Browsing by Author "Rweyemamu, Mark M"

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Antimicrobial use and resistance in food- producing animals and the environment: an African perspective
(BMC, 2020-05) Kimera, Zuhura I; Mshana, Stephen E; Rweyemamu, Mark M; Mboera, Leonard E. G; Matee, Mecky I. N
The overuse of antimicrobials in food animals and the subsequent contamination of the environment have been associated with development and spread of antimicrobial resistance. This review presents information on antimicrobial use, resistance and status of surveillance systems in food animals and the environment in Africa.
Are we prepared for emerging and re-emerging diseases? Experience and lessons from epidemics that occurred in Tanzania during the last five decades
(2011-12) Rweyemamu, Mark M; Mmbuji, Peter; Kivaria, Fredrick M; Simba, Azma; Mbugi, Erasto; Karimuribo, Esron D; Mboera, Leonard E.G
This paper reviews preparedness for containing and controlling emerging and re-emerging diseases drawing lessons from disease events that occurred in animal and human populations in the last five decades (1961-2011). A comprehensive analysis based on retrieval and analysis of grey and published literature as well as reported cases was carried out to document type and trend of occurrence of emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases in different parts of Tanzania. Overall, the majority of diseases reported in the country were viral in nature followed by bacterial diseases. The trend for the occurrence shows a number of new emerging diseases as well as re-occurrence of old diseases in both animal (domestic and wild) and human populations. In humans, the major disease epidemics reported in the last five decades include cholera, influenza A H1N1, plague and rubella. In animals, the major epidemic diseases reported were Contagious Bovine Pleuropneumonia, Contagious Caprine Pleuropneumonia, Peste des petits ruminants and Giraffe Ear and Skin Diseases. Some epidemics have been reported in both human and animal populations including Rift Valley fever and anthrax. The emergence of the ‘fit-for purpose’ approaches and technologies such as the discipline of One Health, use of participatory epidemiology and disease surveillance and mobile technologies offers opportunity for optimal use of limited resources to improve early detection, diagnosis and response to disease events and consequently reduced impact of such diseases in animal and human populations.
Manual on the preparation of national animal disease emergency preparedness plans
(FAO, 1996-11) Geering, William A; Roeder, Peter L; Obi, Timothy U; Rweyemamu, Mark M
The control and eradication of livestock diseases are primarily the responsibility of national governments whose executive for this purpose is the national veterinary service. Since its inception FAO has been actively involved in the control of livestock diseases and its Animal Health Service (AGAH) is dedicated to this purpose. Over the years AGAH, with the help of expert panels and technical assistance schemes, has played a key normative role in developing standards and policies for dealing with major diseases. The result has been progressive reorientation of veterinary services, education and research so as to ensure an integrated approach to major diseases, to the improvement of animal health and productivity and in the preparation of animal products. In this regard AGAH collaborates with other international and regional organizations, particularly the International Office of Epizootics (OIE), the World Health Organization (WHO), the International Atomic Energy Agency with which FAO has a Joint Division (FAO/IAEA), regional organizations such as the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) and the Inter-African Bureau for Animal Resources of the Organization of African Unity (OAU/IBAR), as well as with bilateral and multilateral donor agencies. A characteristic of transboundary animal diseases (TADs) is that they themselves can be the cause of national emergencies and, as this manual demonstrates, their significance often transcends national boundaries. They are of particular importance to food security and sustained economic development and trade for many countries. It is imperative therefore, wherever possible, to limit the socio-economic disruptions resulting from outbreaks of TADs. The role of FAO in the fight against epidemic diseases of livestock has recently been strengthened with the establishment of the special programme, Emergency Prevention System for Transboundary Animal and Plant Pests and Diseases (EMPRES). Furthermore, the World Food Summit, through Objective 3.1 of Commitment Three of the Rome Declaration on World Food Security and the Plan of Action, November 1996, commits governments, in partnership with all actors of civil society, and with the support of international institutions to “seek to secure effective prevention and progressive control of plant and animal pests and diseases, including especially those which are of transboundary nature, such as rinderpest, cattle tick, foot and mouth disease and desert locust, where outbreaks can cause major food shortages, destabilize markets and trigger trade measures; and promote concurrently, regional collaboration in plant pests and animal disease control and the widespread development and use of integrated pest management practices”. It should also be noted that the need for effective preparedness for and response to emergencies, including those caused by pests and diseases, is enshrined in Commitment Five of the World Food Summit Plan of Action, where Objective 5.2 states inter alia that international organizations will “maintain, promote and establish, as quickly as possible, in collaboration with non-governmental organizations and other organizations, as appropriate, the preparedness strategies and mechanisms agreed upon at the ICN, including development and application of climate forecast information for surveillance and early warning, drought, flood, other natural disasters, pest and disease alertness”. The Manual on the preparation of national animal disease emergency preparedness plans is thus both a book of reference for national veterinary services and a contribution of the EMPRES programme towards the fulfilment of a component of the World Food Summit Commitments.
