Authors
Elvis Suatey Lomotey, Martin Montiel-Ruiz, Daniel Adjei Odumang, Elizabeth Obeng-Aboagye, Florence Biamah Amakye, Joseph Annan Hayford, Bernard Aniakwo Logonia, Katharina Röltgen, Irene Owusu Donkor
Published in
Frontiers in epidemiology. Volume 6. Pages 1874054. Epub Aug 10, 2026.
Abstract
The prevalence and distribution of endemic human coronaviruses (HCoVs) in Ghana remain poorly characterized, particularly in the post-COVID-19 pandemic era. We conducted a cross-sectional molecular and serological survey of 1,000 individuals from five rural and five urban communities in Ghana to assess the prevalence of HCoVs. Reverse transcriptase real-time PCR (RT-qPCR) assays targeted SARS-CoV-2, HCoV-OC43, HCoV-HKU1, HCoV-NL63, and HCoV-229E, while serological assays evaluated IgG antibody responses against SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV-1, MERS-CoV, HCoV-OC43, HCoV-HKU1, HCoV-NL63, and HCoV-229E Spike proteins. A broad pan-coronavirus RT-qPCR assay detected HCoV RNA in 6.7% of participants, with SARS-CoV-2 as the most frequent, followed by HCoV-229E, HCoV-HKU1, and HCoV-OC43; HCoV-NL63 was not detected. Serological analyses revealed widespread exposure to SARS-CoV-2, HCoV-OC43, HCoV-229E, and HCoV-HKU1, with a low seroprevalence for HCoV-NL63. Our findings demonstrate ongoing co-circulation of multiple HCoVs in both rural and urban settings in Ghana post Covid-19, suggesting sustained community transmission, increased potential for co-infection, and the need for continued surveillance of endemic and emerging respiratory viruses. The data provides rare insights into the epidemiology of HCoVs in West Africa.
PMID:
42639089
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 25 Aug 2026.
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