Reliability of the rapid antigen test for diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 in Tunisia.

Background: Early and accurate diagnosis is crucial for preventing the spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection. The rapid antigen test was developed for testing infection, and it was necessary to assess its performance before widespread use in Tunisia. Aim: To evaluate the effectiveness of a rapid antigen test for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 in nasopharyngeal swabs in Tunisia. Methods: Nasopharyngeal samples were taken from COVID-19 suspected cases between October and December 2020 and tested using the Standard Q COVID-19 Ag test (SD-Biosensor, Republic of Korea) and real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT­PCR). Results: Overall, 4539 patients were tested. Of the total study population (N = 4539), 82.5% of positive samples remained positive with the rapid antigen test, while 20.2% (470/2321) of samples that were negative with rapid antigen test were confirmed positive with RT-PCR, giving a negative predictive value of 79.8% for the rapid antigen test. The sensitivity and negative predictive value of the rapid antigen test were 70.2% and 65.8%, respectively. These results improved to 96.4% and 92.8%, respectively, when considering the cycle threshold value by RT-PCR below 25. Conclusion: Although the rapid antigen test was less sensitive than RT-PCR, its ability to rapidly detect individuals with high viral loads makes it suitable for use during an epidemic.

Nasopharyngeal Carriage of Streptococcus pneumoniae in Tunisian Healthy under-Five Children during a Three-Year Survey Period (2020 to 2022).

We aimed to assess the prevalence of nasopharyngeal pneumococcal carriage and to determine serotype distribution, antibiotic susceptibility patterns, and evolutionary dynamics of Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates in healthy under-five children. Nasopharyngeal swabs were collected from healthy children over three survey periods between 2020 and 2022. All pneumococcal isolates were serotyped and tested for antimicrobial susceptibility. A total of 309 S. pneumoniae isolates were collected, with an overall prevalence of nasopharyngeal pneumococcal carriage of 24.4% (CI95%: [22-26.8%]). These isolates were classified into 25 different serotypes. The most common serotypes were 14 (14.9%), 19F (12%), 6B (10.4%), and 23F (7.4%), which are covered by the PCV10 vaccine, as well as 19A (8.4%) and 6A (7.8%), which are covered by the PCV13 vaccine. A significant decrease in the proportion of serotype 19F (p = 0.001) and an increase in serotypes 19A (p = 0.034) and 6A (p = 0.029) were observed between the three survey periods. Multidrug resistance (MDR) was noted for 56.6% of the isolates. A significant association with antimicrobial resistance was observed for the most frequent serotypes, mainly serotype 19A. In conclusion, one-quarter of healthy under-five children in Tunisia carried S. pneumoniae in their nasopharynx. A dominance of vaccine serotypes significantly associated with antimicrobial resistance was recorded.

Large spontaneous HBV DNA fluctuations and potential usefulness of a single-point measurement of combined HBV DNA and quantitative HBsAg for the exclusion of HBeAg-negative chronic hepatitis B: A prospective Tunisian cohort study.

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIM: During the natural course of HBeAg-negative chronic hepatitis B (CHB), fluctuations in hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels are often observed, making the classification of patients difficult. We aimed to describe spontaneous short-term HBV DNA level fluctuations and to assess the usefulness of qHBsAg in Tunisian patients with HBeAg-negative chronic HBV infection. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We included 174 treatment-naive Tunisian patients with HBeAg-negative chronic HBeAg-negative HBV infection. A prospective 1-year follow-up was conducted with serial determinations of HBV DNA, ALT levels, and qHBsAg. The patients were classified into three groups: inactive carriers (G1), patients with negative HBeAg CHB (G2), and patients with an "indeterminate state" (G3). For the latter group, a liver biopsy was indicated. RESULTS: Only genotype D was detected. During follow-up, 21.6% and 19.5% of patients with a low initial (<2,000 IU/ml) and intermediate viral load (2,000-20,000 IU/ml) experienced a subsequent increase in their HBV DNA levels above 2,000 and 20,000 IU/ml, respectively. Significant variations in viral load were observed in 61.1% of patients at 6-month intervals. Among the 174 patients, 89 (51.1%) belonged to G1, 33 (19%) to G2, and 52 (29.9%) to G3. Fourteen patients have undergone a liver biopsy, of whom seven showed moderate to severe liver disease. Combination of HBV DNA < 2,000 IU/ml and qHBsAg < 832 IU/ml excluded CHB in 98.4% of cases. A cutoff point for qHBsAg < 100 IU/ml associated with an annual decline of > 0.5 log 10 IU/ml is a good predictor marker of functional cure for hepatitis B. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the large short-term fluctuations in HBV DNA in patients with HBeAg-negative chronic HBeAg-negative HBV infection with genotype D. Thus, using the cutoff value of 832 for qHBsAg combined with that of 2,000 for HBV DNA makes it possible to exclude CHB for most patients.

