Background Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular and neurotropic apicomplexan protozoan parasite infecting almost all warm-blooded vertebrates including humans. To date in Ethiopia, no systematic study has been investigated on the overall effects of potential risk factors associated with seropositivity for Toxoplasma gondii among pregnant women and HIV infected individuals. We intended to determine the potential risk factors (PRFs) associated with seropositivity for Toxoplasma gondii from published data among pregnant women and HIV infected individuals of Ethiopia. Methodology An systematic review of the previous reports was made. We searched PubMed, Science Direct, African Journals Online, and Google Scholar for studies with no restriction on the year of publication. All references were screened independently in duplicate and were included if they presented data on at least two risk factors. Meta-analysis using the random or fixed-effects model was made to calculate the overall effects for each exposure. Results Of the 216 records identified, twenty-four reports met our eligibility criteria, with a total of 6003 individuals (4356 pregnant women and 1647 HIV infected individuals). The pooled prevalences of anti-Toxoplasma gondii antibodies were found at 72.5% (95% CI: 58.7% - 83.1%) in pregnant women and 85.7% (95% CI: 76.3% - 91.8%) in HIV infected individuals. A significant overall effect of anti-Toxoplasma gondii seropositivity among pregnant women (p < 0.05) was witnessed with age, abortion history, contact with cats, cat ownership, having knowledge about toxoplasmosis, being a housewife and having unsafe water source. Age, cat ownership, and raw meat consumption were also shown a significant effect (p < 0.05) to anti-Toxoplasma gondii seropositivity among HIV infected individuals. Conclusions This review showed gaps and drawbacks in the earlier studies that are useful to keep in mind to design accurate investigations in the future. The pooled prevalence of anti-Toxoplasma gondii antibodies was found to be higher among pregnant women and HIV infected individuals. This suggests that thousands of immunocompromised individuals (pregnant women and HIV infected patients) are at risk of toxoplasmosis due to the sociocultural and living standards of the communities of Ethiopia. Appropriate preventive measures are needed to reduce the exposure to Toxoplasma gondii infection. Further studies to investigate important risk factors are recommended to support the development of more cost-effective preventive strategies.

Introduction: The present trial aimed to investigate invitro anthelminthic activities of selected tropical tanniferous plant extract on egg hatchability and larval development inhibition of Haemonchus contortus in sheep. In view of that, three tropical tanniferous plants Rhus glutinosa, Syzygium guineensa and Albizia gumifera, were selected based on their relative high content of condensed tannins. Methods: In this study, eggs were collected from artificially infected with H. contortus. Then the egg was directly subjected to invitro assay with these condensed tannin-enriched extracts using egg hatchability assay and inhibition of larval development assay. Results: The result showed that extracts from all three tropical tanniferous plants demonstrated statistically significant (P < 0.05) dosedependent inhibition of both egg hatchability and larval development. According to IC 50 and IC 90 values, the condensed tannin-enriched extracts inhibiting egg hatching and larval development most potently were Rhus glutinosa followed in descending order of activity by Syzygium guineensa and Albizia gumifera. Discussion: The result of this study showed that these condensed tanninenriched extracts were effective in inhibiting egg hatchability as well as larval development. Therefore, condensed tannin might be recommended as one of the options for the control of H. contortus in sheep.

Brucellosis is an infectious and widespread zoonotic disease caused by bacteria of the genus Brucella and can induce considerable human suffering and huge economic losses in animals. Thus, the aim of this study was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis on the seroprevalence of bovine brucellosis in Ethiopia. PubMed, Science Direct, African Journals Online, and Google Scholar were used to search the articles. All references were screened and articles, which reported seroprevalence of bovine brucellosis in Ethiopia were included in the study. Meta-analysis using random-effects models was made to calculate the pooled seroprevalence of brucellosis. This review included 15 papers. The estimated pooled seroprevalence of brucellosis was found to be 3.0% (95% CI: 2.0, 4.0). The subgroup analysis showed that there was a statistically significant association between the disease and geographical location, setting, laboratory technique employed and study years. Also, there was some evidence of publication bias (Egger's test, p = 0.0003) on studies reporting the prevalence of brucellosis in Ethiopia. This review proves a high seroprevalence of brucellosis in the country and appropriate control strategies are recommended. Moreover, further study on the risk factors is also required to develop cost-effective preventive strategies.

Diseases from food of animal origin are common health problems in Ethiopia. A cross-sectional study was carried out to estimate health and economic burden, and to identify demographic factors associated with community awareness of foodborne zoonotic diseases in Amhara region, Ethiopia. Data was collected from 435 households in three towns: Gondar, Lalibela and Debark. A retrospective data was also collected from health records in each town. The health burden due to zoonotic diseases was estimated at 0.2, 0.1 and 1.3 DALYs per household per year and at 73.2, 146.6 and 1,689.5 DALYs out of 100,000 populations per year in Gondar, Lalibela and Debark, respectively. The overall health burden due to foodborne zoonotic diseases (aggregated over the 435 households in the three towns) was estimated to be 89.9 DALYs per 100,000 populations per year. The economic impact of foodborne zoonotic diseases in the three towns of Amhara regional state was 278.98 Ethiopian Birr (ETB) (1ETB = 0.025 US Dollar) per household per year and 121,355.68 ETB per year. Costs of preventive measures followed by costs of patients’ time made the highest contribution while costs of diagnosis made the lowest contribution to the total economic burden of foodborne zoonotic diseases. From a total of 435 respondents, 305 (70.1%) had known the presence of zoonotic diseases. Level of education, number of families in the house and income were highly associated with awareness of zoonosis. Although majority of respondents had known zoonotic diseases exists (70.1%) and disease can be acquired from animal source food (63.2%), the health and economic burden associated to foodborne zoonotic diseases are still high. Therefore, changing mindset and practical training aiming in controlling foodborne zoonotic diseases may be suggested to the community in the health improvement extension service.

