cccccImmunological screening of Lassa Virus among Health workers and Contacts of patients of Lassa fever in Ondo State

Immunobiology ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 152076
Author(s):  
Joseph Ojonugwa Shaibu ◽  
Olumuyiwa Babalola Salu ◽  
Olufemi Samuel Amoo ◽  
Ifeoma Idigbe ◽  
Adesola Zaidat Musa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Workers ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Lassa Virus ◽  
Ondo State

scholarly journals Knowledge of, risk perception towards and reported preventive practices against Lassa fever among health workers in Ondo State, Nigeria

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 155-160
Author(s):  
Akinola A Fatiregun ◽  
Elvis E Isere ◽  
Opeyemi Agunbiade ◽  
Modupeola Dosumu ◽  
Rosemary Onyibe
Keyword(s):  
Risk Perception ◽  
Infection Control ◽  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Control Policy ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Preventive Practices ◽  
Infection Control Policy ◽  
Hospital Infection Control ◽  
Ondo State

Background: Secondary transmission of Lassa fever has been recorded annually among healthcare workers who provided care. An outbreak of the disease in Ondo State, Southwest Nigeria in 2018, recorded high morbidity and mortality. This study was conducted to assess the knowledge, risk perception, and preventive practices towards Lassa fever among healthcare workers.    Methods: A health facility-based descriptive cross-sectional study design was conducted involving senior members of staff randomly selected from the list of staff members. A structured pre-tested questionnaire was administered to 554 consenting respondents in 304 health facilities. Results: More than half of the respondents (317, 57.2%) are health workers in primary healthcare cadres. Although 444 (80.1%) knew the case definition for reporting, only 379 (68.4%) correctly indicated the reporting channel. Concerning risk perception, 174 (31.4%) rated their risk of contracting the disease in the workplace as high, and 309 (55.8%) indicated that hospitals' infection control policy is inadequate. Furthermore, only 76 (13.7%) of the respondents reported having modified their working habits for fear of being infected with Lassa fever three months before the study with 368 (66.4%) and 474 (85.6%) reported that they always use aprons and gloves respectively during treatment of patients. Conclusion: There is a need to strengthen the hospital infection control policy and train healthcare workers on reporting suspected cases.

scholarly journals Comparative Assessment of Knowledge, Attitude/Practices and Prevention of Lassa fever among Community Dwellers and Contacts of Confirmed Patients in Endemic Areas of Ondo State, Nigeria

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 137-144
Author(s):  
Olufemi Samuel Amoo ◽  
Joseph Shaibu ◽  
Olumuyiwa Salu ◽  
Ifeoma Idigbe ◽  
Zaidat Musa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Endemic Area ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Lassa Virus ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Public Health Campaign ◽  
Health Campaign ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Ondo State ◽  
Mode Of Transmission ◽  
Community Dwellers

Background: The current resurgence and transmission dynamics of Lassa fever (LF) within an endemic community in Nigeria calls for concern. Lassa fever virus is known to be transmitted from rodents to humans as well as from human to human. This study aims to compare the knowledge, attitude/practices and prevention of Community dwellers (CD) and Contacts of confirmed Lassa fever patients (CCP) with respect to LF in an endemic area in Nigeria.  Methodology: This is a comparative cross-sectional study conducted between 2018 and 2019 during an outbreak of LF disease in Ondo State, Nigeria. A total of 250 consenting CD and 104 CCP were randomly selected to participate in this study. They were administered semi-structured questionnaires which were analysed using SPSSv23. Lassa fever disease causative agents, mode of transmission and prevention as well as actions on response to Lassa virus infections were assessed among respondents. Data were analysed and presented using descriptive statistics at 95% confidence interval and (p<0.05) level of significance. Results: The gender distribution for CD was 116 males and 134 females while for CCP, it was 43 males and 61 females. Furthermore, radio (CD= 55.8%, CCP= 20.8%) and public health campaign (CD= 40.4%, CCP= 26.5%) were the major sources of information on Lassa fever among respondents. A larger fraction of CCP (12.5%) erroneously believe mosquitoes are the mode of transmission of Lassa fever compared to CD (4.2%).  Comparison also showed that higher proportion (60.6%) of CCP exhibits poor attitude/practices to Lassa fever infection compared to 4% of CD. Level of education for both CD and CCP respondents were statistically significantly associated with knowledge and prevention of Lassa fever. Conclusion: Comparatively, our study showed poor awareness on Lassa fever diseases, erroneous believes and need for positive attitudinal changes and practices towards LF prevention and control in affected communities. Keywords: Lassa fever, Lassa virus, Endemic area, Contact of Confirmed Patient, Community dweller.

