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Lekana-Douki SE, N'dilimabaka N, Levasseur A, Colson P, Andeko JC, Zong Minko O, Banga Mve-Ella O, Fournier PE, Devaux C, Ondo BM, Akombi FL, Yacka Mouele Bolo L, Ngonga Dikongo AM, Diané A, Mabika Mabika A, Mathouet JF, Dzembo C, Atiga NC, Mouity Matoumba A, Ndjangangoye NK, Bréchard L, Bedotto-Buffet M, Mangombi Pambou JB, Kandet Yattara M, Mbongo Nkama EA, Mintsa Ndong A, Adegnika AA, Raoult D, Fenollar F, Lekana-Douki JB. Screening and Whole Genome Sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 Circulating During the First Three Waves of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Libreville and the Haut-Ogooué Province in Gabon. Front Med (Lausanne) 2022; 9:877391. [PMID: 35655849 PMCID: PMC9152426 DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2022.877391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2022] [Accepted: 04/27/2022] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the SARS-CoV-2 viral dynamics in Africa have been less documented than on other continents. In Gabon, a Central African country, a total number of 37,511 cases of COVID-19 and 281 deaths have been reported as of December 8, 2021. After the first COVID-19 case was reported on March 12, 2020, in the capital Libreville, the country experienced two successive waves. The first one, occurred in March 2020 to August 2020, and the second one in January 2021 to May 2021. The third wave began in September 2021 and ended in November 2021. In order to reduce the data gap regarding the dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 in Central Africa, we performed a retrospective genotyping study using 1,006 samples collected from COVID-19 patients in Gabon from 2020 to 2021. Using SARS-CoV-2 variant screening by Real-Time Quantitative Reverse Transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) and whole genome sequencing (WGS), we genotyped 809 SARS-CoV-2 samples through qRT-PCR and identified to generated 291 new genomes. It allowed us to describe specific mutations and changes in the SARS-CoV-2 variants in Gabon. The qRT-PCR screening of 809 positive samples from March 2020 to September 2021 showed that 119 SARS-CoV-2 samples (14.7%) were classified as VOC Alpha (Pangolin lineage B.1.1.7), one (0.1%) was a VOC Beta (B.1.351), and 198 (24.5 %) were VOC Delta (B.1.617.2), while 491 samples (60.7%) remained negative for the variants sought. The B1.1 variant was predominant during the first wave while the VOC Alpha dominated the second wave. The B1.617.2 Delta variant is currently the dominant variant of the third wave. Similarly, the analysis of the 291 genome sequences indicated that the dominant variant during the first wave was lineage B.1.1, while the dominant variants of the second wave were lineages B.1.1.7 (50.6%) and B.1.1.318 (36.4%). The third wave started with the circulation of the Delta variant (B.1.617). Finally, we compared these results to the SARS-CoV-2 sequences reported in other African, European, American and Asian countries. Sequences of Gabonese SARS-CoV-2 strains presented the highest similarities with those of France, Belgium and neighboring countries of Central Africa, as well as West Africa.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Nadine N'dilimabaka
- Centre Interdisciplinaire de Recherches Médicales de Franceville (CIRMF), Franceville, Gabon.,Département de Biologie, Faculté des Sciences, Université des Sciences et Techniques de Masuku, Franceville, Gabon
| | - Anthony Levasseur
- IHU-Méditerranée Infection, Marseille, France.,Aix Marseille Univ, IRD, AP-HM, MEPHI, Marseille, France
| | - Philippe Colson
- IHU-Méditerranée Infection, Marseille, France.,Aix Marseille Univ, IRD, AP-HM, MEPHI, Marseille, France
| | - Julia Cyrielle Andeko
- Centre Interdisciplinaire de Recherches Médicales de Franceville (CIRMF), Franceville, Gabon
| | - Ornella Zong Minko
- Centre Interdisciplinaire de Recherches Médicales de Franceville (CIRMF), Franceville, Gabon
| | - Octavie Banga Mve-Ella
- Centre Interdisciplinaire de Recherches Médicales de Franceville (CIRMF), Franceville, Gabon
| | - Pierre-Edouard Fournier
- IHU-Méditerranée Infection, Marseille, France.,Aix Marseille Univ, IRD, AP-HM, SSA, VITROME, Marseille, France
| | - Christian Devaux
- IHU-Méditerranée Infection, Marseille, France.,Aix Marseille Univ, IRD, AP-HM, MEPHI, Marseille, France.,Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Marseille, France
| | | | | | | | | | - Abdoulaye Diané
- Centre Interdisciplinaire de Recherches Médicales de Franceville (CIRMF), Franceville, Gabon
| | - Arsène Mabika Mabika
- Centre Interdisciplinaire de Recherches Médicales de Franceville (CIRMF), Franceville, Gabon
| | - Jenny Francine Mathouet
- Centre Interdisciplinaire de Recherches Médicales de Franceville (CIRMF), Franceville, Gabon
| | - Cresh Dzembo
- Centre Interdisciplinaire de Recherches Médicales de Franceville (CIRMF), Franceville, Gabon
| | - Nick Chenis Atiga
- Centre Interdisciplinaire de Recherches Médicales de Franceville (CIRMF), Franceville, Gabon
| | - Anicet Mouity Matoumba
- Centre Interdisciplinaire de Recherches Médicales de Franceville (CIRMF), Franceville, Gabon
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Ayola Akim Adegnika
- Centre de Recherches Médicales de Lambaréné (CERMEL), Lambaréné, Gabon.,Institute of Tropical Medecine, University of Tübingen and German Center for Infectious Research (DZIF), Tübingen, Germany
| | - Didier Raoult
- IHU-Méditerranée Infection, Marseille, France.,Aix Marseille Univ, IRD, AP-HM, MEPHI, Marseille, France
| | - Florence Fenollar
- IHU-Méditerranée Infection, Marseille, France.,Aix Marseille Univ, IRD, AP-HM, SSA, VITROME, Marseille, France
| | - Jean-Bernard Lekana-Douki
- Centre Interdisciplinaire de Recherches Médicales de Franceville (CIRMF), Franceville, Gabon.,Département de Parasitologie-Mycologie Médecine Tropicale, Faculté de Médecine, Université des Sciences de la Sante, Libreville, Gabon
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