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We detected malaria vector Anopheles stephensi mosquitoes in the Al Hudaydah governorate in Yemen by using DNA sequencing. We report 2 cytochrome c oxidase subunit I haplotypes, 1 previously found in Ethiopia, Somalia, Djibouti, and Yemen. These findings provide insight into invasive An. stephensi mosquitoes in Yemen and their connection to East Africa.

Background Anopheles stephensi  is an efficient vector of both  Plasmodium falciparum  and  Plasmodium vivax  in South Asia and the Middle East. The spread of  An. stephensi  to countries within the Horn of Africa threatens progress in malaria control in this region as well as the rest of sub-Saharan Africa. Methods The available malaria data and the timeline for the detection of An. stephensi was reviewed to analyse the role of  An. stephensi  in malaria transmission in Horn of Africa of the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) in Djibouti, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. Results Malaria incidence in Horn of Africa of EMR and Yemen, increased from 41.6 in 2015 to 61.5 cases per 1000 in 2020. The four countries from this region, Djibouti, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen had reported the detection of An. stephensi as of 2021. In Djibouti City, following its detection in 2012, the estimated incidence increased from 2.5 cases per 1000 in 2013 to 97.6 cases per 1000 in 2020. However, its contribution to malaria transmission in other major cities and in other countries, is unclear because of other factors, quality of the urban malaria data, human mobility, uncertainty about the actual arrival time of An. stephensi and poor entomological surveillance. Conclusions While An. stephensi may explain a resurgence of malaria in Djibouti, further investigations are needed to understand its interpretation trends in urban malaria across the greater region. More investment for multisectoral approach and integrated surveillance and control should target all vectors particularly malaria and dengue vectors to guide interventions in urban areas.

Systems for disease vector control should be effective, efficient, and flexible to be able to tackle contemporary challenges and threats in the control and elimination of vector-borne diseases. As a priority activity towards the strengthening of vector control systems, it has been advocated that countries conduct a vector-control needs assessment. A review was carried out of the perceived needs for disease vector control programs among eleven countries and subnational states in South Asia and the Middle East. In each country or state, independent teams conducted vector control needs assessment with engagement of stakeholders. Important weaknesses were described for malaria, dengue and leishmaniases regarding vector surveillance, insecticide susceptibility testing, monitoring and evaluation of operations, entomological capacity and laboratory infrastructure. In addition, community mobilization and intersectoral collaboration showed important gaps. Countries and states expressed concern about insecticide resistance that could reduce the continued effectiveness of interventions, which demands improved monitoring. Moreover, attainment of disease elimination necessitates enhanced vector surveillance. Vector control needs assessment provided a useful planning tool for systematic strengthening of vector control systems. A limitation in conducting the vector control needs assessment was that it is time- and resource-intensive. To increase the feasibility and utility of national assessments, an abridged version of the guidance should focus on operationally relevant topics of the assessment. Similar reviews are needed in other regions with different contextual conditions.

Systems for disease vector control should be effective, efficient, and flexible to be able to tackle contemporary challenges and threats in the control and elimination of vector-borne diseases. As a priority activity towards the strengthening of vector control systems, it has been advocated that countries conduct a vector-control needs assessment. A review was carried out of the perceived needs for disease vector control programs among eleven countries and subnational states in South Asia and the Middle East. In each country or state, independent teams conducted vector control needs assessment with engagement of stakeholders. Important weaknesses were described for malaria, dengue and leishmaniases regarding vector surveillance, insecticide susceptibility testing, monitoring and evaluation of operations, entomological capacity and laboratory infrastructure. In addition, community mobilization and intersectoral collaboration showed important gaps. Countries and states expressed concern about insecticide resistance that could reduce the continued effectiveness of interventions, which demands improved monitoring. Moreover, attainment of disease elimination necessitates enhanced vector surveillance. Vector control needs assessment provided a useful planning tool for systematic strengthening of vector control systems. A limitation in conducting the vector control needs assessment was that it is time- and resource-intensive. To increase the feasibility and utility of national assessments, an abridged version of the guidance should focus on operationally relevant topics of the assessment. Similar reviews are needed in other regions with different contextual conditions.

Anopheles stephensi is an invasive malaria vector in Africa. To determine the status of the mosquito in Yemen, An. stephensi vector surveillance and molecular confirmation was conducted in Al Hudaydah Governorate in 2021 and 2022. Mosquito larvae were collected in suspected man-made breeding habitats in Ah Dahi and Zabid city in 2021 and 2022, respectively. Mosquitoes morphologically identified as An. stephensi underwent molecular confirmation through PCR assays, sequencing, and phylogenetic analysis of the cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) gene and internal transcribed spacer 2 locus (ITS2). Analysis confirmed An. stephensi identification for the majority of samples (39/41), with two COI haplotypes detected: one newly reported haplotype and one haplotype common to Northeast Ethiopia and Somaliland. No clustering with An. stephensi from the Arabian Peninsula was observed. These findings provide preliminary insight into the diversity of An. stephensi in Yemen and the connection between An. stephensi in Yemen and East Africa.

