Impact of Wastewater Use for Irrigation and Contamination of Lettuce by Enteric Viruses: Case of Ouagadougou Market Gardening Sites, Burkina Faso.

Raw vegetables irrigated with polluted water that may contain enteric viruses can be associated with foodborne viral disease outbreaks. The objective of this study is to investigate the possible transmission of enteric viruses from irrigation water to lettuce. Therefore, we performed a commercial multiplex real-time PCR assay to monitor the occurrence of enteric viruses in irrigation water samples and in raw vegetables that were cultivated at market gardening sites in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

Effects of gestational age on blood cortisol and prolactin levels during pregnancy in malaria endemic area.

Background: The hormonal shift occurring in pregnant women is crucial for the outcome of pregnancy. We conducted a study in pregnant women living in a malaria endemic area to determine the potential effect of gestational age on the modulation of the endocrine system by cortisol and prolactin production during pregnancy.

Methods: Primigravidae and multigravidae with a gestational age between 16-20 weeks were included in the study and followed up to delivery and 6-7 weeks thereafter.

Identification and phylogenetic analysis of carbapenemase genes from clinical strains of Klebsiella pneumoniae.

Introduction: Klebsiella pneumoniae is an encapsulated Gram-negative bacterium that is responsible for numerous infections in healthcare facilities worldwide and is frequently isolated. The World Health Organization has listed K. pneumoniaeas as a critical antibiotic resistant bacterial pathogen for which new antibiotics are urgently needed.

Evolution of Pfdhps and Pfdhfr mutations before and after adopting seasonal malaria chemoprevention in Nanoro, Burkina Faso.

Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention consisting of monthly administration of amodiaquine/sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine to children aged 3-59 months during the transmission season could promote SP-resistance. Mutations in dihydrofolate reductase (Pfdhfr) and dihydropteroate synthase (Pfdhps) genes were assessed before and after SMC adoption in Burkina Faso. A total of 769 dried blood spots were selected from studies conducted in Nanoro, Burkina Faso, between 2010 and 2020.

Trend of N86Y and Y184F Mutations in Pfmdr1 Gene in Children Under Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention Coverage in Nanoro, Burkina Faso.

Background: Seasonal malaria chemoprevention (SMC) is an effective malaria preventive intervention in sub-Sahara Africa. However, as with any other drug-based intervention, the large-scale deployment of this strategy could lead to Amodiaquine plus Sulfadoxine-Pyrimethamine (AQSP) drug pressure on the circulating parasites population with selection for specific alleles that could compromise the impact of the intervention in the near future. This study aimed to assess the distribution of the Pfmdr1 mutation involved in resistance to AQ before and after the annual campaign of SMC in the health district of Nanoro.

Exploring Antibiotic Use in the Community: A Household-Based Survey Using the Drug Bag Method in Rural Burkina Faso.

In Burkina Faso, there is lack of awareness of antibiotic use at the community level. This study aims to generate information on the commonly used antibiotics along with the reasons for which they have been used in rural Burkina Faso. The drug bag method was employed to collect information from 423 households in the health district of Nanoro.

Feasibility, performances and predictive value of congenital CMV neonatal screening on saliva swabs.

Background: Early diagnosis of congenital CMV infection (cCMVI) allows for early intervention and follow-up to detect delayed hearing loss. While CMV PCR in urine is the gold standard for cCMVI diagnosis, saliva testing is often performed.

Objectives: Our aim was to determine (i) if swab saliva sampling needed standardization, (ii) if a threshold value in "virus copies per million cells (Mc)" in saliva samples could improve clinical specificity, and (iii) to establish a correlation between viral load in saliva and symptomatology/outcome of cCMVI.

Antibiotic use by clinical presentation across all healthcare providers in rural Burkina Faso: a healthcare visit exit survey.

Background: To guide antibiotic stewardship interventions, understanding for what indications antibiotics are used is essential.

Methods: In rural Burkina Faso, we measured antibiotic dispensing across all healthcare providers. From October 2021 to February 2022, we surveyed patients in Nanoro district, Burkina Faso, following visits to health centres (3), pharmacies (2), informal medicine vendors (5) and inpatients in health centres.

Toxic potential evaluation of liquid effluents discharged into nature by the university hospital centers (UHC) and mixed wastewater treatment station (WWTS) at Ouagadougou-Burkina Faso.

In Burkina Faso, several investigations have raised suspicions that hospital liquid effluents are the source of contaminants in porbeagle-culture products and surface water in urban and peri-urban areas. This study aimed to evaluate the hygienic quality of hospital liquid effluents discharged into nature by the UHC Bogodogo (UHC-BOG), Yalgado Ouédraogo (UHC-YO), and the WWTS of Kossodo (WWTS-KOS). Thus, 15 samples of liquid effluents (five per site) discharged into nature were collected.

Radiation dose fractionation and its potential hormetic effects on male Glossina palpalis gambiensis (Diptera: Glossinidae): a comparative study of reproductive and flight quality parameters.

One of the most critical factors for implementing the sterile insect technique for the management of tsetse is the production of large quantities of highly competitive sterile males in the field. Several factors may influence the biological quality of sterile males, but optimizing the irradiation protocols to limit unwanted somatic cell damage could improve male performance. This study evaluated the effect of fractionation of gamma radiation doses on the fertility and flight quality of male Glossina palpalis gambiensis.

