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[Efficacy of UK 4271 (oxamniquine, Pfizer) in Schistosoma mansoni bilharziasis in western Africa (parasitological and serological study of 252 children)].

This study was conducted on 252 childrens afflicted with Schistosomiasis (S. mansoni and S. haematobium) living in endemic area and treated with doses of 15 mg/kg to 60 mg/kg of Oxamniquine. During eight months, parasitologic and serologic (Indirect fluorescent antibody test) controls were continued. A single per os dose of 15 mg/kg appears best and 87% cure rates were obtained with only 12% reinfestation. Antibody studies indicate, at this dosage, an antigenic stimulation that lasts at least 8 months, thus conferring a "vaccinating" action possible to be used with large population groups. Further studies show acceptable tolerance clinically of Oxamniquine and its ineffectiveness against S. haematobium. As mentioned by others, it appears that Oxamniquine has usefulness in treatment of schistosomiasis due to S. mansoni.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1976

[Intestinal transit time in Togo (Western Africa) and Germany].

In five groups of Africans and Europeans in Togo (West-Africa) and Germany intestinal transit time and stool-weights have been studied. Native Africans on traditional food passed three times more stool (307 g/d) in half of the time (33 hours) as Europeans and Africans on Western diet did. The effect of dietary fibre on intestinal transit time and intestinal pathology is stressed.

Adult↗
PubMed1976

[Epidemiology of human and animal brucellosis in western Africa. The results of six studies in the Ivory Coast, Upper Volta, and Nigeria].

Brucellosis has a two-fold importance in public health: the transmission of the disease to man by contact with animals or ingestion of raw milk is of direct importance; of indirect importance is the loss of animal protein. The authors have carried out ten epidemiological investigations in different bio-climatic zones of West Africa. More than 120 villages were evaluated. In each village, 100 persons were chosen at random and all or part of the animal population was also studied. Three tests were used for man: the melitin intradermal reaction, the sero-agglutination test of Wright and the complement fixation test. Three tests were used for the animals, the "ring-test" and the same serologic tests used for humans. The results indicated that brucellosis in animals exists in all regions but with varying rates. The bovine species seems to be the most contaminated. The enzooty becomes more widespread towards the South. Human brucellosis was not found to be of great importance in the regions mainly populated by farmers. Shepherds and their families in these zones, however, were found to have been infected. The highest percentage of infected humans was found in the sahelian zone (in Dori 30% of the intradermal reactions and 10% of serologies were positive for humans) in spite of a rather low infection rate among animals (6%-8% ring-tests positive among cattle). The majority of the population are shepherds and close cohabitation with animals is common. A basic dietary constituent is milk, which is often consumed raw (variable according to ethnic group), and provides the principal source of animal protein. Adults were found to have a significantly higher intradermal reaction rate in most of the regions studied. The positivity rate was higher in men than in women. In non-pastoral areas the shepherds and their families had a singificantly higher positivity rate than the general population. Ethnic differences were found. Also considered in this paper are intradermal reaction sizes, the relation between intradermal and serologic results, the modes of human transmission of the disease, and the relationship between human and animal forms of brucellosis.

Adult↗
PubMed1976

[Filariasis in patients returned from the tropics. Studies on 64 cases].

A discussion is presented on the epidemiological and clinical aspects of filariasis in persons returning from tropical countries. In our population filariasis is mainly imported from central and western Africa, especially Cameroon. Missionaries and voluntary workers spending periods of years in the tropics are particularly exposed. About 50% of the patients are normal on clinical examination and 40% do not even evidence symptoms due to the low parasite density. Therefore, demonstration of the parasite, which is the diagnostic aim, is often very difficult and requires special techniques. Whenever parasite demonstration is impossible, itching, eosinophilia and a positive immunofluorescence reaction are important diagnostic signs, but they may occasionally develop years after the subject's return. Treatment is by diethylcarbamazine and suramine; their administration and side effects are described and 2 cases involving severe reactions due to inadequate treatment are cited.

Adult↗
PubMed2026

Phylogeography and molecular evolution of Newcastle disease virus across a century of global surveillance.

Newcastle disease virus (NDV) remains one of the most economically important avian pathogens worldwide, causing recurrent outbreaks in poultry despite decades of vaccination and disease control efforts. Since the first reported outbreak of NDV a hundred years ago, numerous molecular epidemiological studies have been conducted globally across diverse geographic and production settings. Following a century of NDV circulation and evolution, the present study aimed to compile all publicly available NDV sequence data and perform a comprehensive global analysis of the genetic diversity, phylogenetic relationship, and global spatiotemporal distribution of NDV over a 100-year timescale. All publicly available NDV complete genome and full-length fusion (F) gene sequences were retrieved from GenBank up to February 2026. Following rigorous quality control, phylogenetic analyses were performed based on complete genomes and F gene datasets. Phylogenetic analysis identified two genotypes within Class I and 20 genotypes within Class II NDVs, with extensive diversification at the sub-genotype level. Genotype XIII exhibited the greatest sub-genotypic diversity, while genotype VII represented the most globally disseminated genotype, reported across 36 countries. Chronological assessment based on the earliest available reports indicated an increasing number of recognized genotypes from the 1930s to recently described sub-genotypes such as XIII.2.3 and XXII.2.2. Regional diversity analysis revealed the highest genotype diversity in Western Africa, Eastern Asia, and Southern Asia. Comparative residue analysis demonstrated substantial genotype-specific variation within critical functional domains of the fusion protein, including cleavage sites, neutralizing epitopes, and heptad repeat regions. Overall, this study provides the first comprehensive 100-year global overview of NDV evolution and phylogeography. The findings highlight continuous viral diversification, broad geographic dissemination of multiple genotypes, and ongoing molecular variation, emphasizing the need for sustained genomic surveillance and periodic evaluation of vaccine compatibility with emerging NDV genotypes.

