Four organizations, including the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the United Nations Environment Programme, WHO, and the World Organization for Animal Health, recently launched a new One Health Joint Plan of Action (2022-2026) which was the first time that the Quadripartite had issued a joint action plan on One Health. The action plan aimed to address the health challenges in the human, animal, plant, and environment, focusing on improving capabilities in six action tracks including One Health capacities, emerging and re-emerging zoonotic diseases, neglected tropical and vector-borne diseases, food safety, antimicrobial resistance and environment. This introduction will give an overview and brief translation of the background, content, and the plan's value, to help readers understand the joint action plan quickly.
Animals ; Humans ; Agriculture ; Global Health ; One Health ; United Nations ; Zoonoses/prevention & control*

Laboratories ; organization & administration ; standards ; statistics & numerical data ; Nigeria ; United Nations ; standards ; Veterinary Medicine ; organization & administration

BACKGROUND: Dating violence refers to violence occurring between people in an intimate relationship. Forms of dating violence are often categorized into physical, psychological, and sexual violence, and most existing literature has followed this frame. However, few studies have focused on the phenomenon of living under the perpetrator's coercive control in victims of dating violence, although those experiences are known to be signs of severe forms of violence later on. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of being coercively controlled in female victims who had experienced dating violence. METHODS: For this study, in-depth interviews were conducted with a total of 14 female victims, and all interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed. The data were analyzed using the phenomenological analysis method suggested by Colaizzi. RESULTS: Three themes were derived in chronological order: idealizing the relationship (period of potential control), facing severer tyranny (period of coercive control), and escaping from the unending trap (period of post-control). The results showed that the victims experienced perpetrators' control with specific patterns. The perpetrators' controlling behaviors were invisible, literally benevolent, at the beginning; however, severe forms of violence seemed to appear as their relationship deepened and the perpetrators failed to control the victims. CONCLUSION: Findings from this study presented vivid experiences of female victims who needed help and care. Hopefully, the results can benefit in terms of developing evidence-based prevention strategies for victims as well as assessing the risks of severe forms of dating violence, such as physical attack or murder.
Crime Victims ; Female ; Homicide ; Humans ; Intimate Partner Violence ; Methods ; Physical Abuse ; Qualitative Research ; Sex Offenses ; United Nations ; Violence

Disinfectants including polyhexamethylene guanidine phosphate (PHMG) and mixtures of chloromethylisothiazolinone/methylisothiazolinone (CMIT/MIT) have been widely used in Korea to prevent microbial growth in the humidifier water, which triggered an outbreak of serious respiratory diseases. In addition to the respiratory syndrome, disease-related symptoms including liver toxicity, asthma, and skin allergies were also found after extensive survey of people exposed to the humidifier disinfectants (HDs). In this study, eye irritation tests were performed based on the Organization for economic co-operation and development (OECD) test guidelines 492 using EpiOcular™ which is a tissue model of reconstructed human cornea-like epithelium. As results, the raw materials of PHMG (26% as active ingredient) and CMIT/MIT (1.5% as active ingredient) were classified under UN globally harmonized system of classification and labeling of chemical (GHS) category 1 or category 2. However, aqueous dilutions of raw materials such as market products of HDs that contain 0.13% of PHMG and 0.03% of CMIT/MIT or further dilutions of the market products for humidifier that contain 0.0013% of PHMG and 0.0003% of CMIT/MIT were classified under any category, which suggested absence of eye irritation at the test concentration.
Asthma ; Classification ; Disinfectants ; Epithelium ; Guanidine ; Humans ; Humidifiers ; Hypersensitivity ; Korea ; Liver ; Skin ; United Nations ; Water

BACKGROUND: The objectives of the study are to find out the effect of the implementing reform in three Central Asian countries, identify its impact on health status and health care delivery systems. This study address to identify strong and weak points of the health systems and provide a recommendation for further health care organization. METHODS: A comparative analysis was conducted to evaluate the effects of implemented policy on health care system efficiency and equity. Secondary data were collected on selected health indicators using information from the World Health Organization Global Health Expenditure Database, European Health Information Platform, and World Bank Open Data. RESULTS: In terms of population status, countries achieved relatively good results. Infant mortality and under-5 mortality rate decreased in all countries; also, life expectancy increased, and it was more than 70 years. Regulations of the health systems are still highly centralized, and the Ministry of Health is the main organ responsible for national health policy developing and implementation. Among the three countries, only Kyrgyzstan was successful in introducing a national health system. Distribution of health expenditure between public expenditure and out-of-pocket payments was decreased, and out-of-pocket payments were less the 50% of total health expenditure in all countries, in 2014. CONCLUSION: After independent, all three countries implemented a certain number of the policy reform, mostly it was directed to move away from the old the Soviet system. Subsequent reform should be focused on evidence-based decision making and strengthening of primary health care in terms of new public health concepts.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Decision Making ; Delivery of Health Care ; Global Health ; Health Expenditures ; Health Policy ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant Mortality ; Kazakhstan ; Kyrgyzstan ; Life Expectancy ; Mortality ; Primary Health Care ; Public Health ; Social Control, Formal ; United Nations ; Uzbekistan ; World Health Organization

