Spatiotemporal analysis and forecasting of lumpy skin disease outbreaks in Ethiopia based on retrospective outbreak reports.

Introduction: Lumpy skin disease is a viral disease that affects cattle belonging to genus Capripoxvirus (Poxviridae) and lead to significant economic losses. Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the distribution of lumpy skin disease (LSD) outbreaks and predict future patterns based on retrospective outbreak reports in Ethiopia. Methods: Data were collected through direct communication with regional laboratories and a hierarchical reporting system from the Peasant Associations to Ministry of Agriculture. Time-series data for the LSD outbreaks were analyzed using classical additive time-series decomposition and STL decomposition. Four models (ARIMA, SARIMA, ETS, STLF) were also used to forecast the number of LSD outbreaks that occurred each month for the years (2021-2025) after the models' accuracy test was performed. Additionally, the space-time permutation model (STP) were also used to study retrospective space-time cluster analysis of LSD outbreaks in Ethiopia. Results: This study examined the geographical and temporal distribution of LSD outbreaks in Ethiopia from 2008 to 2020, reporting a total of 3,256 LSD outbreaks, 14,754 LSD-positive cases, 7,758 deaths, and 289 slaughters. It also covered approximately 68% of Ethiopia's districts, with Oromia reporting the highest LSD outbreaks. In the LSD's temporal distribution, the highest peak was reported following the rainy season in September to December and its lowest peak in the dry months of April and May. Out of the four models tested for forecasting, the SARIMA (3, 0, 0) (2, 1, 0) [12] model performed well for the validation data, while the STLF+Random Walk had a robust prediction for the training data. Thus, the SARIMA and STLF+Random Walk models produced a more accurate forecast of LSD outbreaks between 2020 and 2025. From retrospective Space-Time Cluster Analysis of LSD, eight possible clusters were also identified, with five of them located in central part of Ethiopia. Conclusion: The study's time series and ST-cluster analysis of LSD outbreak data provide valuable insights into the spatial and temporal dynamics of the disease in Ethiopia. These insights can aid in the development of effective strategies to control and prevent the spread of the disease and holds great potential for improving efforts to combat LSD in the country.

Livestock producers' knowledge, attitude, and behavior (KAB) regarding antimicrobial use in Ethiopia.

Introduction: Inappropriate antimicrobial use (AMU) in livestock production is an important aspect of the global burden of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). In Ethiopia, a low-income country with a large and increasing livestock population, AMU in food animals is not properly regulated. Hence, farmers are fully free to use antimicrobials to their (perceived) benefit. Therefore, understanding farmers' mindsets is important to improve antimicrobial stewardship in the livestock sector. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted to assess livestock disease management practices and knowledge, attitude, and behavior (KAB) among livestock producers regarding AMU, residues, and resistance, as well as factors potentially explaining differences in KAB. We determined the KAB of livestock owners of three selected districts of central and western Ethiopia (n = 457), using a pretested questionnaire administered through face-to-face interviews. Logistic regression was used to evaluate the association between potential explanatory variables and the KAB scores of the respondents. Results: The results showed that 44% of the farmers used antimicrobials in the past few years, where antibiotics (21%) and trypanocides (11%) were most widely used to manage livestock diseases. Furthermore, most farmers showed poor knowledge about AMU, residues, and AMR (94%) and unfavorable attitudes (<50% correct answers) toward contributing factors for AMR (97%). On the contrary, 80% of the respondents had overall good behavior scores (≥50% correct answers) related to AMU. Multivariate analysis results showed that having good knowledge, keeping ≥2 animal species, and the occurrence of ≥4 livestock diseases on the farm in a year were strong predictors of bad behavior scores (p < 0.05). The findings of the current investigation also revealed that the incidence of livestock diseases on the farm and a higher level of formal education significantly contributed to better knowledge and desirable attitudes but bad AMU behavior. Conclusion: A low level of awareness about and undesirable attitudes toward AMU and AMR could potentially affect farmers' behavior toward judicious AMU, thus requiring awareness creation efforts on livestock disease management practices.

Efficacy of Penicillin-Streptomycin Brands against Staphylococcus aureus: Concordance between Veterinary Clinicians' Perception and the Realities.

