Desmodium mottle virus, the first legumovirus (genus Begomovirus) from East Africa

A novel bipartite legumovirus (genus Begomovirus, family Geminiviridae), that naturally infects the wild leguminous plant Desmodium sp. in Uganda, was molecularly characterized and named Desmodium mottle virus. The highest nucleotide identities for DNA-A, obtained from two field-collected samples, were 79.9% and 80.1% with the legumovirus, soybean mild mottle virus. DNA-B had the highest nucleotide identities (65.4% and 66.4%) with a typical non-legumovirus Old World begomovirus, African cassava mosaic virus. This is the first report of a legumovirus in East Africa and extends the known diversity of begomoviruses found infecting wild plants in this continent

Musculoskeletal disorders in the elderly in rheumatology practice in Burkina Faso

Objective: To study the frequency of musculoskeletal (MSK) disorders in the elderly in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Patients and methods: A retrospective study was conducted from February 2006 to March 2011 in the University Hospital Yalgado Ouédraogo in Burkina Faso. All patients aged over 65 years seen at the Department of Rheumatology were included. Results: Four hundred and twenty-four patients (11.85%) aged over 65 years were identified among the total of 4084. The mean age was 70.15± 23.26 years with a range of 65-95 (mode: 70 years, median 69 years). There were 336 (69.4%) women and 148 men (30.6%). Rheumatic diseases were dominated by osteoarthritis(OA) and degenerative disease: low back pain / sciatica: 117 (24.17%) cases, OA of the knee: 111 (22.93%), tendinitis of the shoulder: 52 (10.74%), several OA (6%). Polymyalgia rheumatica was diagnosed in 15 (3%) patients. Only two cases of Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) and one case of ankylosing spondylitis were noted. Osteoporosis was reported in three patients. Fifty-five (11.36%) had diabetes mellitus (type 2), 221 (45.66%) had hypertension and 15 (3%) heart disease. Conclusion: The elderly have an important place in rheumatology practice in Ouagadougou. Osteoarthritis and degenerative MSK disorders are common and osteoporosis, chondrocalcinosis and RA rare. Polymyalgia rheumatica was the most common inflammatory disorder. Comorbidities were dominated by hypertension and diabetes mellitus. Keywords: Musculoskeletal diseases; Elderly; Osteoarthritis; Low back pai

Measles Incidence Before and After Mass Vaccination Campaigns in Burkina Faso

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Rice yellow mottle virus is a suitable amplicon vector for an efficient production of an anti-leishmianiasis vaccine in Nicotiana benthamiana leaves

International audienceBackground Since the 2000's, plants have been used as bioreactors for the transient production of molecules of interest such as vaccines. To improve protein yield, "amplicon" vectors based on plant viruses are used. These viral constructs, engineered to carry the gene of interest replicate strongly once introduced into the plant cell, allowing significant accumulation of the protein. Here, we evaluated the suitability of the monocot-infecting RNA virus Rice yellow mottle virus (RYMV) as an amplicon vector. The promastigote surface antigen (PSA) of the protozoan Leishmania was considered as a protein of interest due to its vaccine properties against canine leishmaniasis. Results Since P1 (ORF1) and CP (ORF3) proteins are not strictly necessary for viral replication, ORF1 was deleted and the PSA gene was substituted to ORF3 in the RYMV-based vector. We evaluated its expression in the best described plant bioreactor system, Nicotiana benthamiana which, unlike rice, allows transient transformation by Agrobacterium. Despite not being its natural host, we demonstrated a low level of RYMV-based vector replication in N. benthamiana leaves. Under optimized ratio, we showed that the P19 silencing suppressor in combination with the missing viral CP ORF significantly enhanced RYMV amplicon replication in N. benthamiana. Under these optimized CP/P19 conditions, we showed that the RYMV amplicon replicated autonomously in the infiltrated N. benthamiana cells, but was unable to move out of the infiltrated zones. Finally, we showed that when the RYMV amplicon was expressed under the optimized conditions we set up, it allowed enhanced PSA protein accumulation in N. benthamiana compared to the PSA coding sequence driven by the 35S promoter without amplicon background. Conclusion This work demonstrates that a non-dicot-infecting virus can be used as an amplicon vector for the efficient production of proteins of interest such as PSA in N. benthamiana leaves

