scholarly journals Epidemiology of Shuni Virus in Horses in South Africa

Viruses ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 937
Author(s):  
Thopisang P. Motlou ◽  
June Williams ◽  
Marietjie Venter
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Febrile Illness ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Surveillance Program ◽  
Full Genome Sequencing ◽  
Nucleocapsid Gene ◽  
Neurological Signs ◽  
Medical Importance ◽  
Hematophagous Arthropods ◽  
Relationship Of

The Orthobunyavirus genus, family Peribunyaviridae, contains several important emerging and re-emerging arboviruses of veterinary and medical importance. These viruses may cause mild febrile illness, to severe encephalitis, fetal deformity, abortion, hemorrhagic fever and death in humans and/or animals. Shuni virus (SHUV) is a zoonotic arbovirus thought to be transmitted by hematophagous arthropods. It was previously reported in a child in Nigeria in 1966 and horses in Southern Africa in the 1970s and again in 2009, and in humans with neurological signs in 2017. Here we investigated the epidemiology and phylogenetic relationship of SHUV strains detected in horses presenting with febrile and neurological signs in South Africa. In total, 24/1820 (1.3%) horses submitted to the zoonotic arbovirus surveillance program tested positive by real-time reverse transcription (RTPCR) between 2009 and 2019. Cases were detected in all provinces with most occurring in Gauteng (9/24, 37.5%). Neurological signs occurred in 21/24 (87.5%) with a fatality rate of 45.8%. Partial sequencing of the nucleocapsid gene clustered the identified strains with SHUV strains previously identified in South Africa (SA). Full genome sequencing of a neurological case detected in 2016 showed 97.8% similarity to the SHUV SA strain (SAE18/09) and 97.5% with the Nigerian strain and 97.1% to the 2014 Israeli strain. Our findings suggest that SHUV is circulating annually in SA and despite it being relatively rare, it causes severe neurological disease and death in horses.

scholarly journals Epidemiology and Clinical Presentation of West Nile Virus Infection in Horses in South Africa, 2016–2017

Pathogens ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 20
Author(s):  
Freude-Marié Bertram ◽  
Peter N. Thompson ◽  
Marietjie Venter
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
West Nile Virus ◽  
Clinical Presentation ◽  
Multivariable Analysis ◽  
Late Summer ◽  
West Nile Virus Infection ◽  
Case Definition ◽  
West Nile ◽  
Prophylactic Measure ◽  
Neurological Signs

Although West Nile virus (WNV) is endemic to South Africa (RSA), it has only become recognized as a significant cause of neurological disease in humans and horses locally in the past 2 decades, as it emerged globally. This article describes the epidemiological and clinical presentation of WNV in horses across RSA during 2016–2017. In total, 54 WNV-positive cases were identified by passive surveillance in horses with febrile and/or neurological signs at the Centre for Viral Zoonoses, University of Pretoria. They were followed up and compared to 120 randomly selected WNV-negative controls with the same case definition and during the same time period. Of the WNV-positive cases, 52% had fever, 92% displayed neurological signs, and 39% experienced mortality. Cases occurred mostly in WNV-unvaccinated horses <5 years old, during late summer and autumn after heavy rain, in the temperate to warm eastern parts of RSA. WNV-positive cases that had only neurological signs without fever were more likely to die. In the multivariable analysis, the odds of WNV infection were associated with season (late summer), higher altitude, more highly purebred animals, younger age, and failure to vaccinate against WNV. Vaccination is currently the most effective prophylactic measure to reduce WNV morbidity and mortality in horses.

scholarly journals Declining Incidence of Invasive Meningococcal Disease in South Africa: 2003–2016

2018 ◽  
Vol 69 (3) ◽  
pp. 495-504
Author(s):  
Susan Meiring ◽  
Cheryl Cohen ◽  
Linda de Gouveia ◽  
Mignon du Plessis ◽  
Ranmini Kularatne ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Meningococcal Disease ◽  
Severe Disease ◽  
National Laboratory ◽  
Case Fatality ◽  
Invasive Meningococcal Disease ◽  
Relative Risk Ratio ◽  
Surveillance Program ◽  
Adjusted Relative Risk ◽  
Increased Risk

