New study develops forecasting tools for better detection and control of dengue in Vietnam

Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne viral disease that commonly occurs in warm, tropical climates. It is characterized by high fever and flu-like symptoms that can last for up to one week. In a small proportion of cases, severe dengue may occur, leading to bleeding and low blood pressure. There is no specific treatment for infection but medication can be taken to control symptoms.

Climate change and rapid unplanned urbanization are among the factors that have brought people into more frequent contact with the vectors, thus contributing to further spread of disease.

According to the World Health Organization, the global incidence of dengue has risen dramatically in recent decades, with an estimated 390 million dengue infections annually.

Vietnam is one of at least 100 countries where the disease is now endemic. Dengue infection in Vietnam is unstable but peaks from June to October annually.

As part of efforts to curb the spread of dengue in Vietnam, research efforts are being undertaken to develop tools that will enable timely detection and control of the disease. One such research study recently examined seasonal trends of dengue in Vietnam and used the data to develop a statistical model to forecast the incidence of the disease.

The study, published in PLOS ONE (27 Nov 2019), was carried out by a team of researchers from the International Livestock Research Institute and Vietnamese partners from Hanoi University of Public Health, the Institute of Meteorology, Hydrology and Climate Change, the Ministry of Health and the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology.

To develop the statistical risk forecasting model, the researchers used dengue surveillance data that had been collected by health centres in Vietnam’s 63 provinces between 2001 and 2012. In addition, they obtained monthly meteorological data from the Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology and Climate Change. Land cover data were obtained from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer website of the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

The data were also used to develop risk maps of dengue incidence showing the distribution of the incidence of infection in the wet and dry seasons. The researchers are optimistic that with these new risk-based forecasting tools, policymakers and planners in Vietnam will be better able to predict dengue incidence in the country and thus respond in a timely manner to effectively control the disease.

Citation
Bett, B., Grace, D., Hu Suk Lee, Lindahl, J., Hung Nguyen-Viet, Phuc Pham-Duc, Nguyen Huu Quyen, Tran Anh Tu, Tran Dac Phu, Dang Quang Tan and Vu Sinh Nam. 2019. Spatiotemporal analysis of historical records (2001–2012) on dengue fever in Vietnam and development of a statistical model for forecasting risk. PLOS ONE 14(11): e0224353.

Photo credit: Crop-livestock systems in Vietnam (ILRI/Hung Nguyen)

 

Celebrating World Antibiotic Resistance Week 2019 with highlights of ILRI research on antimicrobial resistance

Each November, the World Antibiotic Awareness Week is commemorated to raise global awareness of antibiotic resistance and to encourage rational use of antibiotics to avoid further emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance.

In collaboration with national, regional and international partners, scientists at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) carry out research on antimicrobial resistance at the human–livestock interface. In recognition of World Antibiotic Awareness Week 2019, we highlight some of our recent research outputs on antimicrobial resistance.

