scholarly journals Predicting the evolution of Lassa Virus endemic area and population at risk over the next decades

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raphaëlle Klitting ◽  
Liana E. Kafetzopoulou ◽  
Wim Thiery ◽  
Gytis Dudas ◽  
Sophie Gryseels ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
West Africa ◽  
Endemic Area ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Environmental Data ◽  
World Health ◽  
Lassa Virus ◽  
Viral Genomes ◽  
Health Organization

AbstractLassa fever is listed among the diseases that pose the greatest risks to public health by the World Health Organization. This severe viral hemorrhagic fever is caused by Lassa virus, a zoonotic pathogen that repeatedly spills over to humans from its rodent reservoirs. It is currently not known how climate change, transformations in land use, and human population growth could affect the endemic area of this virus, currently limited to parts of West Africa. By exploring the environmental data associated with virus occurrence, we show how temperature, precipitation and the presence of pastures determine ecological suitability for virus circulation. We project that regions in Central and East Africa will likely become suitable for Lassa virus over the next decades and estimate that the total population living in areas suitable for Lassa virus may grow from about 100 million to 700 million by 2070. By analysing geotagged viral genomes, we find that in the event of Lassa virus being introduced into a new suitable region, its spread might remain spatially limited over the first decades. Our results highlight how the endemic area of Lassa virus may expand well beyond West Africa in the next decades due to human impact on the environment, putting hundreds of million more people at risk of infection.

scholarly journals Phylogeography of Lassa Virus in Nigeria

2019 ◽  
Vol 93 (21) ◽  
Author(s):  
Deborah U. Ehichioya ◽  
Simon Dellicour ◽  
Meike Pahlmann ◽  
Toni Rieger ◽  
Lisa Oestereich ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
West Africa ◽  
Case Fatality ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Lassa Virus ◽  
Southeastern Part ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Virus Strains

ABSTRACT Lassa virus is genetically diverse with several lineages circulating in West Africa. This study aimed at describing the sequence variability of Lassa virus across Nigeria and inferring its spatiotemporal evolution. We sequenced and isolated 77 Lassa virus strains from 16 Nigerian states. The final data set, including previous works, comprised metadata and sequences of 219 unique strains sampled between 1969 and 2018 in 22 states. Most of this data originated from Lassa fever patients diagnosed at Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital, Edo State, Nigeria. The majority of sequences clustered with the main Nigerian lineages II and III, while a few sequences formed a new cluster related to Lassa virus strains from Hylomyscus pamfi. Within lineages II and III, seven and five sublineages, respectively, were distinguishable. Phylogeographic analysis suggests an origin of lineage II in the southeastern part of the country around Ebonyi State and a main vector of dispersal toward the west across the Niger River, through Anambra, Kogi, Delta, and Edo into Ondo State. The frontline of virus dispersal appears to be in Ondo. Minor vectors are directed northeast toward Taraba and Adamawa and south toward Imo and Rivers. Lineage III might have spread from northern Plateau State into Kaduna, Nasarawa, Federal Capital Territory, and Bauchi. One sublineage moved south and crossed the Benue River into Benue State. This study provides a geographic mapping of lineages and phylogenetic clusters in Nigeria at a higher resolution. In addition, we estimated the direction and time frame of virus dispersal in the country. IMPORTANCE Lassa virus is the causative agent of Lassa fever, a viral hemorrhagic fever with a case fatality rate of approximately 30% in Africa. Previous studies disclosed a geographical pattern in the distribution of Lassa virus strains and a westward movement of the virus across West Africa during evolution. Our study provides a deeper understanding of the geography of genetic lineages and sublineages of the virus in Nigeria. In addition, we modeled how the virus spread in the country. This knowledge allows us to predict into which geographical areas the virus might spread in the future and prioritize areas for Lassa fever surveillance. Our study not only aimed to generate Lassa virus sequences from across Nigeria but also to isolate and conserve the respective viruses for future research. Both isolates and sequences are important for the development and evaluation of medical countermeasures to treat and prevent Lassa fever, such as diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines.