Antibiotics must be safe and effective for use in both human and veterinary medicine. However, information about the efficacy of different brands of antibiotics commonly used in veterinary practices is lacking in Ethiopia. In this study, we determined the efficacy of three brands of penicillin-streptomycin (Pen&strep, Penstrep, and Pro&strep) by performing antimicrobial susceptibility testing against Staphylococcus aureus isolated from cow milk from dairy farms in the towns of Sebata and Bishoftu, Central Ethiopia. We also assessed the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of veterinarians regarding the quality and use of brand antibiotics and the antibiotic utilization practices of dairy farm personnel using a structured questionnaire. Of 43 S. aureus isolated and tested, 33 (77%), 10 (23%), and 1 (2%) were susceptible to brands A, B, and C, respectively. According to the respondents, all of them reported that penstrep is the most prescribed antibiotic in dairy farms (100%), followed by oxytetracycline (78%) and sulfa drugs (52%). All veterinarians perceived that antibiotics imported from Western countries have a higher efficacy than those from Eastern countries, and they preferred brand A to the other brands, witnessing its better clinical outcome. The majority (87%) and a little more than half (53%) of the respondents perceived the overuse of antibiotics in veterinary clinics and dairy farms, respectively. Our study revealed the better efficacy of brand A against S. aureus compared to the other brands. Interestingly, the veterinarians' perception of and preference toward the use of brand antibiotics agreed with the findings of our antibacterial susceptibility testing. The prudent use of brand A is critically important for sustaining effective treatment, avoiding the risk of antimicrobial resistance, and helping to address animal welfare issues.

Entomological survey of the potential vectors of Rift Valley fever virus and absence of detection of the virus genome from the vectors in various niches in the southern half of the Great Rift Valley of Ethiopia.

BACKGROUND: Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) is the cause of one of the most important mosquito-borne emerging diseases negatively affecting the health of humans and animals, particularly in Africa. In Ethiopia, the status of RVFV and the existence of potential vectors are unknown. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to survey the mosquito vectors of RVFV and the detection of the virus in selected sites (Batu, Hawassa, Arba Minch and Borana) in Ethiopia. METHODS: CDC light traps baited with the sugar-yeast solution were set up at various locations for a total of 29 trap nights. Mosquitoes identification were made morphologically using a stereomicroscope and for RVFV detection by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). RESULTS: Among a total of 132 trap efforts conducted, 60 (45%) captured the mosquitoes. A total of 1576 adult mosquitoes were collected and identified. Including Aedes (n = 407; 25.8%), Anopheles (n = 493; 32.3%), Culex (n = 466; 29.6%) and Mansonia (n = 210; 13.32%). The genome material of RVFV was not detected by RT-PCR. CONCLUSIONS: The existence of a potential Aedes species may pose a risk for the occurrence of the RVF outbreak in Ethiopia. Based on the current study, we recommend further monitoring for potential mosquito vectors of RVFV, particularly with a view to targeting the seasons during which the mosquitoes can be abundant along with a serological survey of susceptible hosts.

Detection and Antimicrobial Resistance of Staphylococcus Species from Chicken, Chicken Litter, and Humans in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Background: In veterinary medicine, three Staphylococcus species are of particular importance as primary causes of specific diseases; S. aureus (mastitis in ruminants, equine botryomycosis, and bumble foot in poultry), S. hycus (porcine exudative epidermitis), and S. intermedius (canine pyoderma). The disease conditions caused by Staphylococcus in poultry vary with site, route, and predisposing factors include wounds as a result of fighting/cannibalism, immunosuppression based on virus infection or parasite infestation, and bad husbandry conditions (overcrowding). The objectives of this study were to isolate and identify Staphylococcus spp from chicken and chicken litter and personnel at chicken farm and to determine the antimicrobial susceptibility profile of the isolates. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on apparently healthy chickens, farm personnel, and chicken litter at poultry farms in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A total of 222 samples consisting of 101 cloacal swabs, 90 tracheal swabs, 17 pooled litter swabs, 7 nasal swabs, and 7 pooled hand and boot swabs were collected from six farms and examined for the presence of Staphylococcus species. Antimicrobial resistance against 10 antimicrobial agents was also conducted following recommended standard procedures. Results: Overall proportion of Staphylococcus was 64/222 (28.83%). Of the isolates, 40/64 (62.5%), 11/64 (17.2%), 3/64 (4.7%), and 10/64 (15.6%), were S. aureus, S. hycus, S. intermedius, and coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS), respectively. Only one isolate of S. aureus was susceptible to all antimicrobials tested. Of the 10 antibiotics tested, the isolates demonstrated highest resistance against Penicillin G (96.9%) followed by Tetracycline (78.1%), and Amoxicillin and Erythromycin at the same level (65.6%). Conversely, the isolates were highly susceptible to Ciprofloxacin (95.3%) followed by Sulphamethoxazole-trimethoprim (85.9%). Out of 64 isolates, 61/64 (95.3%) were resistant to three or more antimicrobials tested. Of the isolates, 38/40 (95%) S. aureus, 10/11 (90.9%) S. hycus, 3/3 (100%) S. intermedius, and 10/10 (100%) CNS showed multidrug resistance. Conclusion: This study showed a considerable proportion of Staphylococcus spp in chicken litter and farm workers with a potential source of resistant Staphylococcus species, and more importantly multidrug resistance strains. Further studies on molecular characterization of the isolates will be essential to identify the resistant genes and establish epidemiological links in the transmission dynamics of resistant Staphylococcus species between poultry and humans.

