Update on the current status of onchocerciasis in Cote d’Ivoire following 40 years of intervention: Progress and challenges

Background Onchocerciasis control in Côte d’Ivoire started with aerial insecticide spraying in 1974 and continued with community directed treatment with ivermectin (CDTi) from 1992 to the present. Onchocerciasis and lymphatic filariasis (LF) are co-endemic in 46 of the 81 health districts in the country. Fourteen and 12 districts are endemic for only LF or onchocerciasis, respectively. This paper aims to review the impact of past interventions on onchocerciasis in Côte d’Ivoire between 1975 and 2013, and review plans for disease elimination. Methods We reviewed microfilaria (MF, skin snip) prevalence and community microfilarial load (CMFL) data from published reports from 53 health districts during two major epidemiological assessment periods. Data from 1975 through 1991 provided information on the impact of vector control, and data from 1992 through 2016 provided information on the impact of CDTi. Results Weekly aerial insecticide spraying in 8 endemic districts between 1975 and 1991 reduced the overall MF prevalence by 68.1% from 43.5% to 13.9%. The CMFL also decreased in 7 out of 8 surveyed communities by 95.2% from 9.24 MF/snip to 0.44 MF/snip. Ivermectin distribution started in 1992. The coverage targets for control (65% of the total population) was reached in most endemic districts, and some areas achieved 80% coverage. Two sets of surveys were conducted to assess the impact of CDTi. Results from the first repeat surveys showed a significant decrease in overall MF prevalence (by 75.7%, from 41.6% to 10.1%). The second follow-up evaluation showed further improvement in most endemic districts and also documented major reductions in CMFL compared to baseline. Conclusions Extensive data collected over many years document the very significant impact of interventions conducted by the National Onchocerciasis and other Eyes Diseases Control Programme during challenging times with periods of civil unrest. The Health Ministry has now integrated efforts to control neglected tropical diseases and adopted the goal of onchocerciasis elimination

La Perception Du Risque Routier. Le Cas De La Conduite Des Conducteurs Professionnels De Transport En Commun A Abidjan

This study examines the perception of the risk of accidents related to the driving activity of the Public Transport Professional Drivers (CPTC) in Abidjan. 186 CPTC of Abidjan, whose age varies between 18 and 50 years, and who holds a different driving license are investigated. Their perception of risk is measured from a questionnaire consisting of 37 items on a 5-point scale. The results indicate that there are as many CPTCs that perceive the least risk of driving-related accidents as those who perceive it the most. They also show that the age and duration of driving licenses influence the perception of the risk of CPTC accidents

Test de Germination des Graines de Ricin (Ricinus communis L.) Sous Différentes Contrainte Abiotiques