Abstract Background Invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) is endemic to South Africa, where vaccine use is negligible. We describe the epidemiology of IMD in South Africa. Methods IMD cases were identified through a national, laboratory-based surveillance program, GERMS-SA, from 2003–2016. Clinical data on outcomes and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) statuses were available from 26 sentinel hospital sites. We conducted space-time analyses to detect clusters of serogroup-specific IMD cases. Results Over 14 years, 5249 IMD cases were identified. The incidence was 0.97 cases per 100 000 persons in 2003, peaked at 1.4 cases per 100 000 persons in 2006, and declined to 0.23 cases per 100 000 persons in 2016. Serogroups were confirmed in 3917 (75%) cases: serogroup A was present in 4.7% of cases, B in 23.3%, C in 9.4%; W in 49.5%; Y in 12.3%, X in 0.3%; Z in 0.1% and 0.4% of cases were non-groupable. We identified 8 serogroup-specific, geo-temporal clusters of disease. Isolate susceptibility was 100% to ceftriaxone, 95% to penicillin, and 99.9% to ciprofloxacin. The in-hospital case-fatality rate was 17% (247/1479). Of those tested, 36% (337/947) of IMD cases were HIV-coinfected. The IMD incidence in HIV-infected persons was higher for all age categories, with an age-adjusted relative risk ratio (aRRR) of 2.5 (95% confidence interval [CI] 2.2–2.8; P < .001) from 2012–2016. No patients reported previous meningococcal vaccine exposure. Patients with serogroup W were 3 times more likely to present with severe disease than those with serogroup B (aRRR 2.7, 95% CI 1.1–6.3); HIV coinfection was twice as common with W and Y diseases (aRRR W = 1.8, 95% CI 1.1–2.9; aRRR Y = 1.9, 95% CI 1.0–3.4). Conclusions In the absence of significant vaccine use, IMD in South Africa decreased by 76% from 2003–2016. HIV was associated with an increased risk of IMD, especially for serogroup W and Y diseases.

scholarly journals Systems analysis – complex interactions of factors that influence the sustainability of access to improved water services in a rural municipality in South Africa

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Calvin Sambo ◽  
Aidan Senzanje ◽  
Mutanga Onisimo
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Rural Communities ◽  
Rural Livelihoods ◽  
Water Services ◽  
Critical Factors ◽  
Rural Municipality ◽  
Effect Relationship ◽  
Complex Interactions ◽  
Limited Budget ◽  
Relationship Of

Abstract Limited understanding of the complex interactions of factors that influence the sustainability of access to improved water services poses a threat to rural livelihoods. The study assessed the complex interactions of the factors using a network approach. The assessment was to understand the complex interaction of the factors resulting from their cause-effect relationship that influence the sustainability of access to improved water services in a rural municipality of South Africa. The results highlighted that limited budget, limited or no water supply and improper operation and maintenance were critical factors resulting from the cause-effect relationship of other factors that influenced the sustainability of access to improved water services in the study area. We conclude that critical factors with a cause-effect relationship can influence the sustainability of access to improved water services. As a result, this deprives rural communities of the benefits derived from accessing improved water services. We recommend the use of the findings by the relevant authorities responsible for water services provision to inform planning, management, policies to address challenges identified to contribute to sustainability of access to improved water services.

scholarly journals Sol T. Plaatje's paremiological quest: a common humanity in cultural diversity

2018 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 149-165
Author(s):  
Khekheti Makhudu
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Cultural Diversity ◽  
Driving Force ◽  
Common Humanity ◽  
Literary Expression ◽  
Political Beliefs ◽  
The North ◽  
The Social ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship

