Hepatitis B virus (HBV) immune escape and Pol/RT mutations account for HBV immunoprophylactic, therapeutic, and diagnostic failure globally. Little is known about circulating HBV immune escape and Pol/RT mutants in Nigeria. This study focused on narrowing the knowledge gap of the pattern and prevalence of the HBV mutants across clinical cohorts of infected patients in southwestern Nigeria. Ninety-five enrollees were purposively recruited across clinical cohorts of HBV-infected patients with HBsAg or anti-HBc positive serological outcome and occult HBV infection. Total DNA was extracted from patients' sera. HBV S and Pol gene-specific nested PCR amplification was carried out. The amplicons were further sequenced for serotypic, genotypic, phylogenetic, and mutational analysis. HBV S and Pol genes were amplified in 60 (63.2%) and 19 (20%) of HBV isolates, respectively. All the sixty HBV S gene and 14 of 19 Pol gene sequences were exploitable. The ayw4 serotype was predominant (95%) while ayw1 serotype was identified in 5% of isolates. Genotype E predominates in 95% of sequences, while genotype A, sub-genotype A3 was observed in 5%. Prevalence of HBV IEMs in the "a" determinant region was 29%. Commonest HBV IEM was S113T followed by G145A and D144E. The Pol/RT mutations rtV214A and rtI163V among others were identified in this study. This study provided data on the occurrence of existing and new HBV IEMs and Pol gene mutations in Nigeria.

Infection with both Hepatitis B (HBV) and D (HDV) virus causes more severe liver damage than HBV alone. Superinfections among chronic HBV infected cohorts often lead to HDV persistence with rapid progression to cirrhosis, necessitating continuous surveillance to determine their prevalence and relative contribution to liver pathology. A cross-sectional study among hospital outpatients in Ekiti and Osunstates was conducted using random sampling technique. Blood samples were collected from 410 participants and tested for HBV serological markers. All samples positive for HBsAg samples were tested for Hepatitis D virus antigen (HDAg), serum anti-HDV IgM, and serum anti-HDV IgG using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits. The prevalence of HBV infection among the 410 samples was 12.4% (CI 9.5–15.9). Past HBV exposure was detected in 120 (29.2%), while 147(35.8%) were susceptible to HBV infection. Among the HBsAg positive individuals, 9.8% were hepatitis D antigen (HDAg) positive, while 3.9% and 1.9% were positive for IgG anti-HDV and IgM anti-HDV, respectively. Risk factors associated with HBV infections in this study were multiple sexual partners and sharing of sharp objects. Our investigation has verified the endemicity of HBV in Nigeria and revealed that HBV- HDV co-infection is highly prevalent in south-west Nigeria.

The pandemic of Coronavirus disease 19 is not abating since the outbreak began in December 2019. Africa is currently experiencing a surge after an initial low incidence and nosocomial infections could be contributing to this. A dominant factor responsible for this is a weak healthcare system because of many years of neglect due to abysmal budgetary allocation to the sector. The testing capacity for COVID-19 diagnosis in Africa is grossly inadequate coupled with a severe shortage of personal protective equipment and inadequate infectious diseases expert. These factors exposed the frontline health workers and patients to the hazard of nosocomial infection with the attendants’ morbidity and mortality. Deliberate efforts need to be made toward reducing nosocomial COVID-19 infection.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection follows a natural course of events predicted by a dynamic interaction between viral antigen and the host immune system, which forms the basis for HBV serological diagnosis. These interactions may deviate from the typical serologic patterns. This study investigates the types of atypical HBV serologic profiles (AHBSP) across clinical cohorts of patients with HBV infection in southwestern Nigeria. This is a cross-sectional, hospital-based, multi-centered study. Patients’ sera were analyzed for HBsAg, anti-HBs, HBeAg, anti-HBe, anti-HBc IgM, and anti-HBc IgG by ELISA from 279 study participants attending selected gastroenterology clinics between August 2019 and December 2020. The prevalence of atypical HBV serologic profiles was 27% (n = 76). The mean age of patients was 35.7 ± 11.2 years. The gender distribution involved 183 females (65.6%) and 96 males (34.4%). Across clinical cohorts of patients with atypical serologic profiles, HBeAg Negative, anti-HBe positive with detectable HBV DNA had the highest prevalence of 21% followed by isolated anti-HBc antibody positive, HBsAg negative and detectable HBV DNA, 5%. The atypical serologic profiles, HBeAg positive, HBsAg negative with detectable HBV DNA and concurrent anti-HBs with HBsAg, had the lowest prevalence, 0.4%, respectively. This study identified the considerable presence of atypical HBV serologic profiles across clinical cohorts of HBV infection in southwestern Nigeria.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infects about 2 billion people globally and accounts for mortality of about 800,000 from liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Sub-Saharan Africa accounts for 70% of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) global burden. HIV/HBV co-infection results in the early development of HBV complications, alterations of serological biomarkers of HBV. Two hundred and fifty patients with HIV/AIDS were screened for HBV and 20 (8%) were identified. The same number of HBV mono-infected individuals were recruited into the study and subsequently, HBV serological profiles which include HBsAg, HBsAb, HBeAg, HBeAb, HBcAbIgM, and HBcAbIgG were assayed using HBV ELISA kits. Mean age of patients in the HBV/HIV cohort was 45.5 years while the HBV mono-infected infected cohort was 30.5 years. The majority of the HBV/HIV co-infected individuals were females (85%). The frequency of HBeAg among HIV/HBV co-infected cohort was 25% and 15% for HBV mono-infected, while the frequency of HBeAb was higher (60%) among the cohort of HBV/HIV co-infected patients in comparison with the HBV mono-infected cohorts (50%). Two patients among the HIV/HBV co-infected cohort have the isolated anti-HBcAg serologic pattern. The study broadened the available evidence of comparative serologic profiles of Hepatitis B virus between cohorts of HBV/HIV co-infected individuals and HBV mono-infected patients in Nigeria.

Using a metagenomic sequencing approach on stool samples from children with Acute Flaccid Paralysis (AFP), we describe the genetic diversity of Sapoviruses (SaVs) in children in Nigeria. We identified six complete genome sequences and two partial genome sequences. Several SaV genogroups and genotypes were detected, including GII (GII.4 and GII.8), GIV (GIV.1), and GI (GI.2 and GI.7). To our knowledge, this is the first description of SaV infections and complete genomes from Nigeria. Pairwise identity and phylogenetic analysis showed that the Nigerian SaVs were related to previously documented gastroenteritis outbreaks with associated strains from China and Japan. Minor variations in the functional motifs of the nonstructural proteins NS3 and NS5 were seen in the Nigerian strains. To adequately understand the effect of such amino acid changes, a better understanding of the biological function of these proteins is vital. The identification of distinct SaVs reinforces the need for robust surveillance in acute gastroenteritis (AGE) and non-AGE cohorts to better understand SaVs genotype diversity, evolution, and its role in disease burden in Nigeria. Future studies in different populations are, therefore, recommended.