scholarly journals Dengue worldwide: an overview of the current situation and the implications for Europe

2007 ◽  
Vol 12 (25) ◽  
Author(s):  
Collective Diseases of Environmental and Zoonotic Origin Team, ECDC
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
World Health Organization ◽  
Dengue Fever ◽  
Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Current Situation ◽  
Annual Incidence ◽  
World Health ◽  
The World ◽  
Health Organization

The annual incidence of dengue fever and dengue hemorrhagic fever has increased dramatically around the world in recent decades; the World Health Organization estimates that over 2.5 billion people are currently at risk from dengue viruses worldwide.

scholarly journals Genome Sequence of Lassa Virus Isolated from the First Domestically Acquired Case in Germany

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Svenja Wolff ◽  
Tilman Schultze ◽  
Sarah Katharina Fehling ◽  
Jan Philipp Mengel ◽  
Gerrit Kann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
West Africa ◽  
Genome Sequence ◽  
Treatment Options ◽  
Specific Treatment ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Lassa Virus ◽  
First Case

Lassa virus (LASV) is a zoonotic, hemorrhagic fever-causing virus endemic in West Africa, for which no approved vaccines or specific treatment options exist. Here, we report the genome sequence of LASV isolated from the first case of acquired Lassa fever disease outside of Africa.

scholarly journals Lassa Virus Circulation in Small Mammal Populations in Bo District, Sierra Leone

Biology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 28
Author(s):  
Umaru Bangura ◽  
Jacob Buanie ◽  
Joyce Lamin ◽  
Christopher Davis ◽  
Gédéon Ngiala Bongo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Phylogenetic Analysis ◽  
Sierra Leone ◽  
Small Mammal ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Lassa Virus ◽  
Sierra Leonean ◽  
Bayesian Phylogenetic Analysis ◽  
Prevalent Species ◽  
Lineage Iv

Lassa fever is a viral hemorrhagic fever caused by the Lassa virus LASV, which was first isolated in the rodent Mastomys natalensis in 1974 in Kenema, Sierra Leone. As little is known about the abundance and the presence of LASV in rodents living in the Bo area, we carried out a small mammal longitudinal population survey. A standardized trapping session was performed in various habitats and seasons in six villages over two years (2014–2016) and samples collected were tested for arenavirus IgG and LASV. A Bayesian phylogenetic analysis was performed on sequences identified by PCR. A total of 1490 small mammals were collected, and 16 rodent species were identified, with M. natalensis (355, 24%) found to be the most prevalent species. Forty-one (2.8%) samples were IgG positive, and 31 of these were trapped in homes and 10 in surrounding vegetation. Twenty-nine of 41 seropositive rodents were M. natalensis. We detected four LASV by PCR in two villages, all found in M. natalensis. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the sequences were distributed within the Sierra Leonean clade within lineage IV, distinguishing a Bo sub-clade older than a Kenema sub-clade. Compared to other settings, we found a low abundance of M. natalensis and a low circulation of LASV in rodents in villages around Bo district.

scholarly journals Testing brief intervention and phone contact among subjects with suicidal behavior: a randomized controlled trial in French Polynesia in the frames of the World Health Organization/Suicide Trends in At-Risk Territories study

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stéphane Amadéo ◽  
Moerani Rereao ◽  
Aurelia Malogne ◽  
Patrick Favro ◽  
Ngoc Lam Nguyen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
World Health Organization ◽  
Brief Intervention ◽  
Suicidal Behavior ◽  
French Polynesia ◽  
World Health ◽  
Suicidal Behaviors ◽  
The World ◽  
Health Organization

