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Mariën J, Sage M, Bangura U, Lamé A, Koropogui M, Rieger T, Soropogui B, Douno M, Magassouba N, Fichet-Calvet E. Rodent control strategies and Lassa virus: some unexpected effects in Guinea, West Africa. Emerg Microbes Infect 2024; 13:2341141. [PMID: 38597241 PMCID: PMC11034454 DOI: 10.1080/22221751.2024.2341141] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2024] [Accepted: 04/04/2024] [Indexed: 04/11/2024]
Abstract
The Natal multimammate mouse (Mastomys natalensis) is the host of Lassa mammarenavirus, causing Lassa haemorrhagic fever in West Africa. As there is currently no operational vaccine and therapeutic drugs are limited, we explored rodent control as an alternative to prevent Lassa virus spillover in Upper Guinea, where the disease is highly endemic in rural areas. In a seven-year experiment, we distributed rodenticides for 10-30 days once a year and, in the last year, added intensive snap trapping for three months in all the houses of one village. We also captured rodents both before and after the intervention period to assess their effectiveness by examining alterations in trapping success and infection rates (Lassa virus RNA and IgG antibodies). We found that both interventions reduced the rodent population by 74-92% but swiftly rebounded to pre-treatment levels, even already six months after the last snap-trapping control. Furthermore, while we observed that chemical control modestly decreased Lassa virus infection rates annually (a reduction of 5% in seroprevalence per year), the intensive trapping unexpectedly led to a significantly higher infection rate (from a seroprevalence of 28% before to 67% after snap trapping control). After seven years, we conclude that annual chemical control, alone or with intensive trapping, is ineffective and sometimes counterproductive in preventing Lassa virus spillover in rural villages. These unexpected findings may result from density-dependent breeding compensation following culling and the survival of a small percentage of chronically infected rodents that may spread the virus to a new susceptible generation of mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joachim Mariën
- Evolutionary Ecology group, Department of Biology University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
- Virus Ecology unit, Department of Biomedical sciences, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Mickaël Sage
- Faune INNOV’ R&D – Wildlife INNOVATION, Besançon, France
| | - Umaru Bangura
- Implementation Research, Zoonoses Control group, Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Alicia Lamé
- Faune INNOV’ R&D – Wildlife INNOVATION, Besançon, France
| | - Michel Koropogui
- Projet des fièvres Hémorragiques en Guinée, Laboratoire de Virologie, Conakry, Guinea
| | - Toni Rieger
- Department of Virology, Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Barré Soropogui
- Projet des fièvres Hémorragiques en Guinée, Laboratoire de Virologie, Conakry, Guinea
| | - Moussa Douno
- Projet des fièvres Hémorragiques en Guinée, Laboratoire de Virologie, Conakry, Guinea
| | - N’Faly Magassouba
- Projet des fièvres Hémorragiques en Guinée, Laboratoire de Virologie, Conakry, Guinea
| | - Elisabeth Fichet-Calvet
- Implementation Research, Zoonoses Control group, Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg, Germany
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Bangura U, Davis C, Lamin J, Bangura J, Soropogui B, Davison AJ, Nichols J, Vucak M, Dawson M, Ansumana R, Sondufu D, Cadar D, Rieger T, Thomson E, Sahr F, Magassouba N, Ghersi B, Bird BH, Fichet-Calvet E. Spatio-temporal spread of Lassa virus and a new rodent host in the Mano River Union area, West Africa. Emerg Microbes Infect 2024; 13:2290834. [PMID: 38047354 PMCID: PMC10919312 DOI: 10.1080/22221751.2023.2290834] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2023] [Accepted: 11/29/2023] [Indexed: 12/05/2023]
Abstract
The spread of Lassa virus (LASV) in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, which together are named the Mano River Union (MRU) area, was examined phylogeographically. To provide a reliable evolutionary scenario, new rodent-derived, whole LASV sequences were included. These were generated by metatranscriptomic next-generation sequencing from rodents sampled between 2003 and 2020 in 21 localities of Guinea and Sierra Leone. An analysis was performed using BEAST to perform continuous phylogeographic inference and EvoLaps v36 to visualize spatio-temporal spread. LASV was identified as expected in its primary host reservoir, the Natal multimammate mouse (Mastomys natalensis), and also in two Guinean multimammate mice (Mastomys erythroleucus) in northern Sierra Leone and two rusty-bellied brush-furred mice (Lophuromys sikapusi) in southern Sierra Leone. This finding is consistent with the latter two species being secondary host reservoirs. The strains in these three species were very closely related in LASV lineage IV. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that the most recent common ancestor of lineage IV existed 316-374 years ago and revealed distinct, well-supported clades from Sierra Leone (Bo, Kabala and Kenema), Guinea (Faranah, Kissidougou-Guekedou and Macenta) and Liberia (Phebe-Ganta). The phylogeographic scenario suggests southern Guinea as the point of origin of LASV in the MRU area, with subsequent spread to towards Mali, Liberia and Sierra Leone at a mean speed of 1.6 to 1.1 km/year.
