Last data update: May 13, 2024. (Total: 46773 publications since 2009)
Records 1-11 (of 11 Records) |
Query Trace: Streicker DG[original query] |
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The Amazonian Tropical Bites Research Initiative, a hope for resolving zoonotic neglected tropical diseases in the One Health era
Taylor E , Aguilar-Ancori EG , Banyard AC , Abel I , Mantini-Briggs C , Briggs CL , Carrillo C , Gavidia CM , Castillo-Neyra R , Parola AD , Villena FE , Prada JM , Petersen BW , FalconPerez N , CabezasSanchez C , Sihuincha M , Streicker DG , MaguinaVargas C , NavarroVela AM , Vigilato MAN , WenFan H , Willoughby R , Horton DL , Recuenco SE . Int Health 2022 15 (2) 216-223 BACKGROUND: Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) disproportionately affect populations living in resource-limited settings. In the Amazon basin, substantial numbers of NTDs are zoonotic, transmitted by vertebrate (dogs, bats, snakes) and invertebrate species (sand flies and triatomine insects). However, no dedicated consortia exist to find commonalities in the risk factors for or mitigations against bite-associated NTDs such as rabies, snake envenoming, Chagas disease and leishmaniasis in the region. The rapid expansion of COVID-19 has further reduced resources for NTDs, exacerbated health inequality and reiterated the need to raise awareness of NTDs related to bites. METHODS: The nine countries that make up the Amazon basin have been considered (Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Surinam and Venezuela) in the formation of a new network. RESULTS: The Amazonian Tropical Bites Research Initiative (ATBRI) has been created, with the aim of creating transdisciplinary solutions to the problem of animal bites leading to disease in Amazonian communities. The ATBRI seeks to unify the currently disjointed approach to the control of bite-related neglected zoonoses across Latin America. CONCLUSIONS: The coordination of different sectors and inclusion of all stakeholders will advance this field and generate evidence for policy-making, promoting governance and linkage across a One Health arena. |
Defining new pathways to manage the ongoing emergence of bat rabies in Latin America
Benavides JA , Valderrama W , Recuenco S , Uieda W , Suzán G , Avila-Flores R , Velasco-Villa A , Almeida M , Andrade FAG , Molina-Flores B , Vigilato MAN , Pompei JCA , Tizzani P , Carrera JE , Ibanez D , Streicker DG . Viruses 2020 12 (9) Rabies transmitted by common vampire bats (Desmodus rotundus) has been known since the early 1900s but continues to expand geographically and in the range of species and environments affected. In this review, we present current knowledge of the epidemiology and management of rabies in D. rotundus and argue that it can be reasonably considered an emerging public health threat. We identify knowledge gaps related to the landscape determinants of the bat reservoir, reduction in bites on humans and livestock, and social barriers to prevention. We discuss how new technologies including autonomously-spreading vaccines and reproductive suppressants targeting bats might manage both rabies and undesirable growth of D. rotundus populations. Finally, we highlight widespread under-reporting of human and animal mortality and the scarcity of studies that quantify the efficacy of control measures such as bat culling. Collaborations between researchers and managers will be crucial to implement the next generation of rabies management in Latin America. |
Possibility for reverse zoonotic transmission of SARS-CoV-2 to free-ranging wildlife: A case study of bats.
