Rubella is a contagious disease caused by the rubella virus (RuV) that can lead to serious
birth defects when women are infected in early pregnancy. This study aimed to describe the epidemiology and genetic diversity of
rubella viruses in Cote d'Ivoire (CIV). Blood or oral fluid samples collected from suspected
measles cases were first tested for the presence of
measles specific
IgM antibodies by
enzyme-linked
immunosorbent assay (ELISA). All
measles IgM negative or indeterminate samples were tested for
rubella IgM antibody using ELISA.
Rubella-
IgM-positive samples were tested by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for the presence of rubella virus
RNA. Real-time RT-PCR-positive
RNA samples were used as template to amplify the 739 nt region used for
rubella genotyping. PCR-positive samples were sequenced and phylogenetic analysis performed. Between 2012 and 2016, 4121 serums and 126 oral fluids were collected through the
measles surveillance system. Of these, 3823 and 108 respectively were
measles IgM negative or indeterminate. Subsequent testing for
rubella found that 690 of 3823 (18%) serum samples and 25 of 108 (23%) oral fluid samples were
rubella IgM-positive. The 739 nt segment of the E1
glycoprotein gene was amplified and sequenced for two serums and seven oral fluids samples. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the
rubella viruses from CIV belonged to genotypes 1G (eight samples) and 2B (one sample). Rubella virus genotype 2B was found in CIV for the first time. These data contribute to baseline information on rubella virus strains found in CIV before the introduction of
rubella vaccine.