Development of a high-throughput microsatellite typing approach for forensic and population genetic analysis of wild and domestic African Bovini

Conservation management and forensic traceability of African buffalo and cattle rely on the timely provision of unbiased and accurate genetic information. An approach in which 17 cattle microsatellite markers are co-electrophoresed, following amplification in three core multiplex reactions was established for this purpose. Mean allelic richness per locus was 8.24 and 6.47, for buffalo and Bonsmara cattle, respectively, whilst an unbiased match probability of 6.5x×10-17 and 1.03 × 10-16 was obtained for each. These results confirm the usefulness of this rapid, cost-effective typing approach for forensic, paternity and fine-scale genetic analyses of wild and domestic African Bovini tribe member

Cassava processing wastewater as a platform for third generation biodiesel production

ABSTRACT This study aimed to evaluate third generation biodiesel production by microalgae Phormidium autumnale using cassava processing wastewater as a platform. Experiments were performed in a heterotrophic bubble column bioreactor. The study focused on the evaluation of the bioreactor (batch and fed-batch) of different operational modes and the analysis of biofuel quality. Results indicate that fed-batch cultivations improved system performance, elevating biomass and oil productions to 12.0 g L−1 and 1.19 g L−1, respectively. The composition of this oil is predominantly saturated (60 %) and monounsaturated (39 %), resulting in a biodiesel that complys with U.S., European and Brazilian standards. The technological route developed indicates potential for sustainable production of bulk oil and biodiesel, through the minimization of water and chemical demands required to support such a process

Building an African Leptospirosis Network

Although leptospirosis is a disease of global importance, local context is crucial to formulating effective intervention strategies. Factors including reservoir host species, pathogen type, environmental, and social settings generate context-specific epidemiologies. Diverse climatic zones, agricultural systems, urbanization patterns, and cultural practices in Africa are likely to drive considerable variation in leptospirosis epidemiology. There is growing evidence of a substantial burden of human leptospirosis in Africa that is difficult to quantify in part due to lack of surveillance and clinical awareness of leptospirosis. Leptospirosis is therefore rarely considered as a differential diagnosis for acute febrile illness, and there is little access to diagnostic services for leptospirosis on the continent. In 2016, a virtual network was founded focussing on improving awareness and understanding leptospirosis in Africa. We currently have 40 members from academia, clinical practice, government and non-governmental agencies and others. Current members are based predominantly in institutions outside the continent but increasingly colleagues based in public health, laboratories, veterinary, and academic institutions within Africa are joining. We will share our experiences of developing this network, and our plans for capacity building through identifying and addressing knowledge gaps in our understanding of leptospirosis in Africa

Molecular monitoring of African swine fever virus using surveys targeted at adult Ornithodoros ticks : a re-evaluation of Mkuze Game Reserve, South Africa

The Mkuze Game Reserve (MGR), in north-eastern KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa is an African swine fever virus (ASF) controlled area. In a survey conducted in 1978, ASF prevalence in warthogs and Ornithodoros ticks in MGR was determined to be 2 % and 0.06 %, respectively. These values, acknowledged as being unusually low compared to other East and southern African ASF-positive sylvatic-cycle host populations, have not been assessed since. The availability of a sensitive PCR-based virus detection method, developed specifically for the sylvatic tampan host, prompted a re-evaluation of ASF virus (ASFV) prevalence in MGR ticks. Of the 98 warthog burrows inspected for Ornithodoros presence, 59 (60.2 %) were found to contain tampans and tick sampling was significantly male-biased. Whilst gender sampling-bias is not unusual, the 27 % increase in infestation rate of warthog burrows since the 1978 survey is noteworthy as it anticipates a concomitant increase in ASFV prevalence, particularly in light of the high proportion (75 %) of adult ticks sampled. However, despite DNA integrity being confirmed by internal control amplification of the host 16S gene, PCR screening failed to detect ASFV. These results suggest that ASFV has either disappeared from MGR or if present, is localized, occurring at exceptionally low levels. Further extensive surveys are required to establish the ASFV status of sylvatic hosts in this controlled area

Cryptic species, biogeographic complexity and the evolutionary history of the Ectemnorhinus group in the sub-Antarctic, including a description of Bothrometopus huntleyi, n. sp.

Abstract The biogeography of the South Indian Ocean Province (SIP) biotas has long been controversial. Much of the discussion has been based on interpretation of species distributions, based on morphological or anatomical delimitations. However, molecular phylogenetic approaches elsewhere have recently shown that interpretations based solely on morphological data may be misleading. Nonetheless, few studies have employed molecular phylogenetic approaches to understand the biogeography of the SIP biotas. We do so here for the Ectemnorhinus group of genera, a monophyletic unit of weevils endemic to the region. We use mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I DNA sequence data to reconstruct relationships among 13 species and 22 populations in the genera Palirhoeus, Bothrometopus and Ectemnorhinus. On the basis of this analysis we find little support for separating the genus Palirhoeus from Bothrometopus, and little support for the morphologically-based species groups currently recognized within Bothrometopus. Using a molecular clock we show that dispersal among islands probably took place against the prevailing wind direction. These data also support a previous hypothesis of radiation of the epilithic genera Bothrometopus and Palirhoeus during the Pliocene/early Pleistocene, but reject the hypothesis that the genus Ectemnorhinus radiated following the last glacial maximum. We show that Bothrometopus parvulus (C.O. Waterhouse) on the Prince Edward Islands comprises two species that are not sister taxa. We name the second species Bothrometopus huntleyi n. sp. and provide a description thereof. © Antarctic Science Ltd 2011.Articl

