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Mussels filter large amounts of water to extract nutrients; therefore, they can concentrate and accumulate in their tissues infectious agents, and vectors of enteric diseases. The aim of this study was to assess mussel contamination by Norovirus genogroups I and II in the Cherrat estuary to determine the public health risk linked to their consumption. Mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis) were collected (n=52 samples; 12 mussels/sample) at four sites (S1 and S2 located on the right rocky bank / S3 and S4, located on the rocky left bank) in the Cherrat estuary (Casa-Settat region), Morocco, during 13 months, from March 2019 to March 2020. Norovirus was detected and quantified by real-time Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR). Norovirus genogroups I and II were detected in 17.30% and 94.23% of mussel samples, respectively. Contamination by Norovirus (genogroups I and II) was not correlated with seasonal factors (month and rainfall), and Norovirus prevalence was comparable among the four sampling sites. Consumption of raw or undercooked mussels contaminated with Norovirus can cause gastroenteritis, which represents a potential risk to human health. The present study would be helpful to control and manage the potential risk to the public health of the Moroccan population due to the degradation of water quality continuously impacted by runoff, the urban wastewater treatment system malfunctions, and overflows from nearby sewage systems.

Background: The putative functions of JC polyomavirus (JC PyV) infections and Simian Virus 40 (SV40) in the initiation of prostate tumors have recently been discovered. Objective: The objective of our study is to determine the frequency and the genotype of JCPyV and SV40 infections and the clinical correlation of tumor characteristics. Material and methods: 80 samples were analyzed 50 prostate cancer patients and 30 control cases. DNA extracts were obtained from 50 men treated at the University Hospital of the city of Rabat (Morocco) between June 2021 and February 2022. These samples were then genotyped and analyzed using Sanger. Results: Ten JC PyV infections were detected, and 50% of patients had a Gleason score of 6. A significant association between the following variables was noted: age at diagnosis and JC PyV infection (P=0.004); background medical (P=0.034); alcohol (P=0.035); BMI (PSV40 infection in PCa samples, suggesting this virus is unrelated to the development of this type of tumor. The evolution structure of the JC PyV according to the sequences previously aligned was discussed. Conclusion: Our results reveal the correlations between the parameters of the Clinico-pathology of prostate tumors and JC PyV infections. Research prospects with a wide size sample are essential to elucidate statistically the relationship between viral infections and parameters of prostate tumors.

Viral outbreaks can result from the consumption of contaminated bivalve mollusks. However, despite the regulation related to enteric bacteria in food products, the consumption of raw and undercooked mollusks remains linked to viral epidemics in human populations. Real-time RT-PCR is a highly sensitive approach for detecting and quantifying enteric viruses, and after eliminating enzymatic amplification inhibitors from samples of interest, sensitive and specific tests, like real-time RT-PCR, can facilitate the detection and quantification of a wide range of viruses that are concentrated in mollusk digestive tissues. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the prevalence of Group-A rotaviruses in mussel (Mytilus edulis Linnaeus, 1758) specimens (n=576) collected downstream of the Oued El Maleh Estuary, which is along the coast of Mohammedia City in Morocco, using real-time RT-PCR. Rotavirus A RNA was detected in 37.5% (n=18) of the 48 sample batches, and viral loads ranged from 0.42×101 to 1.8603×104 genomic copies per g digestive tissue. Most (72.22%) of the positive samples were collected during the wet season (September-April), and the probability of detecting rotaviruses was significantly greater during the wet season than during the dry season (P

Cervical cancer is considered the fourth most common malignancy and the fifth fatal cancer in women, oncogenic Human papillomavirus are considered a primary cause of development of cervical cancer. It has also been suggested that viral coexistence may also accelerate the progression of cervical lesions to cervical cancer. This study aims to study the coinfection of Epstein Bar, Herpesvirus 8 and Hepes simplex type 2 infections in women with cervical cancer with the presence of Human papillomavirus and their correlations with the clinicopathologic characteristics of patients. In this study, 73 samples that tested positive for Human papillomavirus in previous study were used for the detection of Epstein Bar, Herpesvirus 8 and Hepes simplex type 2 in tumor tissue using Polymerase Chain Reaction techniques, and the clinical relevance was analyzed statistically. Of the 73 samples (48%) were infected with Epstein Bar, (24.65%) infected with Herpesvirus 8 However, none of the cases were infected with Hepes simplex type 2. The frequency of co-infections was 16.43% of cases. No significant association was found between co-infection and other clinicopathologic features. Therefore, these results represent arguments in favor of the role of Epstein Bar and Herpesvirus 8 among Human papillomavirus positive cases, as potential cofactors in cervical carcinogenesis, which could lead us to develop new therapeutics and preventive vaccines.