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Affiliation(s)
- Umaru Bangura
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, WHO Collaborating Centre for Arbovirus and Hemorrhagic Fever Reference and Research, Hamburg, Germany
| | | | - Joyce Lamin
- Mercy Hospital Research Laboratory, Bo, Sierra Leone
| | - James Bangura
- University of Makeni and University of California, Davis One Health Program, Makeni, Sierra Leone
| | - Barré Soropogui
- Laboratoire des Fièvres Hémorragiques en Guinée, Conakry, Guinea
| | | | - Jenna Nichols
- MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, Glasgow, UK
| | - Matej Vucak
- MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, Glasgow, UK
| | | | | | | | - Dániel Cadar
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, WHO Collaborating Centre for Arbovirus and Hemorrhagic Fever Reference and Research, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Toni Rieger
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, WHO Collaborating Centre for Arbovirus and Hemorrhagic Fever Reference and Research, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Emma Thomson
- MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, Glasgow, UK
| | - Foday Sahr
- College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences, University of Sierra Leone, Freetown, Sierra Leone
| | | | - Bruno Ghersi
- One Health Institute, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, USA
| | - Brian H. Bird
- One Health Institute, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, USA
| | - Elisabeth Fichet-Calvet
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, WHO Collaborating Centre for Arbovirus and Hemorrhagic Fever Reference and Research, Hamburg, Germany
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Postigo-Hidalgo I, Magassouba N, Soropogui B, Fichet-Calvet E, Drexler JF. Association of Hepatitis C Virus Genotype 2 Spread With Historic Slave Trade and Commerce Routes in Western Africa. Virus Evol 2022; 8:veac066. [DOI: 10.1093/ve/veac066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Revised: 07/13/2022] [Accepted: 07/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
The hepatitis C virus genotype 2 (HCV2) is endemic in Western and Central Africa. The HCV2 evolutionary origins remain uncertain due to the paucity of available genomes from African settings. In this study, we investigated the molecular epidemiology of HCV infections in rural Guinea, Western Africa, during 2004 and 2014. Broadly reactive nested RT-PCR-based screening of sera from 1,571 asymptomatic adults resulted in the detection of 25 (1.5%, 95% CI 0.9-2.3) positive samples, with a median viral load of 2.54E+05 IU/mL (IQR 6.72E+05). HCV-infected persons had a median age of 47 years and 62.5% were male and 37.5% female. The full polyprotein-encoding genes were retrieved by a combination of high throughput and Sanger sequencing from 17 samples showing sufficiently high viral loads. Phylogenetic analysis and sequence distances ≥13% averaged over the polyprotein genes compared to other HCV2 subtypes revealed 9 previously unknown HCV2 subtypes. The time to the most recent common ancestor of the Guinean HCV2 strains inferred in a Bayesian framework was 493 years (95% HPD 453-532). Most of the Guinean strains clustered poorly by location both on the level of sampling sites within Guinea and the level of countries in the phylogenetic reconstructions. Ancestral state reconstruction provided decisive support (Bayes factor >100) for an origin of HCV2 in Western Africa. Phylogeographic reconstructions in a Bayesian framework pointed to a radial diffusion of HCV2 from Western African regions encompassing today’s countries like Ghana, Guinea Bissau, or Burkina Faso, to Central and Northern African regions that took place from the 16th century onwards. The spread of HCV2 coincided in time and space with the main historic slave trade and commerce routes, supported by Bayesian tip-association significance testing (p = 0.01). Our study confirms the evolutionary origins of HCV2 in Western Africa and provides a potential link between historic human movements and HCV2 dispersion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ignacio Postigo-Hidalgo
