This paper shows the circulation of the tick-borne zoonotic hemorrhagic fever virus, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever orthonairovirus (CCHFV) in domestic ruminants and ticks in Cameroon. CCHFV is one of the WHO-top priority pathogens that has a case fatality rate of up to 40% in humans and is the most widespread tick-borne disease in the world. However, little information is available on the circulation of this virus in the country. A cross-sectional study was carried out in two livestock markets in Yaounde to collect blood and ticks from cattle, sheep, and goats. Anti-CCHFV antibodies were screened in the plasma and then confirmed by seroneutralization. Orthonairoviruses were detected by amplifying a fragment of the L segment using RT-PCR. We found a CCHFV seroprevalence of 61.77% for all animals, with the highest rate in cattle (433/441, 98.18%) followed by sheep (23/147, 15.65%), and goats (11/168, 6.55%), (p-value < 0.0001). CCHFV RNA was identified in one tick pool (Hyalomma truncatum) collected from cattle. Phylogenetic analysis of the L segment classified this CCHFV strain within the African genotype III. This result highlights the necessity of more epidemiological studies on CCHFV, especially among at-risk human, and animal populations as well as ticks in high-risk areas of the country.
Read more: https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms11030644
