J Wildl Dis
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Vector-borne Diseases, Arbovirus Diseases Branch, Virology Activity, 3156 Rampart Road, Fort Collins, Colorado 80521, USA.
Published: July 2013
Vector-borne and zoonotic pathogens have comprised a significant proportion of the emerging infectious diseases in humans in recent decades. The role of many wildlife species as reservoirs for arthropod-borne viral pathogens is poorly understood. We investigated the exposure history of various African wildlife species from the Congo basin to mosquito-borne flaviviruses and alphaviruses by testing archived serum samples. Sera from 24 African forest buffalo (Syncerus caffer nanus), 34 African elephants (Loxodonta africana), 40 duikers (Cephalophus and Philantomba spp.), 25 mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx), 32 mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei), five Grauer's gorillas (Gorilla beringei graueri), two L'Hoest's monkeys (Cercopithecus lhoesti), two golden monkeys (Cercopithecus kandti), and three chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) sampled between 1991 and 2009 were tested for antibodies against chikungunya virus (CHIKV), o'nyong-nyong virus (ONNV), West Nile virus (WNV), dengue 2 virus (DENV-2), and yellow fever virus (YFV) by plaque reduction neutralization test. Specific neutralizing antibodies against ONNV were found in African forest buffalo in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Gabon, duikers in the DRC, and mandrills in Gabon, providing novel evidence of enzootic circulation of ONNV in these countries. African forest buffalo in the DRC and Gabon also demonstrated evidence of exposure to CHIKV, WNV, and DENV-2, while mandrills in Gabon were antibody positive for CHIKV, DENV-2, WNV, and YFV. All of the elephants tested had a strong neutralizing antibody response to WNV. We also document results from a survey of gorillas for arboviruses, of which 4/32 (13%) had antibody to an alphavirus or flavivirus. Overall, our results demonstrate a high prevalence of neutralizing antibodies against multiple arboviruses in wildlife in equatorial Africa.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://dx.doi.org/10.7589/2012-08-212 | DOI Listing |
Science
January 2025
Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA.
Conventionally, the size, shape, and biomechanics of cartilages are determined by their voluminous extracellular matrix. By contrast, we found that multiple murine cartilages consist of lipid-filled cells called lipochondrocytes. Despite resembling adipocytes, lipochondrocytes were molecularly distinct and produced lipids exclusively through de novo lipogenesis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNature
January 2025
Tamar Valley National Landscape, Gunnislake, UK.
Freshwater ecosystems are highly biodiverse and important for livelihoods and economic development, but are under substantial stress. To date, comprehensive global assessments of extinction risk have not included any speciose groups primarily living in freshwaters. Consequently, data from predominantly terrestrial tetrapods are used to guide environmental policy and conservation prioritization, whereas recent proposals for target setting in freshwaters use abiotic factors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFront Chem
December 2024
African Society for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, Cape Town, South Africa.
Introduction: Dengue Fever continues to pose a global threat due to the widespread distribution of its vector mosquitoes, and . While the WHO-approved vaccine, Dengvaxia, and antiviral treatments like Balapiravir and Celgosivir are available, challenges such as drug resistance, reduced efficacy, and high treatment costs persist. This study aims to identify novel potential inhibitors of the Dengue virus (DENV) using an integrative drug discovery approach encompassing machine learning and molecular docking techniques.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHepatol Commun
December 2024
Department of Infectious Diseases, Vestfold Hospital Trust, Tønsberg, Norway.
Background: Little is known about the determinants of disease progression among African patients with chronic HBV infection.
Methods: We used machine-learning models with longitudinal data to establish predictive algorithms in a well-characterized cohort of Ethiopian HBV-infected patients without baseline liver fibrosis. Disease progression was defined as an increase in liver stiffness to >7.
Vaccines (Basel)
December 2024
World Health Organization, 20 Avenue Appia, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland.
: Yellow fever (YF) outbreaks continue to affect populations that are not reached by routine immunization services, such as workers at a high risk of occupational exposure to YF. In the Central African Republic (CAR), YF cases were detected in districts characterized by the presence of workers in forest areas. We developed an innovative approach based on a local partnership with private companies of the extractive industry to administer YF vaccine to workers in remote areas during the response to an outbreak.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!
© LitMetric 2025. All rights reserved.