Leptospirosis in the republic of guinea
- Authors: Baimova R.R.1, Karmokov I.A.1, Riabiko E.G.1, Khalilov E.S.2, Blinova O.V.2, Tokarevich N.K.2, Boumbaly S.3, Soropogui B.3, Camara A.3, Camara J.3, Berete F.3
-
Affiliations:
- St. Petersburg Pasteur Institute
- North-West Anti-Plague Station of the Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Wellbeing
- Virology Research Center (CRV)
- Issue: Vol 15, No 5 (2025)
- Pages: 977-982
- Section: ORIGINAL ARTICLES
- URL: https://ogarev-online.ru/2220-7619/article/view/380217
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.15789/2220-7619-LIT-17937
- ID: 380217
Cite item
Full Text
Abstract
Leptospirosis is an acute zoonotic infection caused by pathogenic bacteria from the genus Leptospira. Leptospirosis creates significant though underdiagnosed public health problems in Africa. The Republic of Guinea (Guinea) is a country in West Africa, its capital is Conakry. The study objective was to assess the prevalence of the leptospirosis in febrile patients in the Republic of Guinea. We analyzed 827 blood serum samples obtained from febrile patients who applied to municipal health services, in the period from 2020 to 2024. RT-PCR was used to test 627 blood serum samples for the presence of genetic material of pathogenic Leptospira spp. Genotyping of positive samples was performed with the help of primers selected for a fragment of the secY gene. As a result of our study, IgG antibodies to Leptospira spp. were detected in 202 blood serum samples, which amounted to 24.4%.154 blood serum samples (18.6%) were positive for IgM to Leptospira spp. In 80 of the 276 positive samples both antibodies (IgG and IgM) were detected, 122 samples contained only IgG, while 74 only IgM. Leptospira spp. DNA was detected in 5 (0.8%) of 657 serum samples tested for the presence genetic markers of pathogenic leptospira. Sanger sequencing was applied to all 5 samples, and for three samples it resulted in successful leptospira genotyping, but it failed for two other samples may be due to insufficient amount of DNA or its degradation. When analyzed according to the BLAST algorithm, the obtained sequences revealed 100% similarity to those of L. kirschneri that was further confirmed by clustering when constructing the phylogenetic tree. Our study revealed high level of antibodies to leptospirosis in febrile patients, which bear witness to the wide spread of this pathogen in the Republic of Guinea. Joint research with international organizations can provide valuable information on the epidemiology of leptospirosis and improve control and prevention of the disease.
Keywords
About the authors
Regina R. Baimova
St. Petersburg Pasteur Institute
Email: baimova@pasteurorg.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0002-0145-2653
Junior Researcher, Laboratory of Zoonoses
Russian Federation, St. PetersburgI. A. Karmokov
St. Petersburg Pasteur Institute
Email: karmokov2013@yandex.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0003-3820-7106
SPIN-code: 8660-4404
Scopus Author ID: 57770227300
Junior Researcher, Laboratory of Zoonoses
Russian Federation, St. PetersburgE. G. Riabiko
St. Petersburg Pasteur Institute
Email: katya.ryabiko@mail.ru
Junior Researcher, Laboratory of Zoonoses
Russian Federation, St. PetersburgE. S. Khalilov
North-West Anti-Plague Station of the Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Wellbeing
Email: erik.khalilov@yandex.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0002-0599-4302
Biologist of the Virology Laboratory
Russian Federation, St. PetersburgO. V. Blinova
North-West Anti-Plague Station of the Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Wellbeing
Email: zoonoses@mail.ru
PhD (Chemistry), Junior Researcher, Laboratory of Zoonoses
Russian Federation, St. PetersburgN. K. Tokarevich
North-West Anti-Plague Station of the Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Wellbeing
Email: zoonoses@mail.ru
DSc (Medicine), Professor, Head of the Laboratory of Zoonoses
Russian Federation, St. PetersburgS. Boumbaly
Virology Research Center (CRV)
Email: drboumbaly@yahoo.fr
PhD (Biology), Director, Guinea Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers Laboratory
Guinea, ConakryB. Soropogui
Virology Research Center (CRV)
Email: Barresoropogui@gmail.com
Head of the Molecular Biology Laboratory, Guinea Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers Laboratory
Guinea, ConakryA. Camara
Virology Research Center (CRV)
Email: alimou.4camara@gmail.com
Head of the Genomics Laboratory, Guinea Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers Laboratory
Guinea, ConakryJ. Camara
Virology Research Center (CRV)
Email: Jacob2240@gmail.com
Head of the Genomics Laboratory, Guinea Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers Laboratory
Guinea, ConakryF. Berete
Virology Research Center (CRV)
Author for correspondence.