• Ahlberg, S., Korhonen, H., Lindfors, E. and Kang’ethe, E. 2016. Analysis of antibiotic residues in milk from smallholder farms in Kenya. African Journal of Dairy Farming and Milk Production 3(4): 152–158.
• Dulo, F., Feleke, A., Szonyi, B., Fries, R., Baumann, M.P.O. and Grace, D. 2015. Isolation of multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli O157 from goats in the Somali region of Ethiopia: A cross-sectional, abattoir-based study. PLOS ONE 10(11): e0142905.
• Grace, D. 2015. Review of evidence on antimicrobial resistance and animal agriculture in developing countries. UK: Evidence on Demand.
• Hassell, J.M., Ward, M.J., Muloi, D., Bettridge, J.M., Robinson, T.P., Kariuki, S., Ogendo, A., Kiiru, J., Imboma, T., Kang’ethe, E.K., Öghren, E.M., Williams, N.J., Begon, M., Woolhouse, M.E.J. and Fèvre, E.M. 2019. Clinically relevant antimicrobial resistance at the wildlife–livestock–human interface in Nairobi: An epidemiological study. Lancet Planetary Health 3(6): e259–e269.
• Hunduma, D., Alonso, S., Agga, G., Dego, O.K., Wieland, B., Desta, H., Grace, D. and Amenu, K. 2019. Occurrence and antimicrobial resistance of Escherichia coli O157: H7 and Salmonella in the milk and feces of lactating dairy cows and camels in Borana pastoral community, Ethiopia. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the International Association for Food Protection, Louisville, Kentucky, 21–24 July 2019. 
• ILRI. 2019. Health and antibiotics in Vietnamese pig production. ILRI Project Profile. Nairobi, Kenya: ILRI.
• Kakkar, M., Chatterjee, P., Chauhan, A.S., Grace, D., Lindahl, J., Beeche, A., Jing, F. and Chotinan, S. 2018. Antimicrobial resistance in South East Asia: Time to ask the right questions. Global Health Action 11(1): 1483637.
• Muloi, D., Fèvre, E.M., Bettridge, J., Rono, R., Ong’are, D., Hassell, J.M., Karani, M.K., Muinde, P., Bunnik, B. van, Street, A., Chase-Topping, M., Pedersen, A.B., Ward, M.J. and Woolhouse, M.E.J. 2019. A cross-sectional survey of practices and knowledge among antibiotic retailers in Nairobi, Kenya. Journal of Global Health 9(2): 020412.
• Muloi, D., Kiiru, J., Ward, M.J., Hassell, J.M., Bettridge, J.M., Robinson, T.P., Bunnik, B.A.D. van, Chase-Topping, M., Robertson, G., Pedersen, A.B., Fèvre, E.M., Woolhouse, M.E.J., Kang’ethe, E.K. and Kariuki, S. 2019. Epidemiology of antimicrobial resistant Escherichia coli carriage in sympatric humans and livestock in a rapidly urbanising city. International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents 54(5): 531–537. 
• Zoonotic and Emerging Diseases Research Team. 2019. Resistance to antibiotic drugs. Video. Nairobi, Kenya: Zoonotic and Emerging Diseases Research Team.

For more information, contact Arshnee Moodley (a.moodley@cgiar.org), antimicrobial resistance team leader at ILRI, or visit the website of the ILRI-hosted CGIAR Antimicrobial Resistance Hub.

Photo credit: World Health Organization

 

Celebrating One Health Day 2019 with a focus on ILRI’s One Health research

One Health Day is a global campaign marked annually on 3 November to bring attention to the need for a One Health approach to address the shared health threats at the human–animal–environment interface.

The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) carries out One Health research through its Animal and Human Health program which seeks to effectively manage or eliminate livestock, zoonotic and food-borne diseases through the generation and use of knowledge, technologies and products. 

We commemorate this year’s One Health Day by featuring a selection of the program’s recent research outputs on this important topic.

• Falzon, L.C., Alumasa, L., Amanya, F., Kang’ethe, E., Kariuki, S., Momanyi, K., Muinde, P., Murungi, M.K., Njoroge, S.M., Ogendo, A., Ogola, J., Rushton, J., Woolhouse, M.E.J. and Fèvre, E.M. 2019. One Health in action: Operational aspects of an integrated surveillance system for zoonoses in western Kenya. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 6: 252. 
• Grace, D., Bett, B., Atherstone, C., Unger, F., Hung Nguyen-Viet and Sinh Dang-Xuan. 2019. International perspectives on One Health. Presentation at the Australian Veterinary Association Annual Conference, Perth, Australia, 5–10 May 2019.
• Hu Suk Lee. 2019. Strengthening capacities for improving human and animal health in Southeast Asia using a One Health approach. Presentation at the third Global Official Development Assistance Forum for Sustainable Agricultural Development, Seoul, Republic of Korea, 13–15 May 2019.
• Hung Nguyen-Viet. 2019. Food safety and antimicrobial resistance research: A One Health perspective. Presentation at the Emerging Pathogen Institute seminar series, Gainesville, Florida, 26 July 2019.
• Lindahl, J.F., Vrentas, C.E., Deka, R.P., Hazarika, R.A., Rahman, H., Bambal, R.G., Bedi, J.S., Bhattacharya, C., Chaudhuri, P., Fairoze, N.M., Gandhi, R.S., Gill, J.P.S., Gupta, N.K., Kumar, M., Londhe, S., Rahi, M., Sharma, P.K., Shome, R., Singh, R., Srinivas, K. and Swain, B.B. 2019. Brucellosis in India: results of a collaborative workshop to define One Health priorities. Tropical Animal Health and Production.

