Abstract:
Rabies is a neglected zoonotic disease with veterinary and public health significance,
particularly in Africa and Asia. The current knowledge of the epidemiology of rabies in
Mozambique is limited because of inadequate sample submission, constrained diagnostic
capabilities and a lack of molecular epidemiological research. We wanted to consider the
direct, rapid immunohistochemical test (DRIT) as an alternative to the direct fluorescent
antibody (DFA) for rabies diagnosis at the diagnostic laboratory of the Central Veterinary
Laboratory (CVL), Directorate of Animal Science, Maputo, Mozambique. Towards this aim, as
a training exercise at the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) Rabies Reference
Laboratory in South Africa, we performed the DRIT on 29 rabies samples from across
Mozambique. With the use of the DRIT, we found 15 of the 29 samples (52%) to be negative.
The DRIT-negative samples were retested by DFA at the OIE Rabies Reference Laboratory, as
well as with an established real-time Polymerase chain reaction, confirming the DRIT-negative
results. The DRIT-positive results (14/29) were retested with the DFA and subsequently
amplified, sequenced and subjected to phylogenetic analyses, confirming the presence of
rabies RNA. Molecular epidemiological analyses that included viruses from neighbouring
countries suggested that rabies cycles within Mozambique might be implicated in multiple
instances of cross-border transmission. In this regard, our study has provided new insights
that should be helpful in informing the next steps required to better diagnose, control and
hopefully eliminate rabies in Mozambique.
