Sero-epidemiology of human coronaviruses in three rural communities in Ghana

Abstract

Introduction acute respiratory tract infections (ARIs) are responsible for significant proportions of illnesses and deaths annually. Most of ARIs are of viral etiology, with human coronaviruses (HCoVs) playing a key role. This study was conducted prior to the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) to provide evidence about the sero-epidemiology of HCoVs in rural areas of Ghana. Methods this was a cross-sectional study conducted as part of a large epidemiological study investigating the occurrence of respiratory viruses in 3 rural areas of Ghana; Buoyem, Kwamang and Forikrom. Serum samples were collected and tested for the presence of IgG-antibodies to three HCoVs; HCoV-229E, HCoV-OC43 and HCoV-NL63 using immunofluorescence assay. Results of 201 subjects enrolled into the study, 97 (48.3%) were positive for all three viruses. The most prevalent virus was HCoV-229E (23%; 95% CI: 17.2 - 29.3), followed by HCoV-OC43 (17%; 95% CI: 12.4 - 23.4), then HCoV-NL63 (8%, 95% CI: 4.6 - 12.6). Subjects in Kwamang had the highest sero-prevalence for HCoV-NL63 (68.8%). human coronaviruses-229E (41.3%) and HCoV-OC43 (45.7%) were much higher in Forikrom compared to the other study areas. There was however no statistical difference between place of origin and HCoVs positivity. Although blood group O+ and B+ were most common among the recruited subjects, there was no significant association (p = 0.163) between blood group and HCoV infection. Conclusion this study reports a 48.3% sero-prevalence of HCoVs (OC43, NL63 and 229E) among rural communities in Ghana. The findings provide useful baseline data that could inform further sero-epidemiological studies on SARS-CoV-2 in Africa.

Pre-existing humoral immunity to low pathogenic human coronaviruses exhibits limited cross-reactive antibodies response against SARS-CoV-2 in children

“…In this study, we detected a generally moderate level of seroprevalence in 658 children under 15 years old for the three human coronaviruses (HCoV-229E, HCoV-NL63, HCoV-HKU1) and a high positive rate for HCoV-OC43. Although the seroprevalence of LPH-CoVs varies greatly by reason of different antigens used, methodologies adopted, population with distinct ages, and other demographic characteristics ( 25 – 27 ), the seroprevalence acquired from this cohort is somewhat in line with the normal range within children ( 28 – 30 ). Besides, the obvious maternal transient passive IgG antibodies response against LPH-CoVs was observed for infants within 3-months, which is consistent with the previous stratified studies ( 29 , 31 ).…”

Detection and Epidemiological Features of Human Coronaviruses in Patients with Acute Gastroenteritis in Northern Jordan

“…In the current study, HCoVs were detected in 10.5% of the tested specimens, and distributed as follows: 57.2 % HCoV-229E, 33.3 % HCoV-NL63, and 9.5 % HCoV-HKU1. A study from Ghana (Owusu et al, 2021) also reported that HCoV-229E was the most isolated strain. The HCoV-OC43 virus was not detected in the tested specimens.…”

Differential pre-pandemic breast milk IgA reactivity against SARS-CoV-2 and circulating human coronaviruses in Ugandan and American mothers

“…A recent hospital-based study of Ugandan patients with influenza-like illness demonstrated a high seroprevalence of HCoVs but used a nucleoprotein-based ELISA which could not distinguish between different species of HCoVs (Mulabbi et al, 2021). Molecular surveillance and seroprevalence studies in Kenya and Ghana, respectively, demonstrated the predominance of HCoV OC43 among HCoVs (Sipulwa et al, 2016;Owusu et al, 2021). These previous studies and our own underscore the potential public health significance of certain HCoVs, especially OC43, in Africa in the context of pre-existing cross-reactive IgA against SARS-CoV-2.…”