The World Health Organization <em>Suicide trends in at-risk territories</em> study is a multi-site regional research program operating first in French Polynesia and countries of the Western Pacific, then extended to the world. The aims of the study were to establish a monitoring system for suicidal behaviors and to conduct a randomised control trial intervention for non-fatal suicidal behaviors. The latter part is the purpose of the present article. Over the period 2008-2010, 515 patients were admitted at the Emergency Department of the Centre Hospitalier de Polynésie Française for suicidal behavior. Those then hospitalized in the Psychiatry Emergency Unit were asked to be involved in the study and randomly allocated to either Treatment As Usual (TAU) or TAU plus Brief Intervention and Contact (BIC), which provides a psycho-education session and a follow-up of 9 phone contacts over an 18-months period. One hundred persons were assigned to TAU, while 100 participants were allocated to the BIC group. At the end of the follow-up there were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of number of presentations to the hospital for repeated suicidal behaviors. Although the study could not demonstrate the superiority of a treatment over the other, nevertheless – given its importance – the investigation captured public attention and was able to contribute to the awareness of the need of suicide prevention in French Polynesia. The BIC model of intervention seemed to particularly suit the geographical and health care context of the country.

scholarly journals Differential pathogenesis of closely related 2018 Nigerian outbreak clade III Lassa virus isolates

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (10) ◽  
pp. e1009966
Author(s):  
Derek R. Stein ◽  
Bryce M. Warner ◽  
Jonathan Audet ◽  
Geoff Soule ◽  
Vinayakumar Siragam ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Animal Models ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Geographic Region ◽  
World Health ◽  
Limiting Factor ◽  
Lassa Virus ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Animal Models Of Disease ◽  
Medical Countermeasures

Nigeria continues to experience ever increasing annual outbreaks of Lassa fever (LF). The World Health Organization has recently declared Lassa virus (LASV) as a priority pathogen for accelerated research leading to a renewed international effort to develop relevant animal models of disease and effective countermeasures to reduce LF morbidity and mortality in endemic West African countries. A limiting factor in evaluating medical countermeasures against LF is a lack of well characterized animal models outside of those based on infection with LASV strain Josiah originating form Sierra Leone, circa 1976. Here we genetically characterize five recent LASV isolates collected from the 2018 outbreak in Nigeria. Three isolates were further evaluated in vivo and despite being closely related and from the same spatial / geographic region of Nigeria, only one of the three isolates proved lethal in strain 13 guinea pigs and non-human primates (NHP). Additionally, this isolate exhibited atypical pathogenesis characteristics in the NHP model, most notably respiratory failure, not commonly described in hemorrhagic cases of LF. These results suggest that there is considerable phenotypic heterogeneity in LASV infections in Nigeria, which leads to a multitude of pathogenesis characteristics that could account for differences between subclinical and lethal LF infections. Most importantly, the development of disease models using currently circulating LASV strains in West Africa are critical for the evaluation of potential vaccines and medical countermeasures.

Traditional Medicine

2021 ◽  
pp. 118-129
Author(s):  
Pavitra Solanki ◽  
Yasmin Sultana ◽  
Satyavir Singh
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
Antimicrobial Resistance ◽  
Traditional Medicine ◽  
Volatile Oil ◽  
World Health ◽  
Antibiotic Resistant ◽  
Life Saving ◽  
The World ◽  
History Of ◽  
Health Organization

Everybody is at risk of being infected by drug-resistant microscopic organisms. Managing with sickness has never been less demanding within the history of our species. At the current rate of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in microbes, specialists foresee that battling infections tuberculosis, HIV, and intestinal sickness will become more complicated. Antimicrobial resistance is rendering numerous life-saving drugs useless. Antibiotic-resistant microbes, known as “superbugs,” are getting to be more various and more harmful, thanks to the proceeding abuse of anti-microbials. Natural medication offers an alternative to these progressively ineffectual drugs. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), traditional medicine is a holistic term enclosing diverse health practices. Concurring to a report by the College of Maryland Therapeutic Center, turmeric's volatile oil serves as a common anti-microbial.

scholarly journals Differential Immune Responses to Hemorrhagic Fever-Causing Arenaviruses

