Evaluation des connaissances, des attitudes et des pratiques en matiere d’hygiene et de securite alimentaire des vendeurs de la viande de poulets braisee en Cote d’Ivoire

L’objectif de cette étude a été d’évaluer d’une part les connaissances et les pratiques en matière de sécurité alimentaire des vendeurs de la viande de poulet braisée et d’autre part l’état sanitaire des sites de vente de cette viande à Abidjan. Une enquête sur les pratiques d’hygiène et des analyses microbiologiques ont été effectuées sur les mains des vendeurs de la viande de poulet braisée. La majorité des lieux de vente de la viande de poulet braisée occupait le domaine public. L’étude a révélé la présence de nuisible sur quatre-vingt-dix-neuf pourcent (99 %) des sites de vente. Soixante-douze pourcent (72 %) des sites d’enquête n’avaient pas de lieu d’évacuation des eaux usées, (65 %) n’avaient pas d’équipement sanitaire et (93 %) du personnel n’avaient pas leurs vaccins à jour. Les analyses microbiologiques effectuées révélaient la présence de Staphylococcus aureus, de Germes aérobies mésophiles, d’Escherichia coli et de coliformes totaux sur les mains des vendeurs de poulets braisés. Les charges de ces germes ont excédé la norme microbiologique pour les denrées alimentaires fixée par la Communauté Européennes CE n° 2073/2005. La détection de ces microorganismes pourrait  représenter un risque pour la santé du consommateur. Mots clés : viande de poulet braisée, hygiène, conditions sanitaires, commune d’Abidjan   English Title: Assessment of knowledge, attitudes and practices of food handlers in site for the sale of braised chicken meat in relation to food hygiene and safety in Côte d’ivoire The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge and food safety practices of vendors of braised chicken meat and the health status of the sites selling this meat in Abidjan. A survey on hygiene practices and microbiological analyses were carried out on the hands of the vendors of braised chicken meat. The majority of the sites selling braised chicken meat were in the public domain. The survey revealed the presence of pests on ninety-nine percent (99%) of the sales sites. Seventy-two percent (72%) of the survey sites had no sewage disposal facilities, (65%) had no sanitary facilities, and (93%) staff did not have up-to-date vaccinations. Microbiological analyses performed revealed the presence of Staphylococcus aureus, Mesophilic Aerobic Germs, Escherichia coli and total coliforms on the hands of braised chicken vendors. The loads of these germs exceeded the microbiological standard for foodstuffs set by the European Community EC N°. 2073/2005. The detection of these microorganisms could pose a risk to the health of the consumer. Keywords: braised chicken meat, hygiene, sanitary conditions, commune of Abidja

State of the climate in 2013

In 2013, the vast majority of the monitored climate variables reported here maintained trends established in recent decades. ENSO was in a neutral state during the entire year, remaining mostly on the cool side of neutral with modest impacts on regional weather patterns around the world. This follows several years dominated by the effects of either La Niña or El Niño events. According to several independent analyses, 2013 was again among the 10 warmest years on record at the global scale, both at the Earths surface and through the troposphere. Some regions in the Southern Hemisphere had record or near-record high temperatures for the year. Australia observed its hottest year on record, while Argentina and New Zealand reported their second and third hottest years, respectively. In Antarctica, Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station reported its highest annual temperature since records began in 1957. At the opposite pole, the Arctic observed its seventh warmest year since records began in the early 20th century. At 20-m depth, record high temperatures were measured at some permafrost stations on the North Slope of Alaska and in the Brooks Range. In the Northern Hemisphere extratropics, anomalous meridional atmospheric circulation occurred throughout much of the year, leading to marked regional extremes of both temperature and precipitation. Cold temperature anomalies during winter across Eurasia were followed by warm spring temperature anomalies, which were linked to a new record low Eurasian snow cover extent in May. Minimum sea ice extent in the Arctic was the sixth lowest since satellite observations began in 1979. Including 2013, all seven lowest extents on record have occurred in the past seven years. Antarctica, on the other hand, had above-average sea ice extent throughout 2013, with 116 days of new daily high extent records, including a new daily maximum sea ice area of 19.57 million km2 reached on 1 October. ENSO-neutral conditions in the eastern central Pacific Ocean and a negative Pacific decadal oscillation pattern in the North Pacific had the largest impacts on the global sea surface temperature in 2013. The North Pacific reached a historic high temperature in 2013 and on balance the globally-averaged sea surface temperature was among the 10 highest on record. Overall, the salt content in nearsurface ocean waters increased while in intermediate waters it decreased. Global mean sea level continued to rise during 2013, on pace with a trend of 3.2 mm yr-1 over the past two decades. A portion of this trend (0.5 mm yr-1) has been attributed to natural variability associated with the Pacific decadal oscillation as well as to ongoing contributions from the melting of glaciers and ice sheets and ocean warming. Global tropical cyclone frequency during 2013 was slightly above average with a total of 94 storms, although the North Atlantic Basin had its quietest hurricane season since 1994. In the Western North Pacific Basin, Super Typhoon Haiyan, the deadliest tropical cyclone of 2013, had 1-minute sustained winds estimated to be 170 kt (87.5 m s-1) on 7 November, the highest wind speed ever assigned to a tropical cyclone. High storm surge was also associated with Haiyan as it made landfall over the central Philippines, an area where sea level is currently at historic highs, increasing by 200 mm since 1970. In the atmosphere, carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide all continued to increase in 2013. As in previous years, each of these major greenhouse gases once again reached historic high concentrations. In the Arctic, carbon dioxide and methane increased at the same rate as the global increase. These increases are likely due to export from lower latitudes rather than a consequence of increases in Arctic sources, such as thawing permafrost. At Mauna Loa, Hawaii, for the first time since measurements began in 1958, the daily average mixing ratio of carbon dioxide exceeded 400 ppm on 9 May. The state of these variables, along with dozens of others, and the 2013 climate conditions of regions around the world are discussed in further detail in this 24th edition of the State of the Climate series. © 2014, American Meteorological Society. All rights reserved

