Observational study of vaccine effectiveness 20 years after the introduction of universal hepatitis B vaccination in Tunisia.

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to estimate the national prevalence of hepatitis B infection in Tunisia using data from a nationwide survey, to compare results with those obtained in 1996 survey and to evaluate the impact of vaccination twenty years after its introduction.

Methods: A National household-based cross sectional and serological survey was undertaken in 2015 from randomly selected districts using two-stage sampling. Data collection was performed using standardized and pretested questionnaires and collected blood samples were tested for markers of hepatitis B virus infection.

Determination of arylsulfatase A pseudodeficiency allele and haplotype frequency in the Tunisian population.

Arylsulfatase A (ASA) is a lysosomal enzyme involved in the catabolism of cerebroside sulfate. ASA deficiency is associated with metachromatic leukodystrophy (MLD). Low ASA activities have also been reported in a more common condition with no apparent clinical consequences termed ASA pseudo-deficiency (ASA-PD) which is associated with two linked mutations in the ASA gene (c.

Larval habitats characterization and species composition of Anopheles mosquitoes in Tunisia, with particular attention to Anopheles maculipennis complex.

In Tunisia, malaria transmission has been interrupted since 1980. However, the growing number of imported cases and the persistence of putative vectors stress the need for additional studies to assess the risk of malaria resurgence in the country. In this context, our aim was to update entomological data concerning Anopheles mosquitoes in Tunisia.

Hepatitis E virus seroprevalence among hemodialysis and hemophiliac patients in Tunisia (North Africa).

The aims of this study are to determine seroprevalence of Hepatitis E virus (HEV) in Tunisian blood donors and to evaluate its risk of parenteral transmission. Sera collected from 426 blood donors were tested for HEV IgG by indirect ELISA. Individuals were recruited from two national transfusion centers, in the North and the South of the country.

Seroprevalence of Toscana virus infection in Tunisia.

Objectives: The main objective of this study was to assess the prevalence of IgG antibodies against Toscana virus (TOSV) by an ELISA test and to determine the extent of its circulation in Tunisia.

Methods: An indirect ELISA test was performed to detect anti-TOSV IgG. The results were compared to those of an indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) test.

Frequency and clinical significance of core promoter and precore region mutations in Tunisian patients infected chronically with hepatitis B.

Genetic variability of hepatitis B virus (HBV) in the C gene and its association with the different stages of chronic liver disease has been studied inadequately with controversial results. The objectives of the current study were to determine the frequency of core promoter and precore mutations in chronic hepatitis B in Tunisia and to evaluate their impact on viral replication and disease progression. Sequencing was performed in upstream regulatory sequence (URS), pre-core (PreC) and basal core promoter (BCP) regions for 123 chronic infected patients by HBV genotype D at different status of disease.

Diagnosis of mediterranean visceral leishmaniasis by detection of leishmania antibodies and leishmania DNA in oral fluid samples collected using an Oracol device.

Current methods for diagnosis of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) require invasive sampling procedures such as visceral aspiration and/or blood drawing. The use of diagnostic tests using oral fluid, which is easier to collect, would be more simple and practical for VL diagnosis, especially under field conditions. Oral fluids from 37 VL patients and 40 healthy controls were collected using Oracol devices.

First multicenter study for risk factors for hepatocellular carcinoma development in North Africa.

Aim: To assess the role of the major risk factors for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development in the western part of North Africa.

Methods: A multicenter case control study was conducted in Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria in collaboration with Pasteur Institutes in these countries. A total of 164 patients with HCC and 250 control subjects without hepatic diseases were included.

Epidemiologic and clinical features of cutaneous leishmaniasis in southeastern Tunisia.

Species-specific diagnosis was performed in 66 patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) living in Tataouine focus in southeastern Tunisia. Leishmania DNA was extracted directly from dermal scrapings (n = 66) and from parasites obtained in culture (n = 12). Species were identified by using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis for internal transcribed spacer region 1 and isoenzyme analysis.

Heterogeneity of hepatitis B transmission in Tunisia: risk factors for infection and chronic carriage before the introduction of a universal vaccine program.

Unlabelled: A population-based sero-epidemiological study enrolled 9486 volunteers in two governorates, Béja in the north and Tataouine in the south of Tunisia, in order to assess the magnitude of HBV transmission heterogeneity between the north and the south and within the same governorate, as well as the risk factors associated with infection and chronic carriage.

Results: The overall prevalence of anti-HBc, HBsAg and chronic carriage was 28.5, 5.