scholarly journals Early onset of neurological features differentiates two outbreaks of Lassa fever in Ebonyi state, Nigeria during 2017–2018

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. e0009169
Author(s):  
Nneka M. Chika-Igwenyi ◽  
Rebecca E. Harrison ◽  
Christina Psarra ◽  
Julita Gil-Cuesta ◽  
Maria Gulamhusein ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Workers ◽  
Clinical Symptoms ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Virulent Strain ◽  
Clinical Manifestations ◽  
Case Fatality ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Lassa Virus ◽  
Laboratory Test Results ◽  
Neurological Features

Lassa fever (LF) is an acute viral haemorrhagic illness with various non-specific clinical manifestations. Neurological symptoms are rare at the early stage of the disease, but may be seen in late stages, in severely ill patients.The aim of this study was to describe the epidemiological evolution, socio-demographic profiles, clinical characteristics, and outcomes of patients seen during two Lassa fever outbreaks in Ebonyi State, between December 2017 and December 2018. Routinely collected clinical data from all patients admitted to the Virology Centre of the hospital during the period were analysed retrospectively. Out of a total of 83 cases, 70(84.3%) were RT-PCR confirmed while 13 (15.7%) were probable cases. Sixty-nine (83.1%) patients were seen in outbreak 1 of whom 53.6% were urban residents, while 19%, 15%, and 10% were farmers, students and health workers respectively. There were 14 (16.8%) patients, seen in second outbreak with 92.9% rural residents. There were differences in clinical symptoms, signs and laboratory findings between the two outbreaks. The case fatality rates were 29.9% in outbreak 1 and 85.7% for outbreak 2. Neurological features and abnormal laboratory test results were associated with higher mortality rate, seen in outbreak 2. This study revealed significant differences between the two outbreaks. Of particular concern was the higher case fatality during the outbreak 2 which may be from a more virulent strain of the Lassa virus. This has important public health implications and further molecular studies are needed to better define its characteristics.

scholarly journals Lassa Virus Circulation in Small Mammal Populations in Bo District, Sierra Leone

Biology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 28
Author(s):  
Umaru Bangura ◽  
Jacob Buanie ◽  
Joyce Lamin ◽  
Christopher Davis ◽  
Gédéon Ngiala Bongo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Phylogenetic Analysis ◽  
Sierra Leone ◽  
Small Mammal ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Lassa Virus ◽  
Sierra Leonean ◽  
Bayesian Phylogenetic Analysis ◽  
Prevalent Species ◽  
Lineage Iv

Lassa fever is a viral hemorrhagic fever caused by the Lassa virus LASV, which was first isolated in the rodent Mastomys natalensis in 1974 in Kenema, Sierra Leone. As little is known about the abundance and the presence of LASV in rodents living in the Bo area, we carried out a small mammal longitudinal population survey. A standardized trapping session was performed in various habitats and seasons in six villages over two years (2014–2016) and samples collected were tested for arenavirus IgG and LASV. A Bayesian phylogenetic analysis was performed on sequences identified by PCR. A total of 1490 small mammals were collected, and 16 rodent species were identified, with M. natalensis (355, 24%) found to be the most prevalent species. Forty-one (2.8%) samples were IgG positive, and 31 of these were trapped in homes and 10 in surrounding vegetation. Twenty-nine of 41 seropositive rodents were M. natalensis. We detected four LASV by PCR in two villages, all found in M. natalensis. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the sequences were distributed within the Sierra Leonean clade within lineage IV, distinguishing a Bo sub-clade older than a Kenema sub-clade. Compared to other settings, we found a low abundance of M. natalensis and a low circulation of LASV in rodents in villages around Bo district.