Our current knowledge of mycobacterial infections in humans has progressively increased over the past few decades. The infection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis causes tuberculosis (TB) disease, which has reasoned for excessive morbidity and mortality worldwide, and has become a foremost issue of health problem globally. Mycobacterium leprae, another member of the family Mycobacteriaceae, is responsible for causing a chronic disease known as leprosy that mainly affects mucosa of the upper respiratory tract, skin, peripheral nerves, and eyes. Ample amount of existing data suggests that pathogenic mycobacteria have skilled in utilizing different mechanisms to escape or offset the host immune responses. They hijack the machinery of immune cells through the modulation of microRNAs (miRs), which regulate gene expression and immune responses of the host. Evidence shows that miRs have now gained considerable attention in the research, owing to their involvement in a broad range of inflammatory processes that are further implicated in the pathogenesis of several diseases. However, the knowledge of functions of miRs during mycobacterial infections remains limited. This review summarises recent findings of differential expression of miRs, which are used to good advantage by mycobacteria in offsetting host immune responses generated against them.
Apoptosis ; Chronic Disease ; Gene Expression ; Humans ; Leprosy ; Macrophages ; MicroRNAs ; Mortality ; Mucous Membrane ; Mycobacteriaceae ; Mycobacterium leprae ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis ; Peripheral Nerves ; Respiratory System ; Skin ; Tuberculosis ; United Nations

PURPOSE: Caffeine is the most widely consumed psychostimulant of the methylxanthine class. Among adolescents, high-dose of caffeine consumption has increased rapidly over the last few decades due to the introduction of energy drinks. However, little is known about the time-dependent effect of high doses of caffeine consumption in adolescents. The present study aims to examine the short- and long-term influence of high-dose caffeine on behavior of adolescence. METHODS: The animals were divided into three groups: a “vehicle” group, which was injected with 1 ml of phosphate-buffered saline for 14 days; a “Day 1” group, which was injected with caffeine (30 mg/kg), 2 h before the behavioral tests; and a “Day 14” group, which was infused with caffeine for 14 days. An open-field test, a Y-maze test, and a passive avoidance test were conducted to assess the rats'activity levels, anxiety, and cognitive function. RESULTS: High-dose caffeine had similar effects in short-and long-term treatment groups. It increased the level of locomotor activity and anxiety-like behavior, as evidenced by the increase in the number of movements and incidences of rearing and grooming in the caffeine-treated groups. No significant differences were observed between the groups in the Y-maze test. However, in the passive avoidance test, the escape latency in the caffeine-treated group was decreased significantly, indicating impaired memory acquisition. CONCLUSION: These results indicate that high-dose caffeine in adolescents may increase locomotor activity and anxiety-like behavior and impair learning and memory, irrespective of the duration of administration. The findings will be valuable for both evidence-based education and clinical practice.
Adolescent ; Animals ; Anxiety ; Behavior Rating Scale ; Caffeine ; Cognition ; Education ; Energy Drinks ; Grooming ; Humans ; Incidence ; Learning ; Locomotion ; Memory ; Models, Animal ; Motor Activity ; United Nations

Recent studies on T cell immunology have been instrumental in developing therapies to overcome cancer immune escape, and immune checkpoint inhibitors have emerged as one of the most promising therapeutic tools in advanced cancer patients. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICPIs) are monoclonal antibodies that modulate the effects of immune checkpoints. These include cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen 4 and programmed cell death protein 1, which are co-inhibitory signals responsible for immune suppression. Despite their clinical benefits, ICPIs behave as general immune activators, exerting to several toxic effects called immune-related adverse events attributed to organ-specific inflammation. Here, we review ICPI toxicities, highlighting the importance of their early identification and proper management.
Adrenal Cortex Hormones ; Allergy and Immunology ; Antibodies, Monoclonal ; Cell Death ; CTLA-4 Antigen ; Humans ; Inflammation ; United Nations

