scholarly journals The Effects of a Complex Trophic Structure of Mammalian Host Species on the Ecology on Emerging Infectious Diseases

Author(s):  
Leticia Gutierrez

The benefit of a complex, intact community for maintaining ecosystem health in the face of emerging infectious disease risk has not been deeply explored. The diversity and distribution of haemoparasites in potential host mammal fauna are virtually unknown, and many diseases endemic to North America are not well understood in terms of transmission factors, prevalence, and contagion. Many of these tick and rodent borne pathogens nowadays are considered to be potential emerging infectious diseases that could spread to adjacent areas and new hosts, including humans, with climate change, land-use shift, and the expansion of distributions of the natural vectors of such haemoparasites. This study examines the effect of mammal community complexity in maintaining ecosystem health with respect to rodent/tick-borne diseases which have a high value for human public health as zoonotic diseases as well as for the unknown natural history of the mammalian community network.

Author(s):  
Leticia Gutierrez ◽  
Robert Ricklefs

Wildlife-parasite interactions among both ectoparasites and haemoparasites and their hosts are not well known among North American mammals, particularly in the case of relatively intact and complex communities of mammals that include top-level predators, large herbivores and a wide variety of rodent species. Understanding the distribution of haemoparasites among potential mammalian hosts can indicate links between hosts, biological vectors, disease agents, and human disease risk. This study examines the role and effects of a complex community of mammalian host species in maintaining the overall health of the ecosystem. Thereby, it explores the indirect and direct effects of wildlife in preventing the emergence of human infectious diseases depending upon land-use change/vegetation cover and host species richness. Rodents were captured and screened for blood parasites and ectoparasites in spring and summer 2011 within Grand Teton National Park (Figure 1). Sites were chosen by land-use /vegetation cover. Small blood samples from trapped individuals were collected and kept in lysis buffer/FTA cards. All the animals were released unharmed after blood sampling and ectoparasite collection. Collaborative efforts lead to collection of blood/tick samples from large predators, mesocarnivores and ungulates. Parasite DNA isolated from mammalian blood samples is being analyzed using the polymerase chain reaction and reverse line blot. DNA sequencing will be carried out to identify Plasmodium, Rickettsia Babesia, Borrelia, Ehrlichia, Hepatozoon, Anaplasma, and Theileria haemoparasites in the blood and in tick/flea samples.


2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 403
Author(s):  
Guntari Titik Mulyani ◽  
Sri Hartati ◽  
Yuli Santoso ◽  
Kurnia Kurnia ◽  
Agung Budi Pramono ◽  
...  

Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease, which is caused by Leptospira interrogans. The incidence of leptospirosis in dogs varies according to region and season, and is considered as emerging infectious diseases in humans. Clinical symptoms of leptospirosis in dogs vary greatly, some dogs are asymptomatic, with mild symptoms, and others progress to severe illness until death. The study aims to determine cases of canine leptospirosis in Yogyakarta, and identify the serovar that infect them. A total of 20 dogs without symptoms, with mild symptoms, to severe symptoms of leptospirosis were collected their serum and further tested using Microscopic Agglutination Test (MAT) conducted at the Center for Veterinary Research (BBLitvet) Bogor. History of vaccination is recorded as a consideration in interpreting the MAT results. The results showed that three out of the 20 samples were positive leptospirosis. Of the three positive samples, one was identified as serovar bataviae, another one as serovar bataviae and tarrasovi, and the last as serovar bataviae, tarrasovi, ichterohaemorrhagiae, canicola, celledoni, pyrogenes, cynopteri, and rachmati, respectively. The three dogs with leptospirosis showed similar clinical symptoms i.e. Anorexia, lethargy, and fever. It can be concluded that there are cases of canine leptospirosis in Yogyakarta which is predominantly caused by Leptospira interrogans serovar bataviae. ABSTRAK Leptospirosis adalah penyakit zoonosis, yang disebabkan oleh Leptospira interrogans. Kejadian leptospirosis pada anjing bervariasi menurut wilayah dan musim, dan dianggap sebagai penyakit menular yang muncul pada manusia. Gejala klinis leptospirosis pada anjing sangat bervariasi, beberapa anjing tanpa menunjukkan gejala, dengan gejala ringan, dan yang lain melanjut menjadi penyakit yang parah sampai kematian. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui kasus leptospirosis pada anjing di Propinsi Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta, dan mengidentifikasi serovar yang menginfeksinya. Sebanyak 20 ekor anjing tanpa gejala, dengan gejala ringan, sampai gejala parah leptospirosis diambil serumnya guna pemeriksaan Microscopic Agglutination Test (MAT) yang dilaksanakan di Balai Besar Penelitian Veteriner (BBLitvet), Bogor. Sejarah vaksinasi dicatat sebagai bahan pertimbangan dalam menginterpretasi hasil pemeriksaan MAT. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa tiga dari 20 sampel positif leptospirosis. Satu sampel positif terhadap serovar Bataviae, satu sampel positif terhadap serovar Bataviae dan Tarrasovi, dan satu sampel lagi positif terhadap serovar Bataviae, Tarrasovi, Ichterohaemorrhagiae, Canicola, Celledoni, Pyrogenes, Cynopteri, dan Rachmati. Anjing yang positif leptospirosis menunjukkan gejala klinis yang sama berupa anoreksia, kelemahan, dan demam. Dari hasil penelitian ini dapat disimpulkan bahwa terdapat kasus leptospirosis pada anjing di Yogyakarta yang penyebabnya dominan oleh Leptospira interrogans serovar Bataviae.


