2 research outputs found
Epidemiology of Rabies in Lesotho : the importance of routine surveillance and virus characterization
Rabies is widespread throughout Africa and Asia, despite the fact that the control
and elimination of this disease has been proven to be feasible. Lesotho, a small landlocked
country surrounded by South Africa, has been known to be endemic for rabies since the
1980s but the epidemiology of the disease remains poorly understood due to limited sample
submission, constrained diagnostic capabilities, and a lack of molecular epidemiological data.
Considering the existing challenges experienced in Lesotho, we aimed to evaluate the direct, rapid
immunohistochemical test (DRIT) as an alternative to the direct fluorescent antibody (DFA) test
for rabies diagnosis in Lesotho. Towards this aim, extensive training on the implementation and
interpretation of the DRIT was hosted in Lesotho in April 2016 before both tests were applied to all
samples subjected to routine rabies diagnosis at the Central Veterinary Laboratory (CVL). We found
agreement between the DFA and DRIT assays in 90/96 samples (93.75%). The samples that produced
inconsistent results (n = 6) were re-tested a further two times with both assays before being subjected
to a real-time qPCR to confirm the diagnosis. Additionally, a statistically significant three-fold increase
in the average number of samples submitted per month was observed after the DRIT implementation
started, following continuous rabies awareness initiatives amongst the animal health professionals
in the country over a 12-month period (p = 0.0279). Partial G-L intergenic regions of selected
rabies-positive samples (n = 21) were amplified, sequenced, and subjected to phylogenetic analyses.
Molecular epidemiological analyses, which included viruses from neighbouring provinces in South
Africa, suggested that at least three independent rabies cycles within Lesotho were implicated in
instances of cross-border transmission. This study has evaluated alternative methods for diagnosing
and improving rabies surveillance in Lesotho, as well as providing new information that would be of
importance in the planning of future disease intervention campaigns, not only in Lesotho, but also in
neighbouring South Africa.Table S1. Panel of rabies viruses from Lesotho and neighbouring South African provinces included in the
phylogenetic analysis performed in this study.This work is based on the research supported in part by grants from the World Animal
Protection (WAP) (grant number: WAP/AF/IHC/GR/2016-01), the National Research Foundation (NRF) of South
Africa (grant number 78566, NRF Research Infrastructure Support Programmes (RISP) grant for the ABI3500),
and the Cooperative Agreement Number, [93.318 5 NU2GGH001874-02-00], funded by the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent
the official views of the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.http://www.mdpi.com/journal/tropicalmedam2018Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI)Medical VirologyMicrobiology and Plant Patholog
Ticks of domestic animals in Lesotho : morphological and molecular characterization
A total of 3311 tick specimens were randomly collected from domestic animals including cattle, sheep, goats,
horses, donkeys, and dogs from Lesotho districts namely, Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru,
Mohale’s Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha’s Nek, Quthing and Thaba Tseka. Tick species were identified morpholog-
ically and verified by amplification and sequencing of the CO1 and 18S rRNA genes. Nine species were identified
under different genera namely, Haemaphysalis elliptica 0.1% (n = 2), Hyalomma rufipes 2.6% (n = 87), Hy.
truncatum 1.2% (n = 41), Otobius megnini 13.6% (n = 451), Rhipicephalus appendiculatus 0.1% (n = 3), Rhipice-
phalus decoloratus 9.3% (n = 308), Rhipicephalus evertsi evertsi 65.1% (n = 2156), Rhipicephalus glabroscutatum
1.3% (n = 43) and Rhipicephalus microplus 6.6% (n = 220). There was a significant difference at p = 6.2E-06 (χ2
= 1.923, df = 7) in the distribution of tick species and their abundance p = 0.04 (χ2 = 1.923, df = 7) from each
population. The CO1 and 18S rRNA sequences matched the morphological determinations on the NCBI database
and clustered with relevant species on the phylogenetic tree. Genetic analysis of CO1 and 18S rRNA provided
very strong support for monophyly of the Rhipicephalinae and Ornithodorinae complexes. Both CO1 and 18S
rRNA are useful genetic markers for the specific and generic characterization of tick species in Lesotho and
elsewhere. This is the first scientific publication of tick species occurring in Lesotho