The fatality rate of a disaster is associated with the impact of the disaster and the case fatality rate. The severity of the disaster can be reduced by an efficient disaster management system, and the capacity of the trained disaster response system can lower the case mortality rate. The severity of a disaster is determined by the interaction of risk factors and vulnerabilities in a particular area, and the case-fatality rate is determined by a correlation between the capacity of the disaster response team and the survivability of the victims. The disaster management system and the disaster response system are complementary and interconnected, and the efficiency of cooperation and linkage can be improved by developing well organized digitalization. Efforts to increase the survival rate of victims through digitalization has been a continued process and new alternatives are being developed in accordance with the advances in information and communication technology to manage disaster risk factors and to improve disaster response capabilities. However, in case of mass casualty incidents, it is still difficult to reduce the case mortality rate by securing the survival time limit of the victims. Often, sharing the disaster scene information and communicating with the victim is not feasible. A lack of ability to provide real time escape route to exit or safe zone proves fatal. The communication revolution of the next generation wireless wide area network called 5G can overcome the disruption of communication network during the disaster incidents. It can enable real time tracking of the position of victim and linking the victims with its rescuers. Hence, it is possible to increase the survival rate of victims during mass casualty incidents by associating information and communication technologies with appropriate disaster management and response strategies, real-time information exchange and education and training of rescuers and citizens.
Disasters ; Education ; Emergencies ; Mass Casualty Incidents ; Mortality ; Risk Factors ; Survival Rate ; United Nations

The purpose of this research is to describe how Hansen's disease patients experienced the modern system of control of Hansen's disease introduced by Japan, and the inimical attitude of society against them in colonial Korea. The study also seeks to reveal the development of the system to eliminate Hansen's disease patients from their home and community to larger society and leprosarium in this era. Sorokdo Charity hospital (SCH), a hospital for Hansen's disease patients, was built in 1916, and vagrant Hansen's disease patients began to be isolated in this hospital beginning in 1917 by the Japanese Government-General of Korea (JGGK). Once the police detained and sent vagrant Hansen's disease patients to SCH, stigma and discrimination against them strengthened in Korean society. Because of strong stigma and discrimination in Korean society, Hansen's disease patients suffered from daily threats of death. First, their family members were not only afraid of the contagiousness of Hansen's disease but also the stigma and discrimination against themselves by community members. If a family had a Hansen's disease patient, the rest of community members would discriminate against the entire family. Furthermore, because Hansen's disease patients were excluded from any economic livelihood such as getting a job, the existence of the patients was a big burden for their families. Therefore, many patients left their homes and began their vagrancy. The patients who could not leave their homes committed suicide or were killed by their family members. The victims of such deaths were usually women, who were at the lower position in the family hierarchy. In the strong Confucian society in Korea, more female patients were killed by themselves than male patients. Moreover, all of patients victims in the murder were women. This shows that the stigma and discrimination against Hansen's disease patients within their families were stronger against women than men. Strong stigma and discrimination made the patients rely on superstition such as cannibalism. Patients believed that there were not any effective medicine. There were a few reports of patients who were cured, and many were treated with chaulmoogra oil in the modern Hansen's disease hospitals. Eating human flesh was known as a folk remedy for Hansen's disease. As such, patients began to kill healthy people, usually children, to eat their flesh. Increased stigma led to increased victims. Hansen's disease patients who left their homes faced many threats during their vagrancy. For survival, they established their own organizations in the late 1920's. The patients who were rejected to be hospitalized in the Western Hansen's disease hospital at Busan, Daegu, and Yeosu organized self-help organizations. The purpose of these organizations was first to secure the medicine supply of chaulmoogra oil. However, as stigma and discrimination strengthened, these organizations formed by Hansen's disease patients demanded the Japanese Government-General of Korea to send and segregate them on Sorok island. They did not know the situation of the inside of this island because news media described it as a haven for patients, and very few patients were discharged from this island to tell the truth. On this island, several hundreds of patients were killed by compulsory heavy labor, starvation, and violence. They were not treated as patients, but as something to be eliminated. Under strong suppression on this island, the patients resisted first by escaping this island. However, in 1937, some patients tried to kill a Korean staff but failed. Attempted murderers were all put in the jail, also located on this island. In 1941, a patient murdered another patient who had harassed other patients, and in 1942, Chunsang Lee, a patient, killed the director of Sorok island. These instances show that there was a system to eliminate Hansen's disease patients in colonial Korea.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Busan ; Cannibalism ; Charities ; Child ; Daegu ; Discrimination (Psychology) ; Eating ; Female ; Homicide ; Humans ; Japan ; Jeollanam-do ; Korea ; Leprosy ; Male ; Medicine, Traditional ; Police ; Starvation ; Suicide ; Superstitions ; United Nations ; Violence