Computational identification of new TKI as potential noncovalent reversible EGFRL858R/T790M inhibitors: VHTS, molecular docking, DFT study and molecular dynamic simulation.

The mutations concerned with non-small cell lung cancer involving epidermal growth factor receptor of tyrosine kinase family have primarily targeted. In this study, we employed a scalable high-throughput virtual screening (HTVS) framework and a targeted compound library of over 50.000 Erlotinib-derived compounds as noncovalent reversible EGFRL858R/T790M inhibitors. Our HTVS work flow leverages include HTVS, SP (Standard Precision) and XP (Extra Precision) docking protocol along with its relative binding free energy calculation, cluster analysis study and ADMET properties. Then we used multiple ns-time scale molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and density functional theory (DFT) precise calculation techniques to elucidate how the bound ligand interact with the complexes conformational states involving motions both proximal and distal to the binding site. Based on glide score and protein-ligand interactions, the highest scoring molecule was selected for molecular dynamic simulation providing a complete insight into the conformational stability. A hyperfine analysis of DFT based refinement strategy highly supported their stability by strong intermolecular interactions. Together, our results demonstrate that the virtually screened top retained molecules present the best moieties introduced to Erlotinib. They exhibit interesting pharmacokinetic properties that can act as potent antitumor drug candidates than the lead compound drug and in some extent tackling the drug resistance problem which offer a springboard for further therapeutic experiments and applications.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Significant impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the circulation of respiratory viruses in Tunisia, 2020-2021.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic changed the typical patterns of respiratory infections globally. While SARS-CoV-2 illness exhibited explosive growth since 2020, the activity of other respiratory viruses fell below historical seasonal norms. The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence of seasonal respiratory viruses during the COVID-19 pandemic in Tunisia. Methods: This is a retrospective cross-sectional study including 284 nasopharyngeal samples tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 during the period October 2020-May 2021. All samples were screened for fifteen common respiratory viruses. Either a fast syndromic approach using Biofire FILM ARRAY respiratory 2.1 (RP2.1) Panel, or end-point multiplex RT-PCRs detecting RNA viruses and Real-Time PCR detecting Adenoviruses were used. Results: Overall, 30.6% (87/284) of samples were positive for at least one virus. Mixed infections were detected in 3.4% of positive cases. Enterovirus/Rhinovirus (HEV/HRV) was the most detected virus throughout the study period, especially during December 2020 (33.3% of all HEV/HRV being detected). During the 2020-2021 winter season, neither Respiratory Syncytial Virus nor Influenza Viruses circulation was observed. Metapneumovirus and Parainfluenza Viruses infections were detected during the spring season. The highest rate of respiratory viruses detection was observed in children and adults aged [0-10] years (50%) and [31-40] years (40%). HEV/HRV was the most detected virus regardless of age group. Conclusions: Public health measures used to prevent SARS-CoV-2 spread in Tunisia were also effective to reduce transmission of the other respiratory viruses, especially Influenza. The higher resistance of HEV/HRV in the environment could explain their predominance and continuous circulation during this period.

Development of a simple genotyping method based on indel mutations to rapidly screen SARS-CoV-2 circulating variants: Delta, Omicron BA.1 and BA.2.

The high need of rapid and flexible tools that facilitate the identification of circulating SARS-CoV-2 Variants of Concern (VOCs) remains crucial for public health system monitoring. Here, we develop allele-specific (AS)-qPCR assays targeting three recurrent indel mutations, ΔEF156-157, Ins214EPE and ΔLPP24-26, in spike (S) gene to identify the Delta VOC and the Omicron sublineages BA.1 and BA.2, respectively. After verification of the analytical specificity of each primer set, two duplex qPCR assays with melting curve analysis were performed to screen 129 COVID-19 cases confirmed between December 31, 2021 and February 01, 2022 in Sfax, Tunisia. The first duplex assay targeting ΔEF156-157 and Ins214EPE mutations successfully detected the Delta VOC in 39 cases and Omicron BA.1 in 83 cases. All the remaining cases (n = 7) were identified as Omicron BA.2, by the second duplex assay targeting Ins214EPE and ΔLPP24-26 mutations. The results of the screening method were in perfect concordance with those of S gene partial sequencing. In conclusion, our findings provide a simple and flexible screening method for more rapid and reliable monitoring of circulating VOCs. We highly recommend its implementation to guide public health policies.