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance.

Investment in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing in Africa over the past year has led to a major increase in the number of sequences that have been generated and used to track the pandemic on the continent, a number that now exceeds 100,000 genomes. Our results show an increase in the number of African countries that are able to sequence domestically and highlight that local sequencing enables faster turnaround times and more-regular routine surveillance. Despite limitations of low testing proportions, findings from this genomic surveillance study underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic and illuminate the distinct dispersal dynamics of variants of concern-particularly Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron-on the continent. Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve while the continent faces many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

INTRODUCTION Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. RATIONALE We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs). RESULTS Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants. CONCLUSION Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century

Diversité de l’entomofaune du niébé (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walpers) au Nord-Ouest du Bénin

Objectif : La culture du niébé est confrontée en milieu paysan aux  problèmes d’abandon, de disparition et de faible rendement de variétés liés à la forte pression des ravageurs en végétation et en stock. La présente étude a permis d’évaluer la richesse et l’importance de l’entomofaune du niébé en végétation et en stock au Nord- Ouest du Bénin.Méthodologie et résultats : La méthodologie adoptée est basée sur des observations directes appuyées de l’identification des insectes à l’aide des clés taxonomiques dans six parcelles paysannes de niébé. Une richediversité de 39 genres et espèces d’insectes, dont 30 ravageurs de feuilles, de fleurs et de gousses, six (06) prédateurs et trois (03) parasitoïdes appartenant à huit (08) ordres et 27 familles a été identifiée. Les Coléoptères sont les plus représentés à 33%, suivis des Lépidoptères à 18%, des Hétéroptères à 17%, des Diptères et des Homoptères à 10%, des Hyménoptères et des Thysanoptères à 5% chacun, et enfin desOrthoptères à 2%.Conclusion et application des résultats : Les ravageurs identifiés en végétation sont à 90%, ceux de feuilles, de fleurs et de gousses, parmi lesquels les ravageurs de fleurs et de gousses, bien que faiblement représentés à 37%, sont les déprédateurs les plus redoutables du niébé. Cette diversité de l’entomofaune du niébé indique que les agrosystèmes de niébé hébergent assez de ravageurs et d’auxillaires de la culture. L’évaluation du comportement phytosanitaire des cultivars de niébé au champ et en stock, suivi d’un test d’efficacité d’extraits aqueux de plantes insecticides peut contribuer à réduire les pertes qualitatives et quantitatives de graines causées par les thrips, les pucerons, les punaises et les bruches. Ce futur travail de recherche peut conduire à l’élaboration de stratégies alternatives de lutte biologique contre les ravageurs de cette culture, qui permettrait de préserver la faune auxilliaire et la santé humaine et de mieux sécuriser le rendement à un niveau proche dupotentiel.Mots clés : auxillaire, insecte, parasitoïde, prédateur, ravageu