Equivalent to regulatory T cells, a novel B cell populace, called regulatory B cells (Bregs), has been found to exert a negative immune regulatory role. These subsets of cells account for 0.5% of human B cells from the periphery that expand after activation upon certain stimuli depending on the nature of the microenvironment and provide a variety of Breg cell phenotypes. The increasing number of suppressive mechanisms attributed to Bregs suggests that these immune cells play many roles in immune regulation. Bregs have been confirmed to play a role in host defense mechanisms of healthy individuals as well as they play pathologic and protective roles in diseases or other conditions. Accumulating evidence reported that Bregs have a role in autoimmune and infectious diseases to lower inflammation, and in cancer to attenuate antitumor immune responses, thereby to promote cancer growth and metastasis. More recently, Bregs are also found to be involved in conditions like transplantation for transplant tolerance, during pregnancy to create an immune-privileged uterine environment and during early neonate life. Herein, the review summarizes recent findings aimed to provide understanding on the Breg cells, in the hope to gain insight on the general overview, development, mechanism of activation, and action of Bregs as well as their potential roles in health and diseases.

The CRISPR-Cas (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeat (CRISPR)) and the associated protein (Cas9) system, a young but well-studied genome-editing tool, holds plausible solutions to a wide range of genetic disorders. The single-guide RNA (sgRNA) with a 20-base user-defined spacer sequence and the Cas9 endonuclease form the core of the CRISPR-Cas9 system. This sgRNA can direct the Cas9 nuclease to any genomic region that includes a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) just downstream and matches the spacer sequence. The current challenge in the clinical applications of CRISPR-Cas9 genome-editing technology is the potential off-target effects that can cause DNA cleavage at the incorrect sites. Off-target genome editing confuses and diminishes the therapeutic potential of CRISPR-Cas9 in addition to potentially casting doubt on scientific findings regarding the activities of genes. In this review, we summarize the recent technological advancements in reducing the off-target effect of CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing.

Background: A person may endure or witness a traumatic incident, such as being exposed to war, and, as a result, develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). There is a lack of information about post-traumatic stress disorder in low and middle-income countries such as Ethiopia. However, armed conflict, abuse of human rights, and violence motivated by race are becoming more commonplace. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of PTSD and associated factors among war survivors in Nefas Meewcha Town, South Gondar Zone, Ethiopia, 2022.Methods: A community based cross-sectional study was carried out. 812 study participants were chosen using a multi-stage sampling process. A face-to-face interview used a post-traumatic stress disorder checklist (PCL-5) to evaluate PTSD. The association between PTSD and other demographic and psychosocial characteristics was investigated using bivariate and multivariable binary logistic regression analysis. A P-value of 0.05 was declared as statistical significance.Result: The prevalence of PTSD in this study was 40.8% with a 95% CI of 36.2 to 46.7. The likelihood of developing PTSD was significantly associated with the fallowing factors. A close family member killed or seriously injured (AOR = 4.53, 95% CI = 3.25–6.46), being female (AOR = 1.98, 95% CI = 1.3–3.0), moderate (AOR = 3.51, 95% CI = 2.52–4.68) and high perceived stress (AOR = 5.23, 95% CI = 3.47–8.26), depression symptoms (AOR = 4.92, 95% CI = 3.57–6.86), anxiety disorder symptoms (AOR = 5.24, 95% CI = 3.72–7.63), a chronic medical illness (AOR = 3.51, 95% CI = 2.52–5.41), physical assault (AOR = 2.12, 95% CI = 1.05–3.72) and being in a war fighting situation (AOR = 1.41, 95% CI = 1.21–3.14).Conclusion: This study reported that the prevalence of PTSD was high. Being female, having a previous history of chronic medical illness, depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, history of a family member or friend was injured or killed, poor social support, high perceived stress, physical assault, and being in a war fighting situation were statistically associated with PTSD. Hence, regular patient assessment by mental health organizations for those with a history of trauma and facilitation of ways to support such residents is highly recommended.

Acute poisoning is a global pediatric emergency problem. However, a wide variation in patterns of acute poisoning and associated factors across different geographical regions was stated. As a result, our research focused on the investigation of acute poisoning in children. An Institutional-based Retrospective study design was conducted at the University of Gondar comprehensive specialized hospital from October 2016 to October 2020. The analysis of the data was performed via SPSS Version 25. Furthermore, multiple logistic regression analysis was recruited. A P-value ≤ 0.05 was declared as statistically significant. Our study's prevalence of acute poisoning was 82/5489 (1.5%). 53 (64.6%) of patients were males. Of the total patients who had the diagnosis of poisoning, 54 (65.9%) came from rural areas. Venom was the most frequent offending agent (26.8%) and oral ingestion was the most common route of exposure (70.7%). Of the total patients who had the diagnosis of poisoning, 54 (65.9%) came from rural areas. Venom was the most frequent offending agent (26.8%), followed by insecticides (organophosphates) (21.5%). Accidental poisoning was the most common mode of poisoning more often than intentional (75.6–24.4%). The digestive tract (oral ingestion) (69.5%) was the commonest route of poisoning, followed by the cutaneous (skin bite) (24.4%). Death was three times more likely in the rural population than in urban residents [AOR 2.9 (1.21–13.7); P value 0.046]. Appropriate emergency care is the mainstay of the supportive management protocol for childhood poisoning.

Purpose: The purpose of this systematic review is to answer the focused question, “What is the commonly affected nerve branch and the side of the face involved in trigeminal neuralgia?”Types of studies reviewed: This systematic review included studies reporting commonly affected trigeminal nerve branches and the side of the face involved in trigeminal neuralgia. To find the potential studies published, the authors utilized specific search databases such as PubMed, and Google scholar.Results: Among 132 published studies, the authors selected only 11 to be included for this systematic review. The sample size ranged from 50 to 43,518 study subjects. This review identified that the mandibular branches of the trigeminal nerve were the most affected, followed by the maxillary branch. The review also identified that the right side of the face was predominantly affected.Conclusion and practical implications: The authors of this review identified a higher occurrence of trigeminal neuralgia in the mandibular division of the nerve, commonly affected on the right side of the face. Further prospective-based research and meta-analysis are required to validate the commonly occurring trigeminal nerve branch and sidedness of the face involved with its clinical implications in trigeminal neuralgia.

Introduction: Chronic kidney disease is a major public health concern among people living with human immunodeficiency virus (PLWHIV) who are taking tenofovir disoproxil fumarate-based regimen. Despite the available evidence showing a high prevalence of CKD in this population, comprehensive pooled estimate of CKD among PLWHIV receiving TDF based regimen across the globe is lacking. Hence, the present systematic review aimed to provide a global pooled prevalence estimate of CKD. Method: We conducted a systematic review of literatures published between January 2000 and May 2024. Articles and grey literature were searched from the following databases and search engine: PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, Web of science, The Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINHAL), and Google Scholar. We included eligible studies that report magnitude of CKD in TDF based regimen. We executed the pooled CKD, subgroup analysis, and funnel plot using random effect model. All statistical analysis including sensitivity analysis were made using Stata 17 software. Results: Sixty-nine studies with 88299 participants included in this meta-analysis. The pooled prevalence of CKD was 7% (95% CI:6–8). CD4 count less than 200 copies per milliliter, and being female were associated with CKD. Conclusion: We concluded that the magnitude of CKD across the globe is high in people living with HIV who have received TDF based regimen. Early identification of CKD by considering regular renal function monitoring, and risk factors especially low CD4 count, and female gender at birth are essential. Trial registration: The protocol has been prospectively registered with PROSPERO ((CRD42020136813).