The presence of the vitamin D receptor on the surface of breast tissue active results in terminal differentiation and inhibition of cell growth. The implication of vitamin D deficiency on cancer susceptibility found an association between low serum 25(OH) D3 levels and increased prevalence of breast cancer genesis. The risk factors incriminated in the genesis of breast cancer are well known, there is the involvement of certain oncogenic viruses, particularly HPV. In this, study 22 patients with breast cancer with a dosage of vitamin D less than normal with HPV infection. No significance between Clinicopathological parameters and vitamin D assay.

The three human Enterovirus serotypes D-68, D-70, and A-71, are common pathogens that are transmitted by fecal-oral and aerosol routes. These positive RNA viruses were known to exhibit high levels of genetic diversity and variability. Currently, no vaccines are available to protect humans from these three serotypes. Therefore, efforts are needed for the development of a vaccine directed against heterologous viruses. In our study, an immunoinformatics approach is used to identify T- and B-cell epitopes that may help for the generation of a universal vaccine against EV-D70, EV-A71, and EV-D68. B and T cell epitopes were selected based on their length. As a result, 5 B cell epitopes and 18 T cell epitopes were predicted. Our B cell epitope prediction results showed that there are a number of linear regions. Position 150-170 was found to be the most immunogenic for the different strains. Regarding the epitopes of the T lymphocytes, the result of the interactions shows that 95% of the predicted epitopes are common between the 3 sequences and the 5 methods used. These results demonstrate the great immunogenic potential of these sequences and their capacities to trigger immune reactions in people with different HLA alleles. The “VFYDGFAGF” epitope is the most important and most immunogenic for triggering an immune response. Our study results allowed us to identify epitopes to be used in the development of cross-protection vaccines against the three Enterovirus serotypes. However, in vivo and in vitro studies are needed to assess the potential of the epitopes predicted by our study.

Rotavirus A is the causative agent of 90% of acute gastroenteritis in children under 5, which kills 1 to 3 million children per year. Their strong resistance in the environment, their inter-species transmission as well as their power of genetic recombination can give rise to new reasserting that may be harmful to public health. The simultaneous search for the presence of rotavirus A in different environmental and clinical biotopes and matrices as well as the monitoring of the seasonal evolution of episodes is of major importance. At cost, genetic monitoring of rotaviruses shows a correlation between the presence of different genotypes of RVA in the environment and the rate of morbidity, Hence the need to monitor the emergence of new circulating strains with a view to integrating them into routine immunization programmes appropriate for each region in order to limit the spread of the disease.

SNP mutations in the HOXB13 gene associated with prostate cancer were determined in Moroccans prostate cancer patients (PCa). All PCa SNP mutations were new and belong to the SNP point-mutations located on the stop codon of HOXB13 exon 1 and 2 located in chromosome 17. The five mutations and their frequencies were as follows: rs1197613952 (12%), rs1597934612 (4%), rs1597933874 (4%), rs1597933837 (4%) and rs867793282 (4%). The European HOXB13-G84E (rs138213197) PCa mutation was not detected among Moroccan patients. The Y-chromosome genealogical haplotypes of the Western European (R1b1b2-M2G9) and the Eastern European (R191a-M-17) were not observed in Moroccans PCa patients. The patients have their own haplotypes E1b1 and J with a frequency of 55 and 35%, respectively. The results of the SNP mutations in the HOXB13, the absence of the HOXB13-G84E of the European in the Moroccans PCa patients, the absence of the European-lineage haplogroups (R1a1a-M17 and R1b1b2-M269) and the presence of E1b1b and J in Moroccans PCa patients would clearly indicate the absence of gene flow from European to Moroccans gene pool.