Ricinus communis L., est utilisé comme biocarburant et possède de nombreuses vertus. Cependant, les récentes recherches menées en Afrique de l’Ouest fournissent peu d’information sur ses potentialités encore moins sur sa croissance. L’objectif de cette étude est d’évaluer la réponse des graines de ricin à différentes méthodes de prétraitement. Le dispositif utilisé est un bloc complètement randomisé à quatre répétitions et neuf traitements. Les traitements ont été constitués de graines témoins ; de graines scarifiées à la main (SM) ; de graines trempées dans l’eau de robinet à la température ambiante pendant 12 heures (ER12h), pendant 24 heures (ER24h), pendant 48 heures (ER48h) ; de graines trempées dans l’eau préalablement portée à ébullition ( ̴ 100°C) pendant 20 minutes (EC20min), pendant 40 minutes (EC40min) ; de graines trempées dans l’eau à la température ambiante après scarification de celles-ci, pendant 24 heures (SM24h), pendant 48 heures (SM48h). Vingt graines ont été semées par traitement et les observations ont porté d’une part, sur la capacité de germination, le temps moyen de germination, le délai de germination et le coefficient de vélocité de germination ; et d’autre part sur la croissance des jeunes plants. Les résultats ont montré que les graines de ricin ne présentent pas réellement de résistance mécanique, ce qui s’est traduit par une capacité de germination élevée après un trempage à l’eau pendant 12 heures. La scarification appliquée uniquement et le traitement thermique des graines n’ont pas favorisé une bonne germination des graines. Le temps de germination moyen a été plus court au niveau de la graine scarifiée avec un temps d’imbibition plus long. Un pré trempage des graines à l’eau chaude pendant 20 minutes n’a pas permis la germination des graines, contrairement à celui qui a duré 40 minutes. La croissance des plantes et le rythme d’apparition des feuilles ont été plus rapide avec les graines scarifiées et trempées à l’eau. Cette étude a montré que la multiplication par graine de cette espèce pourrait être limitée par un prétraitement à la chaleur.   Ricinus communis L. is used as a biofuel and has many virtues. In recent research conducted in West Africa, little information exists on its potential and even less about its growth. The objective of this study was to evaluate methods of breaking seed dormancy and stimulating the growth of R. communis. The device used is a completely randomized block in four repetitions and nine treatments. The treatments consist of control seeds, hand-scarified seeds (SM), seeds soaked in tap water at ambient temperature for 12 hours (ER12h), for 24 hours (ER24h), for 48 hours (ER48h); seeds soaked in water previously boiled ( ̴ 100°C) for 20 minutes (EC20min), for 40 minutes (EC40min); seeds soaked in water at ambient temperature after scarifying the seeds for 24 hours (SM24h), for 48 hours (SM48h). Twenty seeds of R. communis were sown per treatment and observations were made on the one hand on germination capacity, mean germination time, germination time and velocity coefficient; and on the other hand, on the growth of young plants. The results showed that the castor seeds did not really show any mechanical resistance which resulted in a high germination capacity after soaking in water for 12 hours. Scarification alone and heat treatment of the seeds does not promote good seed germination. The average germination time is shorter when the seed is scarified with a longer soaking time. Soaking in hot water for 20 minutes did not allow the seeds to germinate, unlike 40 minutes. Plant growth was faster with scarified and water-soaked seeds. This study showed that multiplication by seed of this species could be limited by heat pretreatment

Test de Germination des Graines de Ricin (Ricinus communis L.) Sous Différentes Contraintes Abiotiques

Ricinus communis L., est utilisé comme biocarburant et possède de nombreuses vertus. Cependant, les récentes recherches menées en Afrique de l’Ouest fournissent peu d’information sur ses potentialités encore moins sur sa croissance. L’objectif de cette étude est d’évaluer la réponse des graines de ricin à différentes méthodes de prétraitement. Le dispositif utilisé est un bloc complètement randomisé à quatre répétitions et neuf traitements. Les traitements ont été constitués de graines témoins ; de graines scarifiées à la main (SM) ; de graines trempées dans l’eau de robinet à la température ambiante pendant 12 heures (ER12h), pendant 24 heures (ER24h), pendant 48 heures (ER48h) ; de graines trempées dans l’eau préalablement portée à ébullition ( ̴ 100°C) pendant 20 minutes (EC20min), pendant 40 minutes (EC40min) ; de graines trempées dans l’eau à la température ambiante après scarification de celles-ci, pendant 24 heures (SM24h), pendant 48 heures (SM48h). Vingt graines ont été semées par traitement et les observations ont porté d’une part, sur la capacité de germination, le temps moyen de germination, le délai de germination et le coefficient de vélocité de germination ; et d’autre part sur la croissance des jeunes plants. Les résultats ont montré que les graines de ricin ne présentent pas réellement de résistance mécanique, ce qui s’est traduit par une capacité de germination élevée après un trempage à l’eau pendant 12 heures. La scarification appliquée uniquement et le traitement thermique des graines n’ont pas favorisé une bonne germination des graines. Le temps de germination moyen a été plus court au niveau de la graine scarifiée avec un temps d’imbibition plus long. Un pré trempage des graines à l’eau chaude pendant 20 minutes n’a pas permis la germination des graines, contrairement à celui qui a duré 40 minutes. La croissance des plantes et le rythme d’apparition des feuilles ont été plus rapide avec les graines scarifiées et trempées à l’eau. Cette étude a montré que la multiplication par graine de cette espèce pourrait être limitée par un prétraitement à la chaleur.   Ricinus communis L. is used as a biofuel and has many virtues. In recent research conducted in West Africa, little information exists on its potential and even less about its growth. The objective of this study was to evaluate methods of breaking seed dormancy and stimulating the growth of R. communis. The device used is a completely randomized block in four repetitions and nine treatments. The treatments consist of control seeds, hand-scarified seeds (SM), seeds soaked in tap water at ambient temperature for 12 hours (ER12h), for 24 hours (ER24h), for 48 hours (ER48h); seeds soaked in water previously boiled ( ̴ 100°C) for 20 minutes (EC20min), for 40 minutes (EC40min); seeds soaked in water at ambient temperature after scarifying the seeds for 24 hours (SM24h), for 48 hours (SM48h). Twenty seeds of R. communis were sown per treatment and observations were made on the one hand on germination capacity, mean germination time, germination time and velocity coefficient; and on the other hand, on the growth of young plants. The results showed that the castor seeds did not really show any mechanical resistance which resulted in a high germination capacity after soaking in water for 12 hours. Scarification alone and heat treatment of the seeds does not promote good seed germination. The average germination time is shorter when the seed is scarified with a longer soaking time. Soaking in hot water for 20 minutes did not allow the seeds to germinate, unlike 40 minutes. Plant growth was faster with scarified and water-soaked seeds. This study showed that multiplication by seed of this species could be limited by heat pretreatment.   &nbsp

