The use of residual serum samples to perform serological surveillance of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in Dili and regional areas of Timor-Leste

Nevio Sarmento; Lourenço C Ico; Sarah L Sheridan; Maria Y Tanesi; Celia G Santos; Ismael Barreto; Nelia Gomes; Tessa Oakley; Anthony D K Draper; Nicholas S S Fancourt; Jennifer Yan; Kristine Macartney; Joshua R Francis; Paul Arkell

doi:10.1093/trstmh/trac117

The use of residual serum samples to perform serological surveillance of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in Dili and regional areas of Timor-Leste

Nevio Sarmento, Lourenço C Ico, Sarah L Sheridan, Maria Y Tanesi, Celia G Santos, Ismael Barreto, Nelia Gomes, Tessa Oakley, Anthony D K Draper, Nicholas S S Fancourt, Jennifer Yan, Kristine Macartney, Joshua R Francis, Paul Arkell

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Abstract

Background: Lack of access to diagnostic testing for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2) infection can limit disease surveillance in remote areas. Serological surveillance can indicate the true extent and distribution of infections in such settings.

Methods: This study monitored SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in residual serum samples salvaged from laboratories at five healthcare facilities across Timor-Leste from March to October 2021.

Results: Seroprevalence increased from 8.3% to 87.0% during the study period. Potential immunity gaps were identified among children aged 0–15 y (who had not been eligible for vaccination) and individuals aged >60 y.

Conclusions: Efforts to vaccinate vulnerable individuals including older people should be maintained. Residual serum samples can be analysed to give local, contemporary information about the extent and distribution of antibodies to infections, especially SARS-CoV-2, in areas where epidemiological information is limited.

Original language	English
Article number	trac117
Pages (from-to)	313-315
Number of pages	3
Journal	Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Volume	117
Issue number	4
Early online date	9 Dec 2022
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1093/trstmh/trac117
Publication status	Published - 1 Apr 2023

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This work was supported by the Department for Foreign Affairs and Trade of the Australian Government [Complex Grant Agreement Number 75889].

Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2022.

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Sarmento, N., Ico, L. C., Sheridan, S. L., Tanesi, M. Y., Santos, C. G., Barreto, I., Gomes, N., Oakley, T., Draper, A. D. K., Fancourt, N. S. S., Yan, J., Macartney, K., Francis, J. R., & Arkell, P. (2023). The use of residual serum samples to perform serological surveillance of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in Dili and regional areas of Timor-Leste. Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 117(4), 313-315. Article trac117. https://doi.org/10.1093/trstmh/trac117

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title = "The use of residual serum samples to perform serological surveillance of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in Dili and regional areas of Timor-Leste",

abstract = "Background: Lack of access to diagnostic testing for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2) infection can limit disease surveillance in remote areas. Serological surveillance can indicate the true extent and distribution of infections in such settings.Methods: This study monitored SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in residual serum samples salvaged from laboratories at five healthcare facilities across Timor-Leste from March to October 2021.Results: Seroprevalence increased from 8.3% to 87.0% during the study period. Potential immunity gaps were identified among children aged 0–15 y (who had not been eligible for vaccination) and individuals aged >60 y.Conclusions: Efforts to vaccinate vulnerable individuals including older people should be maintained. Residual serum samples can be analysed to give local, contemporary information about the extent and distribution of antibodies to infections, especially SARS-CoV-2, in areas where epidemiological information is limited.",

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author = "Nevio Sarmento and Ico, {Louren{\c c}o C} and Sheridan, {Sarah L} and Tanesi, {Maria Y} and Santos, {Celia G} and Ismael Barreto and Nelia Gomes and Tessa Oakley and Draper, {Anthony D K} and Fancourt, {Nicholas S S} and Jennifer Yan and Kristine Macartney and Francis, {Joshua R} and Paul Arkell",

note = "Funding Information: This work was supported by the Department for Foreign Affairs and Trade of the Australian Government [Complex Grant Agreement Number 75889]. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} The Author(s) 2022.",

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Sarmento, N, Ico, LC, Sheridan, SL, Tanesi, MY, Santos, CG, Barreto, I, Gomes, N, Oakley, T, Draper, ADK, Fancourt, NSS, Yan, J, Macartney, K, Francis, JR & Arkell, P 2023, 'The use of residual serum samples to perform serological surveillance of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in Dili and regional areas of Timor-Leste', Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, vol. 117, no. 4, trac117, pp. 313-315. https://doi.org/10.1093/trstmh/trac117

The use of residual serum samples to perform serological surveillance of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in Dili and regional areas of Timor-Leste. / Sarmento, Nevio; Ico, Lourenço C; Sheridan, Sarah L et al.
In: Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, Vol. 117, No. 4, trac117, 01.04.2023, p. 313-315.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

TY - JOUR

T1 - The use of residual serum samples to perform serological surveillance of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in Dili and regional areas of Timor-Leste

AU - Sarmento, Nevio

AU - Ico, Lourenço C

AU - Sheridan, Sarah L

AU - Tanesi, Maria Y

AU - Santos, Celia G

AU - Barreto, Ismael

AU - Gomes, Nelia

AU - Oakley, Tessa

AU - Draper, Anthony D K

AU - Fancourt, Nicholas S S

AU - Yan, Jennifer

AU - Macartney, Kristine

AU - Francis, Joshua R

AU - Arkell, Paul

N1 - Funding Information: This work was supported by the Department for Foreign Affairs and Trade of the Australian Government [Complex Grant Agreement Number 75889]. Publisher Copyright: © The Author(s) 2022.

PY - 2023/4/1

Y1 - 2023/4/1

N2 - Background: Lack of access to diagnostic testing for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2) infection can limit disease surveillance in remote areas. Serological surveillance can indicate the true extent and distribution of infections in such settings.Methods: This study monitored SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in residual serum samples salvaged from laboratories at five healthcare facilities across Timor-Leste from March to October 2021.Results: Seroprevalence increased from 8.3% to 87.0% during the study period. Potential immunity gaps were identified among children aged 0–15 y (who had not been eligible for vaccination) and individuals aged >60 y.Conclusions: Efforts to vaccinate vulnerable individuals including older people should be maintained. Residual serum samples can be analysed to give local, contemporary information about the extent and distribution of antibodies to infections, especially SARS-CoV-2, in areas where epidemiological information is limited.

AB - Background: Lack of access to diagnostic testing for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2) infection can limit disease surveillance in remote areas. Serological surveillance can indicate the true extent and distribution of infections in such settings.Methods: This study monitored SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in residual serum samples salvaged from laboratories at five healthcare facilities across Timor-Leste from March to October 2021.Results: Seroprevalence increased from 8.3% to 87.0% during the study period. Potential immunity gaps were identified among children aged 0–15 y (who had not been eligible for vaccination) and individuals aged >60 y.Conclusions: Efforts to vaccinate vulnerable individuals including older people should be maintained. Residual serum samples can be analysed to give local, contemporary information about the extent and distribution of antibodies to infections, especially SARS-CoV-2, in areas where epidemiological information is limited.

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KW - SARS-CoV-2

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DO - 10.1093/trstmh/trac117

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JO - Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

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Sarmento N, Ico LC, Sheridan SL, Tanesi MY, Santos CG, Barreto I et al. The use of residual serum samples to perform serological surveillance of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in Dili and regional areas of Timor-Leste. Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. 2023 Apr 1;117(4):313-315. trac117. Epub 2022 Dec 9. doi: 10.1093/trstmh/trac117

The use of residual serum samples to perform serological surveillance of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in Dili and regional areas of Timor-Leste

Abstract

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