Rift Valley fever (RVF) is a zoonotic, viral disease, transmitted by mosquitoes, characterized by high mortality rates in young animals. RVF is an endemic and enzootic disease in the Arabian Peninsula and Africa, causing public health and economic instability. Therefore, it is important to develop vaccines to minimize outbreaks and combat the disease. We documented the stability of the thermo-stability of live attenuated RVF CL13T and recombinant arMP-12ΔNSm21/384 vaccine candidates at different temperatures, including these vaccine viruses in liquid and lyophilized form. The study revealed that both CL13T and recombinant arMP-12ΔNSm21/384 strains were stable for more than 18 months at 4°C. We show that at room temperatures (37°C and 45°C) the CL13T was less temperature sensitive than MP-12NSm-del in both lyophilized and liquid form. These findings are useful for the preparation of RVF vaccines that will avoid the need for a cold chain and therefore, will improve the application of the vaccines under field conditions.

Rotavirus A is the causative agent of 90% of acute gastroenteritis in children under 5, which kills 1 to 3 million children per year. Their strong resistance in the environment, their inter-species transmission as well as their power of genetic recombination can give rise to new reasserting that may be harmful to public health. The simultaneous search for the presence of rotavirus A in different environmental and clinical biotopes and matrices as well as the monitoring of the seasonal evolution of episodes is of major importance. At cost, genetic monitoring of rotaviruses shows a correlation between the presence of different genotypes of RVA in the environment and the rate of morbidity, Hence the need to monitor the emergence of new circulating strains with a view to integrating them into routine immunization programmes appropriate for each region in order to limit the spread of the disease

MiR-10b, miR-335, and miR-21 are classes of microRNAs (miRNAs) that are overexpressed in breast cancer. Thus, in our study we aimed to test the hypothesis that miRNAs may have direct interactions with proteins and the possibility to inhibit/activate the functional site of proteins and enzymes. For this purpose, we choose three miRNAs involved in breast cancer to study interactions between some proteins and genes, including BRCA1 and PTEN, by processing the docking and matching tools using the Hex8 and HADDOCK server. Mathematically, the hidden Markov models were created by using MATLAB script according to the algorithm in order to study and validate the interactions and bonds between proteins and miRNAs. The main results demonstrate the ability of miR-10b, miR-335, and miR-21 to create direct interactions with 3D protein structures. Furthermore, these results may lead to another pathway of research, i.e. the direct interaction between proteins and their sub-units, to highlight the data obtained previously and demonstrate that proteins may directly interact with ncRNA instead of mRNA. Moreover, our study suggests developing research on different pathways of association proteins-miRNAs as a part of epigenetic extra-nuclear regulation. Taken together, our study provides the first evidence of direct interactions between miRNAs and proteins.

The suspected roles of human Papillomavirus (HPV) and mouse mammary tumor virus (MMTV) infections in prostate tumor development were recently reported. To detect the frequency of HPV and MMTV

SPOP gene has a critical role in prostate cancer development and found high mutated in the prostate tumor through various populations. MATH domain represents an important site for SPOP-DNA linkage and other sensitive gene-gene interactions. To investigate the genetic alterations of the MATH domain of SPOP gene in prostate cancer biopsies and correlation with clinical and pathological parameters; DNA samples from 50 prostate cancer tissues were genotyped and confirmed by Sanger sequencing. The frequency and distribution of high frequent mutations were determined and correlated with the patient’s tumor characteristics. Among 50 samples 34 (68%) were carrying one or more common mutations. Novel frame shift deletion mutation: c.255delA (p.Leu86Phefs) was detected in eight patients (16%), in addition to five novel missense mutations with moderate frequency (6%) namely: c.209G>C (p.Arg70Pro), c.215A>C (p.Asn72Thr), c.334G>A (p.Glu112Lys), c.373T>C (p.Phe125Leu), and c.388G>A (p.Asp130Asn), All missense mutations located in MATH domain. The effects of novel mutations described in the MATH domain are uncertain. No significant differences between carriers and noncarriers of common mutations detected regarding Gleason score, prostate-specific antigen concentration PSA, and tumor stage [p > 0.05]. Clinical significance of mutations detected on prostate tumors progression can be investigated in future analysis. Our findings revealed novel SPOP alterations in prostate cancer tissues probably associated with cancer development.