For more information, contact Delia Randolph (d.randolph@cgiar.org) or Vish Nene (v.nene@cgiar.org), co-leaders of ILRI’s Animal and Human Health program.

Photo credit: Women waiting to fetch water as cattle drink from a water pan in Taita Taveta, Kenya (ILRI/Juliet Kariuki)

 

IMMANA announces call for applications for research grants on food systems and nutrition outcomes

The Innovative Methods and Metrics for Agriculture and Nutrition Actions (IMMANA) program has called for a third round of applications for its competitive research grants. 

The research grants are aimed at accelerating the development of innovative and interdisciplinary methods, metrics and tools to advance scientific understanding of the linkages between agriculture and food systems and health and nutrition outcomes, in order to better inform policy and programmatic actions to improve nutrition outcomes in low- and middle-income countries.

This workstream of the IMMANA program is led by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. So far, 15 research grants of up to £250,000 have been awarded over two rounds (Round 1 and Round 2). There will be two funding rounds (Rounds 3 and 4) for the IMMANA Phase 2 grants. Each IMMANA grant will be a maximum of £250,000 and up to eight grants are expected to be awarded through a competitive selection process in each round (total of 16). Applications for Round 3 grants are now open.

For more information about eligibility, the selection process and timelines, visit https://immana.lcirah.ac.uk/grants.

Photo credit: Aflatoxin research at the BecA-ILRI Hub (ILRI/Paul Karaimu)

 

Celebrating Open Access Week 2019 with a focus on ILRI’s open access research on animal and human health

Open Access Week is celebrated globally every year during the last complete week of October. To mark Open Access Week 2019, we highlight some recent open access research articles authored and co-authored by scientists from the Animal and Human Health program of the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). 

The program seeks to effectively manage or eliminate livestock, zoonotic and foodborne diseases that matter to the poor through the generation and use of knowledge, technologies and products, leading to higher farmer incomes and better health and nutrition for consumers and livestock.

Read about our research on antimicrobial resistance, food safety, One Health and zoonotic diseases from this selection of peer-reviewed, open access journal articles published this year:

