This study aimed at evaluating the seroprevalence of dengue among malarious patients consulting at the Ngaoundere Regional Hospital. During 2 months and a half, 174 participants were recruited and their blood samples were screened for Plasmodium spp and then for Dengue virus (DENV) infection using rapid diagnostic tests. Also, hematological asparameters were measured using a hematology autoanalyzer. Among patients tested, 134 (77.01%) were malaria‐positive, and 12/134 (8.95%) were coinfected. In this population, 8/12 (66.67%) were only anti‐DENV IgM‐positive, 3/12 (25%) were both NS1 and anti‐DENV IgM positive, and 1/12 (8.33%) were anti‐DENV IgG‐positive. Furthermore, women were more affected (58.3%) than men (41.7%). The most affected age groups were young people aged less than or equal to 15 years (33.3%) and adults aged between 30 and 45 years (33.3%). A significant association (p < .05; odds ratio [OR] = 5.16) was found between the age range (30–45) and dengue–malaria coinfection. Similarly, we noted a significant association between the coinfection, and joint pain (p < .05; OR = 6.15), fatigue (p < .01; OR = 5.74), and chills (p < .05; OR = 0). Analysis of hematologic parameters showed a significant decrease (p < .001) in platelets in coinfected patients compared with monoinfected patients. In conclusion, dengue–malaria coinfection is a reality in Ngaoundere city and associated with the appearance of clinical features which predict the disease severity.

Since its discovery in 1947 in Uganda and control and eradication efforts have aimed at its vectors (Aedes mosquitoes) in Latin America in the 1950s, an absolute neglect of Zika programs and interventions has been documented in Aedes endemic and epidemic-prone countries. The current unprecedented Zika viral epidemics and rapid spread in the Western hemisphere pose a substantial global threat, with associated anxiety and consequences. The lack of safe and effective drugs and vaccines against Zika or dengue epidemics further buttresses the realization from the West Africa Ebola outbreak that most emerging disease-prone countries are still poorly prepared for an emergency response. This paper examines knowledge gaps in both emerging and neglected arthropod-borne flavivirus infectious diseases associated with poverty and their implications for fostering local, national and regional emerging disease preparedness, effective and robust surveillance-response systems, sustained control and eventual elimination. Strengthening the regional and Global Health Flavivirus Surveillance-Response Network (GHFV-SRN) with other models of socio-economic, climatic, environmental and ecological mitigation and adaptation strategies will be necessary to improve evidence-based national and global maternal-child health agenda and action plans.

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection is emerging in Cameroon and represents one of the most common causes of acute hepatitis and jaundice. Moreover, earlier reports showed evidence of falciparum malaria/HEVcoexistence. Although the Sofosbuvir/Ribavirin combination was recently proposed in the treatment of HEV-infected patients, no specific antiviral drug has been approved so far, thereby urging the search for new therapies. Fortunately, drug repurposing offers a good alternative to this end. In this study, we report the in silico and in vitro activities of 8 licensed antimalarial drugs and two anti-hepatitis C virus agents used as references (Sofosbuvir, and Ribavirin), for repurposing as antiviral inhibitors against HEV. Compounds were docked against five HEV-specific targets including the Zinc-binding non-structural protein (6NU9), RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp), cryoEM structure of HEV VLP, genotype 1 (6LAT), capsid protein ORF-2, genotype 3 (2ZTN), and the E2s domain of genotype 1 (3GGQ) using the iGEMDOCK software and their pharmacokinetic profiles and toxicities were predicted using ADMETlab2.0. Their in vitro effects were also assessed on a gt 3 p6Gluc replicon system using the luciferase reporter assay. The docking results showed that Sofosbuvir had the best binding affinities with 6NU9 (− 98.22 kcal/mol), RdRp (− 113.86 kcal/mol), 2ZTN (− 106.96 kcal/mol), while Ribavirin better collided with 6LAT (− 99.33 kcal/mol). Interestingly, Lumefantrine showed the best affinity with 3GGQ (-106.05 kcal/mol). N -desethylamodiaquine and Amodiaquine presented higher binding scores with 6NU9 (− 93.5 and − 89.9 kcal/mol respectively vs − 80.83 kcal/mol), while Lumefantrine had the greatest energies with RdRp (− 102 vs − 84.58), and Pyrimethamine and N -desethylamodiaquine had stronger affinities with 2ZTN compared to Ribavirin (− 105.17 and − 102.65 kcal/mol vs − 96.04 kcal/mol). The biological screening demonstrated a significant ( P < 0.001) antiviral effect on replication with 1 µM N-desethylamodiaquine, the major metabolite of Amodiaquine. However, Lumefantrine showed no effect at the tested concentrations (1, 5, and 10 µM). The biocomputational analysis of the pharmacokinetic profile of both drugs revealed a low permeability of Lumefantrine and a specific inactivation by CYP3A2 which might partly contribute to the short half-time of this drug. In conclusion, Amodiaquine and Lumefantrine may be good antimalarial drug candidates for repurposing against HEV. Further in vitro and in vivo experiments are necessary to validate these predictions. Graphic abstract Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40203-021-00093-y.

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