National serosurvey and risk mapping reveal widespread distribution of Coxiella burnetii in Kenya

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cg.authorship.typesCGIAR and developing country instituteen
cg.authorship.typesCGIAR and advanced research instituteen
cg.contributor.affiliationWorld Organisation for Animal Healthen
cg.contributor.affiliationInternational Livestock Research Instituteen
cg.contributor.affiliationZoonotic Disease Unit, Kenyaen
cg.contributor.affiliationFreie Universität Berlinen
cg.contributor.affiliationUniversity of Embuen
cg.contributor.affiliationWildlife Research and Training Institute, Kenyaen
cg.contributor.affiliationLos Alamos National Laboratoryen
cg.contributor.affiliationWashington State Universityen
cg.contributor.affiliationJomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technologyen
cg.contributor.affiliationUniversity of Nairobien
cg.contributor.donorUnited States Defense Threat Reduction Agencyen
cg.contributor.donorFederal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, Germanyen
cg.contributor.donorCGIAR Trust Funden
cg.coverage.countryKenya
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2KE
cg.coverage.regionAfrica
cg.coverage.regionEastern Africa
cg.creator.identifierLillian Wambua: 0000-0003-3632-7411en
cg.creator.identifierBernard Bett: 0000-0001-9376-2941en
cg.creator.identifierHussein Abkallo: 0000-0002-5594-4418en
cg.creator.identifierMathew Muturi: 0000-0003-2110-8099en
cg.creator.identifierRichard Nyamota: 0000-0002-9569-1953en
cg.creator.identifierAthman Mwatondo: 0000-0002-3180-7013en
cg.creator.identifierJames Akoko: 0000-0001-5730-4505en
cg.howPublishedFormally Publisheden
cg.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-94154-3en
cg.isijournalISI Journalen
cg.issn2045-2322en
cg.journalScientific Reportsen
cg.reviewStatusPeer Reviewen
cg.speciesCoxiella burnetiien
cg.subject.ilriEPIDEMIOLOGYen
cg.subject.ilriONE HEALTHen
cg.subject.ilriZOONOTIC DISEASESen
cg.subject.impactAreaNutrition, health and food security
cg.subject.sdgSDG 2 - Zero hungeren
cg.volume15en
dc.contributor.authorWambua, Lillianen
dc.contributor.authorBett, Bernard K.en
dc.contributor.authorAbkallo, Hussein M.en
dc.contributor.authorMuturi, Mathewen
dc.contributor.authorNthiwa, D.en
dc.contributor.authorNyamota, Richarden
dc.contributor.authorKiprono, Enocken
dc.contributor.authorKirwa, Lynnen
dc.contributor.authorGakuya, F.en
dc.contributor.authorBartlow, A.W.en
dc.contributor.authorMiddlebrook, E.A.en
dc.contributor.authorFair, J.en
dc.contributor.authorNjenga, K.en
dc.contributor.authorGachohi, J.en
dc.contributor.authorMwatondo, Athmanen
dc.contributor.authorAkoko, James M.en
dc.date.accessioned2025-03-21T13:32:50Zen
dc.date.available2025-03-21T13:32:50Zen
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10568/173777
dc.titleNational serosurvey and risk mapping reveal widespread distribution of Coxiella burnetii in Kenyaen
dcterms.abstract<i>Coxiella burnetii</i>, the causative agent of Q fever, is an emerging pathogen that has the potential to cause severe chronic infections in animals and humans worldwide. The detrimental impact on public health is projected to be higher in the low- and middle-income countries given their lower capacity to sustain effective surveillance and response measures. We implemented a national serosurvey of cattle in Kenya to map the spatial distribution of the pathogen. The study used serum samples that were collected from randomly selected cattle in different ago-ecological zones across the country. These samples were screened for the pathogen using PrioCHECK Ruminant Q Fever AB Plate ELISA kit. The laboratory findings were analyzed using INLA package to identify risk factors for <i>C. burnetii</i> exposure from herd- and animal-level factors, area, and bioclimatic datasets accessed from online databases. A total of 6,593 cattle were recruited for the study; of these, 7.9% (95% CI; 7.2–8.5) were seropositive. Outputs from the multivariable analysis revealed that the animal age and some of the geographical variables including wind speed, area under shrubs and “petric calcisols” type of soil were significantly associated with <i>C. burnetii</i> seropositivity. Being a calf, weaner or subadult was associated with lower odds of exposure compared to being an adult by 0.24 (credibility interval: 2.5% and 97.5%), 0.41 (0.30–0.55) and 0.51 (0.38–0.69), respectively. In addition, a unit increase in the wind speed increased the odds of <i>C. burnetii</i> seropositivity by 1.27 (1.05–1.52) while an increase on the land area under shrubs was associated with lower odds of exposure (0.67 [0.47–0.69]). The effect of petric calcisols was non-linear; an increase of the land area with this soil type was associated with an exponential increase in <i>C. burnetii</i> seropositivity. This study provides new data on <i>C. burnetii</i> seroprevalence, information of its risk factors and a prevalence map that can be used for <i>C. burnetii</i> risk surveillance and control. The identification of environmental risk factors for <i>C. burnetii</i> exposure, and the increasing awareness of the zoonotic potential of the pathogen, calls for the need to enhance the existing collaborations for the surveillance and control of <i>C. burnetii</i> in line with the One Health framework. The evidence generated on the potential role of environmental factors can also be used to design nature-based interventions, such as replacement of vegetation in denuded areas, to reduce potential for the aerosolization of the pathogen. Livestock vaccination in the hotspots would also reduce animal infections and hence the contamination of the environment.en
dcterms.accessRightsOpen Access
dcterms.audienceAcademicsen
dcterms.audienceScientistsen
dcterms.available2025-03-21en
dcterms.bibliographicCitationWambua, L., Bett, B., Abkallo, H.M., Muturi, M., Nthiwa, D., Nyamota, R., Kiprono, E., Kirwa, L., Gakuya, F., Bartlow, A.W., Middlebrook, E.A., Fair, J., Njenga, K., Gachohi, J., Mwatondo, A. and Akoko, J.M. 2025. National serosurvey and risk mapping reveal widespread distribution of <i>Coxiella burnetii</i> in Kenya. Scientific Reports 15: 9706.en
dcterms.extent9706en
dcterms.issued2025-03-21en
dcterms.languageen
dcterms.licenseCC-BY-NC-ND-4.0
dcterms.publisherNature Researchen
dcterms.subjectepidemiologyen
dcterms.subjectq feveren
dcterms.subjectone health approachen
dcterms.subjectzoonosesen
dcterms.typeJournal Article

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Co-infection with Rift Valley fever virus, Brucella spp. and Coxiella burnetii in humans and animals in Kenya: Disease burden and ecological factors