• Ahmed, S., Dávila, J.D., Allen, A., Haklay, M., Tacoli, C. and Fèvre, E.M. 2019. Does urbanization make emergence of zoonosis more likely? Evidence, myths and gaps. Environment and Urbanization 31(2): 443–460. 
• Amenu, K., Wieland, B., Szonyi, B. and Grace, D. 2019. Milk handling practices and consumption behavior among Borana pastoralists in southern Ethiopia. Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition 38: 6. 
• Chauhan, A.S., George, M.S., Lindahl, J., Grace, D. and Kakkar, M. 2019. Community, system and policy level drivers of bovine tuberculosis in smallholder periurban dairy farms in India: A qualitative enquiry. BMC Public Health 19: 301. 
• Falzon, L.C., Alumasa, L., Amanya, F., Kang’ethe, E., Kariuki, S., Momanyi, K., Muinde, P., Murungi, M.K., Njoroge, S.M., Ogendo, A., Ogola, J., Rushton, J., Woolhouse, M.E.J. and Fèvre, E.M. 2019. One Health in action: Operational aspects of an integrated surveillance system for zoonoses in western Kenya. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 6: 252. 
• Grace, D., Dipeolu, M. and Alonso, S. 2019. Improving food safety in the informal sector: nine years later. Infection Ecology & Epidemiology 9(1): 1579613. 
• Hassell, J.M., Ward, M.J., Muloi, D., Bettridge, J.M., Robinson, T.P., Kariuki, S., Ogendo, A., Kiiru, J., Imboma, T., Kang’ethe, E.K., Öghren, E.M., Williams, N.J., Begon, M., Woolhouse, M.E.J. and Fèvre, E.M. 2019. Clinically relevant antimicrobial resistance at the wildlife–livestock–human interface in Nairobi: An epidemiological study. Lancet Planetary Health 3(6): e259–e269. 
• Hung Nguyen-Viet, Sinh Dang-Xuan, Phuc Pham-Duc, Roesel, K., Nguyen Mai Huong, Toan Luu-Quoc, Pham Van Hung, Nguyen Thi Duong Nga, Lapar, L., Unger, F., Häsler, B. and Grace, D. 2019. Rapid integrated assessment of food safety and nutrition related to pork consumption of regular consumers and mothers with young children in Vietnam. Global Food Security 20: 37–44. 
• Kuboka, M.M., Imungi, J.K., Njue, L., Mutua, F., Grace, D. and Lindahl, J.F. 2019. Occurrence of aflatoxin M1 in raw milk traded in peri-urban Nairobi, and the effect of boiling and fermentation. Infection Ecology & Epidemiology 9(1): 1625703.
• Muloi, D., Fèvre, E.M., Bettridge, J., Rono, R., Ong’are, D., Hassell, J.M., Karani, M.K., Muinde, P., Bunnik, B. van, Street, A., Chase-Topping, M., Pedersen, A.B., Ward, M.J. and Woolhouse, M.E.J. 2019. A cross-sectional survey of practices and knowledge among antibiotic retailers in Nairobi, Kenya. Journal of Global Health 9(2): 020412.
• Roesel, K., Ejobi, F., Dione, M., Pezo, D., Ouma, E., Kungu, J., Clausen, P.-H. and Grace, D. 2019. Knowledge, attitudes and practices of pork consumers in Uganda. Global Food Security 20: 26–36. 

For more information, contact Delia Randolph (d.randolph@cgiar.org) or Vish Nene (v.nene@cgiar.org), co-leaders of ILRI’s Animal and Human Health program.

Photo credit: International Open Access Week

 

New study finds that urban wildlife may be a significant vector for antimicrobial resistant bacteria

Researchers entering sampling data (photo credit: Zoonoses and Emerging Diseases).

In the cities of developing nations, where unregulated antibiotic use is common and livestock jostle with people amid often unsanitary conditions, scientists have found a potentially troubling vector for the dissemination of antimicrobial resistant bacteria: wildlife.

The epidemiological study published in the June 2019 issue of the journal Lancet Planetary Health shows that urban wildlife in Nairobi carry a high burden of clinically relevant antimicrobial resistant bacteria. The research team included scientists from the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), the University of Liverpool and the Kenya Medical Research Institute, among other research institutions.

Antimicrobial resistance is an increasingly serious threat to public health. Through misuse and overuse of antibacterial medication, more and more of the bacterial diseases that were once easily treated with antibiotics have become drug-resistant; these new strains of old germs require expensive and prolonged treatment at best and at worst can be lethal.

The study deployed teams of veterinary, medical, environmental and wildlife personnel to sample 99 households randomly chosen from Nairobi’s socio-economically diverse neighbourhoods.

The study found higher diversity of antimicrobial resistance in livestock and the environment than humans and wildlife. Rodents and birds were significantly more likely to carry resistance to multiple drugs when exposed to human and livestock waste through poor management practices, a common feature of lower-income neighbourhoods.

“This paper shows that contamination of urban environments with antimicrobial resistance is a serious issue. This is not just specific to Nairobi but findings can be extrapolated to other cities in Africa,” said Eric Fèvre, a joint appointed scientist at ILRI and professor of veterinary infectious diseases at the University of Liverpool.