Increased erythroferrone levels in malarial anaemia.

We assessed the diagnostic potential of erythroferrone as a biomarker for iron homeostasis comparing iron deficiency cases with anaemia of inflammation and controls. The dysregulation of the hepcidin axis was observed by Latour et al. in a mouse model of malarial anaemia induced by prolonged Plasmodium infection leading to increased erythroferrone concentrations.

X-rays are as effective as gamma-rays for the sterilization of Glossina palpalis gambiensis Vanderplank, 1911 (Diptera: Glossinidae) for use in the sterile insect technique.

An area-wide integrated pest management strategy with a sterile insect technique (SIT) component requires a radiation source for the sterilisation of male insects. Self-contained gamma irradiators, which were exclusively used in past SIT programmes, are now facing increasing constraints and challenges due to stringent regulations. As a potential alternative, new generation high output X-ray irradiators have been proposed.

Exploring the host factors affecting asymptomatic Plasmodium falciparum infection: insights from a rural Burkina Faso study.

Background: Asymptomatic Plasmodium falciparum parasitaemia forms a reservoir for the transmission of malaria disease in West Africa. Certain haemoglobin variants are known to protect against severe malaria infection. However, data on the potential roles of haemoglobin variants and nongenetic factors in asymptomatic malaria infection is scarce and controversial.

A Randomized Trial to Assess the Impact of a Package of Diagnostic Tools and Diagnostic Algorithm on Antibiotic Prescriptions for the Management of Febrile Illnesses Among Children and Adolescents in Primary Health Facilities in Burkina Faso.

Background: Low- and middle-income countries face significant challenges in differentiating bacterial from viral causes of febrile illnesses, leading to inappropriate use of antibiotics. This trial aimed to evaluate the impact of an intervention package comprising diagnostic tests, a diagnostic algorithm, and a training-and-communication package on antibiotic prescriptions and clinical outcomes.

Methods: Patients aged 6 months to 18 years with fever or history of fever within the past 7 days with no focus, or a suspected respiratory tract infection, arriving at 2 health facilities were randomized to either the intervention package or standard practice.

Baseline malarial and nutritional profile of children under seasonal malaria chemoprevention coverage in the health district of Nanoro, Burkina Faso.

Seasonal Malaria chemoprevention (SMC) is one of the large-scale life-saving malaria interventions initially recommended for the Sahel subregion, including Burkina Faso and recently extended to other parts of Africa. Initially, SMC was restricted to children 3 to 59 months old, but an extension to older children in some locations was recently recommended. Further characterization of SMC population profile beyond age criterion is necessary for understanding factors that could negatively impact the effectiveness of the intervention and to define complementary measures that could enhance its impact.

Emergence of New Delhi Metallo--Lactamase (NDM) Genes Detected from Clinical Strains of Isolated in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

The emergence and spread of carbapenem resistance in Gram-negative bacilli such as , , , and through the production of carbapenemases is a global phenomenon. It threatens patient care and leads to therapeutic impasses. This study aims to genotypically determine the prevalence of the most frequent carbapenemase genes among multidrug-resistant strains isolated from patients at a biomedical analysis laboratory.

Research of Antibiotic Residues and Bacterial Strain's Antibiotic Resistance Profile in the Liquid Effluents Evacuated in Nature by Two CHUs and a Mixed WWTP of Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso).

Background: In Burkina Faso, suspicions have been raised that hospital liquid effluents are a source of microbiological contaminants in surface waters of urban and peri-urban areas. This study aimed to determine the antibiotic residues and the antibiotic resistance phenotype of potential pathogenic bacteria in the hospital liquid effluents discharged into nature by the CHUs Bogodogo, Yalgado Ouédraogo and the WWTS of Kossodo.

Methods: Fifteen samples of liquid effluents discharged into nature were collected.

Gamma-radiation of Glossina palpalis gambiensis revisited: effect on fertility and mating competitiveness.

African animal trypanosomoses are vector-borne diseases that cause enormous livestock losses in sub-Saharan Africa, with drastic socio-economic impacts. Vector control in the context of an area-wide integrated pest management program with a sterile insect technique component requires the production of high-quality sterile male tsetse flies. In our study, we evaluated the effect of irradiation on the fecundity of Glossina palpalis gambiensis to identify the optimal dose that will induce maximum sterility while maintaining biological performance as much as possible.

Effects of maternal antenatal treatment with two doses of azithromycin added to monthly sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine for the prevention of low birth weight in Burkina Faso: an open-label randomized controlled trial.

Background: Exposure during pregnancy to malaria and sexually-transmitted infections is associated with adverse birth outcomes including low birth weight (LBW). This study aimed at assessing if the adjunction of two doses of azithromycin to sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine for the intermittent preventive treatment of malaria in pregnancy can reduce LBW.

Methods: A two parallel-groups, open-label randomized controlled trial involving pregnant women (16 to 35 years of age and 12 to 24 weeks of gestation as confirmed by last menstrual period or fundal height) was conducted in rural Burkina Faso.