{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,15]],"date-time":"2026-09-15T04:33:12Z","timestamp":1789446792357,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":20,"publisher":"American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene","issue":"2","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,6]],"date-time":"2025-08-06T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1754438400000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,6]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>ABSTRACT.<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>Despite being a dangerous disease found across West Africa, with occasional cases imported elsewhere, few medical countermeasures for Lassa fever are available, with no vaccine or validated treatment, and limited regulatory-approved diagnostics. Scientific research on the Lassa virus (LASV) is needed to accelerate the development of such tools but is dependent on access to high-quality biological samples. To meet this need, we have established a well-curated biobank to prospectively collect, process, and store high-quality, well-characterized clinical specimens from patients with Lassa fever at the Federal Medical Center Owo (FMCO) in Nigeria. Patients presenting to FMCO with symptoms of Lassa fever were tested for LASV by polymerase chain reaction and screened for eligibility. Samples of whole blood, plasma, and serum were collected at baseline, and at 4- and 8-weeks post-baseline from LASV-positive (LASV+) participants. Of 197 participants enrolled, 99 were LASV+ and 98 LASV-negative. In total, 3,599 sample aliquots were stored, comprised of 264 whole blood, 1,572 serum, and 1,763 plasma samples. The Lassa fever biobank now provides support for scientific research, including the evaluation of diagnostics and biomarkers, as well as the development and validation of other medical countermeasures for the detection, prevention, and control of Lassa fever. Processes for accessing samples are described.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.4269\/ajtmh.24-0527","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,5,27]],"date-time":"2025-05-27T13:25:53Z","timestamp":1748352353000},"page":"382-386","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":3,"title":["Establishment of a Lassa Fever Specimen Biobank in Nigeria"],"prefix":"10.4269","volume":"113","author":[{"given":"Hanesh F.","family":"Chi","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"FIND, Geneva, Switzerland;"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Johnson","family":"Etafo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Federal Medical Centre Owo, Owo, Nigeria;"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Fritz","family":"Fonkeng","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"FIND, Geneva, Switzerland;"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Gbenga-Ayeni Bosede","family":"Olufunke","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Federal Medical Centre Owo, Owo, Nigeria;"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ronke","family":"Ireneh","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Federal Medical Centre Owo, Owo, Nigeria;"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Chukwuyem","family":"Abejegah","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Federal Medical Centre Owo, Owo, Nigeria;"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Sampson","family":"Owhin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Federal Medical Centre Owo, Owo, Nigeria;"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Stella","family":"Somiari","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"ITSI Biosciences, Johnstown, Pennsylvania;"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Aur\u00e9lia","family":"Vessi\u00e8re","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Daniel G.","family":"Bausch","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"FIND, Geneva, Switzerland;"},{"name":"London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Imane","family":"El Idrissi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"FIND, Geneva, Switzerland;"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Warren","family":"Fransman","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"FIND, Geneva, Switzerland;"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Cassandra","family":"Kelly-Cirino","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"FIND, Geneva, Switzerland;"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Emmanuel","family":"Agogo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"FIND, Geneva, Switzerland;"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Devy M.","family":"Emperador","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"FIND, Geneva, Switzerland;"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Nelson A.","family":"Adedosu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Federal Medical Centre Owo, Owo, Nigeria;"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"2795","reference":[{"key":"b1","article-title":"Lassa Fever","year":"2017"},{"key":"b2","article-title":"Lassa Fever Research and Development (R&D) Roadmap","year":"2019"},{"key":"b3","series-title":"Epidemiol Infect","first-page":"e4","article-title":"Large-scale Lassa fever outbreaks in Nigeria: Quantifying the association between disease reproduction number and local rainfall","volume":"148","author":"Zhao","year":"2020"},{"key":"b4","article-title":"Lassa Fever\u2014Nigeria","year":"2023"},{"key":"b5","series-title":"Nat Commun","first-page":"5596","article-title":"Predicting the evolution of the Lassa virus endemic area and population at risk over the next decades","volume":"13","author":"Klitting","year":"2022"},{"key":"b6","article-title":"Priority Diseases","year":"2024"},{"key":"b7","series-title":"Trop Med Int Health","first-page":"420","article-title":"Lassa fever vaccine candidates: A scoping review of vaccine clinical trials","volume":"28","author":"Sulis","year":"2023"},{"key":"b8","series-title":"BMJ Glob Health","first-page":"e001116","article-title":"Diagnostics for Lassa fever virus: A genetically diverse pathogen found in low-resource settings","volume":"4","author":"Mazzola","year":"2019"},{"key":"b9","series-title":"Curr Opin Virol","first-page":"132","article-title":"Lassa fever diagnostics: Past, present, and future","volume":"37","author":"Happi","year":"2019"},{"key":"b10","series-title":"An R&D Blueprint for Action to Prevent Epidemics: Plan of Action","year":"2016"},{"key":"b11","series-title":"Nat Rev Microbiol","first-page":"87","article-title":"Lassa fever\u2014the road ahead","volume":"21","author":"Garry","year":"2023"},{"key":"b12","series-title":"Biopreserv Biobank","first-page":"113","article-title":"Clinical biospecimens: Reference materials, certified for nominal properties?","volume":"12","author":"Betsou","year":"2014"},{"key":"b13","series-title":"Clin Lab Med","first-page":"183","article-title":"Biospecimens and biobanking in global health","volume":"38","author":"Mendy","year":"2018"},{"key":"b14","series-title":"FIND Integrated Biobanks","year":"2024"},{"key":"b15","series-title":"Ther Adv Infect Dis","first-page":"20499361211058252","article-title":"Epidemiological trends of Lassa fever in Nigeria from 2015\u20132021: A review","volume":"8","author":"Grace","year":"2021"},{"key":"b16","series-title":"An Update of Lassa Fever Outbreak in Nigeria"},{"key":"b17","series-title":"AJHNM","first-page":"51","article-title":"Prevalence of Lassa fever infections in Ondo State","volume":"7","author":"Akinpelu","year":"2024"},{"key":"b18","series-title":"National Guidelines for Lassa Fever Case Management","year":"2018"},{"key":"b19","series-title":"Ejmed","first-page":"78","article-title":"Surveillance of viral hemorrhagic fever viruses in Lassa fever suspects in Ondo State, Nigeria","volume":"4","author":"Azuka","year":"2022"},{"key":"b20","article-title":"Best Practices","year":"2018"}],"container-title":["The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and 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