Having written and compiled from memory, over 700 Setswana proverbs when he was briefly resident in London, around the 1900s, Sol T. Plaatje exhibited unusual ethnographic knowledge and remarkable, creative translation skills in diaspora-like circumstances.  While most literary researchers attest to those achievements, few have been the theories that account sufficiently for Plaatje's multilingual proverb renditions. The view propounded here is that Plaatje's paremiological enterprise was probably never only an exercise of his polyglot abilities. Rather his quest appears to have been to assert the cultural similarities and convergences between African and European people's histories.  His socio-political beliefs propelled deep pride over his Setswana identity and became the driving force for highlighting the human bonds among nations of the North and the South. For Plaatje, seeing the overlaps and equivalences in and through the proverbs of the Dutch, English, French, Germans and the Batswana peoples, firstly validated orality as the bedrock of modern literary expression.  Secondly, the relationship of the two seemed to recapitulate the communicative connections among people and their languages, across time and space. Lastly, the paper makes the point that Plaatje's search for unity in the cultural diversity as exhibited in his 1916 Diane tsa Setswana collection and the 1924 A Sechuana Reader stories, provides instructive lessons that present-day South Africa would ill afford to ignore considering the social cohesion challenges the nation faces.

Missionaries, Anthropologists, and the Policies of the Dutch Reformed Church

1984 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 617-632 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian M. Du Toit
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Group Membership ◽  
Political Affiliation ◽  
Dutch Reformed ◽  
Historical Perspectives ◽  
Linguistic Group ◽  
Reformed Church ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Dutch Reformed Church

This article discusses the relationship of missionaries and anthropologists in South Africa. Due to such important factors as ethnicity, linguistic group membership, denominationalism, and party political affiliation, it is essential to present historical perspectives on these and related matters. The vocation of missionary is almost exclusively a white enterprise as is that of professional anthropologist. Blacks have however had significant influences in both realms and are today entering these vocations.

The Economic History of South Africa 1948–94

2021 ◽  
pp. 46-65
Author(s):  
Bill Freund ◽  
Vishnu Padayachee
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Economic History ◽  
History Of ◽  
Anglo American ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
Global And Local ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Way

This chapter addresses the unfolding economic history of South Africa in the apartheid era (1948–94). The chapter is organized according to a periodization with 1971–73 as a marker of the break, and along specific thematic lines. These include a discussion of the way in which this history has been studied and through what theoretical lenses, before engaging with the main issues, including the impact of Afrikaner nationalism on economic growth, the way in which the minerals energy sector, which dominated early perspectives of South African economic history and perspectives, is impacted in this era of National Party rule. An analysis of the role of one major corporation (Anglo American Corporation) in shaping this economic history is followed by an assessment of the impact of the global and local crisis after c.1970 on the South African economy. An abiding theme is that of race and economic development and the way in which the impact of this key relationship of apartheid South Africa on economic growth has been studied.

An overview of Penicillium

Bothalia ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. L. Schutte
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Plant Pathology ◽  
Southern Africa ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Penicillium Species ◽  
Culture Collections ◽  
Chemical Work ◽  
Medical Importance ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Alphabetical List

Literature on the hyphomycete genus Penicillium Link and its teleomorphs, Eupenicillium Ludwig and  Talaromyces C.R.Benjamin, is surveyed in the Republic of South Africa, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland and Transkei up to 1990. References are grouped under the headings, general mycology, plant pathology, industrial application, medical importance, mycotoxins and chemical work. An alphabetical list of the species recorded in southern Africa as well as the host and/or substrate from which each species has been reported is presented with relevant literature references; specimens in various culture collections are also incorporated. Although most of the known Penicillium species have already been reported from southern Africa, in-depth work is still required in all fields of research concerning this genus.

Molecular characterization of small and medium segments of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus in Turkey

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 247-254
Author(s):  
Murat Karamese ◽  
Erkan Ozmen ◽  
Hakan Aydin ◽  
Mehmet Ozkan Timurkan ◽  
Mesud Fakirullahoglu
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Phylogenetic Analysis ◽  
Phylogenetic Tree ◽  
Molecular Characterization ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Fever Virus ◽  
Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever Virus ◽  
Relationship Of