- Charité—Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Institute of Virology , Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Barré Soropogui
- Laboratoire du Projet des Fièvres Hémorragiques de Guinée (PFHG) , Conakry, Guinea
| | | | - Jan Felix Drexler
- Charité—Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Institute of Virology , Berlin, Germany
- German Centre for Infection Research (DZIF), Associated partner site Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin , Germany
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Denys C, Jacquet F, Kadjo B, Missoup AD, Aniskine V, de Bellocq JG, Soropogui B, Douno M, Sylla M, Nicolas V, Lalis A, Monadjem A. Shrews (Mammalia, Eulipotyphla) from a biodiversity hotspot, Mount Nimba (West Africa), with a field identification key to species. ZOOSYSTEMA 2021. [DOI: 10.5252/zoosystema2021v43a30] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Christiane Denys
- Institut de Systématique, évolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE, Université des Antilles UMR 7205, case postale 51, 57 rue Cuvier, F-75231 Paris cedex 05 (France)
| | - François Jacquet
- Institut de Systématique, évolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE, Université des Antilles UMR 7205, case postale 51, 57 rue Cuvier, F-75231 Paris cedex 05 (France)
| | - Blaise Kadjo
- Laboratoire de Zoologie et Biologie – UFR Biosciences-Université Félix Houphouët-Boigny (Côte d'Ivoire)
| | - Alain Didier Missoup
- Zoology Unit, Laboratory of Biology and Physiology of Animal Organisms, Faculty of Science, University of Douala, POBox 24157 Douala (Cameroon)
| | - Vladimir Aniskine
- Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninskii pr 33, 117071 Moscow (Russia)
| | - Joelle Goüy de Bellocq
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Research Facility Studenec, Czech Academy of Sciences, Květná 8, 603 65 Brno (Czech Republic)
| | - Barré Soropogui
- Projet de Recherche sur les Fièvres Hemorragiques en Guinée, C.H.U. Donka, 5680 Conakry (Guinea)
| | - Mory Douno
- Centre de Gestion de l'Environnement des monts Nimba et Simandou (CEGENS), ministère de l'Environnement des Eaux et Forêts (Guinea)
| | - Morlaye Sylla
- Centre d'études et de Recherches sur les Petits Animaux, Université Gamal Abdel Nasser, 2580 Conakry (Guinea)
| | - Violaine Nicolas
- Institut de Systématique, évolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE, Université des Antilles, UMR 7205, case postale 51, 57 rue Cuvier, F-75231 Paris cedex 05 (France) ;
| | - Aude Lalis
- Institut de Systématique, évolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE, Université des Antilles, UMR 7205, case postale 51, 57 rue Cuvier, F-75231 Paris cedex 05 (France) ;
| | - Ara Monadjem
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Eswatini, Private Bag 4, Kwaluseni, Eswatini & Mammal Research Institute, Department of Zoology & Entomology, University of Pretoria, Private Bag 20, Hatfield 0028, Pretoria (South Africa)
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5
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Moran Z, Rodriguez W, Ahmadou D, Soropogui B, Magassouba NF, Kelly-Cirino C, Ben Amor Y. Comparative performance study of three Ebola rapid diagnostic tests in Guinea. BMC Infect Dis 2020; 20:670. [PMID: 32933492 PMCID: PMC7493368 DOI: 10.1186/s12879-020-05339-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2019] [Accepted: 08/11/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The 2014/15 Ebola outbreak in West Africa resulted in 11,000 deaths and massive strain on local health systems, and the ongoing outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo has afflicted more than 3000 people. Accurate, rapid Ebola diagnostics suitable for field deployment would enable prompt identification and effective