Detection of Marburg Virus Antibodies 25 Years After Outbreak in Watsa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Sydney Merritt, Patrick K Mukadi, Jean Paul Kompany, Megan Halbrook, Kamy Musene, Skylar A Martin, Michael Beya, Merly Tambu, Teri Ann S Wong, Jean Jacques Muyembe-Tamfum and 6 more
Article in The Journal of infectious diseases, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
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1citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
2 · The registry
The trial behind it
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5 · Who and what money
Authors and funding
16 authors.
Sydney MerrittDepartment of Epidemiology, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-4039-605X
Patrick K MukadiDepartment of Epidemiology and Global Health, Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB), Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Jean Paul KompanyDepartment of Epidemiology and Global Health, Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB), Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Megan HalbrookDepartment of Epidemiology, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-3892-2655
Kamy MuseneDepartment of Epidemiology, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Skylar A MartinDepartment of Epidemiology, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA.ORCID 0009-0002-5981-7317
Michael BeyaKinshasa School of Public Health (KSPH), University of Kinshasa, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Merly TambuDepartment of Epidemiology and Global Health, Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB), Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Teri Ann S WongDepartment of Tropical Medicine, Medical Microbiology and Pharmacology, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA.
Jean Jacques Muyembe-TamfumDepartment of Epidemiology and Global Health, Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB), Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Didine K KabaKinshasa School of Public Health (KSPH), University of Kinshasa, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.ORCID 0000-0002-3582-5147
Axel T LehrerDepartment of Tropical Medicine, Medical Microbiology and Pharmacology, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-0518-203X
Jason KindrachukDepartment of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Max Rady College of Medicine, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.ORCID 0000-0002-3305-7084
Nicole A HoffDepartment of Epidemiology, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-1770-6304
Placide Mbala-KingebeniDepartment of Epidemiology and Global Health, Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB), Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.ORCID 0000-0003-1556-3570
Anne W RimoinDepartment of Epidemiology, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-0662-9067
Funding
FDA HHS 75F40119C10128US Department of Health and Human ServicesUS Government
6 · The paper itself
Abstract
backgroundTo date, 18 Marburg virus disease (MVD) outbreaks have been reported, most recently in Tanzania and Ethiopia. From 1998 to 2000, a large MVD outbreak in Watsa/Durba region, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), resulted in 154 cases and 128 deaths. Given the public health risks posed by MARV, the lack of approved vaccines and therapeutics, and unpredictability of future outbreaks, this study aimed to assess the anti-MARV seroprevalence in Watsa/Durba.
methodsSamples collected in May 2023 (n = 313) included known MVD survivors (n = 5), close contacts (n = 22), and other residents (n = 286). A multiplexed immunoassay was used to assess seroreactivity to MARV and other pan-filovirus targets.
resultsAmong the Watsa/Durba cohort, 4.5% and 1.6% were seroreactive to MARV glycoprotein (GP) and VP40, including only 1 known MVD survivor. No significant associations were found between MARV seroreactivity and risk factors: travel to Uganda, receiving injections, or employment as a gold miner. Of those 14 MARV GP-reactive individuals, 85.7% were cross-reactive to other filoviral targets.
conclusionsThis detected seroprevalence among individuals with no known exposure history may indicate continued exposure to MARV or MARV-like antigens 25 years after the conclusion of the outbreak; cross-reactivity to pan-filovirus targets further suggest the potential for undetected cases.
Indexed as
Antibodies, ViralDisease OutbreaksMarburgvirusMarburg Virus DiseaseAdolescentAdultChildDemocratic Republic of the CongoFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedSeroepidemiologic StudiesYoung AdultAntibodies, ViralDemocratic Republic of the CongofilovirusesMarburg virus diseasemultiplex immunoassayserologic surveillance
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