Olival KJ , Cryan PM , Amman BR , Baric RS , Blehert DS , Brook CE , Calisher CH , Castle KT , Coleman JTH , Daszak P , Epstein JH , Field H , Frick WF , Gilbert AT , Hayman DTS , Ip HS , Karesh WB , Johnson CK , Kading RC , Kingston T , Lorch JM , Mendenhall IH , Peel AJ , Phelps KL , Plowright RK , Reeder DM , Reichard JD , Sleeman JM , Streicker DG , Towner JS , Wang LF . PLoS Pathog 2020 16 (9) e1008758 The COVID-19 pandemic highlights the substantial public health, economic, and societal consequences of virus spillover from a wildlife reservoir. Widespread human transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) also presents a new set of challenges when considering viral spillover from people to naïve wildlife and other animal populations. The establishment of new wildlife reservoirs for SARS-CoV-2 would further complicate public health control measures and could lead to wildlife health and conservation impacts. Given the likely bat origin of SARS-CoV-2 and related beta-coronaviruses (β-CoVs), free-ranging bats are a key group of concern for spillover from humans back to wildlife. Here, we review the diversity and natural host range of β-CoVs in bats and examine the risk of humans inadvertently infecting free-ranging bats with SARS-CoV-2. Our review of the global distribution and host range of β-CoV evolutionary lineages suggests that 40+ species of temperate-zone North American bats could be immunologically naïve and susceptible to infection by SARS-CoV-2. We highlight an urgent need to proactively connect the wellbeing of human and wildlife health during the current pandemic and to implement new tools to continue wildlife research while avoiding potentially severe health and conservation impacts of SARS-CoV-2 "spilling back" into free-ranging bat populations. |
Abortive vampire bat rabies infections in Peruvian peridomestic livestock
Benavides JA , Velasco-Villa A , Godino LC , Satheshkumar PS , Ruby N , Rojas-Paniagua E , Shiva C , Falcon N , Streicker DG . PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2020 14 (6) e0008194 Rabies virus infections normally cause universally lethal encephalitis across mammals. However, 'abortive infections' which are resolved prior to the onset of lethal disease have been described in bats and a variety of non-reservoir species. Here, we surveyed rabies virus neutralizing antibody titers in 332 unvaccinated livestock of 5 species from a vampire bat rabies endemic region of southern Peru where livestock are the main food source for bats. We detected rabies virus neutralizing antibody titers in 11, 5 and 3.6% of cows, goats and sheep respectively and seropositive animals did not die from rabies within two years after sampling. Seroprevalence was correlated with the number of local livestock rabies mortalities reported one year prior but also one year after sample collection. This suggests that serological status of livestock can indicate the past and future levels of rabies risk to non-reservoir hosts. To our knowledge, this is the first report of anti-rabies antibodies among goats and sheep, suggesting widespread abortive infections among livestock in vampire bat rabies endemic areas. Future research should resolve the within-host biology underlying clearance of rabies infections. Cost-effectiveness analyses are also needed to evaluate whether serological monitoring of livestock can be a viable complement to current monitoring of vampire bat rabies risk based on animal mortalities alone. |
Successful strategies implemented towards the elimination of canine rabies in the Western Hemisphere
Velasco-Villa A , Escobar LE , Sanchez A , Shi M , Streicker DG , Gallardo-Romero NF , Vargas-Pino F , Gutierrez-Cedillo V , Damon I , Emerson G . Antiviral Res 2017 143 1-12 Almost all cases of human rabies result from dog bites, making the elimination of canine rabies a global priority. During recent decades, many countries in the Western Hemisphere have carried out large-scale dog vaccination campaigns, controlled their free-ranging dog populations and enforced legislation for responsible pet ownership. This article reviews progress in eliminating canine rabies from the Western Hemisphere. After briefly summarizing the history of control efforts and describing the approaches listed above, we note that programs in some countries have been hindered by societal attitudes and severe economic disparities, which underlines the need to discuss measures that will be required to complete the elimination of canine rabies throughout the region. We also note that there is a constant threat for dog-maintained epizootics to re-occur, so as long as dog-maintained rabies "hot spots" are still present, free-roaming dog populations remain large, herd immunity becomes low and dog-derived rabies lyssavirus (RABLV) variants continue to circulate in close proximity to rabies-naive dog populations. The elimination of dog-maintained rabies will be only feasible if both dog-maintained and dog-derived RABLV lineages and variants are permanently eliminated. This may be possible by keeping dog herd immunity above 70% at all times, fostering sustained laboratory-based surveillance through reliable rabies diagnosis and RABLV genetic typing in dogs, domestic animals and wildlife, as well as continuing to educate the population on the risk of rabies transmission, prevention and responsible pet ownership. Complete elimination of canine rabies requires permanent funding, with governments and people committed to make it a reality. An accompanying article reviews the history and epidemiology of canine rabies in the Western Hemisphere, beginning with its introduction during the period of European colonization, and discusses how spillovers of viruses between dogs and various wild carnivores will affect future eradication efforts (Velasco-Villa et al., 2017). |