response to future outbreaks, yet remain largely unavailable. The purpose of this study was to assess the accuracy of three novel rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs): an Ebola, an Ebola-Malaria, and a Fever Panel test that includes Ebola, all from a single manufacturer. Methods We evaluated the three RDTs in 109 Ebola-positive and 96 Ebola-negative stored serum samples collected during the outbreak in Guinea in 2014/15, and tested by real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Sensitivity, specificity, and overall percent agreement were calculated for each RDT using RT-PCR as a reference standard, stratified by Ct value ranges. Results All tests performed with high accuracy on samples with low Ct value (high viral load). The Fever Panel test performed with the highest accuracy, with a sensitivity of 89.9% and specificity of 90.6%. The Ebola and Ebola-Malaria tests performed comparably to each other: sensitivity was 77.1 and 78% respectively, and specificity was 91.7% for the Ebola test and 95.8% for the Ebola-Malaria test. Conclusions This study evaluated the accuracy of three novel rapid diagnostic tests for Ebola. The tests may have significant public health relevance, particularly the Fever Panel test, which detects seven pathogens including Ebola. Given limitations to the study resulting from uncertain sample quality, further evaluation is warranted. All tests performed with highest accuracy on samples with low Ct value (high viral load), and the data presented here suggests that these RDTs may be useful for point-of-care diagnosis of cases in the context of an outbreak. Restrictions to their use in non-severe Ebola cases or for longitudinal monitoring, when viral loads are lower, may be appropriate. Highlighting the challenge in developing and evaluating Ebola RDTs, there were concerns regarding sample integrity and reference testing, and there is a need for additional research to validate these assays.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zelda Moran
- Center for Sustainable Development, Earth Institute, Columbia University, 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 1040, New York, NY, 10025, USA
| | | | - Doré Ahmadou
- Laboratoire des Fièvres Hémorragiques en Guinée, Conakry, Guinea
| | - Barré Soropogui
- Laboratoire des Fièvres Hémorragiques en Guinée, Conakry, Guinea
| | | | | | - Yanis Ben Amor
- Center for Sustainable Development, Earth Institute, Columbia University, 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 1040, New York, NY, 10025, USA.
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6
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Sebba D, Lastovich AG, Kuroda M, Fallows E, Johnson J, Ahouidi A, Honko AN, Fu H, Nielson R, Carruthers E, Diédhiou C, Ahmadou D, Soropogui B, Ruedas J, Peters K, Bartkowiak M, Magassouba N, Mboup S, Ben Amor Y, Connor JH, Weidemaier K. A point-of-care diagnostic for differentiating Ebola from endemic febrile diseases. Sci Transl Med 2019; 10:10/471/eaat0944. [PMID: 30541788 DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.aat0944] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2018] [Accepted: 11/09/2018] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Hemorrhagic fever outbreaks such as Ebola are difficult to detect and control because of the lack of low-cost, easily deployable diagnostics and because initial clinical symptoms mimic other endemic diseases such as malaria. Current molecular diagnostic methods such as polymerase chain reaction require trained personnel and laboratory infrastructure, hindering diagnostics at the point of need. Although rapid tests such as lateral flow can be broadly deployed, they are typically not well-suited for differentiating among multiple diseases presenting with similar symptoms. Early detection and control of Ebola outbreaks require simple, easy-to-use assays that can detect and differentiate infection with Ebola virus from other more common febrile diseases. Here, we developed and tested an