Background Elucidation of specific and recurrent/founder pathogenic variants (PVs) in BRCA (BRCA1 and BRCA2) genes can have an impact on breast cancer (BC) and/or ovarian cancer (OC) risk, making genetic testing affordable and accessible. Methods To establish the knowledge about BRCA PVs and to determine the prevalence of the specific and recurrent/founder variants in BRCA genes in BC and/or OC women in North Africa, a systematic review was conducted in Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. Results Search of the databases yielded 25 relevant references, including eleven studies in Morocco, five in Algeria, and nine in Tunisia. Overall, 15 studies investigated both BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, four studies examined the entire coding region of the BRCA1 gene, and six studies in which the analysis was limited to a few BRCA1 and/or BRCA2 exons. Overall, 76 PVs (44 in BRCA1 and 32 in BRCA2) were identified in 196 BC and/or OC patients (129 BRCA1 and 67 BRCA2 carriers). Eighteen of the 76 (23.7%) PVs [10/44 (22.7%) in BRCA1 and 8/32 (25%) in BRCA2] were reported for the first time and considered to be novel PVs. Among those identified as unlikely to be of North African origin, the BRCA1 c.68_69del and BRCA1 c.5266dupC Jewish founder alleles and PVs that have been reported as recurrent/founder variants in European populations (ex: BRCA1 c.181T > G, BRCA1 c1016dupA). The most well characterized PVs are four in BRCA1 gene [c.211dupA (14.7%), c.798_799detTT (14%), c.5266dup (8.5%), c.5309G > T (7.8%), c.3279delC (4.7%)] and one in BRCA2 [c.1310_1313detAAGA (38.9%)]. The c.211dupA and c.5309G > T PVs were identified as specific founder variants in Tunisia and Morocco, accounting for 35.2% (19/54) and 20.4% (10/49) of total established BRCA1 PVs, respectively. c.798_799delTT variant was identified in 14% (18/129) of all BRCA1 North African carriers, suggesting a founder allele. A broad spectrum of recurrent variants including BRCA1 3279delC, BRCA1 c.5266dup and BRCA2 c.1310_1313detAAGA was detected in 42 patients. BRCA1 founder variants explain around 36.4% (47/129) of BC and outnumber BRCA2 founder variants by a ratio of ≈ 3:1. Conclusion Testing BC and/or OC patients for the panel of specific and recurrent/founder PVs might be the most cost-effective molecular diagnosis strategy.

Background: The promoter region is a key element of gene expression regulation. In mammals, most of the genes present, at the level of their promoter, a large number of islands CpG. Age is seen as another factor promoting breast cell cancer and the tumor stage. Aim: this study aimed to explore the hypermethylation of the BRCA1/2 promoter gene in breast cancer women and correlation with age and tumor stage.Materials and methods: fifty biopsies were derived from Moroccan women treated for breast carcinoma, the DNA extracted was treated by bisulphite and the targeted BRCA1/2 Amplicons were amplified by specific methylation primers (MSP). Results: the result shows that 62% of the samples were BRCA1 methylated in addition and negative result for BRCA2, these positive epigenetic factor were remarkable in women over 47 years and at the stage of malignant tumor.Conclusion: these results show that half of the methylated samples are positive and the majority are over 47 years old, and confirms the impact of age on methylation and might be other factor of breast cancer development.

Background Gastric cancer (GC) is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The onset and progression of gastric cancer are attributed to numerous triggers, these triggers may be infection of the gastric epithelium by Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), or by Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). Both agents can establish a lifelong persistent infection in the host, leading to chronic inflammation, which also contributes to cancer development. Objective: The objective of this study is to present the status of co-infection with H. pylori and EBV and the risk of developing adenocarcinoma at an early age in the population of Grand Casablanca. Methods In this study, 100 gastric tissue samples from patients with gastric cancer were examined for detection of H. pylori and EBV in tumor tissue using PCR techniques, and the clinical relevance was statistically analyzed. Results Results revealed an individual Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection observed in (40 %) of gastric carcinoma cases. Furthermore, the frequency of EBV infection was significantly different with intestinal and diffuse gastric cancer types [15 % vs. 85 %, Highlights Determination of the frequency of H. pylori and EBV infections Correlation between co-infection and age of gastric cancer patients Evaluation of the clinicopathological features associated with the presence of infectious agents.

