Ouagadougou: Statistics and Computer Science student Zou Flore Reine Millogo presented her final year report for her Bachelor’s degree on the dynamics of antibody loss against the COVID-19 virus (SARS-COV-2) in Burkina Faso on Saturday, May 17, 2025, at Nazi Boni University. She received a grade of 18 out of 20.

According to Burkina Information Agency, Millogo’s research focused on determining the duration of antibody presence in the body and identifying factors associated with their decline. She noted that individuals aged 19 to 59 experienced a higher rate of antibody loss compared to other age groups, namely those aged 10 to 18 and those 60 and over.

Millogo highlighted the crucial role antibodies play in defending against viral infections, with their presence in the blood serving as an indicator of virus exposure, even in individuals without symptoms. Her research involved surveys conducted among residents of Ouagadougou and Bobo-Dioulasso in 2021.

The presentation of her thesis was preceded by an internship at the Muraz Center in Bobo-Dioulasso from June to December 2024. The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, originated in December 2019 in Wuhan, Republic of China, and was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11, 2020.

By July 15, 2022, Africa had registered 12.4 million COVID-19 cases and 256,000 deaths. In Burkina Faso, from March 9, 2020, there were 21,128 reported cases and 187 deaths.