Introduction into the Marseille geographical area of a mild SARS-CoV-2 variant originating from sub-Saharan Africa (original) (raw)
Related papers
Serologic response to SARS-CoV-2 in an African population
Scientific African, 2021
This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.
AAS Open Research
Following the coronavirus outbreaks described as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in 2003 and the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) in 2012, the world has again been challenged by yet another corona virus, named severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). SARS-CoV-2 infections were first detected in a Chinese Province in December 2019 and then declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization in March 2020. An infection caused by SARS-CoV-2 may result in asymptomatic, uncomplicated or fatal coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Fatal disease has been linked with the uncontrolled “cytokine storm” manifesting with complications mostly in people with underlying cardiovascular and pulmonary disease conditions. The severity of COVID-19 disease and the associated mortality has been disproportionately lower in terms of number of cases and deaths in Africa and also Asia in comparison to Europe and North America. Also, persons of colour residing in Europe an...
Variation in SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks across sub-Saharan Africa
Nature Medicine, 2021
Extended Data Fig. 10 | Transmission climate-dependency and sensitivity to R 0max and R 0min value selection. Transmission (R 0) declines with increasing specific humidity from R 0max to R 0min. Three exemplar cities with low, intermediate, and high average specific humidity are shown across rows (Windhoek, Antananarivo, and Lome, respectively). a-c, Proportion of the population infected (I/N) over time for the specified R 0min and R 0max values. d, Variation in peak size and timing when 1.0 < R 0min < 1.5.
Dynamic and features of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Gabon
Scientific Reports
In a context where SARS-CoV-2 population-wide testing is implemented, clinical features and antibody response in those infected have never been documented in Africa. Yet, the information provided by analyzing data from population-wide testing is critical to understand the infection dynamics and devise control strategies. We described clinical features and assessed antibody response in people screened for SARS-CoV-2 infection. We analyzed data from a cohort of 3464 people that we molecularly screened for SARS-CoV-2 infection in our routine activity. We recorded people SARS-CoV-2 diagnosis, age, gender, blood types, white blood cells (WBC), symptoms, chronic disease status and time to SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR conversion from positive to negative. We calculated the age-based distribution of SARS-CoV-2 infection, analyzed the proportion and the spectrum of COVID-19 severity. Furthermore, in a nested sub-study, we screened 83 COVID-19 patients and 319 contact-cases for anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodie...
Detection of a SARS-CoV-2 variant of concern in South Africa
Nature
Epidemic dynamics in South Africa The second wave of the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in South Africa began around October 2020, weeks after a trough in daily recorded cases following the first peak 19 (Fig. 1a). The country-wide estimated effective reproduction number (R e) increased to above 1 at the end of October (indicating a growing epidemic), which coincided with a steady rise in daily cases. At the peak of the national epidemic in the middle of July, there were over 13,000
Influencing factors of SARS-Cov2 spread in Africa
2020
After the warnings launched by the World Health Organization (WHO), the spotlights are currently turned towards African countries. What might happen to Africa, where most countries have weak health care systems, including inadequate surveillance and laboratory capacity, scarcity of public health human resources, and limited financial means [2]. Nevertheless, to better manage this multidimensional crisis, the challenge is not only about the availability of health infrastructures, but also how to considerate other factors that may modify the course of the disease by either accelerating or rather limiting the spread of the virus, such as geographical, socio-economical, and even political factors.
The evolution of SARS-CoV-2 testing in Africa: Observations from the first 1 million cases
2021
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a communicable respiratory disease in humans caused by a new strain of coronavirus named severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), first reported in Wuhan City, China, in December 2019. [1] Most infected people develop mild to moderate symptoms that include fever, dry cough, tiredness, diarrhoea, headache, loss of taste or smell and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath, among others reported in the literature. [2] Early in the outbreak, the World Health Organization (WHO) recognised the central role of identification of cases through laboratory testing in the response by highlighting it as an integral part of the strategic preparedness and response plan for COVI9-19. [3] Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR)-based tests that detect SARS-CoV-2 RNA have been the gold standard for detection and confirmation of diagnosis, and become positive 1-3 days before onset of symptoms, with the highest viral load on the day of onset of symptoms. [4] The rapid spread of the virus around the world led to the declaration of COVID-19 as a public health emergency of international concern in January 2020, and a global pandemic on 11 March. [5,6] The first COVID-19 case in Africa was reported in Egypt on 14 February, and by 14 May all African countries had reported at least one case of COVID-19. [7] By 5 August, the African continent recorded its 1 millionth case, approximately 6 months after the first reported case (Fig. 1). South Africa (SA) has contributed the highest number of cases on the continent, followed by Egypt and Nigeria, making it the country with the 10th-highest caseload in the world (Fig. 1).