clove and Brain-Diseases

Prof. Philippe Rasoanaivo was a highly dedicated and brilliant scientist in the field of ethnopharmacology. He worked for the Institut Malgache de Recherches Appliquées and the University of Antananarivo, Madagascar. His research was mainly focused on the endemic medicinal and aromatic plants used by traditional healers in Madagascar against a range of parasites, with special reference to Plasmodium spp. In this Editorial, we resumed the key findings of his research activity, with special reference to the discovery of alkaloids that markedly enhance the action of chloroquine against malaria parasites.

Topics: Biomedical Research; Brain Diseases; Ethnopharmacology; History, 20th Century; History, 21st Century; Madagascar; Malaria; Plant Preparations; Plasmodium

Neurocysticercosis (i.e. cerebral localization of the metacestode larvae of Taenia solium) is believed to be a major cause of late onset epilepsy in non-Muslim developing countries. To define its role in childhood epilepsy in Madagascar, analysis of serological markers of cysticercosis was performed in 256 children with unexplained epilepsy and in 113 controls. Sera were considered positive when high titres in ELISA were present together with at least one of the bands 13, 14, 18, 21, 24 or 32 kD on Western blot. Altogether, 17.6% of the patients versus none of the controls were seropositive using these criteria. When analysing the bands of the Western blot, those of 13, 14 and 18 were significantly more frequently detected in sera of epileptic children than in sera of controls. Neurocysticercosis can be considered the main cause of secondary childhood epilepsy in our country, Madagascar being one of the most important foci in the world.

Topics: Adolescent; Biomarkers; Blotting, Western; Brain Diseases; Child; Child, Preschool; Cysticercosis; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; Epilepsy; Humans; Infant; Madagascar