Magnitude and Antimicrobial Susceptibility Profile of Salmonella Recovered from Export Abattoirs Located in East Shewa, Ethiopia.

Background: Salmonella is one of the most common foodborne pathogens globally, and it remains a major public health concern with the increasing concern of the emergence and spread of antimicrobial-resistant strains. In Ethiopia, the information on the prevalence of Salmonella is scarce in export abattoirs. Objective: To estimate the magnitude and antimicrobial susceptibility profile of Salmonella recovered from export abattoirs located in East Shewa, Ethiopia. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from January to October 2020. In the study, 345 samples were collected from five export abattoirs using a systematic random sampling method. There were 150 carcass swabs (100 from goats and 50 from sheep), 60 goat skin swabs, 60 knife swabs, and 75 human stools. The isolates were identified and characterized using standard bacteriological procedures and confirmed using Salmonella genus-specific primer by polymerase chain reaction. Isolates were subjected to antimicrobial susceptibility to 14 antibiotics using the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method, and the results were assessed by using Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute 2018. Results: Of the 345 samples, 21 (6.08%; 95% CI 4.9-11.2%) were positive for Salmonella. The specific prevalence of Salmonella in carcass, skin, and knife swabs were 10 (6.67%; 95% CI 3.5-11.19%), 7 (11.67%; 95% CI 5.70-23.00%), and 4 (6.67%; 95% CI 2.50-16.64%), respectively. There was no statistically significant difference in the occurrence of Salmonella among export abattoirs and types of samples (P>0.05). In the current study, Salmonella was not isolated from sheep carcass and human stool samples. Among the 21 Salmonella isolates, 7 (33.3%) were resistant to at least 1 of the 14 antimicrobial agents tested and 2 (9.04%) of isolates were resistant to two antibiotics, tetracycline, and streptomycin. All isolates were susceptible to kanamycin, chloramphenicol, cephalothin, gentamycin, and ceftriaxone. Conclusion: Salmonella was detected in carcass, skin, and knife samples from export abattoirs, which can have serious public health consequences. Some commonly used drugs in veterinary medicine have developed antimicrobial resistance. Therefore, sufficient sanitation at abattoirs, appropriate cooking of carcasses, and rational drug use is strongly advised. Further in-depth study such as serotyping and antimicrobial-resistant gene identification is recommended.

Comparative Immunogenicity Evaluation of Two Infectious Bursal Disease Vaccines Commonly Used in Broiler Chickens in Ethiopia.

PURPOSE: Infectious bursal disease (IBD) is one of the most endemic diseases of commercial poultry in Ethiopia. Vaccination is used as the major means of IBD prevention and control. A study was conducted to compare the immunogenicity of two commercially available IBD vaccines in broiler chicken with maternally derived antibody (MDA). METHODS: A total of 270 day-one-old chicks were randomly assigned to three groups, group 1 vaccinated with product A vaccine at the age of 7 and 19 days and group 2 with product B vaccine on day 15 and 22 while group 3 were kept as control. Six chickens were also randomly selected and bled on day 1 for differential leukocyte count (DLC) and determination of MDA. Representative chickens from each group were bled at 24th and 42nd days of age for antibody titration using the indirect ELISA test. DLC scores were determined in the 1st and 24th days. RESULTS: The result revealed highly significant differences (P = 0.001) between group 1 and group 2 in DLC at 24th days of age. Antibody titers against IBD were differed significantly (P = 0.02) at 24th and 42nd days of age in broilers vaccinated with product A and product B vaccines. CONCLUSION: Both vaccines have induced an adequate immunological response at the end of the experiment; however, product A has shown significantly higher antibody titers against the IBDV and DLC than product B.

Antitrypanosomal activity of hydromethanol extract of leaves of Cymbopogon citratus and seeds of Lepidium sativum: in-vivo mice model.