immunoassay technology that uses surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) tags to simultaneously detect antigens from Ebola, Lassa, and malaria within a single blood sample. Results are provided in <30 min for individual or batched samples. Using 190 clinical samples collected from the 2014 West African Ebola outbreak, along with 163 malaria positives and 233 negative controls, we demonstrated Ebola detection with 90.0% sensitivity and 97.9% specificity and malaria detection with 100.0% sensitivity and 99.6% specificity. These results, along with corresponding live virus and nonhuman primate testing of an Ebola, Lassa, and malaria 3-plex assay, indicate the potential of the SERS technology as an important tool for outbreak detection and clinical triage in low-resource settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Sebba
- Becton, Dickinson and Company, 21 Davis Drive, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA
| | - Alexander G Lastovich
- Becton, Dickinson and Company, 21 Davis Drive, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA
| | - Melody Kuroda
- Becton, Dickinson and Company, 21 Davis Drive, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA
| | - Eric Fallows
- Becton, Dickinson and Company, 21 Davis Drive, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA
| | - Joshua Johnson
- Integrated Research Facility, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Fort Detrick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Ambroise Ahouidi
- Laboratory of Bacteriology and Virology, Le Dantec Hospital, Cheikh Anta Diop University, Dakar, Senegal.,Institut de Recherche en Santé, de Surveillance Epidémiologique et de Formations (IRESSEF), Diamniadio, BP 7325, Dakar, Senegal
| | - Anna N Honko
- Integrated Research Facility, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Fort Detrick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Henry Fu
- Becton, Dickinson and Company, 21 Davis Drive, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA
| | - Rex Nielson
- Becton, Dickinson and Company, 21 Davis Drive, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA
| | - Erin Carruthers
- Becton, Dickinson and Company, 21 Davis Drive, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA
| | - Cyrille Diédhiou
- Laboratory of Bacteriology and Virology, Le Dantec Hospital, Cheikh Anta Diop University, Dakar, Senegal
| | - Doré Ahmadou
- Hemorrhagic Fever Laboratory, Université Gamal Abdel Nasser de Conakry, BP 5680, Conakry, Guinea
| | - Barré Soropogui
- Hemorrhagic Fever Laboratory, Université Gamal Abdel Nasser de Conakry, BP 5680, Conakry, Guinea
| | - John Ruedas
- Department of Microbiology and National Infectious Diseases Laboratories, Boston University School of Medicine, 620 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Kristen Peters
- Department of Microbiology and National Infectious Diseases Laboratories, Boston University School of Medicine, 620 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Miroslaw Bartkowiak
- Becton, Dickinson and Company, 21 Davis Drive, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA
| | - N'Faly Magassouba
- Hemorrhagic Fever Laboratory, Université Gamal Abdel Nasser de Conakry, BP 5680, Conakry, Guinea
| | - Souleymane Mboup
- Laboratory of Bacteriology and Virology, Le Dantec Hospital, Cheikh Anta Diop University, Dakar, Senegal.,Institut de Recherche en Santé, de Surveillance Epidémiologique et de Formations (IRESSEF), Diamniadio, BP 7325, Dakar, Senegal
| | - Yanis Ben Amor
- Center for Sustainable Development, Earth Institute at Columbia University, 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 1040, New York, NY 10115, USA
| | - John H Connor
- Department of Microbiology and National Infectious Diseases Laboratories, Boston University School of Medicine, 620 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02118, USA.
| | - Kristin Weidemaier
- Becton, Dickinson and Company, 21 Davis Drive, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA.