“We tend to think of antimicrobial resistance in primarily medical terms, of developing new drugs and better using old ones. But we need to take an ecological approach to addressing this threat. Urban cities can address this by better urban planning, better waste disposal, better livestock husbandry practices. This can go far toward disrupting antimicrobial resistance exchange between wildlife, livestock and humans,” said Fèvre.

The lead author of the study, James Hassell, said, “Although we found no evidence to suggest that antimicrobial resistance carried by urban wildlife poses a direct threat to human health, that these animals harbour high levels of resistance to drugs used in human and animal medicine is particularly worrisome. Since wildlife are not treated with antibiotics, this is indicative of how pervasive antimicrobial resistance is in urban environments. Species that move freely across cities and further afield could disseminate resistance acquired in urban areas more widely.”

“We cannot address the rise of antimicrobial resistance without focusing on the environmental, ecological and social settings in which humans exist,” said Hassell.

Citation

Hassell, J.M., Ward, M.J., Muloi, D., Bettridge, J.M., Robinson, T.P., Kariuki, S., Ogendo, A., Kiiru, J., Imboma, T., Kang’ethe, E.K., Öghren, E.M., Williams, N.J., Begon, M., Woolhouse, M.E.J. and Fèvre, E.M. 2019. Clinically relevant antimicrobial resistance at the wildlife–livestock–human interface in Nairobi: An epidemiological study. Lancet Planetary Health 3(6): e259–e269.

 

CGIAR Research Program on Agriculture for Nutrition and Health publishes 2018 annual report

The CGIAR Research Program on Agriculture for Nutrition and Health (A4NH) has published its 2018 annual report, highlighting program activities and research results from across A4NH’s five research flagships and five focus countries. These include:

• research into consumer choices, motives and barriers through the lens of vegetable consumption in urban Nigeria;
• building the evidence base with newly-published research that shows biofortified high-iron pearl millet can significantly improve nutrition and cognitive performance;
• significant research contributions to help policymakers and consumers understand food safety issues and risks;
• how agriculture and nutrition interventions delivered through community-based childcare centres can impact nutrient intake, dietary diversity and nutritional status;
• improving hospital diagnostics for human brucellosis; and
• an exploration of gender research projects being conducted under A4NH.

Photo credit: International Food Policy Research Institute

 

New research partnership to tackle the global problem of #antimicrobialresistance

Sheep market in Doyogena, Ethiopia (photo credit: ILRI/Zerihun Sewunet).

To tackle a growing problem of rising antimicrobial resistance in low- and middle-income countries, CGIAR, a global research partnership for a food-secure future, is forming an international hub to help integrate and channel research and development efforts.

The hub, launched on 21–22 February 2019, in Nairobi, Kenya, will be led and hosted by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI).

Antibiotics and other antimicrobial drugs are among the most important tools available to medical and veterinary professionals for curing human and animal diseases and improving their welfare, yet these drugs are increasingly failing. Development of resistance to these drugs in disease-causing bacteria and other microbes poses a major threat to global development; the World Bank estimates that annual global gross domestic product could fall by more than 1 trillion United States dollars (USD) by 2030 because of it.

While the World Bank also estimates that investments of USD 6 to 8 billion annually could mitigate this loss, at present, it seems the antimicrobial resistance problem will get rapidly worse before it gets better. Large quantities of antimicrobial drugs are used to cure human illness and provide healthy livestock and fish for food.

Though specifics are unknown, use of antimicrobials for livestock and in aquaculture, is rising, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. These antimicrobials are often used in suboptimal ways, such as applying dosages too little to be effective or over too long a time period to be environmentally healthy, or the wrong drugs are used, or antibiotics are used for diseases not caused by bacteria. Humans, livestock and fish excrete these drugs, which leads to environmental contamination, including that of water systems.