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Background Ethiopia accommodates the second largest number of human rabies deaths in Africa. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to summarize and pool estimates of dog-mediated rabies status in Ethiopia. Methods Published researches between 2010 and 2020 were comprehensively searched and the required information was extracted. The prevalence was estimated using the random-effects meta-analysis because higher heterogeneity between studies was expected. Results The pooled estimate of rabies was 32% (95% CI: 19–46%), with individual study prevalence estimates ranged from 1 to 78%. Studies were approximately weighted equally with individual weight ranging from 5.19–5.28%. Subgroup analysis indicated that the random pooled prevalence of rabies was 28% (95% CI: 0–81%) in animals and 33% (95% CI: 20–47%) in humans. Furthermore, a subgroup analysis across regions indicated that the pooled prevalence was 78% in Addis Ababa, 46% in Oromia, 40% in Tigray and 5% in Amhara regional states. No single study was reported from the country’s eastern and southern parts to be included in this meta-analysis. Conclusion The estimated pooled rabies prevalence was found high and showed varying among study regions. Therefore, focusing on mass dog vaccination campaigns and public awareness should be implemented to control the disease.

Background: Rabies is a lethal zoonotic viral disease mostly transmitted by dog-bite. Ethiopia accommodates the second largest number of human rabies deaths in Africa. The total number of animal rabies cases in Ethiopia is not known. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to summarize and pool estimates of dog-mediated rabies' status in Ethiopia. Methods: Published researches between the years 2010 to 2020 were comprehensively searched and the required information was extracted. The prevalence was estimated using the random-effects meta-analysis because higher heterogeneity between studies was expected. Results: The pooled estimate of rabies was 32% (95% CI: 19% - 46%), with individual study prevalence estimates ranged from 1% - 78%. Studies were approximately weighted equally with individual weight ranging from 5.19% - 5.28%. Subgroup analysis indicated that the random pooled prevalence of rabies based upon hosts affected was 28% (95% CI: 0% – 81%) in animals and 33% (95% CI: 20% - 47%) in humans. Furthermore, a subgroup analysis across regions indicated that the pooled prevalence in Amhara and Tigray regional states was 5% (CI: 3% - 8%) and 55% (CI: 21% - 86%), respectively. No single study was reported from the country's Eastern and Southern parts which might be due to the religious aspect that most Muslims do not keep dogs in this region. Thus, the regional differences in data availability may have led to an overestimation of some regions' estimates. Conclusion: The estimated pooled rabies prevalence was found high and showed varying among study regions. Therefore, focusing on mass dog vaccination campaigns and public awareness should be implemented to control the disease.

A cross-sectional study was undertaken in four (4) districts of the West Amhara sub-region of Ethiopia with the aim of assessing the diversity and distribution of serotypes of Pasteurella species, their seroprevalence, and associated risk factors, and knowledge, attitude, and practice of farmers toward ovine pasteurellosis. A total of 600 sheep sera were collected using multistage cluster sampling. Each sample was examined for the presence of six (6) serotype-specific antibodies using an indirect haemagglutination test. We are reporting a higher seroprevalence of 90.17% (541/600) in which all seropositive animals were shown to have been co-infected with multiple serotypes. Individual serotype prevalence showed that serotype A7 has the highest prevalence of 77.83% followed by A2 (74.33%), T15 (64%), T4 (62%), PA (60%), and A1 (39.17%). In this study, being female [odds ratio (OR): 2.45, 95% CI (1.09–5.52), p = 0.031] and living in high altitude areas [OR: 20.29, 95% CI (2.54–161.95), p = 0.004] were found to be significantly associated with sero-positivity. A questionnaire survey (n = 384) employed in a face-to-face interview was used to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice of farmers related to ovine pasteurellosis. Accordingly, the majority (72.4%) of respondents had an inadequate knowledge level of the disease. The proportion of farmers with a favorable attitude and good practices toward the disease was 50.26 and 77.6%, respectively. This study is highly indicative that ovine pasteurellosis is a ubiquitous disease in the study area challenging the sheep production sector. The existence of diverse serotypes reported to lack cross-protective immunity is likely to explain why the current vaccination practice with the mono-serotype Pasteurella multocida biotype A vaccine is not providing adequate protection against outbreaks of the disease. Prioritization of one or more serotypes for inclusion in a multivalent vaccine should be dictated by the abundance and distribution of a particular serotype, its clinical importance, and its resultant economic impact. Furthermore, training farmers on key aspects of the disease is vital in the implementation of effective disease management strategies through a participatory approach. Data from the remaining regions of the country could help realize the development of an effective vaccine that works best at the national level.