Vaccines ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mantlo ◽  
Paessler ◽  
Huang
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Importance ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Innate Immune ◽  
Host Immune System ◽  
Lassa Virus ◽  
Type I ◽  
Highly Pathogenic ◽  
The Family ◽  
Pro Inflammatory Cytokines

The family Arenaviridae contains several pathogens of major clinical importance. The Old World (OW) arenavirus Lassa virus is endemic in West Africa and is estimated to cause up to 300,000 infections each year. The New World (NW) arenaviruses Junín and Machupo periodically cause hemorrhagic fever outbreaks in South America. While these arenaviruses are highly pathogenic in humans, recent evidence indicates that pathogenic OW and NW arenaviruses interact with the host immune system differently, which may have differential impacts on viral pathogenesis. Severe Lassa fever cases are characterized by profound immunosuppression. In contrast, pathogenic NW arenavirus infections are accompanied by elevated levels of Type I interferon and pro-inflammatory cytokines. This review aims to summarize recent findings about interactions of these pathogenic arenaviruses with the innate immune machinery and the subsequent effects on adaptive immunity, which may inform the development of vaccines and therapeutics against arenavirus infections.

The Cuban Response to the Ebola Epidemic in West Africa

2016 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 134-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Enrique Beldarraín Chaple ◽  
Mary Anne Mercer
Keyword(s):  
West Africa ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Direct Care ◽  
World Health ◽  
First Case ◽  
The World ◽  
Medical Teams ◽  
Social Disaster ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Work Done

In December 2013 the first case of Ebola appeared in Guinea. In September 2014 the United Nations (UN) and its specialized agency the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a call for medical collaboration in response to the medical crisis and social disaster caused by the Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa. Cuban authorities responded immediately to the call by offering specialized help for the epidemic, in collaboration with WHO. A group of 256 Cuban doctors, nurses and other health professionals provided direct care during the Ebola epidemic in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Equatorial Guinea from October 2014 to April 2015. This paper explains the main features of the Cuban health system, describes the development of Cuba's international medical cooperation approach, and highlights the work done by Cuban health collaborators in addressing the damage caused by the Ebola epidemic. Information used includes reports and documents of the Ministry of Public Health of Cuba, reports of WHO and PAHO, and articles published in scientific journals and newspaper articles. The response of the Cuban medical teams to the Ebola epidemic in West Africa is only one example of the Cuban efforts to strengthening health care provision in areas of need throughout the world.

scholarly journals Clinical and epidemiological characterization of dengue hemorrhagic fever cases in northeastern, Brazil

2010 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 355-358 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luciano Pamplona de Góes Cavalcanti ◽  
Ivo Castelo Branco Coelho ◽  
Dina Cortez Lima Feitosa Vilar ◽  
Susana Glória Silveira Holanda ◽  
Kiliana Nogueira Farias da Escóssia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Northeastern Brazil ◽  
World Health ◽  
Important Public Health Problem ◽  
Susceptible Population ◽  
Risk Of Progression ◽  
Care Structure ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
Epidemiological Characteristics

INTRODUCTION: The dengue hemorrhagic dengue (DHF) remains an important public health problem in Brazil. The objective of this study was to analyze the epidemiological characteristics of DHF cases during the 2003 epidemic in Ceará. METHODS: Suspected DHF cases with onset of symptoms between January and December 2003 were investigated. RESULTS: 37,964 classic dengue cases and 291 DHF cases were reported. Among the cases discarded, 75.5% were serologically positive but did not meet the criteria recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). The DHF patients' median age was 30 years (2 - 88). Among the hemorrhagic manifestations, petechiae were the most (32.6%) frequent. Cases of gastrointestinal bleeding, ascites, pericardial pleural effusion, hepatomegaly, hypotension and shock showed higher risk of progression to death (p <0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The introduction of a new serotype (DENV-3) in Ceará, which encountered a susceptible population and high vector density, may have been the primary agent responsible for the magnitude of the epidemic. Timely and appropriate medical care, along with an organized care structure are essential for reducing its lethality.

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