Virus-based pharmaceutical production in plants : an opportunity to reduce health problems in Africa

Background Developing African countries face health problems that they struggle to solve. The major causes of this situation are high therapeutic and logistical costs. Plant-made therapeutics are easy to produce due to the lack of the safety considerations associated with traditional fermenter-based expression platforms, such as mammalian cells. Plant biosystems are easy to scale up and inexpensive, and they do not require refrigeration or a sophisticated medical infrastructure. These advantages provide an opportunity for plant-made pharmaceuticals to counteract diseases for which medicines were previously inaccessible to people in countries with few resources. Main body The techniques needed for plant-based therapeutic production are currently available. Viral expression vectors based on plant viruses have greatly enhanced plant-made therapeutic production and have been exploited to produce a variety of proteins of industrial, pharmaceutical and agribusiness interest. Some neglected tropical diseases occurring exclusively in the developing world have found solutions through plant bioreactor technology. Plant viral expression vectors have been reported in the production of therapeutics against these diseases occurring exclusively in the third world, and some virus-derived antigens produced in plants exhibit appropriate antigenicity and immunogenicity. However, all advances in the use of plants as bioreactors have been made by companies in Europe and America. The developing world is still far from acquiring this technology, although plant viral expression vectors may provide crucial help to overcome neglected diseases. Conclusion Today, interest in these tools is rising, and viral amplicons made in and for Africa are in progress. This review describes the biotechnological advances in the field of plant bioreactors, highlights factors restricting access to this technology by those who need it most and proposes a solution to overcome these limitations

Effects of sweet potato feathery mottle virus, sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus and their co-infection on sweet potato yield in Western Burkina Faso

To determine the effects of sweet potato feathery mottle virus (SPFMV), Sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus (SPCSV) and their co-infection on sweet potato yield, twelve sweet potato varieties were assessed in a hotspot area in Western Burkina Faso. The experiment was carried out in a randomized complete-block design with the twelve varieties in three replications. Data were collected on plant growth parameters, plant virus symptoms and yield parameters. Additional testing for selected sweet potato viruses was done using a nitrocellulose membrane enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (NCM-ELISA) and RT-PCR. SPFMV and SPCSV were the viruses detected in this study. Varieties Djakani and Ligri were virus-free and had the highest average yields out of twelve sweet potato varieties assessed. Field monitoring indicated that 58% of plants were found to be virus-infected. The results suggest that severe symptoms were associated with sweet potato virus disease (SPVD) and yield reduction. However, the interaction of SPCSV with other viruses, which may result in synergistic negative effects on sweet potato yield and quality, needs further research

Additional file 1 of Rice yellow mottle virus is a suitable amplicon vector for an efficient production of an anti-leishmianiasis vaccine in Nicotiana benthamiana leaves

Supplementary Material 1

Evaluation du coût médical direct de il prise en charge du syndrome drépanocytaire majeur de l'enfant à Ouagadougou

English AbstractThe sickle cell disease is a major problem of public health in Burkina Faso. Prevalence of the major sickle syndromes affect approximately 8,42 % of the patients in a hospital environment. The families of these children spend a lot of money on vaccines, medicine, complementary examinations. The objective of our work was to estimate the annual expenses to cause by the sickle disease within families. To this end we led to the pediatric university hospital Charles de Gaulle and to the holy health center Camille of Ouagadougou a retrospective covering study a period of one year going from January 1st till December 31st, 2011 on hospitalized or consultant children from 0 to 15 years old to these structures. The medical  cases of these patients were of use to us as sources of data which were collected on an index of collection and treated with the software " Sphinx Lexica ". The average cost of a care in ambulatory is estimated at 41 838,82 FCFA a year and the average cost of the care in hospitalization to 106 688,70 FCFA. The sickle cell disease thus constitutes a considerable economic weight for our patients and especially families where from the necessity of an implication of the political powers for the implementation of well codified protocols and a subsidy for the care of this affection.Keywords: sickle cell disease major, child, taken care, medical cos