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7
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Mariën J, Borremans B, Gryseels S, Soropogui B, De Bruyn L, Bongo GN, Becker-Ziaja B, de Bellocq JG, Günther S, Magassouba N, Leirs H, Fichet-Calvet E. No measurable adverse effects of Lassa, Morogoro and Gairo arenaviruses on their rodent reservoir host in natural conditions. Parasit Vectors 2017; 10:210. [PMID: 28449693 PMCID: PMC5408478 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-017-2146-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2017] [Accepted: 04/19/2017] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Background In order to optimize net transmission success, parasites are hypothesized to evolve towards causing minimal damage to their reservoir host while obtaining high shedding rates. For many parasite species however this paradigm has not been tested, and conflicting results have been found regarding the effect of arenaviruses on their rodent host species. The rodent Mastomys natalensis is the natural reservoir host of several arenaviruses, including Lassa virus that is known to cause Lassa haemorrhagic fever in humans. Here, we examined the effect of three arenaviruses (Gairo, Morogoro and Lassa virus) on four parameters of wild-caught Mastomys natalensis: body mass, head-body length, sexual maturity and fertility. After correcting for the effect of age, we compared these parameters between arenavirus-positive (arenavirus RNA or antibody) and negative animals using data from different field studies in Guinea (Lassa virus) and Tanzania (Morogoro and Gairo viruses). Results Although the sample sizes of our studies (1297, 749 and 259 animals respectively) were large enough to statistically detect small differences in body conditions, we did not observe any adverse effects of these viruses on Mastomys natalensis. We did find that sexual maturity was significantly positively related with Lassa virus antibody presence until a certain age, and with Gairo virus antibody presence in general. Gairo virus antibody-positive animals were also significantly heavier and larger than antibody-free animals. Conclusion Together, these results suggest that the pathogenicity of arenaviruses is not severe in M. natalensis, which is likely to be an adaptation of these viruses to optimize transmission success. They also suggest that sexual behaviour might increase the probability of M. natalensis to become infected with arenaviruses. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13071-017-2146-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joachim Mariën
- Evolutionary Ecology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.
| | - Benny Borremans
- Evolutionary Ecology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.,Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
| | - Sophie Gryseels
- Evolutionary Ecology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.,Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, USA
| | - Barré Soropogui
- Projet des Fièvre Hémorragiques en Guinée, Hôpital Donka, Conakry, Guinea
| | - Luc De Bruyn
- Evolutionary Ecology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Gédéon Ngiala Bongo
- Bernhard-Nocht-Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg, Germany.,Department of Biology, University of Kinshasa, P.O. Box. 190, Kinshasa XI, Democratic Republic of the Congo
| | | | - Joëlle Goüy de Bellocq
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Research Facility Studenec, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Stephan Günther
- Bernhard-Nocht-Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg, Germany
| | - N'Faly Magassouba
- Projet des Fièvre Hémorragiques en Guinée, Hôpital Donka, Conakry, Guinea
| | - Herwig Leirs
- Evolutionary Ecology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
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Kurosaki Y, Magassouba N, Bah HA, Soropogui B, Doré A, Kourouma F, Cherif MS, Keita S, Yasuda J. Deployment of a Reverse Transcription Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification Test for Ebola Virus Surveillance in Remote Areas in Guinea. J Infect Dis 2016; 214:S229-S233. [DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jiw255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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9
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Fichet-Calvet E, Ölschläger S, Strecker T, Koivogui L, Becker-Ziaja B, Camara AB, Soropogui B, Magassouba N, Günther S. Spatial and temporal evolution of Lassa virus in the natural host population in Upper Guinea. Sci Rep 2016; 6:21977. [PMID: 26911443 PMCID: PMC4766397 DOI: 10.1038/srep21977] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2015] [Accepted: 02/03/2016] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