scholarly journals Differential pathogenesis of closely related 2018 Nigerian outbreak clade III Lassa virus isolates

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (10) ◽  
pp. e1009966
Author(s):  
Derek R. Stein ◽  
Bryce M. Warner ◽  
Jonathan Audet ◽  
Geoff Soule ◽  
Vinayakumar Siragam ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Animal Models ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Geographic Region ◽  
World Health ◽  
Limiting Factor ◽  
Lassa Virus ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Animal Models Of Disease ◽  
Medical Countermeasures

Nigeria continues to experience ever increasing annual outbreaks of Lassa fever (LF). The World Health Organization has recently declared Lassa virus (LASV) as a priority pathogen for accelerated research leading to a renewed international effort to develop relevant animal models of disease and effective countermeasures to reduce LF morbidity and mortality in endemic West African countries. A limiting factor in evaluating medical countermeasures against LF is a lack of well characterized animal models outside of those based on infection with LASV strain Josiah originating form Sierra Leone, circa 1976. Here we genetically characterize five recent LASV isolates collected from the 2018 outbreak in Nigeria. Three isolates were further evaluated in vivo and despite being closely related and from the same spatial / geographic region of Nigeria, only one of the three isolates proved lethal in strain 13 guinea pigs and non-human primates (NHP). Additionally, this isolate exhibited atypical pathogenesis characteristics in the NHP model, most notably respiratory failure, not commonly described in hemorrhagic cases of LF. These results suggest that there is considerable phenotypic heterogeneity in LASV infections in Nigeria, which leads to a multitude of pathogenesis characteristics that could account for differences between subclinical and lethal LF infections. Most importantly, the development of disease models using currently circulating LASV strains in West Africa are critical for the evaluation of potential vaccines and medical countermeasures.

scholarly journals Attenuated Replication of Lassa Virus Vaccine Candidate ML29 in STAT-1-/- Mice

Pathogens ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dylan Johnson ◽  
Jenny Jokinen ◽  
Igor Lukashevich
Keyword(s):  
Vaccine Development ◽  
Vaccine Candidate ◽  
Small Animal ◽  
Vero Cells ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Effective Vaccine ◽  
Cell Mediated Immunity ◽  
Lassa Virus ◽  
Cell Responses ◽  
Fold Reduction

Lassa virus (LASV), a highly prevalent mammalian arenavirus endemic in West Africa, can cause Lassa fever (LF), which is responsible for thousands of deaths annually. LASV is transmitted to humans from naturally infected rodents. At present, there is not an effective vaccine nor treatment. The genetic diversity of LASV is the greatest challenge for vaccine development. The reassortant ML29 carrying the L segment from the nonpathogenic Mopeia virus (MOPV) and the S segment from LASV is a vaccine candidate under current development. ML29 demonstrated complete protection in validated animal models against a Nigerian strain from clade II, which was responsible for the worst outbreak on record in 2018. This study demonstrated that ML29 was more attenuated than MOPV in STAT1-/- mice, a small animal model of human LF and its sequelae. ML29 infection of these mice resulted in more than a thousand-fold reduction in viremia and viral load in tissues and strong LASV-specific adaptive T cell responses compared to MOPV-infected mice. Persistent infection of Vero cells with ML29 resulted in generation of interfering particles (IPs), which strongly interfered with the replication of LASV, MOPV and LCMV, the prototype of the Arenaviridae. ML29 IPs induced potent cell-mediated immunity and were fully attenuated in STAT1-/- mice. Formulation of ML29 with IPs will improve the breadth of the host’s immune responses and further contribute to development of a pan-LASV vaccine with full coverage meeting the WHO requirements.

scholarly journals Differential Immune Responses to Hemorrhagic Fever-Causing Arenaviruses

Vaccines ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mantlo ◽  
Paessler ◽  
Huang
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Importance ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Innate Immune ◽  
Host Immune System ◽  
Lassa Virus ◽  
Type I ◽  
Highly Pathogenic ◽  
The Family ◽  
Pro Inflammatory Cytokines