BACKGROUND: Trypanosomiasis is one of the neglected tropical diseases of both humans and animals which decreases their productivity and causes death in the worst scenario. Unavailability of vaccines, the low therapeutic index of trypanocidal drugs, and the development of resistance lead to the need for research focused on developing alternative treatment options especially from medicinal plants. The present study was aimed to investigate antitrypanosomal activities of leaves of Cymbopogon citratus and seeds of Lepidium sativum in in-vivo mice model. METHODS: The plant extracts were prepared by maceration using 80% methanol and reconstituted with 10% dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) to have the desired concentration. The test doses were adjusted to 100, 200 and 400 mg/kg based on the toxicity profile. The plants extracts were administered to the respective groups of mice after the 12th day of field isolate T. congolense inoculation for seven consecutive days. The level of parasitemia, bodyweight, packed cell volume (PCV), and differential white blood cell counts were measured. RESULTS: The in -vivo test results revealed that both plant extracts had dose-dependent antitrypanosomal activity. Both crude extracts showed a significant reduction in parasite load (P < 0.05), increased or prevent the fall of PCV value (P < 0.05), decreased lymphocytosis and increased neutrophil counts (p < 0.05) and improved bodyweight but significant bodyweight increment (P < 0.05) was observed only in C. citratus treated mice compared to the negative and positive controls. CONCLUSION: The present study concluded that the crude extracts of leaves of C. citratus and seeds of L. sativum had antitrypanosomal effects. Both plants extracts reduced parasitemia level, prevented anemia and improved bodyweight of treated mice. Comparative results from all tested parameters showed that the best activities were observed with C. citratus treated groups of mice.

Global distribution, host range and prevalence of Trypanosoma vivax: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Trypanosomosis caused by Trypanosoma vivax is one of the diseases threatening the health and productivity of livestock in Africa and Latin America. Trypanosoma vivax is mainly transmitted by tsetse flies; however, the parasite has also acquired the ability to be transmitted mechanically by hematophagous dipterans. Understanding its distribution, host range and prevalence is a key step in local and global efforts to control the disease. METHODS: The study was conducted according to the methodological recommendations of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) checklist. A systematic literature search was conducted on three search engines, namely PubMed, Scopus and CAB Direct, to identify all publications reporting natural infection of T. vivax across the world. All the three search engines were screened using the search term Trypanosoma vivax without time and language restrictions. Publications on T. vivax that met our inclusion criteria were considered for systematic review and meta-analysis. RESULT: The study provides a global database of T. vivax, consisting of 899 records from 245 peer-reviewed articles in 41 countries. A total of 232, 6277 tests were performed on 97 different mammalian hosts, including a wide range of wild animals. Natural infections of T. vivax were recorded in 39 different African and Latin American countries and 47 mammalian host species. All the 245 articles were included into the qualitative analysis, while information from 186 cross-sectional studies was used in the quantitative analysis mainly to estimate the pooled prevalence. Pooled prevalence estimates of T. vivax in domestic buffalo, cattle, dog, dromedary camel, equine, pig, small ruminant and wild animals were 30.6%, 6.4%, 2.6%, 8.4%, 3.7%, 5.5%, 3.8% and 12.9%, respectively. Stratified according to the diagnostic method, the highest pooled prevalences were found with serological techniques in domesticated buffalo (57.6%) followed by equine (50.0%) and wild animals (49.3%). CONCLUSION: The study provides a comprehensive dataset on the geographical distribution and host range of T. vivax and demonstrates the potential of this parasite to invade other countries out of Africa and Latin America.

Prevalence and antibiotic susceptibility pattern of Escherichia coli O157:H7 isolated from harvested fish at Lake Hayq and Tekeze dam, Northern Ethiopia.

Fisheries play a significant role in food security, livelihood, and source of income in developing countries. Although fish are a healthy source of protein, they can also spread diseases caused by pathogenic micro-organisms they may harbor. Epidemiology of foodborne pathogens is not well studied in Ethiopia. To address this issue to some extent, a cross-sectional study with a simple random sampling approach was conducted from October 2017 to May 2018 with the objectives of to isolate and estimate the prevalence of Escherichia coli O157: H7 in fish, and to evaluate the antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of the isolates in selected Lakes of Northern Ethiopia. All the microbial identification and isolation procedures were conducted based on ISO 6887-3:2017 recommendations. Antimicrobial susceptibility test was also performed following the standard procedure of Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion protocol. From the total 410 fish samples examined, six (1.46%) of them were found contaminated with Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli O157: H7 strain. The organism was isolated from landing sites (5/293) and local retail markets (1/75). Besides, Escherichia coli O157: H7 was isolated from filleted fish (5/214) and whole fish (1/125); however, it was not isolated from samples of ready to eat fish and working environments of restaurants. The antibiotic susceptibility test revealed that the isolates were resistant to Ampicillin and Streptomycin disks. However, Ciprofloxacin, Gentamicin and Nalidixic acid were found effective in inhibiting the growth of all of the isolates. Since pathogenic Escherichia coli strain was detected from fish, raw and undercooked fish consumption in Ethiopia may result in contracting infections. The occurrence of such pathogenic organisms in fish indicates the need for intervention by stakeholders. Supports like freezers, generators, the establishment of fish processing plants and on job training about proper fish handling practices may play a tremendous role in decreasing the level of contamination of fish in Ethiopia.