Circulation of Rift Valley Fever Virus Antibody in Cattle during Inter-Epizootic/Epidemic Periods in Selected Regions of Tanzania.

Circulation of Rift Valley Fever Virus Antibody in Cattle during Inter-Epizootic/Epidemic Periods in Selected Regions of Tanzania. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2019 Jun 17;: Authors: Salekwa LP, Wambura PN, Matiko MK, Watts DM Abstract Tanzania is one of the sub-Saharan countries that have experienced a number of Rift Valley fever (RVF) outbreaks at intervals of 10-20 years since the first isolation of the virus during the early 1930s. Recent studies have reported serological evidence of inter epizootic/epidemic period circulation of RVF virus (RVFV) in livestock and humans. The aim of this study was to conduct a cross-sectional survey in Tanzania during 2015/16 to further explore the possibility that RVFV was circulating among cattle during the Inter epizootic/epidemic period. A total of 443 cattle samples were collected in Manyara, Dodoma, Singida, and Mbeya regions of Tanzania. The samples were tested for RVFV antibodies using a commercial ELISA kit and a plaque reduction neutralization test. Serum samples were also tested for RVFV viral RNA by an RT-polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay. An overall RVFV seroprevalence rate of 7.7% (34/443) was detected by ELISA among cattle in all four regions. The Mbeya region cattle had the highest seroprevalence of 26.4% (23/87), followed by Dodoma 5.9% (10/171) and lastly Singida 0.9% (1/101). Of 33 ELISA antibody-positive samples, only 0.2% (1/443) had IgM antibody. Of 36 ELISA antibody-positive and d...
Source: Am J Trop Med Hyg - Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Tags: Am J Trop Med Hyg Source Type: research