This study aimed at reconstructing the spatial and temporal evolution of Lassa virus (LASV) in the natural host population. To this end, we generated 132 partial nucleoprotein sequences of LASV from M. natalensis trapped in 12 villages around Faranah, Upper Guinea, over a period of 12 years. This study reveals two main features of LASV evolution in M. natalensis. First, the virus evolves in the reservoir with a molecular clock rate of 9 (7-11) × 10(-4) position(-1) year(-1) implying that contemporary LASV lineages circulate in the Faranah area since less than 100 years. Second, viruses circulating in a specific village are diverse and polyphyletic. We observed, however, there are monophyletic clusters at village and sub-village level at specific points in time. In conclusion, our data indicate that the temporal and spatial pattern of LASV evolution in the natural reservoir is characterized by a combination of stationary circulation within a village and virus movement between villages. The latter feature is relevant for rodent control strategies, as it implies that recurrence of the virus from neighbouring villages may occur in villages where the virus has previously been eradicated.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Thomas Strecker
- Institute of Virology, Philipps University Marburg, Marburg, Germany
| | - Lamine Koivogui
- Projet des Fièvres Hémorragiques en Guinée, Hopital Donka, Conakry, Guinea
| | | | - Amara Bongo Camara
- Projet des Fièvres Hémorragiques en Guinée, Hopital Donka, Conakry, Guinea
| | - Barré Soropogui
- Projet des Fièvres Hémorragiques en Guinée, Hopital Donka, Conakry, Guinea
| | - N'Faly Magassouba
- Projet des Fièvres Hémorragiques en Guinée, Hopital Donka, Conakry, Guinea
| | - Stephan Günther
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg, Germany
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Faye O, Faye O, Soropogui B, Patel P, El Wahed AA, Loucoubar C, Fall G, Kiory D, Magassouba N, Keita S, Kondé MK, Diallo AA, Koivogui L, Karlberg H, Mirazimi A, Nentwich O, Piepenburg O, Niedrig M, Weidmann M, Sall AA. Development and deployment of a rapid recombinase polymerase amplification Ebola virus detection assay in Guinea in 2015. Euro Surveill 2015; 20:30053. [DOI: 10.2807/1560-7917.es.2015.20.44.30053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2015] [Accepted: 09/28/2015] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
In the absence of a vaccine or specific treatments for Ebola virus disease (EVD), early identification of cases is crucial for the control of EVD epidemics. We evaluated a new extraction kit (SpeedXtract (SE), Qiagen) on sera and swabs in combination with an improved diagnostic reverse transcription recombinase polymerase amplification assay for the detection of Ebola virus (EBOV-RT-RPA). The performance of combined extraction and detection was best for swabs. Sensitivity and specificity of the combined SE and EBOV-RT-RPA were tested in a mobile laboratory consisting of a mobile glovebox and a Diagnostics-in-a-Suitcase powered by a battery and solar panel, deployed to Matoto Conakry, Guinea as part of the reinforced surveillance strategy in April 2015 to reach the goal of zero cases. The EBOV-RT-RPA was evaluated in comparison to two real-time PCR assays. Of 928 post-mortem swabs, 120 tested positive, and the combined SE and EBOV-RT-RPA yielded a sensitivity and specificity of 100% in reference to one real-time RT-PCR assay. Another widely used real-time RT-PCR was much less sensitive than expected. Results were provided very fast within 30 to 60 min, and the field deployment of the mobile laboratory helped improve burial management and community engagement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oumar Faye
- Arbovirus and viral hemorragic fever unit, Institut Pasteur de Dakar, Dakar, Senegal
- These authors contributed equally to the paper
| | - Ousmane Faye
- Arbovirus and viral hemorragic fever unit, Institut Pasteur de Dakar, Dakar, Senegal
- These authors contributed equally to the paper
| | - Barré Soropogui
- Laboratory for Hemorrhagic fevers of Guinea, Conakry, Guinea
| | - Pranav Patel
- Centre for Biological Threats and Special Pathogens, Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany
| | - Ahmed Abd El Wahed
- Unit of Infection Models, German Primate Center, Goettingen, Germany, currently Division of Microbiology and Animal Hygiene, Georg-August-University, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Cheikh Loucoubar
- Group of Biostatistics, Bioinformatics and Modeling, Institut Pasteur de Dakar, Dakar, Senegal
| | - Gamou Fall
- Arbovirus and viral hemorragic fever unit, Institut Pasteur de Dakar, Dakar, Senegal
| | - Davy Kiory
- Arbovirus and viral hemorragic fever unit, Institut Pasteur de Dakar, Dakar, Senegal
| | | | | | - Mandy Kader Kondé