Test de Germination des Graines de Ricin (Ricinus communis L.) Sous Différentes Contraintes Abiotiques

Ricinus communis L., est utilisé comme biocarburant et possède de nombreuses vertus. Cependant, les récentes recherches menées en Afrique de l’Ouest fournissent peu d’information sur ses potentialités encore moins sur sa croissance. L’objectif de cette étude est d’évaluer la réponse des graines de ricin à différentes méthodes de prétraitement. Le dispositif utilisé est un bloc complètement randomisé à quatre répétitions et neuf traitements. Les traitements ont été constitués de graines témoins ; de graines scarifiées à la main (SM) ; de graines trempées dans l’eau de robinet à la température ambiante pendant 12 heures (ER12h), pendant 24 heures (ER24h), pendant 48 heures (ER48h) ; de graines trempées dans l’eau préalablement portée à ébullition ( ̴ 100°C) pendant 20 minutes (EC20min), pendant 40 minutes (EC40min) ; de graines trempées dans l’eau à la température ambiante après scarification de celles-ci, pendant 24 heures (SM24h), pendant 48 heures (SM48h). Vingt graines ont été semées par traitement et les observations ont porté d’une part, sur la capacité de germination, le temps moyen de germination, le délai de germination et le coefficient de vélocité de germination ; et d’autre part sur la croissance des jeunes plants. Les résultats ont montré que les graines de ricin ne présentent pas réellement de résistance mécanique, ce qui s’est traduit par une capacité de germination élevée après un trempage à l’eau pendant 12 heures. La scarification appliquée uniquement et le traitement thermique des graines n’ont pas favorisé une bonne germination des graines. Le temps de germination moyen a été plus court au niveau de la graine scarifiée avec un temps d’imbibition plus long. Un pré trempage des graines à l’eau chaude pendant 20 minutes n’a pas permis la germination des graines, contrairement à celui qui a duré 40 minutes. La croissance des plantes et le rythme d’apparition des feuilles ont été plus rapide avec les graines scarifiées et trempées à l’eau. Cette étude a montré que la multiplication par graine de cette espèce pourrait être limitée par un prétraitement à la chaleur.   Ricinus communis L. is used as a biofuel and has many virtues. In recent research conducted in West Africa, little information exists on its potential and even less about its growth. The objective of this study was to evaluate methods of breaking seed dormancy and stimulating the growth of R. communis. The device used is a completely randomized block in four repetitions and nine treatments. The treatments consist of control seeds, hand-scarified seeds (SM), seeds soaked in tap water at ambient temperature for 12 hours (ER12h), for 24 hours (ER24h), for 48 hours (ER48h); seeds soaked in water previously boiled ( ̴ 100°C) for 20 minutes (EC20min), for 40 minutes (EC40min); seeds soaked in water at ambient temperature after scarifying the seeds for 24 hours (SM24h), for 48 hours (SM48h). Twenty seeds of R. communis were sown per treatment and observations were made on the one hand on germination capacity, mean germination time, germination time and velocity coefficient; and on the other hand, on the growth of young plants. The results showed that the castor seeds did not really show any mechanical resistance which resulted in a high germination capacity after soaking in water for 12 hours. Scarification alone and heat treatment of the seeds does not promote good seed germination. The average germination time is shorter when the seed is scarified with a longer soaking time. Soaking in hot water for 20 minutes did not allow the seeds to germinate, unlike 40 minutes. Plant growth was faster with scarified and water-soaked seeds. This study showed that multiplication by seed of this species could be limited by heat pretreatment.   &nbsp