The history of rabies in the Western Hemisphere
Velasco-Villa A , Mauldin MR , Shi M , Escobar LE , Gallardo-Romero NF , Damon I , Olson VA , Streicker DG , Emerson G . Antiviral Res 2017 146 221-232 Before the introduction of control programs in the 20th century, rabies in domestic dogs occurred throughout the Western Hemisphere. However, historical records and phylogenetic analysis of multiple virus isolates indicate that, before the arrival of the first European colonizers, rabies virus was likely present only in bats and skunks. Canine rabies was either rare or absent among domestic dogs of Native Americans, and first arrived when many new dog breeds were imported during the period of European colonization. The introduction of the cosmopolitan dog rabies lyssavirus variant and the marked expansion of the dog population provided ideal conditions for the flourishing of enzootic canine rabies. The shift of dog-maintained viruses into gray foxes, coyotes, skunks and other wild mesocarnivores throughout the Americas and to mongooses in the Caribbean has augmented the risk of human rabies exposures and has complicated control efforts. At the same time, the continued presence of bat rabies poses novel challenges in the absolute elimination of canine and human rabies. This article compiles existing historical and phylogenetic evidence of the origins and subsequent dynamics of rabies in the Western Hemisphere, from the era preceding the arrival of the first European colonizers through the present day. A companion article reviews the current status of canine rabies control throughout the Western Hemisphere and steps that will be required to achieve and maintain its complete elimination (Velasco-Villa et al., in press). |
Host-pathogen evolutionary signatures reveal dynamics and future invasions of vampire bat rabies.
Streicker DG , Winternitz JC , Satterfield DA , Condori-Condori RE , Broos A , Tello C , Recuenco S , Velasco-Villa A , Altizer S , Valderrama W . Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2016 113 (39) 10926-31 Anticipating how epidemics will spread across landscapes requires understanding host dispersal events that are notoriously difficult to measure. Here, we contrast host and virus genetic signatures to resolve the spatiotemporal dynamics underlying geographic expansions of vampire bat rabies virus (VBRV) in Peru. Phylogenetic analysis revealed recent viral spread between populations that, according to extreme geographic structure in maternally inherited host mitochondrial DNA, appeared completely isolated. In contrast, greater population connectivity in biparentally inherited nuclear microsatellites explained the historical limits of invasions, suggesting that dispersing male bats spread VBRV between genetically isolated female populations. Host nuclear DNA further indicated unanticipated gene flow through the Andes mountains connecting the VBRV-free Pacific coast to the VBRV-endemic Amazon rainforest. By combining Bayesian phylogeography with landscape resistance models, we projected invasion routes through northern Peru that were validated by real-time livestock rabies mortality data. The first outbreaks of VBRV on the Pacific coast of South America could occur by June 2020, which would have serious implications for agriculture, wildlife conservation, and human health. Our results show that combining host and pathogen genetic data can identify sex biases in pathogen spatial spread, which may be a widespread but underappreciated phenomenon, and demonstrate that genetic forecasting can aid preparedness for impending viral invasions. |
Anthropogenic roost switching and rabies virus dynamics in house-roosting big brown bats
Streicker DG , Franka R , Jackson FR , Rupprecht CE . Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis 2013 13 (7) 498-504 Big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus) are the most commonly encountered rabid bat in North America and represent an important source of wildlife rabies epizootics. Urban and suburban colonies of E. fuscus are often evicted from their roosts in houses, with poorly understood consequences for bat dispersal, population dynamics, and rabies virus transmission. We combined radiotelemetry and mark-recapture of E. fuscus with enhanced surveillance to understand the frequency of rabies virus exposure in house-roosting bats and to assess the potential for behavioral responses of eviction to exacerbate viral transmission. Serology demonstrated the circulation of rabies virus in nearly all sites, with an overall seroprevalence of 12%, but no bats were excreting rabies virus at the time of capture. Bats that were excluded from roosts relocated to houses <1 km from the original roost. However, behavioral responses to eviction differed, with bats switching repeatedly among new roosts in 1 site, but fusing with a neighboring colony in another. These findings confirm the circulation of rabies virus in E. fuscus that live in close contact with humans and companion animals, suggest mechanisms through which anthropogenic disturbance of bats might influence pathogen transmission, and highlight simple strategies to balance conservation and public health priorities. |
