15 research outputs found
Molecular screening for Anaplasmataceae in ticks and tsetse flies from Ethiopia
Hard ticks and tsetse flies are regarded as the most important vectors of disease agents in Sub-Saharan Africa. With the aim of screening these blood-sucking arthropods for vector-borne pathogens belonging to the family Anaplasmataceae in South-Western Ethiopia, four species of tsetse flies (collected by traps) and seven species of ixodid ticks (removed from cattle) were molecularly analysed. DNA was extracted from 296 individual ticks and from 162 individuals or pools of tsetse flies. Besides known vector–pathogen associations, in Amblyomma cohaerens ticks sequences of Anaplasma marginale and A. phagocytophilum were detected, the latter for the first time in any ticks from cattle in Africa. In addition, part of the gltA gene of Ehrlichia ruminantium was successfully amplified from tsetse flies (Glossina pallidipes). First-time identification of sequences of the above pathogens in certain tick or tsetse fly species may serve as the basis of further epidemiological and transmission studies
Influence of the biotope on the tick infestation of cattle and on the tick-borne pathogen repertoire of cattle ticks in Ethiopia
Background:
The majority of vector-borne infections occur in the tropics, including Africa, but molecular eco-
epidemiological studies are seldom reported from these regions. In particular, most previously published data on ticks in
Ethiopia focus on species distribution, and only a few molecular studies on the occurrence of tick-borne pathogens or on
ecological factors influencing these. The present study was undertaken to evaluate, if ticks collected from cattle in different
Ethiopian biotopes harbour (had access to) different pathogens.
Methods:
In South-Western Ethiopia 1032 hard ticks were removed from cattle grazing in three kinds of tick biotopes. DNA
was individually extracted from one specimen of both sexes of each tick species per cattle. These samples were molecularly
analysed for the presence of tick-borne pathogens.
Results:
Amblyomma variegatum
was significantly more abundant on mid highland, than on moist highland.
Rhipicephalus
decoloratus
was absent from savannah lowland, where virtually only
A. cohaerens
was found. In the ticks
Coxiella burnetii
had
the highest prevalence on savannah lowland. PCR positivity to
Theileria
spp. did not appear to depend on the biotope, but
some genotypes were unique to certain tick species. Significantly more
A. variegatum
specimens were rickettsia-positive,
than those of other tick species. The presence of rickettsiae (
R. africae
) appeared to be associated with mid highland in case
of
A. variegatum
and
A. cohaerens
. The low level of haemoplasma positivity seemed to be equally distributed among the tick
species, but was restricted to one biotope type.
Conclusions:
The tick biotope, in which cattle are grazed, will influence not only the tick burden of these hosts, but also the
spectrum of pathogens in their ticks. Thus, the presence of pathogens with alternative (non-tick-borne) transmission routes,
with transstadial or with transovarial transmission by ticks appeared to be associated with the biotope type, with the tick
species, or both, respectively
First PCR Confirmed anthrax outbreaks in Ethiopia-Amhara region, 2018-2019.
BackgroundAnthrax is a disease that affects humans and animals. In Ethiopia, anthrax is a reportable disease and assumed to be endemic, although laboratory confirmation has not been routinely performed until recently. We describe the findings from the investigation of two outbreaks in Amhara region.MethodsFollowing reports of suspected outbreaks in Wag Hamra zone (Outbreak 1) and South Gondar zone (Outbreak 2), multi-sectoral teams involving both animal and public health officials were deployed to investigate and establish control programs. A suspect case was defined as: sudden death with rapid bloating or bleeding from orifice(s) with unclotted blood (animals); and signs compatible with cutaneous, ingestion, or inhalation anthrax ≤7 days after exposure to a suspect animal (humans). Suspect human cases were interviewed using a standard questionnaire. Samples were collected from humans with suspected anthrax (Outbreak 1 and Outbreak 2) as well as dried meat of suspect animal cases (Outbreak 2). A case was confirmed if a positive test was returned using real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR).ResultsIn Outbreak 1, a total of 49 cows died due to suspected anthrax and 22 humans developed symptoms consistent with cutaneous anthrax (40% attack rate), two of whom died due to suspected ingestion anthrax. Three people were confirmed to have anthrax by qPCR. In Outbreak 2, anthrax was suspected to have caused the deaths of two livestock animals and one human. Subsequent investigation revealed 18 suspected cases of cutaneous anthrax in humans (27% attack rate). None of the 12 human samples collected tested positive, however, a swab taken from the dried meat of one animal case (goat) was positive by qPCR.ConclusionWe report the first qPCR-confirmed outbreaks of anthrax in Ethiopia. Both outbreaks were controlled through active case finding, carcass management, ring vaccination of livestock, training of health professionals and outreach with livestock owners. Human and animal health authorities should work together using a One Health approach to improve case reporting and vaccine coverage
Identification of novel Coxiella burnetii genotypes from Ethiopian ticks
Background:
Coxiella burnetii
, the etiologic agent of Q fever, is a highly infectious
zoonotic bacterium. Genetic information about the strains of this worldwide
distributed agent circulating on the African continent is limited. The aim of the
present study was the genetic characterization of
C. burnetii
DNA samples
detected in ticks collected from Ethiopian cattle and their comparison with other
genotypes found previously in other parts of the world.