Spatial distribution and period of activity of the forest elephant (Loxodonta africana cyclotis) at Taï National Park, south western Côte d'Ivoire

Objective: This study aims at determining the spatial distribution and  period of activities of the forest elephant (Loxodonta africana cyclotis) at Taï National Park (TNP) to contribute to its conservation.Methodology and results: Observations of elephants at different locations and time periods were recorded by using 87 camera traps with date and time-stamped settings. Cameras were installed following a systematic placement approach, and their geographic coordinates were recorded using a GPS. After 120 days of trapping, we observed a high concentration of activities in the southern areas of the park. For the period of activities, we noted that observations of unit individuals were recurrent during the day while those of elephant groups were more important at night.Conclusion and application of the results: The south of the park where  there is a large distribution of elephants would be more favourable to these animals. The small number and remoteness of large cities on the periphery of this area of the park could explain that pattern. The distribution and activity period information is useful for park surveillance by rangers. In addition, further studies are needed for a better explanation on the distribution pattern of elephants at TNP.Key words: Taï National Park, elephant, camera traps, distribution, activity period

La Neuromyelite Optique de Devic (NMO) en Côte d’Ivoire: a propos d’un deuxieme cas confirme

Introduction: La Neuromyélite optique (NMO) est une maladie inflammatoire démyélinisante du système nerveux central et fait partie d’un groupe d’affections inflammatoires dénommé NMO spectrum disorders (NMOSD). Elle cible sélectivement le nerf optique et la moelle épinière. Le diagnostic de cette affection repose sur les critères diagnostic de Wingerchuck et le profil évolutif est celui de poussées-remissions.Objectif: Décrire le diagnostic de la NMO dans un contexte à ressources limitées.Observation: Une jeune femme de 31 ans a été vue en hospitalisation au service de médecine physique et de réadaptation pour prise en charge d’une paraplégie associée à des troubles vésico-sphinctériens et des escarres. L’histoire a révélé trois épisodes des poussées de déficit neurologique. Devant la survenue d’une baisse de l’acuité visuelle en cours d’hospitalisation le diagnostic de NMO a été évoqué. Les explorations paracliniques notamment l’IRM thoracique et la positivité des Ac anti-NMO dans le LCS ont permis de retenir le diagnostic. L’instauration d’une corticothérapie à forte dose a permis une rémission clinique du trouble visuel.Conclusion: La NMO est une affection rare. Cependant la suspicion clinique doit faire évoquer le diagnostic et faire rechercher les critères diagnostic. La corticothérapie reste le traitement de choix à la phase aigüe de la poussée dans notre contexte de travail.Mots clés: Neuromyélite optique, corticothérapie, Ac anti-NMOEnglish Title: Devic’s Optica Neuromyelitis (NMOSD) in Ivory Coast: a second confirmed case reportEnglish AbstractIntroduction: Optic Neuromyelitis (OMN) is an inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system and is part of a group of inflammatory conditions called NMO spectrum disorders (NMOSD). It selectively targets the opticnerve and spinal cord. The diagnosis of this condition is based on the diagnostic criteria of Wingerchuck and the evolutionary profile is that of thrust-remissions.Aim: Describe the diagnosis of NMO in a context of limited resourcesObservation: A 31-year-old woman was seen in hospital in the department of physical medicine and rehabilitation for the management of paraplegia associated with vesico-sphincteric disorders and bedsores. The story revealed three episodes of motor and sensory deficit. Faced with the occurrence of a decrease in visual acuity during hospitalization, the diagnosis of NMO was mentioned. Paraclinical investigations, notably thoracic MRI and the positivity of anti-NMO Ab in the CSF, confirmed the diagnosis. The introduction of high-dose steroid led to clinical remission of visual disturbance.Conclusion: NMO is a rare condition. However clinical suspicion must evoke the diagnosis and seek diagnostic criteria. Steroids remains the treatment of choice in the acute phase of the NMOSD in our context.Keywords: Optic neuromyelitis, corticosteroids, anti-NMO A

