Browsing by Author "Aidoo, S."
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Item Characteristics of hepatitis B virus in Ghana: Full length genome sequences indicate the endemicity of genotype E in West Africa.(2006) Huy, T.T.T.; Ishikawa, K.; Ampofo, W.; Izumi, T.; Nakajima, A.; Ansah, J.; Tetteh, J.O.; Nii-Trebi, N.; Aidoo, S.; Ofori-Adjei, D.; Sata, T; Ushijima, H.; Abe, K.Hepatitis B virus (HBV) genotypes from A to H have distinct geographical distributions and have been shown to affect the clinical features as well as the course of the HBV infection. HBV genotype E has been found only in Africa. However, the complete genomes of this genotype, which were isolated mainly from West Africa, were available only for a few samples. In this study, five full-length genomes and seven other small S genes of HBV strains from Ghanaian blood donors were sequenced and investigated. Following phylogenetic analysis, all of the Ghanaian HBV strains were clustered closely in genotype E. All of the 12 small S genes showed the same characteristic of subtype ayw4. The complete genomes of the five Ghanaian strains showed marked similarity with each other and with the reported genotype E strains (96.7%-99.1%). Genotype E strains showed low intra-genotypic diversity (1.8%) and carried the conserved signature pattern in pre-S1 as well as in the full genome sequence. Of note, the finding of the G145R escape mutant in an unvaccinated Ghanaian blood donor might raise concern as to the ongoing nation-wide hepatitis B vaccination program in Ghana.Item Establishment of in-house quantitative real-time RT-PCR assay for HIV-1 viral load measurement: Application to evaluate efficacy of ART in Ghanaian patients in an urban setting(Journal of AIDS and Clinical Research, 2014-01) Barnor, J.S.; Yamamoto, N.; Brandful, J.A.M.; Ampofo, W.; Bonney, J.H.K.; Bonney, E.; Odoom, J.K.; Aidoo, S.; Alale, M.; Ntim, N.A.; Amoah, Y.O.; Ofori, S.B.; Ndzinu, J.; Aziati, I.D.; Addo, N.-A.; Nyarko, A.; Ido, E.; Ishikawa, K.; Yamaoka, S.The aim of this study was to establish and apply a real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) RNA quantification in patients on antiretroviral treatment (ART) in Ghana, where recombinant strains including CRF02_AG are prevalent. The primers and TaqMan probe concentrations as well as reaction temperatures were optimized to establish an efficient in-house quantitative assay system for HIV RNA, a tool for HIV viral load measurement in patients. Then an already established HIV-specific PCR amplicon (HIV-1 NL4-3) was used as an external standard to estimate the linearity, amplification efficiency, analytical sensitivity and reproducibility of the in-house real time quantitative assay. Finally, the assay was applied to quantify the viral load in clinical samples of HIV patients on ART. The real time quantitative assay was shown to have good linearity (R2=1.0), high amplification efficiency (E=1.91), high sensitivity (180 copies/ml), and high reproducibility (variation coefficient range, from 1.25% to 3.58%). Analytical specificity and sensitivity of the assay in clinical samples was 96.7% and 95.0%, respectively. The established tool is reliable and covers all relevant genotypes including rare and recombinant forms that circulate in the sub-region. It could therefore allow general monitoring of antiretroviral therapy in patients living in resource-limited settings due to its simplicity, rapidity and less-labour intensiveness. © 2014 Barnor JS, et al.Item Prevalence of hepatitis G virus and characterization of viral genome in Ghana.(Hepatology Research, 1999) Saito, T.; Ishikawa, K.; Osei-Kwasi, M.; Kaneko, T.; Brandful, J.A.M.; Nuvor, V.; Aidoo, S.; Ampofo, W.; Apeagyei, F.A.; Ansah, J.E.; Adu-Sarkodie, Y.; Nkrumah, F.K.; Abe, K.The prevalence of hepatitis G virus (HGV) infection was investigated in 85 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected and 30 uninfected individuals' sera obtained from Ghanaians. HGV RNA in serum was identified by a nested reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) using primers derived from the 5′-noncoding region. We also tested for hepatitis C virus by nested RT-PCR and for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) by passive hemagglutination method. HGV RNA was detected in 17 of 85 (20%) HIV sero-positive and three of 30 (10%) sero-negative Ghanaians, respectively. The prevalence of HGV infection was much greater than hepatitis C (0.9%) and hepatitis B virus (7.8%) infections in the present study. Ninety four percent of HGV infected patients