1. Seroreactivity against Marburg or related filoviruses in West and Central Africa
- Author
-
Steffen, Imke, Lu, Kai, Hoff, Nicole A, Mulembakani, Prime, Okitolonda Wemakoy, Emile, Muyembe-Tamfum, Jean-Jacques, Ndembi, Nicaise, Brennan, Catherine A, Hackett, John, Switzer, William M, Saragosti, Sentob, Mbensa, Guy O, Laperche, Syria, Rimoin, Anne W, and Simmons, Graham
- Subjects
Medical Microbiology ,Biomedical and Clinical Sciences ,Vaccine Related ,Biodefense ,Prevention ,Biotechnology ,Infection ,Good Health and Well Being ,Animals ,Antibodies ,Viral ,Cameroon ,Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ,Filoviridae ,Filoviridae Infections ,Ghana ,Humans ,Marburg Virus Disease ,Marburgvirus ,Retrospective Studies ,Seroepidemiologic Studies ,Filoviruses ,hemorrhagic fever virus ,serology ,prevalence ,Microbiology ,Clinical sciences ,Epidemiology - Abstract
A serological survey of 2,430 archived serum samples collected between 1997 and 2012 was conducted to retrospectively determine the prevalence of Marburg virus in five African countries. Serum samples were screened for neutralizing antibodies in a pseudotype micro-neutralization assay and confirmed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Surprisingly, a seroprevalence for Marburg virus of 7.5 and 6.3% was found in Cameroon and Ghana, respectively, suggesting the circulation of filoviruses or related viruses outside of known endemic areas that remain undetected by current surveillance efforts. However, due to the lack of validated assays and appropriate positive controls, these results must be considered preliminary.
- Published
- 2020