications and through stakeholder meetings including those with the Kenyan Ministry of Health. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: Pre-results, NCT02461628.