title: High Prevalence of Mansonella perstans Filariasis in Rural Senegal.
abstract: Large parts of African and American countries are colonized by Mansonella, a very common but poorly described filarial nematode. Bloodsucking flies of the genus Culicoides are suspected to be the vector of Mansonella perstans, but no study in Senegal has confirmed that Culicoides can transmit the parasite. Designed specific real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) can be used to identify microfilaria in stained blood smears. This study was performed in July and December 2010 in the southeastern Senegal, which is known to be endemic for M. perstans. We analyzed 297 blood smears from febrile and afebrile resident people by qPCR. The global prevalence of M. perstans was approximately 14.5% in both febrile and afebrile individuals. The age group of > 30 years had the highest prevalence (22.0%). No Culicoides among 1,159 studied specimens was positive for M. perstans and its vector in Senegal still requires identification.
authors.affiliation: Unité de Recherche sur les Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes (URMITE), Aix Marseille Université, Marseille, France, and Campus Universitaire UCAD-IRD de Hann, Dakar, Senegal; London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom; Ministry of Health, Fann Résidence, Rue Aimé Césaire, Dakar, Senegal.
authors.forename: Hubert
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bassene
authors.affiliation: Unité de Recherche sur les Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes (URMITE), Aix Marseille Université, Marseille, France, and Campus Universitaire UCAD-IRD de Hann, Dakar, Senegal; London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom; Ministry of Health, Fann Résidence, Rue Aimé Césaire, Dakar, Senegal.
authors.forename: Masse
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sambou
authors.affiliation: Unité de Recherche sur les Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes (URMITE), Aix Marseille Université, Marseille, France, and Campus Universitaire UCAD-IRD de Hann, Dakar, Senegal; London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom; Ministry of Health, Fann Résidence, Rue Aimé Césaire, Dakar, Senegal.
authors.forename: Florence
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Fenollar
authors.affiliation: Unité de Recherche sur les Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes (URMITE), Aix Marseille Université, Marseille, France, and Campus Universitaire UCAD-IRD de Hann, Dakar, Senegal; London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom; Ministry of Health, Fann Résidence, Rue Aimé Césaire, Dakar, Senegal.
authors.forename: Siân
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Clarke
authors.affiliation: Unité de Recherche sur les Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes (URMITE), Aix Marseille Université, Marseille, France, and Campus Universitaire UCAD-IRD de Hann, Dakar, Senegal; London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom; Ministry of Health, Fann Résidence, Rue Aimé Césaire, Dakar, Senegal.
authors.forename: Sawdiatou
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Djiba
authors.affiliation: Unité de Recherche sur les Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes (URMITE), Aix Marseille Université, Marseille, France, and Campus Universitaire UCAD-IRD de Hann, Dakar, Senegal; London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom; Ministry of Health, Fann Résidence, Rue Aimé Césaire, Dakar, Senegal.
authors.forename: Gaël
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mourembou
authors.affiliation: Unité de Recherche sur les Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes (URMITE), Aix Marseille Université, Marseille, France, and Campus Universitaire UCAD-IRD de Hann, Dakar, Senegal; London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom; Ministry of Health, Fann Résidence, Rue Aimé Césaire, Dakar, Senegal.
authors.forename: Alioune Badara
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: L Y
authors.affiliation: Unité de Recherche sur les Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes (URMITE), Aix Marseille Université, Marseille, France, and Campus Universitaire UCAD-IRD de Hann, Dakar, Senegal; London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom; Ministry of Health, Fann Résidence, Rue Aimé Césaire, Dakar, Senegal.
authors.forename: Didier
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Raoult
authors.affiliation: Unité de Recherche sur les Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes (URMITE), Aix Marseille Université, Marseille, France, and Campus Universitaire UCAD-IRD de Hann, Dakar, Senegal; London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom; Ministry of Health, Fann Résidence, Rue Aimé Césaire, Dakar, Senegal oleg.mediannikov@ird.fr.
authors.forename: Oleg
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Mediannikov
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000818:Animals; D002519:Ceratopogonidae / Q000469:parasitology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007303:Insect Vectors / Q000469:parasitology; D008297:Male; D008366:Mansonella; D008368:Mansonelliasis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000635:transmission; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012675:Senegal / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult