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Echovirus 11 has emerged as a major public health concern, causing sepsis in neonates in many European countries in recent years. In Africa, especially West Africa, where resources and diagnostic capacities are limited, only sporadic cases have been reported. To better understand the recent molecular epidemiology of E11 in West Africa, we characterized twenty-three echovirus 11 strains isolated through the acute flaccid paralysis and environmental surveillance systems for polio from 2013 to 2023, using high-throughput sequencing. Our data are noteworthy due to identifying for the first time a recombinant strain from an acute flaccid paralysis case and represent the first focus to date on molecular characterization of echovirus 11 in West Africa. Moreover, our data show that echovirus 11 diverged from 1970 (95% HPD range, 1961–1979) and evolved into four distinct clades, with the virus spread from West Africa to Europe, exhibiting two introductions in France around 2017, from Senegal and Guinea. Furthermore, the in silico analysis reveals four non-conservative amino acid substitutions in the VP1 sequences of the European strains associated with neonatal sepsis in newborns and a conserved amino acid motif in the VP1 protein toward enterovirus genotypes. Our data provide new insights into the epidemiology of echovirus 11 and point to the crucial need to implement specific surveillance programs targeting non-polio enteroviruses for the rapid identification of emerging or re-emerging enterovirus species, particularly in Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: There is extensive evidence that SARS-CoV-2 replicates in the gastrointestinal tract. However, the infectivity of virions in feces is poorly documented. Although the primary mode of transmission is airborne, the risk of transmission from contaminated feces remains to be assessed. Design: The persistence of SARS-CoV-2 (infectivity and RNA) in human and animal feces was evaluated by virus isolation on cell culture and RT-qPCR, respectively. The exposure of golden Syrian hamsters to experimentally contaminated feces through intranasal inoculation has also been tested to assess the fecal-oral transmission route. Results: For periods that are compatible with average intestinal transit, the SARS-CoV-2 genome was noticeably stable in human and animal feces, contrary to the virus infectivity that was reduced in a time- and temperature-dependent manner. In human stools, this reduction was variable depending on the donors. Viral RNA was excreted in the feces of infected hamsters, but exposure of naïve hamsters to feces of infected animals did not lead to any productive infection. Conversely, hamsters could be experimentally infected following exposure to spiked fresh feces. Conclusion: Infection following exposure to naturally contaminated feces has been suspected but has not been established so far. The present work demonstrates that SARS-CoV-2 rapidly lost infectivity in spiked or naturally infected feces. Although the possibility of persistent viral particles in human or animal feces cannot be fully ruled out, SARS-CoV-2 transmission after exposure to contaminated feces is unlikely. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]