Email: fantabere012015@gmail.com
Head of the Immunology Laboratory, Guinea Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers Laboratory
Guinea, ConakryReferences
- Баимова Р.Р., Рябико Е.Г., Останкова Ю.В., Токаревич Н.К. Оптимизация способа детекции и генотипирования патогенных лептоспир в биологических образцах // Клиническая лабораторная диагностика. 2025. Т. 70, № 3. С. 210–217. [Baimova R.R., Ryabiko E.G., Ostankova Yu.V., Tokarevich N.K. Optimization of the method for detection and genotyping of pathogenic leptospires in biological samples. Klinicheskaya laboratornaya diagnostika = Russian Clinical Laboratory Diagnostics, 2025, vol.70, no. 3, pp. 210–217. (In Russ.)] doi: 10.51620/0869-2084-2025-70-3-210-217
- Allan K.J., Biggs H.M., Halliday J.E., Kazwala R.R., Maro V.P., Cleaveland S., Crump J.A. Epidemiology of Leptospirosis in Africa: A Systematic Review of a Neglected Zoonosis and a Paradigm for One Health in Africa. PLoS Negl. Trop. Dis., 2015, vol. 9, no. 9: e0003899. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0003899
- Boland M., Sayers G., Coleman T., Bergin C., Sheehan N., Creamer E., O’Connell M., Jones L., Zochowski W. A cluster of leptospirosis cases in canoeists following a competition on the River Liffey. Epidemiol. Infect., 2004, vol. 132, no. 2, pp. 195–200. doi: 10.1017/s0950268803001596
- De Vries S.G., Visser B.J., Stoney R.J., Wagenaar J.F.P., Bottieau E., Chen L.H., Wilder-Smith A., Wilson M., Rapp C., Leder K., Caumes E., Schwartz E., Hynes N.A., Goorhuis A., Esposito D.H., Hamer D.H., Grobusch M.P., For The GeoSentinel Surveillance Network. Leptospirosis among Returned Travelers: A GeoSentinel Site Survey and Multicenter Analysis —1997-2016. Am. J. Trop. Med. Hyg., 2018, vol. 99, no. 1, pp. 127–135. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.18-0020
- Dobigny G., Garba M., Tatard C., Loiseau A., Galan M., Kadaour I., Rossi J.P., Picardeau M., Bertherat E. Urban Market Gardening and Rodent-Borne Pathogenic Leptospira in Arid Zones: A Case Study in Niamey, Niger. PLoS Negl. Trop. Dis., 2015, vol. 9, no. 10: e0004097. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0004097
- Fischer S., Mayer-Scholl A., Imholt C., Spierling N.G., Heuser E., Schmidt S., Reil D., Rosenfeld U.M., Jacob J., Nöckler K., Ulrich R.G. Leptospira Genomospecies and Sequence Type Prevalence in Small Mammal Populations in Germany. Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis., 2018, vol. 18, no. 4, pp. 188–199. doi: 10.1089/vbz.2017.2140
- Franceschi C., Salvioli S., Garagnani P., de Eguileor M., Monti D., Capri M. Immunobiography and the Heterogeneity of Immune Responses in the Elderly: A Focus on Inflammaging and Trained Immunity. Front. Immunol., 2017, vol. 8: 982. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2017.00982
- Gizamba J.M., Mugisha L. Leptospirosis in humans and selected animals in Sub-Saharan Africa, 2014-2022: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Infect. Dis., 2023, vol. 23, no. 1: 649. doi: 10.1186/s12879-023-08574-5