Dynamics of Rodent-Borne Zoonotic Diseases and Their Reservoir Hosts: Invasive Rattus in South Africa

Lack of adequate sanitation and pest control, and poor housing conditions that prevail in much of both rural and urban South Africa, cause rodent populations to thrive, promoting contact with humans, which results in increased risk of zoonotic disease transmission. This study focused on bacterial pathogens involved in potential zoonoses present in 3 commensal and invasive Rattus spp., namely Rattus norvegicus, R. rattus, and R. tanezumi, from rural and urban South Africa. Bacterial prevalence and diversity was determined through amplification and sequencing of the mitochondrial 16S gene region, using 4 primer sets: 2 that have a broad bacterial species recognition range, and 2 genus-specific sets that target the genera Streptococcus and Streptobacillus. An overall bacterial prevalence of 32% (n = 84) in kidney samples was obtained using the 16S universal primer sets. Subsequent sequence analyses found bacterial prevalence per host species to be 41% for R. norvegicus, 42% for R. rattus, and 8% for R. tanezumi, with representatives of diverse bacterial taxa such as Clostridium sordelli (toxic shock syndrome), Bacillus cereus (diarrhoeal disease), and Enterococcus faecalis (nosocomial infections) being characterised. The primer set targeting Streptobacillus moniliformis was used to determine the prevalence of this zoonoticallyimportant bacterial taxon, which is transmissible via a bite from Rattus to humans, whilst Streptococcus-specific primers were used to assess environmental shedding of this agent via the urinary route. The results highlight the public health implications especially for immune-compromised individuals, as these rodent-borne pathogens can cause opportunistic infections that in such individuals are not readily diagnosed or treated.DST-NRF Centre of Excellence for Invasion Biology Mammal Research Institute (UP

Dynamics of Rodent-Borne Zoonotic Diseases and Their Reservoir Hosts: Invasive Rattus in South Africa

Lack of adequate sanitation and pest control, and poor housing conditions that prevail in much of both rural and urban South Africa, cause rodent populations to thrive, promoting contact with humans, which results in increased risk of zoonotic disease transmission. This study focused on bacterial pathogens involved in potential zoonoses present in 3 commensal and invasive Rattus spp., namely Rattus norvegicus, R. rattus, and R. tanezumi, from rural and urban South Africa. Bacterial prevalence and diversity was determined through amplification and sequencing of the mitochondrial 16S gene region, using 4 primer sets: 2 that have a broad bacterial species recognition range, and 2 genus-specific sets that target the genera Streptococcus and Streptobacillus. An overall bacterial prevalence of 32% (n = 84) in kidney samples was obtained using the 16S universal primer sets. Subsequent sequence analyses found bacterial prevalence per host species to be 41% for R. norvegicus, 42% for R. rattus, and 8% for R. tanezumi, with representatives of diverse bacterial taxa such as Clostridium sordelli (toxic shock syndrome), Bacillus cereus (diarrhoeal disease), and Enterococcus faecalis (nosocomial infections) being characterised. The primer set targeting Streptobacillus moniliformis was used to determine the prevalence of this zoonoticallyimportant bacterial taxon, which is transmissible via a bite from Rattus to humans, whilst Streptococcus-specific primers were used to assess environmental shedding of this agent via the urinary route. The results highlight the public health implications especially for immune-compromised individuals, as these rodent-borne pathogens can cause opportunistic infections that in such individuals are not readily diagnosed or treated.DST-NRF Centre of Excellence for Invasion Biology Mammal Research Institute (UP

Evidence of a contact zone between Rhabdomys dilectus(Rodentia: Muridae) mitotypes in Gauteng province, South Africa

Recent studies have described the presence of several mitochondrial lineages within Rhabdomys, which was previously considered to be a monotypic genus. The exact distributional limits of the species and subspecies and their contact zones are unclear. In this study we demonstrate that two monophyletic Rhabdomys dilectus mitochondrial lineages are present at two northern Gauteng province sampling sites in South Africa. Cytochrome b gene sequences, 896 nucleotides in length, generated for 36 Rhabdomys samples identified 10 unique haplotypes corresponding to eight R. dilectus dilectus haplotypes (from 32 individuals) and two R. d. chakae haplotypes (from four individuals). The present study provides the first empirical evidence for a contact zone for two R. dilectus conspecific mitochondrial lineages and contributes to the refinement of Rhabdomys distributional maps in southern Africa