Methodology/Principal Findings:
A total of 296 tick samples were screened by
real-time PCR targeting the IS
1111
region of
C. burnetii
genome and from the 32
positive samples, 8 cases with sufficient
C. burnetii
DNA load (
Amblyomma
cohaerens
,n
5
6;
A. variegatum
,n
5
2) were characterized by multispacer sequence
typing (MST) and multiple-locus variable-number tandem repeat analysis (MLVA).
One novel sequence type (ST), the proposed ST52, was identified by MST. The
MLVA-6 discriminated the proposed ST52 into two newly identified MLVA
genotypes: type 24 or AH was detected in both
Amblyomma
species while type 26
or AI was found only in
A. cohaerens
.
Conclusions/Significance:
Both the MST and MLVA genotypes of the present
work are closely related to previously described genotypes found primarily in cattle
samples from different parts of the globe. This finding is congruent with the source
hosts of the analyzed Ethiopian ticks, as these were also collected from cattle. The
present study provides genotype information of
C. burnetii
from this seldom studied
East-African region as well as further evidence for the presumed host-specific
adaptation of this agent
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
Neighbor-joining tree showing the placement and phylogenetic relationships of the novel sequence type (proposed ST 52) (highlighted area) from this study with known STs [8], [14], [15].
<p>Bootstrap values of >70 are shown (1000 replicates). The scale bar represents the average number of substitutions per site. Isolate origins and sources are given according to previous publications <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0113213#pone.0113213-Glazunova1" target="_blank">[8]</a>, <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0113213#pone.0113213-Loftis1" target="_blank">[13]</a>, <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0113213#pone.0113213-Multi1" target="_blank">[14]</a>, <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0113213#pone.0113213-Angelakis1" target="_blank">[18]</a>, <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0113213#pone.0113213-Tilburg2" target="_blank">[23]</a>–<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0113213#pone.0113213-Tilburg3" target="_blank">[27]</a>, <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0113213#pone.0113213-Reichel1" target="_blank">[30]</a>–<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0113213#pone.0113213-Mahamat1" target="_blank">[32]</a> using the following location codes: Austria (AT), Canada (CA), Central African Republic (CF), Czech Republic (CZ), Ethiopia (ET), France (FR), French Guiana (GF), Germany (DE), Greece (GR), Hungary (HU), Italy (IT), Japan (JP), Kazakhstan (KZ), Kyrgyzstan (KG), Mongolia (MN), Namibia (NA), Netherlands (NL), Poland (PL), Portugal (PT), Romania (RO), Russian Federation (RU), Senegal (SN), Slovakia (SK), Spain (ES), Switzerland (CH), Ukraine (UA), United Kingdom (GB), United States (US) and Uzbekistan (UZ).</p
Map of Ethiopia showing the geographical origin of the samples (black star).
<p>(The blank map was downloaded from an open source <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0113213#pone.0113213-dmapscom1" target="_blank">[29]</a>.)</p
Sequence differences of <i>18S rRNA</i> gene of <i>Theileria orientalis</i> genotypes identified in this study, compared to GenBank reference sequences.
<p>Sequence differences of <i>18S rRNA</i> gene of <i>Theileria orientalis</i> genotypes identified in this study, compared to GenBank reference sequences.</p