The Critically Endangered western chimpanzee declines by 80%

African large mammals are under extreme pressure from unsustainable hunting and habitat loss. Certain traits make large mammals particularly vulnerable. These include late age at first reproduction, long inter-birth intervals, and low population density. Great apes are a prime example of such vulnerability, exhibiting all of these traits. Here we assess the rate of population change for the western chimpanzee, Pan troglodytes verus, over a 24-year period. As a proxy for change in abundance, we used transect nest count data from 20 different sites archived in the IUCN SSC A.P.E.S. database, representing 25,000 of the estimated remaining 35,000 western chimpanzees. For each of the 20 sites, datasets for 2 different years were available. We estimated site-specific and global population change using Generalized Linear Models. At 12 of these sites, we detected a significant negative trend. The estimated change in the subspecies abundance, as approximated by nest encounter rate, yielded a 6% annual decline and a total decline of 80.2% over the study period from 1990 to 2014. This also resulted in a reduced geographic range of 20% (657,600 vs. 524,100 km2). Poverty, civil conflict, disease pandemics, agriculture, extractive industries, infrastructure development, and lack of law enforcement, are some of the many reasons for the magnitude of threat. Our status update triggered the uplisting of the western chimpanzee to “Critically Endangered” on the IUCN Red List. In 2017, IUCN will start updating the 2003 Action Plan for western chimpanzees and will provide a consensus blueprint for what is needed to save this subspecies. We make a plea for greater commitment to conservation in West Africa across sectors. Needed especially is more robust engagement by national governments, integration of conservation priorities into the private sector and development planning across the region and sustained financial support from donors.Additional co-authors: Emma Normand, Kathryn Shutt-Phillips, Alexander Tickle, Elleni Vendras, Adam Welsh, Erin G. Wessling, Christophe Boesc

Revisiting the Immune Trypanolysis Test to Optimise Epidemiological Surveillance and Control of Sleeping Sickness in West Africa

Human African trypanosomiasis (HAT) due to Trypanosoma brucei (T.b.) gambiense is usually diagnosed using two sequential steps: first the card agglutination test for trypanosomiasis (CATT) used for serological screening, followed by parasitological methods to confirm the disease. Currently, CATT will continue to be used as a test for mass screening because of its simplicity and high sensitivity; however, its performance as a tool of surveillance in areas where prevalence is low is poor because of its limited specificity. Hence in the context of HAT elimination, there is a crucial need for a better marker of contact with T.b. gambiense in humans. We evaluated here an existing highly specific serological tool, the trypanolysis test (TL). We evaluated TL in active, latent and historical HAT foci in Guinea, Côte d'Ivoire and Burkina Faso. We found that TL was a marker for exposure to T.b. gambiense. We propose that TL should be used as a surveillance tool to monitor HAT elimination

Characteristics of Positive Deviants in Western Chimpanzee Populations

With continued expansion of anthropogenically modified landscapes, the proximity between humans and wildlife is continuing to increase, frequently resulting in species decline. Occasionally however, species are able to persist and there is an increased interest in understanding such positive outliers and underlying mechanisms. Eventually, such insights can inform the design of effective conservation interventions by mimicking aspects of the social-ecological conditions found in areas of species persistence. Recently, frameworks have been developed to study the heterogeneity of species persistence across populations with a focus on positive outliers. Applications are still rare, and to our knowledge this is one of the first studies using this approach for terrestrial species conservation. We applied the positive deviance concept to the western chimpanzee, which occurs in a variety of social-ecological landscapes. It is now categorized as Critically Endangered due to hunting and habitat loss and resulting excessive decline of most of its populations. Here we are interested in understanding why some of the populations did not decline. We compiled a dataset of 17,109 chimpanzee survey transects (10,929 km) across nine countries and linked them to a range of social and ecological variables. We found that chimpanzees seemed to persist within three social-ecological configurations: first, rainforest habitats with a low degree of human impact, second, steep areas, and third, areas with high prevalence of hunting taboos and low degree of human impact. The largest chimpanzee populations are nowadays found under the third social-ecological configuration, even though most of these areas are not officially protected. Most commonly chimpanzee conservation has been based on exclusion of threats by creation of protected areas and law enforcement. Our findings suggest, however, that this approach should be complemented by an additional focus on threat reduction, i.e., interventions that directly target individual human behavior that is most threatening to chimpanzees, which is hunting. Although changing human behavior is difficult, stakeholder co-designed behavioral change approaches developed in the social sciences have been used successfully to promote pro-environmental behavior. With only a fraction of chimpanzees and primates living inside protected areas, such new approaches might be a way forward to improve primate conservation