Contaminação de areia usada para consumo comercializada em mercados informais da cidade de maputo / Contamination of sand used for consumption sold in informal markets in maputo city

: O consumo da areia é comum em Maputo, sendo a sua comercialização feita em mercados informais. Na areia existem microrganismos contaminantes, alguns dos quais patógenos. O objectivo do nosso estudo foi determinar a contaminação microbiana da areia comercializada para o consumo em cinco mercados informais da cidade de Maputo. Métodos: Tratou-se de um estudo transversal, realizado de Janeiro a Março de 2021, no qual foram analisadas 25 amostras de areia colhidas aleatoriamente. Foi feita avaliação dos aspectos higiénico-sanitários para o comércio da areia com base numa lista de verificação padronizada, seguida de testes laboratoriais para a detecção e identificação de bactérias utilizando métodos microbiológicos padrão para alimentos e água (bactérias aeróbicas mesófilas, bolores e leveduras, Staphylococcus aureus, coliformes totais, coliformes fecais e Echerichia coli). Resultados: Todas as amostras apresentaram contaminação por bactérias aeróbicas mesófilas, bolores e leveduras. Os mercados Xiquelene e Fajardo apresentaram contaminação elevada de bactérias aeróbicas mesófilas (1,5x104 UFC/g), bolores e leveduras (1,0x104 UFC/g), respectivamente. Houve maior contaminação por S. aureus nos mercados Fajardo e Zimpeto Anexo (80% em ambos) em relação ao mercado Xiquelene (40%). O mercado Xiquelene apresentou a maior contaminação para coliformes totais, coliformes fecais e E. coli - 100%, 80% e 60%, respectivamente ­ não tendo sido encontrada contaminação no mercado Malanga. Conclusão: A contaminação de areia comercializada para consume nos mercados informais constitui risco importante para a saúde dos consumidores

High seroprevalence of Rift Valley fever phlebovirus in domestic ruminants and African Buffaloes in Mozambique shows need for intensified surveillance.

Introduction: Rift Valley fever (RVF) is an arthropod-borne disease that affects both animals and humans. RVF phlebovirus (RVFPV) is widespread in Africa and Arabian Peninsula. In Mozambique, outbreaks were reported in South; seroprevalence studies performed in livestock and water buffaloes were limited to central and south regions. We evaluated the seroprevalence of RVFPV among domestic ruminants and African buffaloes from 7 of 10 provinces of Mozambique, to understand the distribution of RVFPV and provide data for further RVF control programs. Materials and methods: A total of 1581 blood samples were collected in cattle, 1117 in goats, 85 in sheep and 69 in African buffaloes, between 2013 and 2014, and the obtained sera were analyzed by ELISA. Results and discussion: The overall seroprevalence of RVFPV domestic ruminants and African buffaloes was 25.6%. The highest was observed in cattle (37.3%) and African buffaloes (30.4%), which were higher than in previous studies within Mozambique. In south and central regions, the overall seroprevalences were higher (14.9%-62.4%) than in the north. Conclusion: This study showed the presence of anti-RVFPV antibodies in animals from all sampled provinces, suggesting that RVFPV is actively circulating among domestic ruminants and African buffaloes in Mozambique, therefore surveillance should be intensified.

Arabidopsis thaliana plants expressing Rift Valley fever virus antigens: Mice exhibit systemic immune responses as the result of oral administration of the transgenic plants.

The zoonotic Rift Valley fever virus affects livestock and humans in Africa and on the Arabian Peninsula. The economic impact of this pathogen due to livestock losses, as well as its relevance to public health, underscores the importance of developing effective and easily distributed vaccines. Vaccines that can be delivered orally are of particular interest. Here, we report the expression in transformed plants (Arabidopsis thaliana) of Rift Valley fever virus antigens. The antigens used in this study were the N protein and a deletion mutant of the Gn glycoprotein. Transformed lines were analysed for specific mRNA and protein content by RT-PCR and Western blotting, respectively. Furthermore, the plant-expressed antigens were evaluated for their immunogenicity in mice fed the transgenic plants. After oral intake of fresh transgenic plant material, a proportion of the mice elicited specific IgG antibody responses, as compared to the control animals that were fed wild-type plants and of which none sero-converted. Thus, we show that transgenic plants can be readily used to express and produce Rift Valley Fever virus proteins, and that the plants are immunogenic when given orally to mice. These are promising findings and provide a basis for further studies on edible plant vaccines against the Rift Valley fever virus.

Antibodies against Rift Valley Fever Virus in Cattle, Mozambique

During the past 2 decades, several countries in Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, to which Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) is endemic, have reported outbreaks of Rift Valley fever in humans and livestock. The first evidence of RVFV in Mozambique was documented as early as the 1960s (1). Endemicity was subsequently confirmed in the 1980s by a prevalence study that identified virusspecific antibodies in 2% of pregnant women (2) and in the 1990s by serosurveillance in Zambezia Province, which showed that cattle had been infected with RVFV.