The evolution of insect resistance to insecticides is frequently associated with overexpression of one or more cytochrome P450 enzyme genes. Although overexpression of CYP450 genes is a well-known mechanism of insecticide resistance, the underlying regulatory mechanisms are poorly understood. Here we uncovered the mechanisms of overexpression of the P450 gene, CYP321A8 in a major pest insect, Spodoptera exigua that is resistant to multiple insecticides. CYP321A8 confers resistance to organophosphate (chlorpyrifos) and pyrethroid (cypermethrin and deltamethrin) insecticides in this insect. Constitutive upregulation of transcription factors CncC/Maf are partially responsible for upregulated expression of CYP321A8 in the resistant strain. Reporter gene assays and site-directed mutagenesis analyses demonstrated that CncC/Maf enhanced the expression of CYP321A8 by binding to specific sites in the promoter. Additional cis -regulatory elements resulting from a mutation in the CYP321A8 promoter in the resistant strain facilitates the binding of the orphan nuclear receptor, Knirps , and enhances the promoter activity. These results demonstrate that two independent mechanisms; overexpression of transcription factors and mutations in the promoter region resulting in a new cis -regulatory element that facilitates binding of the orphan nuclear receptor are involved in overexpression of CYP321A8 in insecticide-resistant S . exigua .

Robotic manipulation refers to how robots intelligently interact with the objects in their surroundings, such as grasping and carrying an object from one place to another. Dexterous manipulating skills enable robots to assist humans in accomplishing various tasks that might be too dangerous or difficult to do. This requires robots to intelligently plan and control the actions of their hands and arms. Object manipulation is a vital skill in several robotic tasks. However, it poses a challenge to robotics. The motivation behind this review paper is to review and analyze the most relevant studies on learning-based object manipulation in clutter. Unlike other reviews, this review paper provides valuable insights into the manipulation of objects using deep reinforcement learning (deep RL) in dense clutter. Various studies are examined by surveying existing literature and investigating various aspects, namely, the intended applications, the techniques applied, the challenges faced by researchers, and the recommendations adopted to overcome these obstacles. In this review, we divide deep RL-based robotic manipulation tasks in cluttered environments into three categories, namely, object removal, assembly and rearrangement, and object retrieval and singulation tasks. We then discuss the challenges and potential prospects of object manipulation in clutter. The findings of this review are intended to assist in establishing important guidelines and directions for academics and researchers in the future.

Background Socioeconomic status (SES) is a social classification factor that takes into account income, parental education and occupation. SES has been shown to play an important role in shaping students’ academic performance, including in medical schools, but there still remains significant variation in findings around SES and academic achievement worldwide. We aim to assess and explore socioeconomic disparities and their effects on medical school performance at Sudanese public and private universities. Objectives The objective of our study was to assess the effects of age, sex, living conditions, parental education and income level on the academic achievement of medical students from universities in Sudan. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted among undergraduate medical students at ten public universities in Sudan between September and December 2023. Participants were included if they were older than 18 years and were studying in their 2nd year or older. The data were collected using an online questionnaire with open- and closed-ended questions measuring age, living conditions, parental income level and education. A convenience sampling method was used to recruit participants from universities. The data were analyzed using SPSS v28.0.0, and a p  value less than 0.05 was used to indicate statistical significance. Results We received 832 responses, 516 (62%) from females and 307 (36.9%) from males. The median age was 23 years. Most students lived with their families (61.1%), followed by student housing (28.2%). This study revealed age ( p  = .024) (95% Cl: 0.025- 0.023) andhigh family income ( p  = .019) (95% Cl: 0.018- 0.02) are associated with academic achievement in the long term, as demonstrated through cumulative grade point average (cGPA). Conclusion The findings underscore the importance of targeted support systems to bridge the socioeconomic gaps that exist among medical students, allowing all students to thrive academically regardless of their background. Clinical trial number None.

Hyaluronidase (hyase) is an endoglycosidase enzyme that degrades hyaluronic acid (HA) and is mostly known to be found in the extracellular matrix of connective tissues. In the current study, eleven bacteria isolates and one actinomycete were isolated from a roaster comb and screened for hyase production. Seven isolates were positive for hyase, and the most potent isolate was selected based on the diameter of the transparent zone. Based on the morphological, physiological, and 16 S rRNA characteristics, the most potent isolate was identified as Brucella intermedia MEFS with accession number OR794010. The environmental conditions supporting the maximum production of hyase were optimized to be incubation at 30 ºC for 48 h and pH 7, which caused a 1.17-fold increase in hyase production with an activity of 84 U/mL. Hyase was purified using a standard protocol, including precipitation with ammonium sulphate, DEAE as ion exchange chromatography, and size exclusion chromatography using Sephacryle S100, with a specific activity of 9.3-fold compared with the crude enzyme. The results revealed that the molecular weight of hyase was 65 KDa, and the optimum conditions for hyase activity were at pH 7.0 and 37 °C for 30 min. The purified hyase showed potent anticancer activities against colon, lung, skin, and breast cancer cell lines with low toxicity against normal somatic cells. The cell viability of hyase-treated cancer cells was found to be in a dose dependent manner. Hyase also controlled the growth factor-induced cell cycle progression of breast cancer cells and caused relative changes in angiogenesis-related genes as well as suppressed many pro-inflammatory proteins in MDA cells compared with 5-fluorouracil, indicating the significant role of hyase as an anticancer agent. In addition, hyase recorded the highest DPPH scavenging activity of 65.49% and total antioxidant activity of 71.84% at a concentration of 200 µg/mL.