Genetic tracking of Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic orthonairovirus in Hyalomma population infesting cattle in Nigeria.

Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV), a Biosafety level 4 pathogen transmitted by ticks, causes severe haemorrhagic diseases in humans but remains clinically silent in animals. Over the past forty years, Nigeria lacks comprehensive genetic data on CCHFV in livestock and ticks. This study a...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Oluwafemi Babatunde Daodu, Joseph Ojonugwa Shaibu, Rosemary Ajuma Audu, Daniel Oladimeji Oluwayelu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2025-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0316770
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1832540200067137536
author Oluwafemi Babatunde Daodu
Joseph Ojonugwa Shaibu
Rosemary Ajuma Audu
Daniel Oladimeji Oluwayelu
author_facet Oluwafemi Babatunde Daodu
Joseph Ojonugwa Shaibu
Rosemary Ajuma Audu
Daniel Oladimeji Oluwayelu
author_sort Oluwafemi Babatunde Daodu
collection DOAJ
description Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV), a Biosafety level 4 pathogen transmitted by ticks, causes severe haemorrhagic diseases in humans but remains clinically silent in animals. Over the past forty years, Nigeria lacks comprehensive genetic data on CCHFV in livestock and ticks. This study aimed to identify and characterize CCHFV strains in cattle and their Hyalomma ticks, the primary vector, in Kwara State, Nigeria. Blood samples and Hyalomma ticks were collected from cattle, with ticks identified to species, pooled, and homogenized for RNA extraction. The CCHFV S-segment was detected using specific primers via reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, followed by sequencing of amplicons. Among 318 cattle, 318 sera samples and 2855 Hyalomma ticks (H. dromedarii (49.0%), H. truncatum (44.5%), and H. rufipes (6.5%)) were obtained. Only two tick pools of H. truncatum tested (2/319 pools) were positive for CCHFV, with no positive cattle sera detected. The sequenced positive pools, denoted as CCHFV/NGR/ILN/2021/F22_S-segment (1228 bp) and CCHFV/NGR/ILN/2021/F101_S-segment (863 bp), showed 98.21% nucleotide identity with 15 variations. These strains shared 98.13% and 98.93% nucleotide identity with CCHFV IbAr10200/UCCR4401 isolated from Nigerian ticks, but only 93.88% and 93.63% similarity with CCHFV isolated in 2016 from humans in Nigeria. Additionally, compared to CCHFV isolate IbAr10200 (KY484036), sequences from this study exhibited 9-23 nucleotide variable positions with 3-4 non-synonymous amino acid replacements. Phylogenetic analysis revealed clustering of these strains around IbAr10200, suggesting ongoing circulation. This study underscores the need for broader surveillance to understand the full spectrum of CCHFV strains and clades circulating in Nigeria.
format Article
id doaj-art-a05405b9471343f4a6f33ce0c2d5ad18
institution Kabale University
issn 1932-6203
language English
publishDate 2025-01-01
publisher Public Library of Science (PLoS)
record_format Article
series PLoS ONE
spelling doaj-art-a05405b9471343f4a6f33ce0c2d5ad182025-02-05T05:32:10ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032025-01-01201e031677010.1371/journal.pone.0316770Genetic tracking of Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic orthonairovirus in Hyalomma population infesting cattle in Nigeria.Oluwafemi Babatunde DaoduJoseph Ojonugwa ShaibuRosemary Ajuma AuduDaniel Oladimeji OluwayeluCrimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV), a Biosafety level 4 pathogen transmitted by ticks, causes severe haemorrhagic diseases in humans but remains clinically silent in animals. Over the past forty years, Nigeria lacks comprehensive genetic data on CCHFV in livestock and ticks. This study aimed to identify and characterize CCHFV strains in cattle and their Hyalomma ticks, the primary vector, in Kwara State, Nigeria. Blood samples and Hyalomma ticks were collected from cattle, with ticks identified to species, pooled, and homogenized for RNA extraction. The CCHFV S-segment was detected using specific primers via reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, followed by sequencing of amplicons. Among 318 cattle, 318 sera samples and 2855 Hyalomma ticks (H. dromedarii (49.0%), H. truncatum (44.5%), and H. rufipes (6.5%)) were obtained. Only two tick pools of H. truncatum tested (2/319 pools) were positive for CCHFV, with no positive cattle sera detected. The sequenced positive pools, denoted as CCHFV/NGR/ILN/2021/F22_S-segment (1228 bp) and CCHFV/NGR/ILN/2021/F101_S-segment (863 bp), showed 98.21% nucleotide identity with 15 variations. These strains shared 98.13% and 98.93% nucleotide identity with CCHFV IbAr10200/UCCR4401 isolated from Nigerian ticks, but only 93.88% and 93.63% similarity with CCHFV isolated in 2016 from humans in Nigeria. Additionally, compared to CCHFV isolate IbAr10200 (KY484036), sequences from this study exhibited 9-23 nucleotide variable positions with 3-4 non-synonymous amino acid replacements. Phylogenetic analysis revealed clustering of these strains around IbAr10200, suggesting ongoing circulation. This study underscores the need for broader surveillance to understand the full spectrum of CCHFV strains and clades circulating in Nigeria.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0316770
spellingShingle Oluwafemi Babatunde Daodu
Joseph Ojonugwa Shaibu
Rosemary Ajuma Audu
Daniel Oladimeji Oluwayelu
Genetic tracking of Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic orthonairovirus in Hyalomma population infesting cattle in Nigeria.
PLoS ONE
title Genetic tracking of Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic orthonairovirus in Hyalomma population infesting cattle in Nigeria.
title_full Genetic tracking of Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic orthonairovirus in Hyalomma population infesting cattle in Nigeria.
title_fullStr Genetic tracking of Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic orthonairovirus in Hyalomma population infesting cattle in Nigeria.
title_full_unstemmed Genetic tracking of Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic orthonairovirus in Hyalomma population infesting cattle in Nigeria.
title_short Genetic tracking of Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic orthonairovirus in Hyalomma population infesting cattle in Nigeria.
title_sort genetic tracking of crimean congo haemorrhagic orthonairovirus in hyalomma population infesting cattle in nigeria
url https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0316770
work_keys_str_mv AT oluwafemibabatundedaodu genetictrackingofcrimeancongohaemorrhagicorthonairovirusinhyalommapopulationinfestingcattleinnigeria
AT josephojonugwashaibu genetictrackingofcrimeancongohaemorrhagicorthonairovirusinhyalommapopulationinfestingcattleinnigeria
AT rosemaryajumaaudu genetictrackingofcrimeancongohaemorrhagicorthonairovirusinhyalommapopulationinfestingcattleinnigeria
AT danieloladimejioluwayelu genetictrackingofcrimeancongohaemorrhagicorthonairovirusinhyalommapopulationinfestingcattleinnigeria