Globally, the main driver of the growing incidence of antimicrobial resistance in humans is overuse and misuse of antibiotics in human medicine, which applies selective pressure for resistant pathogens. But antimicrobial use in agriculture to control animal and plant diseases also contributes to this growing drug resistance problem, although experts don’t know the contribution of agriculture to the problem in humans.

The greatest challenges and burdens of antimicrobial resistance will be felt by the poorest in poorer countries. While these countries with their rapidly growing populations face the greatest and rising demand for increased food production, their populations also tend to have poorer access to relevant knowledge, veterinary and health services. The countries face challenges in enforcing regulations and understanding and implementing effective antimicrobial resistance surveillance.

With its mandate to improve the livelihoods of poor people, improve food and nutrition security and improve natural resource management through agriculture and food research, CGIAR is ideally positioned to tackle agriculture-related antimicrobial risks in developing countries and to develop, test and promote solutions to mitigate these risks together with its partners.

Like climate change and malnutrition, two other global challenges CGIAR works to address, antimicrobial resistance challenges us to use evidence and find ways to change the knowledge, attitudes and behaviors of people. Any solutions will require combining technical, institutional and policy innovations and leveraging the contributions of different sectors and disciplines, and both public and private actors.

The new CGIAR Antimicrobial Resistance Hub will work to foster learning from past experiences, support research excellence in the global south and ensure a critical mass of coordinated research to find suitable and sustainable solutions. ILRI will be joined in this effort by three CGIAR research programs—Agriculture for Nutrition and Health, FISH and LIVESTOCK—along with three CGIAR centers—the International Food Policy Research Institute, the International Water Management Institute and WorldFish. Together, these seven research programs and institutions with their national partners and partner research organizations outside CGIAR, will support global research efforts among experts the world over—from low- to middle- to high-income countries.

For more information about the CGIAR Antimicrobial Resistance Hub, contact Barbara Wieland at b.wieland@cgiar.org or Delia Grace Randolph at d.randolph@cgiar.org.

 

‘We can’t modernize, regulate or train our way to food safety in Africa’—ILRI epidemiologist Silvia Alonso

ILRI Clippings

Written by Silvia Alonso

Veterinary epidemiologist Silvia Alonso works at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), where she contributes to the food safety flagship of the CGIAR Research Program for Agriculture for Nutrition and Health (A4NH), which is led by ILRI’s sister organization the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)

Alonso had some eye-popping things to say about food safety in Africa at the ‘First FAO/WHO/AU International Food Safety’ conference, held in Addis Ababa, 12–13 Feb 2019.

But first, for context, see below what The Economist Espresso had to say about this week’s food safety conference in the Ethiopian capital, where a Global Food Safety Partnership report was launched, to which ILRI scientists made many contributions (Hungry for change: Food safety (12 Feb 2019).

‘With an estimated 600m cases each year, food-borne diseases are an under-appreciated public-health problem. Africa, which suffers 137,000…

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Climate change and infectious livestock diseases: The case of Rift Valley fever and tick-borne diseases

Cattle going to the grazing field in Afar region, Ethiopia (photo credit: ILRI/Apollo Habtamu).

Climate change influences the occurrence and transmission of a wide range of livestock diseases through multiple pathways. Diseases caused by pathogens that spent part of their life cycle outside the host (for instance, in vectors or the environment) are more sensitive in this regard, compared to those caused by obligate pathogens.

A newly published book, The Climate-Smart Agriculture Papers, brings together some of the latest research by agricultural scientists on climate-smart agriculture in eastern and southern Africa. The 25 chapters of the book highlight ongoing efforts to better characterize climate risks, develop and disseminate climate-smart varieties and farm management practices, and integrate these technologies into well-functioning value chains.

In a chapter on climate change and livestock diseases, scientists from the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) use two well-studied vector-borne diseases—Rift Valley fever and tick-borne diseases—as case studies to describe direct pathways through which climate change influences infectious disease-risk in East and southern Africa.

Access the chapter, Climate change and infectious livestock diseases: The case of Rift Valley fever and tick-borne diseases by Bernard Bett, Johanna Lindahl and Delia Grace.