Molecular inferences suggest multiple host shifts of rabies viruses from bats to mesocarnivores in Arizona during 2001-2009
Kuzmin IV , Shi M , Orciari LA , Yager PA , Velasco-Villa A , Kuzmina NA , Streicker DG , Bergman DL , Rupprecht CE . PLoS Pathog 2012 8 (6) e1002786 In nature, rabies virus (RABV; genus Lyssavirus, family Rhabdoviridae) represents an assemblage of phylogenetic lineages, associated with specific mammalian host species. Although it is generally accepted that RABV evolved originally in bats and further shifted to carnivores, mechanisms of such host shifts are poorly understood, and examples are rarely present in surveillance data. Outbreaks in carnivores caused by a RABV variant, associated with big brown bats, occurred repeatedly during 2001-2009 in the Flagstaff area of Arizona. After each outbreak, extensive control campaigns were undertaken, with no reports of further rabies cases in carnivores for the next several years. However, questions remained whether all outbreaks were caused by a single introduction and further perpetuation of bat RABV in carnivore populations, or each outbreak was caused by an independent introduction of a bat virus. Another question of concern was related to adaptive changes in the RABV genome associated with host shifts. To address these questions, we sequenced and analyzed 66 complete and 20 nearly complete RABV genomes, including those from the Flagstaff area and other similar outbreaks in carnivores, caused by bat RABVs, and representatives of the major RABV lineages circulating in North America and worldwide. Phylogenetic analysis demonstrated that each Flagstaff outbreak was caused by an independent introduction of bat RABV into populations of carnivores. Positive selection analysis confirmed the absence of post-shift changes in RABV genes. In contrast, convergent evolution analysis demonstrated several amino acids in the N, P, G and L proteins, which might be significant for pre-adaptation of bat viruses to cause effective infection in carnivores. The substitution S/T(242) in the viral glycoprotein is of particular merit, as a similar substitution was suggested for pathogenicity of Nishigahara RABV strain. Roles of the amino acid changes, detected in our study, require additional investigations, using reverse genetics and other approaches. |
Ecological and anthropogenic drivers of rabies exposure in vampire bats: implications for transmission and control
Streicker DG , Recuenco S , Valderrama W , Gomez Benavides J , Vargas I , Pacheco V , Condori Condori RE , Montgomery J , Rupprecht CE , Rohani P , Altizer S . Proc Biol Sci 2012 279 (1742) 3384-92 Despite extensive culling of common vampire bats in Latin America, lethal human rabies outbreaks transmitted by this species are increasingly recognized, and livestock rabies occurs with striking frequency. To identify the individual and population-level factors driving rabies virus (RV) transmission in vampire bats, we conducted a longitudinal capture-recapture study in 20 vampire bat colonies spanning four regions of Peru. Serology demonstrated the circulation of RV in vampire bats from all regions in all years. Seroprevalence ranged from 3 to 28 per cent and was highest in juvenile and sub-adult bats. RV exposure was independent of bat colony size, consistent with an absence of population density thresholds for viral invasion and extinction. Culling campaigns implemented during our study failed to reduce seroprevalence and were perhaps counterproductive for disease control owing to the targeted removal of adults, but potentially greater importance of juvenile and sub-adult bats for transmission. These findings provide new insights into the mechanisms of RV maintenance in vampire bats and highlight the need for ecologically informed approaches to rabies prevention in Latin America. |
Host phylogeny constrains cross-species emergence and establishment of rabies virus in bats
Streicker DG , Turmelle AS , Vonhof MJ , Kuzmin IV , McCracken GF , Rupprecht CE . Science 2010 329 (5992) 676-9 For RNA viruses, rapid viral evolution and the biological similarity of closely related host species have been proposed as key determinants of the occurrence and long-term outcome of cross-species transmission. Using a data set of hundreds of rabies viruses sampled from 23 North American bat species, we present a general framework to quantify per capita rates of cross-species transmission and reconstruct historical patterns of viral establishment in new host species using molecular sequence data. These estimates demonstrate diminishing frequencies of both cross-species transmission and host shifts with increasing phylogenetic distance between bat species. Evolutionary constraints on viral host range indicate that host species barriers may trump the intrinsic mutability of RNA viruses in determining the fate of emerging host-virus interactions. |
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