- Center for Research and training on malaria and prioritary diseases (CEFORPAG), Conakry, Guinea
| | | | | | | | - Ali Mirazimi
- Public Health Agency of Sweden, Solna Sweden,
- Karolinska Institute, Solna, Sweden
| | - Oliver Nentwich
- TwistDx, Babraham Research Campus, Babraham, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Olaf Piepenburg
- TwistDx, Babraham Research Campus, Babraham, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Matthias Niedrig
- Centre for Biological Threats and Special Pathogens, Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany
| | - Manfred Weidmann
- These authors contributed equally to the paper
- Institute of Aquaculture, University of Stirling, Stirling, United Kingdom
- These authors jointly supervised the project
| | - Amadou Alpha Sall
- Arbovirus and viral hemorragic fever unit, Institut Pasteur de Dakar, Dakar, Senegal
- These authors contributed equally to the paper
- These authors jointly supervised the project
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11
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Denys C, Lalis A, Aniskin V, Kourouma F, Soropogui B, Sylla O, Doré A, Koulemou K, Beavogui ZB, Sylla M, Camara A, Camara AB, Camara AC, Kan SK, Volobouev V, Camara C, Koivogui L, Bernard AK. New data on the taxonomy and distribution of Rodentia (Mammalia) from the western and coastal regions of Guinea West Africa. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2009. [DOI: 10.1080/11250000802616817] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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12
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Fichet-Calvet E, Lecompte E, Koivogui L, Soropogui B, Doré A, Kourouma F, Sylla O, Daffis S, Koulémou K, Ter Meulen J. Fluctuation of abundance and Lassa virus prevalence in Mastomys natalensis in Guinea, West Africa. Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis 2007; 7:119-28. [PMID: 17627428 DOI: 10.1089/vbz.2006.0520] [Citation(s) in RCA: 85] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Based on empiric surveillance data, the incidence of human Lassa fever (LF) cases in Guinea and other West African countries has been reported to increase during the dry season compared to the rainy season. To investigate possible links with the ecology of the rodent reservoir of the virus, we conducted a 2-year longitudinal survey of Mastomys natalensis in a region of high human Lassa virus (LASV) seropositivity in Guinea. Standardized rodent trapping with similar trapping efforts between seasons was performed in three villages and 53.5% (601/1123) of the animals were identified as M. natalensis using morphometric and molecular criteria. Mean trapping success (TS) of M. natalensis was always higher inside houses than in proximal cultivations. In the dry season, mean TS increased 2-fold inside houses and decreased up to 10-fold outside (p < 0.0001), suggesting aggregation of rodents inside houses due to restricted food supply. 14.5% (80/553) of M. natalensis were tested positive for Lassa virus by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR; range, 5%-30%) and prevalence of the virus was two to three times higher in rodents captured in the rainy season than in the dry season (p < 0.05). Inside houses, however, the LASV prevalence fluctuated nonsignificantly with season. These data suggest that in Guinea the risk of LASV transmission from rodents to humans is present both in the rainy and the dry season, reflected by the occurrence of LF cases throughout the year. In the dry season, however, the increased risk of humans encountering Mastomys and their excreta inside of houses may result in an increase of human Lassa fever cases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisabeth Fichet-Calvet
- Department of Systematics and Evolution, Museum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris, France.
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Lecompte E, Fichet-Calvet E, Daffis S, Koulémou K, Sylla O, Kourouma F, Doré A, Soropogui B, Aniskin V, Allali B, Kouassi Kan S, Lalis A, Koivogui L, Günther S, Denys C, ter Meulen J. Mastomys natalensis and Lassa fever, West Africa. Emerg Infect Dis 2007; 12:1971-4. [PMID: 17326956 PMCID: PMC3291371 DOI: 10.3201/eid1212.060812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 146] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
PCR screening of 1,482 murid rodents from 13 genera caught in 18 different localities of Guinea, West Africa, showed Lassa virus infection only in molecularly typed Mastomys natalensis. Distribution of this rodent and relative abundance compared with M. erythroleucus correlates geographically with Lassa virus seroprevalence in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emilie Lecompte
- Philipps University Institute of Virology, Marburg, Germany.
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