Newly Discovered Gorilla Population in the Ebo Forest,Littoral Province,Cameroon

We report on a new population of gorillas discovered in November 2002 in the Ebo Forest, Littoral Province, Cameroon. We observed A group of q7 gorillas directly for 83 min, and they were in auditory range for 155 min. Further evidence of gorilla presence included 8 nest groups totaling 38 nests, distinctive feeding signs accompanied by footprints, and a gorilla cranium collected from the nearby village of Iboti. This newly discovered gorilla population is geographically intermediate between the 2 extant populations of western gorillas: Gorilla gorilla gorilla, the most populous gorilla subspecies living in Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Congo-Brazzaville, Central African Republic and Cameroon to the south of the Sanaga River, and G. g. diehli or the Cross River gorilla, a small population of ca. 250 individuals on the Cameroon-Nigeria border. It is not possible to assign the new gorilla population to either subspecies on the basis of measurements of the single male cranium. Genetic analyses of freshly shed hairs, collected from gorilla nests, may help to resolve the taxonomic status of the Ebo gorillas.     

Drug Resistance Profiles of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex and Factors Associated with Drug Resistance in the Northwest and Southwest Regions of Cameroon

Background

Anti-tuberculosis drug resistance continues to be a major obstacle to tuberculosis (TB) control programmes with HIV being a major risk factor in developing TB. We investigated anti-TB drug resistance profiles and the impact of socioeconomic as well as behavioural factors on the prevalence of TB and drug resistance in two regions of Cameroon with such data paucity.

Methods

This was a hospital-based study in which 1706 participants, comprising 1133 females and 573 males consecutively enrolled from selected TB and HIV treatment centres of the Northwest and Southwest regions. Demographic, clinical and self-reported risk behaviours and socioeconomic data were obtained with the consent of participants using questionnaires. Culture and drug resistance testing were performed according to standard procedures.

Results

The prevalence of resistance to at least one anti-TB drug was 27.7% and multi-drug resistance was 5.9%. Smoking, concurrent alcohol consumption and smoking, being on antiretroviral therapy for ≤ 12 months and previous household contact with TB patient were independently associated with tuberculosis prevalence, while only previous tuberculosis infection was associated with drug resistance in a univariate analysis.

Conclusion

The study showed a high prevalence of drug resistance TB in the study population with only previous TB infection associated with drug resistance in a univariate analysis. It also provides evidence in our context, of the role of alcohol and smoking in increasing the risk of developing TB, which is more likely in people living with HIV/AIDS. Therefore, it is important for public health authorities to integrate and intensify alcohol/smoking abstention interventions in TB and HIV control programs in Cameroon.     

Systematics and diversification of Praomys species (Rodentia: Muridae) endemic to the Cameroon Volcanic Line (West Central Africa)

Missoup, A.D., Nicolas, V., Wendelen, W., Keming, E., Bilong Bilong, C.F., Couloux, A., Atanga, E., Hutterer, R. & Denys, C. (2012). Systematics and diversification of Praomys species (Rodentia: Muridae) endemic to the Cameroon Volcanic Line (West Central Africa). —Zoologica Scripta, 41, 327–345. Our integrative approach combines two mitochondrial genes (16S and cyt b gene), two nuclear genes (exon 10 GHR and exon 1 IRBP) and craniometrical data to test the status and to infer phylogenetic relationships of the three Praomys Cameroon Volcanic Line endemics (P. hartwigi, P. morio and P. obscurus). The taxonomic rank of the principal genus group is assessed and the mode of diversification of species of the P. tullbergi complex in Afrotropical forests is discussed based on estimates of times to the most recent common ancestors and on tree topologies. This study documents for the first time the molecular and morphometrical distinctiveness of P. hartwigi and P. morio within the P. tullbergi species complex. Further studies including specimens of P. hartwigi from all its distribution range are needed to conclude on the status of P. obscurus. The monophyly of the genus Praomys is refuted. Times to the most recent common ancestors of major clades within the P. tullbergi species complex are estimated for the last 2.5 Mya and during the last 1 or 2 Mya for different species or forms. The lowland forest refuge hypothesis might well explain the diversification of P. misonnei, P. rostratus and P. tullbergi in the guineo‐congolese forest block. The isolation of montane forests could have facilitated the divergence between the two montane forest forms P. hartwigi and P. obscurus and between populations of P. morio from the continent and those from the island of Bioko. Praomys populations (species) that inhabit the Cameroon Volcanic Line Praomys probably originated as lowland forms subsequently specialized to highland conditions.