- Gurman T.A., Diallo K., Larson E., Sugg K., Tibbels N. Balancing the uncertain and unpredictable nature of possible zoonotic disease transmission with the value placed on animals: Findings from a qualitative study in Guinea. PLOS Glob. Public Health, 2024, vol. 4, no. 3: e0001174. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0001174
- Koffi S.K., Meite S., Ouattara A., Kouassi S.K., Aboubacar S., Akran V.A., Bourhy P., Dosso M. Geographic distribution of anti-Leptospira antibodies in humans in Côte d’Ivoire, West Africa. Eur. J. Clin. Microbiol. Infect. Dis., 2018, vol. 37, no. 11, pp. 2177–2180. doi: 10.1007/s10096-018-3359-7
- Mane S. Revue des filières bétail-viande-lait et des politiques qui les influences en Guinée. Organisation des Nations Unies pour l’alimentation et l’agriculture, 2017. URL: https://www.fao.org/3/i5268f/i5268f.pdf
- Mayer-Scholl A., Teifke J.P., Huber N., Luge E., Bier N.S., Nöckler K., Ulrich R.G. Leptospira spp. in Rodents and Shrews from Afghanistan. J. Wildl. Dis., 2019, vol. 55, no. 2, pp. 477–481. doi: 10.7589/2018-05-122
- Oruganti P., Root E., Ndlovu V., Mbhungele P., Van Wyk I., Berrian A.M. Gender and zoonotic pathogen exposure pathways in a resource-limited community, Mpumalanga, South Africa: A qualitative analysis. PLOS Glob. Public Health, 2023, vol. 3, no. 6: e0001167. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0001167
- Palma F.A.G., Costa F., Lustosa R., Mogaji H.O., de Oliveira D.S., Souza F.N., Reis M.G., Ko A.I., Begon M., Khalil H. Why is leptospirosis hard to avoid for the impoverished? Deconstructing leptospirosis transmission risk and the drivers of knowledge, attitudes, and practices in a disadvantaged community in Salvador, Brazil. PLOS Glob. Public Health, 2022, vol. 2, no. 12: e0000408. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0000408
- Paquet D., Jung L., Trawinski H., Wendt S., Lübbert C. Fever in the Returning Traveler. Dtsch. Arztebl. Int., 2022, vol. 119, no. 22, pp. 400–407. doi: 10.3238/arztebl.m2022.0182
- Roqueplo C., Kodjo A., Demoncheaux J.P., Scandola P., Bassene H., Diatta G., Sokhna C., Raoult D., Davoust B., Mediannikov O. Leptospirosis, one neglected disease in rural Senegal. Vet. Med. Sci., 2019, vol. 5, no. 4, pp. 536–544. doi: 10.1002/vms3.186
- Soares P.M., Gomes D.O., Macedo F.P., Soares M.M., Lemes K.R., Jaeger L.H., Lilenbaum W., Lima A.M.C. Serological and molecular characterization of Leptospira kirschneri serogroup Grippotyphosa isolated from bovine in Brazil. Microb. Pathog., 2020, vol. 138: 103803. doi: 10.1016/j.micpath.2019.103803
- World Health Organization. Guinea Country overview. Accessed on 8 May 2025. URL: https://data.who.int/countries/324
- Yadeta W., Bashahun G.M., Abdela N. Leptospirosis in animal and its public health implications: a review. World Appl. Sci. J., 2016, vol. 34, no. 6, pp. 845–853. doi: 10.5829/idosi.wasj.2016.34.6.103113
- Zhang Y., Ye F., Xia L.X., Zhu L.W., Kamara I.L., Huang K.Q., Zhang Y., Liu J., Kargbo B., Wang J., Liang M.F., Song J.D., Ma X.J., Wu G.Z. Next-generation Sequencing Study of Pathogens in Serum from Patients with Febrile Jaundice in Sierra Leone. Biomed. Environ. Sci., 2019, vol. 32, no. 5, pp. 363–370. doi: 10.3967/bes2019.048
Supplementary files