Author(s):  
Diniz Pereira Leite Júnior ◽  
Elisangela Santana de Oliveira Dantas ◽  
Gisela Lara da Costa ◽  
Ronaldo Sousa Pereira ◽  
Mário Mendes Bonci ◽  
...  

Introduction: It is possible that the evolution of man is associated with manifestations of microscopic beings that have accompanied him since ancient times. Emerging infectious diseases have been warning for decades that habitat fragmentation and degradation, antropization effects, animal trafficking increase the risk of diseases spreading from wildlife to human populations. Aims: The purpose of this study was to review the current events about the pandemics that occurred on the planet and the current situation of bat involvement, their high degree of ecological plasticity that these beings present with the emergence and spread of viruses. Methodology: Review the current knowledge about viral diversity, host condition and possible mammalian reservoirs in the face of pandemics and the close relationship of bats with humans and other possibly incriminated species. Given the epidemics of the last century, it is possible to observe that the increased interaction between humans and wild animals has facilitated the emergence of viral strains of importance for public health. Results: Given the reports argued by the scientific community, bats may be responsible for the air cycle of viral diseases, being considered of great importance in the study of epidemiology. Conclusion: The SARS-CoV-2 epidemic has come to test the ability of humans to face a threat that may be repeated in the future. As part of nature, bats cannot be framed as precursors of viral agents. The knowledge obtained, associated with investment in science, research and education, will put us one step ahead of future pandemic events.


Author(s):  
Conner Philson ◽  
Lyndsey Gray ◽  
Lindsey Pedroncelli ◽  
William Ota

Disease transmission from animals to humans — called a zoonotic disease — is responsible for nearly 60% of emerging infectious diseases. While zoonotic diseases already pose a major risk to humanity, global climate change and its causal human behaviors are compounding zoonotic disease risk. Dynamic species distributions, increased species overlap, and alterations in human land use increase the risk of disease transmission from non-humans to humans. Ticks, which carry many human disease-causing agents, are a primary example. As 23% of emerging infectious diseases globally are spread by blood-feeding arthropods, such as ticks, managing and monitoring tick distributions and their overlap and potential contact with humans is vital to decrease the risk of zoonotic disease transmission. While some programs are already in place, expanding current and implementing new programs across the globe is pertinent. We propose enhancing international collaboration and communication efforts through intergovernmental organizations such as the United Nations (UN) and the World Health Organization (WHO), to better research, monitor, and mitigate the risk of tick-borne zoonotic disease. By focusing international efforts on ticks, subsequent zoonotic disease-climate change research and monitoring efforts can be done across species.


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