100-years of data↗
PubMed1979

Loiasis: report of three cases and literature review.

Loiasis is a tropical infection caused by the microfilarial nematode Loa loa. Increased numbers of cases of loiasis have been diagnosed outside of the endemic areas in Western and Central Africa because of widespread international travel. The author presents three cases of loiasis discovered at Howard University followed by a review of the literature.

Adult↗
PubMed2026

No phenotypic resistance observed for most group-3 and -4 variants in Mycobacterium tuberculosis genes related to bedaquiline, clofazimine, delamanid, and pretomanid in a Central and West African context.

The interpretation of genetic variants' association (or not) with phenotypic resistance to newly introduced and repurposed antituberculosis drugs remains challenging, as many mutations detected by whole-genome sequencing (WGS) are classified as of uncertain significance (group 3) or not associated with resistance-interim (group 4) by the World Health Organization (WHO) mutation catalog v2. We evaluated the phenotypic impact of such variants on minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) for bedaquiline (BDQ), clofazimine (CFZ), delamanid (DLM), and pretomanid (PA) in Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex isolates from the multi-country DIAMA cohort in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), which recruited RR/RS-TB patients naïve to these drugs. Among 1,475 isolates with available WGS data, 163 variants met eligibility criteria; due to viable strain unavailability, 89 isolates carrying 29 unique BDQ/CFZ-related and 60 unique DLM/PA-related variants were tested for MIC determination using broth microdilution. Additional structural modeling was performed to explore potential effects of amino-acid substitutions on protein stability. Among BDQ/CFZ-related variants, MICs above the critical concentrations (CCs) were consistently associated with mmpR5 variants, whereas variants in atpE, pepQ, and Rv1979c were not. DLM/PA variants (ddn, fbiA-D, and fgd1) were frequently detected as non-fixed populations, yet rarely yielding MIC values above the CC. Predicted structural destabilization showed no consistent association with MIC values or variant fixation status. Under the conditions tested, phenotypic resistance was not detected for most group 3 and 4 variants detected by WGS. Our data provide evidence from SSA to support improved interpretation of resistance-associated mutations for new and repurposed antituberculosis drugs.IMPORTANCEWhole-genome sequencing increasingly detects Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex mutations classified by the World Health Organization (WHO) mutation catalog v2 as group 3 variants of uncertain significance or group 4 variants not associated with resistance-interim, limiting reliable prediction of resistance to new and repurposed antituberculosis drugs. By generating minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) data for such variants identified in a multi-country sub-Saharan African cohort, this study provides phenotypic evidence to support future refinement and expansion of the WHO mutation catalog v2. Notably, mmpR5 variants associated with elevated bedaquiline/clofazimine MICs were identified in eight isolates, suggesting that some patients in this cohort may have harbored pre-existing resistance-associated variants yet remained potentially eligible for bedaquiline-containing regimens. These findings contribute to improving the interpretation of genomic resistance data and strengthening surveillance of resistance to bedaquiline, clofazimine, delamanid, and pretomanid.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis↗
PubMed2026

Ambrosia beetle invasions are structured by inbreeding, intraspecific hybridisation, and bridgeheads.

When invasive populations establish in regions far from their origin, they may accumulate deleterious mutations that limit population viability and later expansion. Invasions stemming from such bridgehead populations may experience further sequential bottlenecks. However, deleterious mutations can be masked or eliminated when populations outbreed with other lineages. Here, we analyse global invasions of a species complex of persistently inbreeding ambrosia beetles, using genomic data (N=247) from invasive populations in Africa, North America and Australia, and from native populations in Asia. We mostly focus on one species of this complex (Euwallacea fornicatus) which poses a severe threat to tree species worldwide and is rapidly expanding its global range. We uncover a single lineage of this species across California, South Africa, and Western Australia, involving an invasive bridgehead and containing almost no nuclear genetic variation. In South Africa we identify a second lineage that has repeatedly hybridised with the first lineage. Genetic patterns in the native range indicate that such opportunistic outbreeding may be common. Despite lacking nuclear variation, the first lineage contained two CO1 haplotypes that were also observed in every hybrid lineage, pointing to heteroplasmy and possible hybrid origins of this lineage. Native populations had fewer missense mutations than invasive populations, indicating that opportunistic outbreeding may help purge fixed deleterious mutations when local lineage diversity is high. These findings highlight the importance of outbreeding even when inbreeding is common, and they demonstrate the biosecurity threat posed by subsequent gene flow into invasive populations.

Journal Article↗