Aim: The objective was to investigate the genotypic relationship of S and M segments in Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) by phylogenetic analysis in 25 patients from seven endemic cities in Turkey. Materials & methods: A total of 25 samples from patients with CCHF were included between 2012 and 2015. Phylogenetic tree analyses were inferred using MEGA version-6.0 and distances were calculated by Kimura’s 2-parameter. Results: Phylogenetic analysis showed that all isolated viruses (n = 25) were in the predicted clades such as clade V- Europe-1 regarding both S and M segments of the CCHFV. Conclusion: Further epidemiological, molecular and phylogenic studies should be performed in both reservoir animals/vectors and humans to determine the incidence of tick-borne infectious disease and to help to develop vaccines for prevention of the disease.

scholarly journals Understanding the factors influencing rill erosion on roadcuts in the south eastern region of South Africa

Solid Earth ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 633-641 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. E. Seutloali ◽  
H. R. Beckedahl
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Vegetation Cover ◽  
Site Effects ◽  
Eastern Region ◽  
Rill Erosion ◽  
Economic Costs ◽  
Slope Gradient ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract. Erosion on roadcuts is a concern due to the potential of causing environmental degradation, which has significant economic costs. It is therefore critical to understand the relationship between roadcut characteristics and soil erosion for designing roadcuts that are less vulnerable to erosion and to help road rehabilitation works. This study investigated the characteristics (i.e. gradient, length, percentage of vegetation cover and soil texture) of degraded (i.e. with rills) and non-degraded roadcuts (i.e. without rills) and explored the relationship of the roadcut characteristics with the dimensions (widths and depths) of the rills. Degraded roadcuts were steep (52.21°), long (10.70 m) and had a low percentage of vegetation cover (24.12) when compared to non-degraded roadcuts which had a gradient of 28.24°, length of 6.38 m and 91.7% of vegetation cover. Moreover, the gradient and percentage of vegetation cover of the roadcut significantly determine the rill dimensions. The widths and depths of the rills increase with the increase in slope gradient and decrease with an increase in percentage of vegetation cover. Moreover, the widths and depths of the rills decreased downslope of the roadcuts. Based on these results, re-vegetation of roadcuts as well as construction of gentle gradients could minimise rill erosion and hence the negative on-site and off-site effects.

scholarly journals High Prevalence of Oxacillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Isolates from Hospitalized Patients in Asia-Pacific and South Africa: Results from SENTRY Antimicrobial Surveillance Program, 1998-1999

2002 ◽  
Vol 46 (3) ◽  
pp. 879-881 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan M. Bell ◽  
John D. Turnidge
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Staphylococcus Aureus ◽  
Respiratory Tract ◽  
Multidrug Resistant ◽  
Hospitalized Patients ◽  
Asia Pacific ◽  
Surveillance Program ◽  
Antimicrobial Surveillance ◽  
Resistance Patterns ◽  
Tract Infections

ABSTRACT As part of the SENTRY antimicrobial surveillance program, we examined the prevalence rates, types, and antibiograms of oxacillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus from hospitalized patients from 17 institutions in eight countries in Asia-Pacific and South Africa (APAC). From April 1998 to December 1999, a total of 1,711 isolates of S. aureus (814 from blood, 392 from the respiratory tract, 467 from skin and skin structures, and 38 from urine) were collected from hospitalized patients within the APAC region. Multidrug-resistant oxacillin-resistant S. aureus (MORSA) isolates, defined as strains with three or more resistances to drug classes other than β-lactams, were the most common type of oxacillin-resistant S. aureus (ORSA). They were the most frequently identified pathogen in wound infections and were common in bloodstream and lower respiratory tract infections. In all contributing institutions combined, more than 45% (range, 4 to 74%) of S. aureus isolates were oxacillin resistant, and in six institutions, this rate exceeded 60%. MORSA accounted for 91.2% of all oxacillin-resistant isolates. Distinct resistance patterns predominated at various sites within the APAC region, suggesting the local evolution of resistant clones. Non-multidrug-resistant strains were frequent in one part of Australia. No vancomycin-intermediate strains were detected, and no strains were resistant to linezolid or quinupristin-dalfopristin. MORSA strains are a very common cause of infection in hospitalized patients in the APAC region.

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