ArticlePLoS neglected tropical diseases2020
Evidence of the absence of human African trypanosomiasis in two northern districts of Uganda: Analyses of cattle, pigs and tsetse flies for the presence of Trypanosoma brucei gambiense.
Article in PLoS neglected tropical diseases, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 26 citations in OpenAlex.
- Systematic review and meta-analysis of the spatio-temporal changes in apparent tsetse fly density in Uganda from 1980 to 2022.Scientific reports · 2026Pooled it
- Prevalence of African animal trypanosomiasis among livestock and domestic animals in Uganda: a systematic review and meta-regression analysis from 1980 to 2022.Scientific reports · 2023Pooled it
- Transmission and cost-effectiveness modelling to estimate the progress towards elimination and future strategy optimisation for gambiense human African trypanosomiasis in Uganda.BMC infectious diseases · 2026Article
- Development and pilot application of a point-of-need molecular xenomonitoring protocol for tsetse (Glossina sp.) in a low-resource setting.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2026Article
- Restricted insecticide application: a last mile control option for elimination of acute sleeping sickness and progressive control of African animal trypanosomiasis in South-Eastern Uganda.BMC veterinary research · 2026Article
- Systematic review and meta-analysis of the spatio-temporal changes in apparent tsetse fly density in Uganda from 1980 to 2022.Research square · 2025Article
- Impact of a national tsetse control programme to eliminate Gambian sleeping sickness in Uganda: a spatiotemporal modelling study.BMJ global health · 2024Article
- Insights into trypanosomiasis transmission: Age, infection rates, and bloodmeal analysis of Glossina fuscipes fuscipes in N.W. Uganda.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2024Article
- Prevalence of blood and skin trypanosomes in domestic and wild fauna from two sleeping sickness foci in Southern Cameroon.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2023Article
- Scaling up of tsetse control to eliminate Gambian sleeping sickness in northern Uganda.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2022Article
- A review on the diagnosis of animal trypanosomoses.Parasites & vectors · 2022Review
- Free-ranging pigs identified as a multi-reservoir of Trypanosoma brucei and Trypanosoma congolense in the Vavoua area, a historical sleeping sickness focus of Côte d'Ivoire.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2021Article
- Apparent density, trypanosome infection rates and host preference of tsetse flies in the sleeping sickness endemic focus of northwestern Uganda.BMC veterinary research · 2021Article
- Need of entomological criteria to assess zero transmission of gambiense HAT.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2021Review
- Critical Linkages Between Livestock Production, Livestock Trade and Potential Spread of Human African Trypanosomiasis in Uganda: Bioeconomic Herd Modeling and Livestock Trade Analysis.Frontiers in veterinary science · 2021Article
- A pilot study demonstrating the identification of Trypanosoma brucei gambiense and T. b. rhodesiense in vectors using a multiplexed high-resolution melt qPCR.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors at 3 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundLarge-scale control of sleeping sickness has led to a decline in the number of cases of Gambian human African trypanosomiasis (g-HAT) to <2000/year. However, achieving complete and lasting interruption of transmission may be difficult because animals may act as reservoir hosts for T. b. gambiense. Our study aims to update our understanding of T. b. gambiense in local vectors and domestic animals of N.W. Uganda.
methodsWe collected blood from 2896 cattle and 400 pigs and In addition, 6664 tsetse underwent microscopical examination for the presence of trypanosomes. Trypanosoma species were identified in tsetse from a subsample of 2184 using PCR. Primers specific for T. brucei s.l. and for T. brucei sub-species were used to screen cattle, pig and tsetse samples.
resultsIn total, 39/2,088 (1.9%; 95% CI = 1.9-2.5) cattle, 25/400 (6.3%; 95% CI = 4.1-9.1) pigs and 40/2,184 (1.8%; 95% CI = 1.3-2.5) tsetse, were positive for T. brucei s.l.. Of these samples 24 cattle (61.5%), 15 pig (60%) and 25 tsetse (62.5%) samples had sufficient DNA to be screened using the T. brucei sub-species PCR. Further analysis found no cattle or pigs positive for T. b. gambiense, however, 17/40 of the tsetse samples produced a band suggestive of T. b. gambiense. When three of these 17 PCR products were sequenced the sequences were markedly different to T. b. gambiense, indicating that these flies were not infected with T. b. gambiense.
conclusionThe lack of T. b. gambiense positives in cattle, pigs and tsetse accords with the low prevalence of g-HAT in the human population. We found no evidence that livestock are acting as reservoir hosts. However, this study highlights the limitations of current methods of detecting and identifying T. b. gambiense which relies on a single copy-gene to discriminate between the different sub-species of T. brucei s.l.
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