Rapid, sensitive and effective diagnostic tools for foot- and-mouth disease virus in Africa
(2014) Kasanga, Christopher J; Yamazaki, Wataru; Mioulet, Valerie; King, Donald P; Mulumba, Misheck; Ranga, Ezekia; Deve, Jimis; Mundia, Cornelius; Chikungwa, Patrick; Joao, Laureta; Wambura, Philemo N; Rweyemamu, Mark M
Speed is paramount in the diagnosis of highly infectious diseases, such as foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), as well as for emerging diseases; however, simplicity is required if a test is to be deployed in the field. Recent developments in molecular biology have enabled the specific detection of FMD virus (FMDV) by reverse-transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP), real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT- qPCR) and sequencing. RT-LAMP enables amplification of the FMDV RNA-dependent RNA polymerase 3D(pol) gene at 63 °C (in the presence of a primer mixture and both reverse transcriptase and Bst DNA polymerase) for 1 h, whilst RT-qPCR amplifies the same gene in approximately 2 h 30 min. In this study, we compared the sensitivity and effectiveness of RT-LAMP against RT-qPCR for the detection of the FMDV 3D(pol) gene in 179 oesophageal- pharyngeal scraping samples (collected by probang) obtained from clinically healthy cattle and buffalo in Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania in 2010. The FMDV detection rate was higher with RT-LAMP (30.2%; n = 54) than with RT-qPCR (17.3%; n = 31). All samples positive by RT-qPCR (Cq ≤ 32.0) were also positive for the RT-LAMP assay; and both assays proved to be highly specific for the FMDV target sequence. In addition, the VP1 sequences of 10 viruses isolated from positive samples corresponded to the respective FMDV serotypes and genotypes. Our findings indicate that the performance of RT-LAMP is superior to RT-qPCR. Accordingly, we consider this test to have great potential with regard to the specific detection and surveillance of infectious diseases of humans and animals in resource-compromised developing countries.
The Southern African centre for infectious disease surveillance: a one health consortium
(Taylor & Francis Group, LLC., 2013-02-12) Rweyemamu, Mark M; Mmbuji, Peter; Karimuribo, Esron; Paweska, Janusz; Kambarage, Dominic; Neves, Luis; Kayembe, Jean-Marie; Mweene, Aaron; Matee, Mecky
SACIDS at Sokoine University of Agriculture, Morogoro, Tanzania; 2 Department of Preventive Services, Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania; 3 National Institute for Communicable Diseases of the National Health Laboratory Services, Sandringham, Johannesburg, South Africa; 4 Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Eduardo Mondlane University, Maputo, Mozambique; 5 School of Public Health, University of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo; 6 School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zambia, Lusaka; 7 Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Muhimbili University for Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Formed in 2008, the Southern African Centre for Infectious Disease Surveillance (SACIDS) is a One Health consortium of academic and research institutions involved with infectious diseases of humans and animals. Operating in partnership with world-renowned centres of research in industrialised countries, its mission is to harness innovations in science and technology for improving southern Africa’s capacity to detect, identify, monitor (DIM) and manage the risk posed by infectious diseases of humans, animals, and ecosystems. The consortium’s major capacity development activities include a series of One Health-based Master of Science (MSc) courses and a five-year DIM-driven research program. Additionally, SACIDS organized Africa’s first One Health conference, in July 2011. This paper describes these and other major activities that SACIDS has undertaken to improve infectious disease surveillance across southern Africa. The paper also describes the role and collaboration of SACIDS with other national, regional and international consortia/networks that share a vision and interest in promoting novel approaches to infectious disease surveillance and outbreak response.