were seronegative for hepatitis B and C virus infections. The nine different Ghanaian isolates in the 5′-untranslated region of the HGV genome had one nucleotide deletion at the same position when compared with other HGV isolates. Phylogenetic analysis showed that all Ghanaian isolates belonged to type 1 (West Africa type) of the HGV genotypes. Moreover, we determined nearly full-length nucleotide sequence of the HGV genome (denoted HGV-GA128) recovered from a Ghanaian infected with HIV. The HGV-GA128 was composed of 9231 nucleotides and had a single open reading frame, encoding 2843 amino acid residues. This isolate differed from previously reported HGV/GBV-C isolates by 10–15% of the nucleotide sequence and 2–5% of the amino acid sequence. Our data indicate a high prevalence of HGV, especially genotype 1, in Ghana.Item Saxophone Solos in Ghanaian Highlife Music: An Analytical Study of Tempos and the Ramblers International Bands(University of Ghana, 2014-07) Aidoo, S.; Collins, J.; Harpper, C.; University of Ghana, College of Humanities, School of Performing Arts, Department of MusicHighlife dance band music is one genre of popular music in Ghana that makes use of both Western and African idioms. This makes highlife music to be enjoyed by both Africans and Westerners. One unique characteristic of this type of highlife music is improvisation. Other instruments such as the trumpet and guitar perform this style but the saxophone instrument, is preferred above all the others. This study aims at recording and compiling selected saxophone solos by the Tempos and Ramblers highlife dance bands through live and prerecorded media. The saxophone solos will then be transcribed to and studied more critically. Analysis will be to identify the styles and techniques that are used such as vibration and pitch bending. The study will also examine other musical elements such as melody, scale, rhythm, pitch, articulation, phrasing, dynamics and tonal organization. Since it is a well-known fact that Ghanaian dance band musicians do not read music from scores I shall find out possible traces of variations, copious repetitions and similarities of rhythmic patterns in the same music performed on different dates and conditions as well as locations, stock progressions and other points of interest when Western and African idioms are combined. In addition, I shall listen to other instrumental solos and draw my own conclusions on why the saxophone is the more preferred instrument for improvisation. Other research strategies will include libraries, interviews, participant observation, and employment of qualitative data collection. It is expected that the compilation of saxophone improvisation repertoire will reveal the contribution of Ghanaian highlife dance band music and will serve as reference material for the study this style of popular music.Item Suitability of a rapid immunochromatographic test for detection of antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus in Ghana, West Africa(2001) Aidoo, S.; Ampofo, W.K.; Brandful, J.A.M.; Nuvor, S.V.; Ansah, J.K.; Nii-Trebi, N.; Barnor, J.S.; Apeagyei, F.; Sata, T.; Ofori-Adjei, D.; Ishikawa, K.In West African countries such as Ghana, efficient human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) testing is a priority in the fight against AIDS. A new immunochromatographic rapid test, Determine HIV-1/2 (Abbott Diagnostics, North Chicago, Ill.), that detects antibodies against HIV type 1 (HIV-1) and/or HIV-2 was evaluated using Ghanaian blood samples. Two hundred four serum and/or plasma specimens were tested. HIV screening was done by a particle agglutination test and confirmed by a Western blot (WB) test as the "gold standard." The results revealed 125 HIV-seropositive AIDS patients, 75 HIV-seronegative healthy individuals, and 4 individuals for whom the HIV-1 result was indeterminate. The results obtained by the Determine HIV-1/2 assay and Diagnostic HIV SPOT (Genelabs), which is currently widely used in many districts in Ghana, were compared with those of the WB test, excluding the four HIV-1-indeterminate samples. The sensitivity of the Determine HIV-1/2 assay was 100%, compared with 98.0% for the HIV SPOT assay. The specificity was 100% for both tests. Determine HIV-1/2 is a single-step assay and was found to be rapid and easy to perform without any special equipment. It was highly sensitive and specific. The kit can be applied without electricity and water supplies, making it suitable for the detection of HIV antibodies especially in the rural areas of Ghana, West Africa.