Introduction: Throughout the past few years, Pepino Mosaic Virus (PepMV) has rapidly evolved from an emerging virus to endemic pathogen that causes significant losses in tomato crops worldwide. Reliable detection and molecular characterization are very important tools to support disease control. Cross-protection can also be an effective strategy, but the efficacy depends strongly on the genotype. The genetic composition of the PepMV population in Morocco has not yet been determined. Aims: The current study aims to genetically characterize twelve PepMV isolates (PepMV-MA), all from different Moroccan tomato production areas, by analyzing nucleotide sequences of a part of the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp), Triple Gene Block (TGB) and Coat Protein (CP) genes. Results: The sequence analysis of the twelve PepMV-MA isolates shows minor nucleotide differences between them, which implies a homogenous population. The phylogenetic analysis, based on the comparison with the major genotypes, showed that Moroccan PepMV populations share a very high sequence identity, 98%, with the Chilean strain (CH2), while the shared identity with the European strains (EU) is only 85%. Interestingly, Moroccan isolates reveal specific single nucleotide polymorphisms, some of which lead to amino acids changes. These mutations have never been described before, suggesting distinct variants that may enhance aggressiveness and symptomatology. Conclusion: Our careful sequence analysis and genotype determination, which placing homogenous Moroccan PepMV strains into CH2 genotype, would be a prerequisite for deploying effective cross-protection strategies for controlling the pathogen in the field.

Ovarian cancer in women represents a mortality rate of >4% worldwide. In cancer, CpG islet hypermethylation of some gene promoters often leads to the inactivation of tumor suppressor genes. Ovarian cancer is characterized by a targeted hypermethylation, hence the need to study this hypermethylation. We have adopted the hypothesis that a very high mutation rate can cause the epimutation phenomenon, causing a 5-fold deamination methyl-cytosine in thymine, consequence of the mutation. To test this, we chose the P53, RASSF1A, WAF1, ARHI, CAV1, DOC-2, BRCA2 and BRCA1genes. The methylation status was first determined by the Chargaff coefficient, which represents a high percentage of about 50% for all the sequences chosen, secondly, the CpGo/e ratio was calculated. ANOVA test has been applied in order to be sure of the correlation between these two calculations andshowed thatthe Chargaff coefficientis significant. Lastly, we adopted Hidden Markov Models (HMM). To indicate exactly the CGI region in the promoters of the studied genes. This model maximizes the mathematical probability of having a hypermethylated region.

Background Endometrial cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women in high-income countries and its incidence has increased over the past 20 to 30 years. In Morocco, the incidence is close to those found in developing countries, but it is lower than those found in Western countries. To determine some epidemiological aspects of endometrial cancer in Morocco, we conducted a prospective study over 43 months at the International University Hospital Cheikh Khalifa and the Mohammed VI Center for Cancer Treatment at the Ibn Rochd Casablanca University Hospital, Morocco. 93 cases of endometrial cancer were included. Results The average age was 64. 36.5% of our patients had early menarche. 17.2% had menstrual cycle abnormalities. The nulliparous patients represent 40.8℅. 3 patients in our series underwent medical hormone treatment. 46.2% of patients claimed to have taken oral contraception during their period of genital activity, 79.5℅ were obese, 62.3% of the patients are diabetic and 49.4% are known to be hypertensive. 9.6% of patients are on hormone therapy with Tamoxifen. Metrorrhagia is the first symptom encountered in 62.2% of cases. Ultrasound was performed on all of our first-line patients and pelvic MRI was the most relevant examination in the pre-therapeutic assessment of endometrial cancer. Endometrial adenocarcinoma of the endometriotic type (81.72%) was the most prominent histological type. The therapeutic attitudes practiced were: Extended total colpohysterectomy for 17 patients. Total hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy for 93 patients. Omentectomy was performed for 11 patients. 78 patients had undergone pelvic lymph node dissection, while 51 patients had undergone an associated lumbarortic dissection. 44.08℅ of cases were diagnosed at stage (IA) and 18.27℅ of cases at stage (III). At the time when we stopped our study, 42 patients had received radiotherapy as adjuvant treatment, ie 45.1% of cases. Conclusions Local and locoregional epidemiological studies should be multiplied to shed light on the interest of prevention by promoting a healthy lifestyle. Besides, genetic studies must be conducted to better understand the place of racial factors as risk factors for this cancer.

This study describes a genome sequence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sampled from a male patient with SARS-CoV-2 who was likely infected in Casablanca, Morocco.