The family Arenaviridae contains several pathogens of major clinical importance. The Old World (OW) arenavirus Lassa virus is endemic in West Africa and is estimated to cause up to 300,000 infections each year. The New World (NW) arenaviruses Junín and Machupo periodically cause hemorrhagic fever outbreaks in South America. While these arenaviruses are highly pathogenic in humans, recent evidence indicates that pathogenic OW and NW arenaviruses interact with the host immune system differently, which may have differential impacts on viral pathogenesis. Severe Lassa fever cases are characterized by profound immunosuppression. In contrast, pathogenic NW arenavirus infections are accompanied by elevated levels of Type I interferon and pro-inflammatory cytokines. This review aims to summarize recent findings about interactions of these pathogenic arenaviruses with the innate immune machinery and the subsequent effects on adaptive immunity, which may inform the development of vaccines and therapeutics against arenavirus infections.

scholarly journals A recombinant vesicular stomatitis-based Lassa fever vaccine elicits rapid and long-term protection from lethal Lassa virus infection in guinea pigs

npj Vaccines ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Derek R. Stein ◽  
Bryce M. Warner ◽  
Geoff Soule ◽  
Kevin Tierney ◽  
Kathy L. Frost ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Virus Infection ◽  
Guinea Pigs ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Lassa Virus ◽  
Vesicular Stomatitis

scholarly journals Development of Recombinant Nucleoprotein-Based Diagnostic Systems for Lassa Fever

2007 ◽  
Vol 14 (9) ◽  
pp. 1182-1189 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masayuki Saijo ◽  
Marie-Claude Georges-Courbot ◽  
Philippe Marianneau ◽  
Victor Romanowski ◽  
Shuetsu Fukushi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Monoclonal Antibody ◽  
Hela Cells ◽  
Recombinant Baculovirus ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Rabbit Serum ◽  
Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay ◽  
Lassa Virus ◽  
Diagnostic Systems ◽  
Serum Samples ◽  
Capture Elisa

ABSTRACT Diagnostic systems for Lassa fever (LF), a viral hemorrhagic fever caused by Lassa virus (LASV), such as enzyme immunoassays for the detection of LASV antibodies and LASV antigens, were developed using the recombinant nucleoprotein (rNP) of LASV (LASV-rNP). The LASV-rNP was expressed in a recombinant baculovirus system. LASV-rNP was used as an antigen in the detection of LASV-antibodies and as an immunogen for the production of monoclonal antibodies. The LASV-rNP was also expressed in HeLa cells by transfection with the expression vector encoding cDNA of the LASV-NP gene. An immunoglobulin G enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using LASV-rNP and an indirect immunofluorescence assay using LASV-rNP-expressing HeLa cells were confirmed to have high sensitivity and specificity in the detection of LASV-antibodies. A novel monoclonal antibody to LASV-rNP, monoclonal antibody 4A5, was established. A sandwich antigen capture (Ag-capture) ELISA using the monoclonal antibody and an anti-LASV-rNP rabbit serum as capture and detection antibodies, respectively, was then developed. Authentic LASV nucleoprotein in serum samples collected from hamsters experimentally infected with LASV was detected by the Ag-capture ELISA. The Ag-capture ELISA specifically detected LASV-rNP but not the rNPs of lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus or Junin virus. The sensitivity of the Ag-capture ELISA in detecting LASV antigens was comparable to that of reverse transcription-PCR in detecting LASV RNA. These LASV rNP-based diagnostics were confirmed to be useful in the diagnosis of LF even in institutes without a high containment laboratory, since the antigens can be prepared without manipulation of the infectious viruses.

Health workers knowledge, attitude and practice during Lassa Fever outbreak, Anambra State, Nigeria, 2016

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Obagha Chijioke ◽  
Simeon Ajisegiri ◽  
Belinda Uba ◽  
Saheed Gidado ◽  
Patrick Nguku ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Workers ◽  
Lassa Fever ◽  
Anambra State ◽  
Attitude And Practice ◽  
Knowledge Attitude And Practice
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