University of Zimbabwe

About: University of Zimbabwe is a education organization based out in Harare, Harare, Zimbabwe. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). The organization has 4378 authors who have published 6800 publications receiving 160720 citations. The organization is also known as: UZ & University College of Rhodesia and Nyasaland.

Prevention of HIV-1 Transmission Through Breastfeeding: Efficacy and Safety of Maternal Antiretroviral Therapy Versus Infant Nevirapine Prophylaxis for Duration of Breastfeeding in HIV-1-Infected Women With High CD4 Cell Count (IMPAACT PROMISE): A Randomized, Open-Label, Clinical Trial.

Abstract: Background:No randomized trial has directly compared the efficacy of prolonged infant antiretroviral prophylaxis versus maternal antiretroviral therapy (mART) for prevention of mother-to-child transmission throughout the breastfeeding period.Setting:Fourteen sites in Sub-Saharan Africa and India.Met

Barriers to provider-initiated testing and counselling for children in a high HIV prevalence setting: a mixed methods study.

Abstract: Background There is a substantial burden of HIV infection among older children in sub-Saharan Africa, the majority of whom are diagnosed after presentation with advanced disease. We investigated the provision and uptake of provider-initiated HIV testing and counselling (PITC) among children in primary health care facilities, and explored health care worker (HCW) perspectives on providing HIV testing to children. Methods and Findings Children aged 6 to 15 y attending six primary care clinics in Harare, Zimbabwe, were offered PITC, with guardian consent and child assent. The reasons why testing did not occur in eligible children were recorded, and factors associated with HCWs offering and children/guardians refusing HIV testing were investigated using multivariable logistic regression. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with clinic nurses and counsellors to explore these factors. Among 2,831 eligible children, 2,151 (76%) were offered PITC, of whom 1,534 (54.2%) consented to HIV testing. The main reasons HCWs gave for not offering PITC were the perceived unsuitability of the accompanying guardian to provide consent for HIV testing on behalf of the child and lack of availability of staff or HIV testing kits. Children who were asymptomatic, older, or attending with a male or a younger guardian had significantly lower odds of being offered HIV testing. Male guardians were less likely to consent to their child being tested. 82 (5.3%) children tested HIV-positive, with 95% linking to care. Of the 940 guardians who tested with the child, 186 (19.8%) were HIV-positive. Conclusions The HIV prevalence among children tested was high, highlighting the need for PITC. For PITC to be successfully implemented, clear legislation about consent and guardianship needs to be developed, and structural issues addressed. HCWs require training on counselling children and guardians, particularly male guardians, who are less likely to engage with health care services. Increased awareness of the risk of HIV infection in asymptomatic older children is needed. Please see later in the article for the Editors' Summary

Aflatoxin detected in human breast milk by immunoassay.

Abstract: Several epidemiological studies have shown a positive association between dietary exposure to aflatoxin (AF) and an increased incidence of primary hepatocellular carcinoma (PHC). One area in which little information is available is the exposure of newborn children to AF in human breast milk. We report the development, validation and application of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to the detection of AF in human breast milk. The assay allows the quantitation of 2 pg AFM1 per ml of milk using less than 10 ml of sample. A good correlation was observed between ELISA and an hplc-fluorescence technique using naturally contaminated milk at levels up to 40 pg AF per ml. Of 54 samples collected from women in rural villages in Zimbabwe, 6 were found to be positive (11%) in ELISA with levels up to 50 pg AF per ml. No positive samples were detected out of 42 milk samples obtained from women in France. This sensitive and rapid methodology will be useful in examining the importance of and interaction between exposure to AF and infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV) early in life.

Dynamics and underlying causes of illegal bushmeat trade in Zimbabwe

Abstract: The prevalence and impacts of the illegal trade in bushmeat are under appreciated in Southern Africa, de- spite indications that it constitutes a serious conservation threat in parts of the region. Bushmeat trade has emerged as a severe threat to wildlife conservation and the viability of wildlife-based land uses in Zimbabwe during a period of political instability and severe economic decline. We conducted a study around SaveValley Conservancy in the South-East Lowveld of Zimbabwe to investigate the dynamics and underlying causes of the bushmeat trade, with the objective of developing solutions. We found that bushmeat hunting is conducted mainly by unemployed young men to generate cash income, used mostly to purchase food. Bushmeat is mainly sold to people with cash incomes in adjacent communal lands and population centres and is popular by virtue of its affordability and availability. Key drivers of the bushmeat trade in the South-East Lowveld include: poverty, unemployment and food shortages, settlement of wildlife areas by impover- ished communities that provided open access to wildlife resources, failure to provide stakes for communities in wildlife-based land uses, absence of affordable protein sources other than illegally sourced bushmeat, inadequate investment in anti-poaching in areas remaining under wildlife management, and weak penal systems that do not provide sufficient deterrents to illegal bushmeat hunt- ers. Each of these underlying causes needs to be addressed for the bushmeat trade to be tackled effectively. However, in the absence of political and economic stability, control- ling illegal bushmeat hunting will remain extremely diffi- cult and the future of wildlife-based land uses will remain bleak.