Publications by authors named "Gael D Maganga"

Article Synopsis
  • This study investigates the prevalence of protozoan parasites infecting rodents and domestic chickens in Franceville, Gabon, highlighting the risk of zoonotic diseases to humans.
  • A total of 285 animal samples were analyzed, revealing an overall prevalence of 55.8% for oocysts, significantly higher in rodents (72.4%) compared to chickens (25%).
  • The findings emphasize the need for further research to identify the specific species involved and assess their potential public health implications in the region.
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Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection leads to around 800,000 deaths yearly and is considered to be a major public health problem worldwide. However, HBV origins remain poorly understood. Here, we looked for bat HBV (BtHBV) in different bat species in Gabon to investigate the role of these animals as carriers of ancestral hepadnaviruses because these viruses are much more diverse in bats than in other host species.

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Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a tick-borne viral disease with a mortality rate reaching up to 40% in humans. Currently, CCHF affects three continents: Asia, Europe, and Africa. An increase in confirmed cases in Africa has been observed since 2000.

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Objectives: Mpox is a neglected viral endemic tropical disease in Central and Western African countries transmitted to humans by an animal. However, the natural reservoir of the virus remains elusive. In this study, we looked for potential reservoirs of the mpox virus (MPXV) in Gabonese wildlife to prevent future outbreaks and enrich the literature with additional data on animal reservoirs.

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Article Synopsis
  • * Researchers found that 4 out of 163 tested wild ruminants were positive for RVFV, with a genetic link to a virus from Namibia, indicating RVF's presence in Gabon's wildlife.
  • * In a separate survey of 306 domestic animals, they found 15.4% had RVFV-specific antibodies, predominantly in goats, emphasizing the need for improved surveillance and control measures for RVF in the region.
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Background: Strengthening the surveillance of zoonotic diseases emergence in the wild meat value chains is a critical component of the prevention of future health crises. Community hunters could act as first-line observers in zoonotic pathogens surveillance systems in wildlife, by reporting early signs of the possible presence of a disease in the game animals they observe and manipulate on a regular basis.

Methods: An experimental game was developed and implemented in a forested area of Gabon, in central Africa.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Coronaviruses are a diverse group of viruses that can infect various animals, including humans, with some strains like SARS-CoV-1, SARS-CoV-2, and MERS-CoV affecting global health significantly and originating from bats through intermediary hosts.
  • - A study in Gabon screened 229 faecal samples from wild great apes and mandrills for coronaviruses using nested PCR, but all samples tested negative for CoVs.
  • - The negative results might be due to a small sample size, the temporary nature of infections, or the unsuitability of faecal samples for detection, indicating the need for future studies using larger sample sizes and alternative non-invasive methods to better understand CoV circulation
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  • - The study focused on screening astroviruses (AstVs), enteroviruses (EVs), and caliciviruses (CaVs) in domestic animals to understand their potential to spread zoonotic diseases in rural Central Africa, where these animals interact closely with wildlife.
  • - Researchers collected rectal swabs from 123 goats, 41 sheep, and 76 dogs across 10 villages in northeastern Gabon, using PCR to detect various viruses by amplifying specific genes.
  • - Out of 240 samples, 23 tested positive for the viruses, with the majority found in goats, and some sequences clustering with known viruses that could pose a risk to humans, suggesting these animals could harbor pathogens that affect human health.
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  • - The canine parvovirus type-2 (CPV-2) has evolved into several variants (CPV-2a, CPV-2b, CPV-2c) since its first detection in the 1970s, with recent variants reported globally, including in 2019.
  • - A study conducted in Gabon focused on clinical cases of CPV in vaccinated dogs, collecting fecal samples that tested positive for the virus, with genetic analysis revealing the presence of CPV-2a and CPV-2c.
  • - The findings indicate that these CPV variants are circulating among young vaccinated dogs in Gabon, prompting the need for further research on the epidemiology and effectiveness of existing vaccines
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  • A study was conducted from August to December 2019 to identify gastrointestinal parasites in wild animals in Gabon and evaluate the potential risk to humans from consuming these animals.
  • Researchers analyzed the feces and intestines of 113 wild animals and found 15 types of gastrointestinal parasites, with a high prevalence of 85.84%.
  • Some identified parasites are known to be potentially harmful to humans, indicating that eating game, especially organ meat, could pose health risks.
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  • A study was conducted in Gabon to monitor the COVID-19 epidemic, focusing on the first 1161 suspected cases from March 2020.
  • Out of these cases, 83 were confirmed as positive for COVID-19, with 73% of those infected showing no symptoms.
  • The research found that viral loads were higher in nasopharyngeal samples compared to oropharyngeal samples, but no significant differences were observed in viral loads across different age groups or in relation to clinical symptoms.
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Rabies is a zoonotic neurological life-threatening neglected tropical disease present worldwide, and Gabon is listed as an endemic country. However, despite strong clinical suspicion in humans and molecular confirmation of rabies virus (RABV) infections in dogs for several decades, no molecularly confirmed human case in Gabon has ever been reported. In this study, we describe two cases of human rabies and provide the first molecular diagnostic report on suspected human rabies cases in Gabon.