DNA methylation is the main epigenetic event for gene silencing and is associated with carcinogenesis. In this meta-analysis, we evaluated the association between the methylation of the promoter regions of APC, CADM1, CCNA1, CDH1, DAPK, FHIT, HIC1, MAL, MGMT, hMLH1, P16, PAX1, RAR-β, and RASSF1 genes and the risk of cervical cancer development and progression. Overall, 194 eligible studies were identified assessing the associations of promoter methylation status of aforementioned genes with low- and high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (LSIL and HSIL) and cervical cancer development. The majority of studies were conducted on Caucasian and Asian populations, whereas rare studies were available on the African population. Promoter methylation frequencies were shown to be significantly higher in LSIL and HSIL cervical cancer cases as compared to control specimens for CADM1, CCNA1, CDH1, DAPK1, FHIT, MAL, P16, PAX1, RAR-β, and RASSF1 genes. A moderate association was found between HIC promoter methylation, whereas APC, MGMT, and hMLH1 promoter methylation was not correlated with cervical cancer development. Promoter methylation could be considered as a noninvasive biomarker for early cervical lesions, making them highly promising targets for a personalized therapeutic approach.

Background and objective : The causes of declining survival in cirrhotic patients are dominated by complications in developing countries. But data on survival among cirrhotics in Sub-Saharan Africa are sketchy. The general objective was to assess the survival and predictors of mortality in patients with viral cirrhosis of the liver in 3 hospitals in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Methods: A historic cohort study from 2009 to December 2018. Patients were recruited and followed up at the Ngaliema Clinic, CUK and HPGRK for 10 years. Death was the endpoint and patients lost to follow-up were censored. The Kaplan Méier curves made it possible to describe the survival of children at the threshold of p

Human Papillomavirus 16 (HPV16) is the most oncogenic HPV and the most associated genotype with cervical cancer development and progression. Currently, all developed vaccines are targeting HPV16 and were designed based on the major L1 capsid protein. Thus, evaluation of the diversity of HPV16 L1 sequence, mainly in the antigenic regions, will be of a great interest to assess the efficacy of the prophylactic vaccines and to predict the impact of genetic variations in these regions on the vaccination-induced immunity. A total of 377 HPV16 L1 sequences, published in public domain GenBank database, from the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Europe were collected and assembled. A total of 626 mutation events affecting 83 distinct nucleotides into the five antigenic regions of L1 gene of HPV16 were reported, and most SNPs were located in DE (27.38%, 23/83) and FG (31%, 26/83) loops. Overall, 4 mutations were frequently found in HPV16 sequences: T176N and N181T in EF loop; A266T in the FG loop and T353P/I/N HI loop. Of particular interest, some SNPs are ubiquitous and were found in all populations whereas others were population specific and their presence was limited to one or 2 at the maximum. Association between mutations in the antigenic regions and ethnicity was also investigated and showed that mutations in BC and DE loops were present with no significant difference in sequences from Europe, Asia, America and Africa. However, most mutations in FG loop are reported in sequences from European cases and are less pronounced in cases from America and Asia, whereas mutations EF and HI loops prevail in Asian cases. These data highlight a high number of variant amino acid residues that could affect the vaccination-induced immunity and impact the effectiveness of the prophylactic vaccination to fight against HPV, warranting the need of further investigation for vaccines and natural history studies of HPV16.

Despite scientific advances, the diagnosis of infectious diseases is primarily possible through vaccination and later by antibiotics. Emerging and reemerging pathologies are still considered to be dangerous to humanity because of the unique nature of these diseases: it is the encounter between two living organisms that have coexisted for millions of years within the people on the same planet without being previously recognized. These infectious agents, such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, or parasites, pose no threat to humans. In fact, only a few hundred are able to inflict damage to the human host. In addition, the spectrum of human disease caused by a particular pathogen varies considerably depending on the factors related to the ecological agent, the host, and the infectious agents. Several emerging or reemerging infectious agents are organisms that could be used in biological control. The differentiation of a natural epidemic from a bioterrorian event is based on several epidemiological indices as well as on the molecular characterization of the pathogen(s) involved. The role of pathologists is indeed very important. It is in this context that this chapter aims to discuss the various scientific advances, particularly molecular, in terms of diagnosis of these diseases; the new discoveries in the role of nanotechnologies and nanobiosensors; and also the implication of biomarkers, especially microRNAs (miRNAs), since it was reported that a single miRNA has the ultimate capacity to target multiple genes simultaneously. In a viral infection context, miRNAs have been connected with the interplay between host and pathogen and occupy a major role in the host–parasite interaction and pathogenesis. It is in this context that various molecular and nanomethods for the detection of emerging viruses and experimental validation of miRNAs during quelling viruses target transcripts will be discussed in this chapter.

