Prevalence of Wuchereria bancrofti infection in human and vector populations from Center-East, East and South-West regions of Burkina Faso: preliminary results
Abstract Background To eliminate lymphatic filariasis (LF), since 2001, Burkina Faso adopted a community-based treatment with annual mass drug administration (MDA) of ivermectin-abendazole. However, after more than 11 rounds of MDA, it remained some hotpots where transmission is still being active. Therefore, to better scale up elimination measures toward 2030, it seems necessary to assess the prevalence of Wuchereria bancrofti both in human and vector populations. Methods Parasitological and entomological surveys were conducted in August 2014 and in September 2015, in six hotpots areas dispersed in Centre-East, East and South-West health regions for blood and vector’s collections. Nocturnal finger-prick blood samples and microscopic observations were performed to determine the prevalence of W. bancrofti in humans. Mosquitoes were collected by human landing catches and indoor spraying collections. They were identified morphologically and those of the Anopheles gambiae s.l. were confirmed by PCR. Then the W. bancrcofti prevalence within such vector populations was determined by conventional and LAMP PCR technique using the DNA of pooled mosquitoes grouped by species. Results The results highlighted the persistence of W. bancrofti infection both in human and vector populations after multiple rounds of MDA in the sites. The prevalence of W. bancrofti in human populations was reduced in 2015 compared to 2014. Within the An. gambiae s.l., only An. coluzzii was found infected by W. bancrofti respectively in Centre-East and East health regions, whereas An. nili was the most infected vector in Saptan in the South-West health region. Some specimens of An. funestus s.l. were tested positive to W. bancrofti with the LAMP PCR but failed to be confirmed by the conventional technique. Conclusions Despite the MDA campaigns supplied by vector control interventions relied on the mass coverage of insecticide treated nets, the incidence of LF is still effective in these hotspots but luckily in decreasing trend. The novelty is that An. nili was found infected by W. bancrofti that increased the number of potential vectors of W. bancfrofti in Burkina Faso.