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Bats host many viruses pathogenic to humans, and increasing evidence suggests that rotavirus A (RVA) also belongs to this list. Rotaviruses cause diarrheal disease in many mammals and birds, and their segmented genomes allow them to reassort and increase their genetic diversity. Eighteen out of 2,142 bat fecal samples (0.

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Background And Aim: Trypanosomosis is a major impediment to livestock farming in sub-Saharan Africa. It is a vector-borne disease caused by several species of protozoan parasites, namely, trypanosomes. The present study aimed to identify the diversity of trypanosome species infecting sheep and goats from Mongo County and to determine the frequency of these parasites.

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Based on a large study conducted on wild great ape fecal samples collected in regions of Gabon where previous human outbreaks of Ebola virus disease have occurred between 1994 and 2002, we provide evidence for prevalence of (EBOV)-specific antibodies of 3.9% (immunoglobulin G (IgG)) and 3.5% (immunoglobulin M (IgM)) in chimpanzees and 8.

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Enteroviruses (Picornaviridae) and astroviruses (Astroviridae) cause various diseases in humans and animals, including in non-human primates (NHPs). Some enteroviruses and astroviruses detected in NHPs are genetically related to those infecting humans, indicating the occurrence of interspecies transmissions. In this study, we screened 200 fecal samples of 56 free-ranging mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx) by nested reverse transcription-PCR with primers targeting the VP1 and RdRp genes, to evaluate the diversity of enterovirus and astrovirus infection, respectively, and the associated zoonotic risk.

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Human African Trypanosomiasis (HAT) is an infectious disease due to a protozoa parasite of the Trypanosoma genus. In West and Central Africa, this disease is caused by the subspecies . Several foci of this disease are currently active and causing the death of hundreds of people in endemic areas.

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We report the nearly complete genome sequence of an enterovirus 99 strain (Cpz-IJC08) detected in a healthy chimpanzee from the Tchimpounga Sanctuary in the Republic of Congo. According to the phylogeny, Cpz-IJC08 clustered with Cpz-IJC04, a previously identified chimpanzee enterovirus from the same sanctuary, isolated from an animal with signs of acute flaccid paralysis.

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Little research on coronaviruses has been conducted on wild animals in Africa. Here, we screened a wide range of wild animals collected in six provinces and five caves of Gabon between 2009 and 2015. We collected a total of 1867 animal samples (cave-dwelling bats, rodents, non-human primates and other wild animals).

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Background And Aim: Gastrointestinal infestations caused by intestinal parasites are the most important diseases and the most common in pigs in the tropics. These parasites are often associated with a huge economic loss. This study aimed to assess the diversity and prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites in farmed pigs from Haut-Ogooue Province, in South East Gabon.

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Background: Measles is one of the most infectious diseases with a high mortality rate worldwide. It is caused by the measles virus (MeV) which is a single stranded RNA virus with genetic diversity based on the nucleoprotein gene, including 24 genotypes. In Gabon, several outbreaks occurred in the past few years, especially in 2016 in Libreville and Oyem.

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Canine distemper (CD) is the most deadly disease in dogs with mortality rates reaching 50%. The pathological agent, the CD virus (CDV), generally causes a severe systemic disease, although the nervous form can coexist with the acute catarrhal form in the same individual. In this study, we describe an outbreak of 18 cases of CD that occurred in 2015 in a German Shepherd dog population in northwestern Gabon.

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