Infectious bronchitis (IB) virus (IBV) is a very dynamic and evolving virus, causing severe diseases in poultry with significant economic consequences to the poultry industry worldwide, affecting chickens of all ages and possessing a major threat to the poultry industry. IBV is well studied worldwide; nevertheless, in Middle East and North Africa (MENA) regions, epidemiological and scientific data are poor and not updated. In spite of regular vaccination with Massachusetts (Mass) strain has been available to control IB for many decades in MENA regions, which it is most commonly used, the protection is not occurred. However, the continuity of the spread of IBV has shown the emergence of multiple variant strains due to the frequent point of mutations and recombination events in the S1 gene hypervariable regions. All the reported IBV variants circulate in the form of several serotypes/genotypes that can be partially or poorly neutralized by current vaccines. This emergence remains a problem for the poultry industry and vaccine manufacturers. Therefore the objective of this present chapter, which is reported for the first time, aims to establish phylogenic relationship among emerging strains in MENA regions.

In Morocco, the epidemiological situation of infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) is very complex, because of the antigenic diversity associated with the emergence of new serotypes/genotypes and variants. The IBV strains circulating in poultry farms are serotypes/genotypes Italy02 and Massachusetts (Mass) identified during 2010–14. The appearance of these variants hinders the prophylactic strategy carried out by the breeders of the Moroccan poultry farm. To solve this problem, we have opted for the rational design of candidate vaccines in order to study the structure of the three-dimensional (3D) S1 spicule protein of serotype Italy02 and Mass H120, through molecular modeling, using the I-TASSER server, then the COACH, and another Meta server to determine and predict the common immunogenic active sites between these two IBV strains circulating in Morocco. The obtained results showed that the two strains studied had identical spatial conformation of the S1 protein structure with a similarity percentage of 81% and an average stability of the modeled sequences. Thus both serotypes share active antigenic sites common in the hypervariable region, located at residues 229, 230, 232, 233, and 235, with a magnesium molecule association around the Alanine 280 region responsible for stimulating immunogenicity. The quality of the 3D conformation, the stability, and the percentage make it possible to have accessibility to the common predicted neutralizing epitopes. Based on these data, we can conclude that it is highly probable that the H120 vaccine strain confers cross-protection against a challenge with new strains Italy02 circulating in Morocco.

Tuberculosis constitutes a major public health problem in the world. Certain extra-pulmonary locations of tuberculosis disease are very exceptional. Amongst these, tuberculosis of the breast is rare even in countries where this infection is endemic. This form of tuberculosis is characterized by clinical and radiological polymorphisms and might mimic other diseases, especially breast cancer. This retrospective study is entailing seventeen patients treated in the Onco-Gynecology Department of the Mohammed VI Cancer Treatment Center, in the Ibn Rochd University Hospital of Casablanca, for breast tuberculosis, over a period of three years. We report the epidemiological, clinical and paraclinical aspects and we specify the treatment and evolution of the patients.

Infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) is a coronavirus that causes an acute and highly contagious disease in chickens. The virus can cause substantial economic losses throughout the poultry industry worldwide. It can affect the upper respiratory tract and the reproductive tract, and some strains can cause nephritis. The causative agent IBV is an RNA virus with great ability for mutation and recombination, thus capable of generating new virus strains that are difficult to control. There are many IBV strains found worldwide, including the Massachusetts, 4/91, D274, and QX-like strains that can be grouped under the classic or variant serotypes. In addition, new types of the virus continue to arise due to mutations and recombination events in the viral genome and even more factors, making this virus difficult to identify and extremely difficult to control. Surveillance and identification of IBV types are extremely important for control of the disease and the advancement of molecular methods has aided in this pursuit. Genetic typing of IBV, which involves reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction amplification and sequence analysis of the S1 glycoprotein gene, has revolutionized diagnosis and identification of this virus by making it possible to type and compare the relatedness of a large number of virus isolates in a short period of time. Several conventional and molecular diagnostic methods have been described for the diagnosis of IB in chickens. “All-in/all-out” operations of rearing along with good biosafety measures form the basis of prevention, whereas vaccination forms the backbone of IB control program. Both live and inactivated (oil emulsified) conventional vaccines are available. The new generation vaccines (recombinant and vector-based) developed against locally prevailing IBV strains may be more helpful and avoid the reversion of virulence in live vaccine viruses.