Wildlife in Cameroon harbor diverse coronaviruses, including many closely related to human coronavirus 229E.

Zoonotic spillover of animal viruses into human populations is a continuous and increasing public health risk. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) highlights the global impact of emergence. Considering the history and diversity of coronaviruses (CoVs), especially in bats, SARS-CoV-2 will likely not be the last to spillover from animals into human populations. We sampled and tested wildlife in the Central African country Cameroon to determine which CoVs are circulating and how they relate to previously detected human and animal CoVs. We collected animal and ecological data at sampling locations and used family-level consensus PCR combined with amplicon sequencing for virus detection. Between 2003 and 2018, samples were collected from 6,580 animals of several different orders. CoV RNA was detected in 175 bats, a civet, and a shrew. The CoV RNAs detected in the bats represented 17 different genetic clusters, coinciding with alpha (n = 8) and beta (n = 9) CoVs. Sequences resembling human CoV-229E (HCoV-229E) were found in 40 Hipposideridae bats. Phylogenetic analyses place the human-derived HCoV-229E isolates closest to those from camels in terms of the S and N genes but closest to isolates from bats for the envelope, membrane, and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase genes. The CoV RNA positivity rate in bats varied significantly (P < 0.001) between the wet (8.2 per cent) and dry seasons (4.5 per cent). Most sampled species accordingly had a wet season high and dry season low, while for some the opposite was found. Eight of the suspected CoV species of which we detected RNA appear to be entirely novel CoV species, which suggests that CoV diversity in African wildlife is still rather poorly understood. The detection of multiple different variants of HCoV-229E-like viruses supports the bat reservoir hypothesis for this virus, with the phylogenetic results casting some doubt on camels as an intermediate host. The findings also support the previously proposed influence of ecological factors on CoV circulation, indicating a high level of underlying complexity to the viral ecology. These results indicate the importance of investing in surveillance activities among wild animals to detect all potential threats as well as sentinel surveillance among exposed humans to determine emerging threats.

Market characteristics and zoonotic disease risk perception in Cameroon bushmeat markets.

Behavioral practices are one of the key factors facilitating zoonotic disease transmission, especially in individuals who have frequent contact with wild animals, yet practices of those who work and live in high-risk animal-human interfaces, such as wild animal 'bushmeat' markets in the Congo Basin are not well documented in the social, health and medical sciences. This region, where hunting, butchering, and consumption of wild animal meat is frequent, represents a hotspot for disease emergence, and has experienced zoonotic disease spillover events, traced back to close human-animal contact with bats and non-human primates. Using a One Health approach, we conducted wildlife surveillance, human behavioral research, and concurrent human and animal biological sampling to identify and characterize factors associated with zoonotic disease emergence and transmission. Research was conducted through the USAID Emerging Pandemic Threats program between 2010 and 2019 including qualitative studies of bushmeat markets, with selected study sites prioritized based on proximity to bushmeat markets. Sites included two hospitals where we conducted surveillance of individuals with syndromes of acute febrile illness, community sites where we enrolled actors of the animal value chain (ie. hunters, middlemen, transporters), and bushmeat markets, where we enrolled bushmeat vendors, butchers, market managers, cleaners, and shoppers. Mixed methods research was undertaken at these sites and included investigation of bushmeat market dynamics through observational research, focus group discussions, quantitative questionnaires, and interviews. Participants were asked about their risk perception of zoonotic disease transmission and specific activities related to bushmeat trade, local market conditions, and regulations on bushmeat trade in Cameroon. Risks associated with blood contact and animal infection were not well understood by most market actors. As bushmeat markets are an important disease interface, as seen with CoVID19, risk mitigation measures in markets and bushmeat alternative strategies are discussed.

Contributions of the Global Emerging Infections Surveillance and Response System Network to global health security in 2011.

In its 15th year, the Global Emerging Infections Surveillance and Response System (GEIS) continued to make significant contributions to global public health and emerging infectious disease surveillance worldwide. As a division of the US Department of Defense's Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center since 2008, GEIS coordinated a network of surveillance and response activities through collaborations with 33 partners in 76 countries. The GEIS was involved in 73 outbreak responses in fiscal year 2011. Significant laboratory capacity-building initiatives were undertaken with 53 foreign health, agriculture and/or defense ministries, as well as with other US government entities and international institutions, including support for numerous national influenza centers. Equally important, a variety of epidemiologic training endeavors reached over 4,500 individuals in 96 countries. Collectively, these activities enhanced the ability of partner countries and the US military to make decisions about biological threats and design programs to protect global public health as well as global health security.

High HIV type 1 group M pol diversity and low rate of antiretroviral resistance mutations among the uniformed services in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.

For the first time the genetic diversity among the uniformed personnel in Kinshasa, the capital city of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a country that has experienced military conflicts since 1998 and in which the global HIV-1/M pandemic started, has now been documented. A total of 94 HIV-1-positive samples, collected in 2007 in Kinshasa garrison settings from informed consenting volunteers, were genetically characterized in the pol region (protease and RT). An extensive diversity was observed, with 51% of the strains corresponding to six pure subtypes (A 23%, C 13.8%, D, G, H, J, and untypable), 15% corresponding to nine different CRFs (01, 02, 11, 13, 25, 26, 37, 43, and 45), and 34% being unique recombinants with one-third being complex mosaic viruses involving three or more different subtypes/CRFs. Only one strain harbored a single mutation, I54V, associated with drug resistance to protease inhibitors. Due to their high mobility and potential risk behavior, HIV infections in military personnel can lead to an even more complex epidemic in the DRC and to a possible increase of subtype C.

The origin and prevention of pandemics.

Despite the fact that most emerging diseases stem from the transmission of pathogenic agents from animals to humans, the factors that mediate this process are still ill defined. What is known, however, is that the interface between humans and animals is of paramount importance in the process. This review will discuss the importance of the human-animal interface to the disease emergence process. We also provide an overview of factors that are believed to contribute to the origin and global spread of emerging infectious diseases and offer suggestions that may serve as future prevention strategies, such as social mobilization, public health education, behavioral change, and communication strategies. Because there exists no comprehensive global surveillance system to monitor zoonotic disease emergence, the intervention measures discussed herein may prove effective temporary alternatives.