Bats as the reservoir for outbreaks of emerging infectious diseases.
TL;DR: A study from China has provided evidence that bats may be the natural reservoir for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV).
Abstract: A study from China has provided evidence that bats may be the natural reservoir for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV)
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TL;DR: The presence and diversity of Bartonella spp.
Abstract: We report the presence and diversity of Bartonella spp. in bats of 13 insectivorous and frugivorous species collected from various locations across Kenya. Bartonella isolates were obtained from 23 Eidolon helvum, 22 Rousettus aegyptiacus, 4 Coleura afra, 7 Triaenops persicus, 1 Hipposideros commersoni, and 49 Miniopterus spp. bats. Sequence analysis of the citrate synthase gene from the obtained isolates showed a wide assortment of Bartonella strains. Phylogenetically, isolates clustered in specific host bat species. All isolates from R. aegyptiacus, C. afra, and T. persicus bats clustered in separate monophyletic groups. In contrast, E. helvum and Miniopterus spp. bats harbored strains that clustered in several groups. Further investigation is needed to determine whether these agents are responsible for human illnesses in the region.
95 citations
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...HM363764–363768 and HM545136–545141....
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...C l “C” HM545136 (4) o eura Hipposideros “H” HM545137 (1)...
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01 Dec 2006
TL;DR: It is clear that bat conservation policies are inadequate and that the authors have merely begun to scratch the surface of a field of discovery regarding the roles of bats in disease emergence.
Abstract: 149 Bats (order Chiroptera, suborders Megachiroptera (»flying foxes«) and Microchiroptera) are abundant, diverse, and have been found on all continents except Antarctica. Although bats provide us with certain resources and many feed on insects, many populations of bats are at risk, threatened or endangered. The characteristics of these mammals include particular diets, colonial or solitary nature, ability to fly, cyclic migrations and daily movement patterns, the ability to enter torpor or to hibernate, long life span, roosting behaviors, a unique capacity to echolocate and, critically, their susceptibility to viruses make them suitable hosts of viruses, bacteria, parasites, fungi, and other disease agents. Although bats of certain species have long been known to transmit Rabies virus, they have been only rarely studied as hosts of viruses. Recent outbreaks and epidemics of newly recognized human and livestock diseases caused by bat-transmitted viruses have attracted the interest of scientific investigators to these mammals. This review summarizes germane facts regarding the characteristics of bats and provides information regarding 66 viruses that have been isolated from them. The literature on the biology of bats is abundant with respect to narrowly defined characters, including echolocation, diet, and distribution, but it is deficient with respect to bat biology in general. In addition, it is clear that bat conservation policies are inadequate and that we have merely begun to scratch the surface of a field of discovery regarding the roles of bats in disease emergence.
10 citations
20 May 2021
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated C. vespertilionis as a potential vector and reservoir of Borrelia species and found that a total of 24% (22 of 92) of the positive specimens were BorrelIA-positive.
Abstract: The bat tick Cariosvespertilionis has been reported from Sweden to occasionally feed on humans resulting in disease symptoms. The aim of this study was to investigate C. vespertilionis as a potential vector and reservoir of Borrelia species. In 2015 and 2018 in south-central Sweden, C. vespertilionis ticks were collected from a wooden bat box harboring Soprano pipistrelle bats, Pipistrellus pygmaeus. In addition, one C. vespertilionis tick found inside a house in southern Sweden in 2019 was collected. Ticks were screened for Borrelia spp. using a genus-specific quantitative PCR assay. The Borrelia species of the positive specimens were determined by conventional PCR followed by DNA sequencing and phylogenetic analyses. A total of 24% (22 of 92) of the analyzed C. vespertilionis ticks were Borrelia-positive. Phylogenetic analyses indicate that the bacteria belong to the relapsing fever group of borreliae; some of them appear to be identical with Borrelia sp. CPB1, a spirochete only found twice before-in the United Kingdom and in France. Our results also indicate a temporal and spatial distribution of this Borrelia species. Since C. vespertilionis occasionally bites humans, and since it exhibits a high prevalence of Borrelia bacteria, it is possible that it presents a risk of human disease. Further studies are needed to characterize Borrelia sp. CPB1 to determine if it is human-pathogenic and to determine if C. vespertilionis is a vector and/or reservoir of this agent.
7 citations
TL;DR: Strategies that may aid future research in bat immunity are discussed, including the potential use of organoid models to delineate the interplay between innate lymphocytes, bat viruses, and host tolerance.
Abstract: Bats are reservoirs of a large number of viruses of global public health significance, including the ancestral virus for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and the causative agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Although bats are natural carriers of multiple pathogenic viruses, they rarely display signs of disease. Recent insights suggest that bats have a more balanced host defense and tolerance system to viral infections that may be linked to the evolutionary adaptation to powered flight. Therefore, a deeper understanding of bat immune system may provide intervention strategies to prevent zoonotic disease transmission and to identify new therapeutic targets. Similar to other eutherian mammals, bats have both innate and adaptive immune systems that have evolved to detect and respond to invading pathogens. Bridging these two systems are innate lymphocytes, which are highly abundant within circulation and barrier tissues. These cells share the characteristics of both innate and adaptive immune cells and are poised to mount rapid effector responses. They are ideally suited as the first line of defense against early stages of viral infections. Here, we will focus on the current knowledge of innate lymphocytes in bats, their function, and their potential role in host–pathogen interactions. Moreover, given that studies into bat immune systems are often hindered by a lack of bat-specific research tools, we will discuss strategies that may aid future research in bat immunity, including the potential use of organoid models to delineate the interplay between innate lymphocytes, bat viruses, and host tolerance.
4 citations
16 Mar 2012
TL;DR: Findings have shown the emerging medical importance of bartonellae, which can cause a wide spectrum of emerging and reemerging diseases, ranging from a short-term fever that resolves quickly on its own to potentially fatal diseases with cardiovascular, nervous system, or hepatosplenic involvement.
Abstract: Bacteria of genus Bartonella are mainly hemotropic, intracellular gram-negative bacteria associated with erythrocytes and endothelial cells of mammals and other vertebrates (Anderson & Neuman, 1997; Schulein et al., 2001). Members within the genus have been expanded during last three decades with over 30 species or subspecies having been described. In addition to the well-known human pathogens B. bacilliformis (agent of Carrion's disease), B. quintana (agent of trench fever), and B. henselae (agent of cat-scratch disease), a growing number of Bartonella species, such as B. alsatica, B. elizabethae, B. grahamii, B. koehlerae, B. clarridgeiae, B. washoensis, B. vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii, B. vinsonii subsp. arupensis, B. tamiae, and B. rochalimae, have been identified as human pathogens (Kordick et al., 1997; Margileth & Baehren, 1998; Kerkhoff et al., 1999; Welch et al., 1999; Roux et al., 2000; Sander et al., 2000; Kosoy et al., 2003 & 2008; Raoult et al., 2006; Eremeeva et al., 2007). Infections caused by these microorganisms have been encountered in vertebrates of virtually all species surveyed, which to date have extended to members of at least eight different orders of mammals, including Artiodactyla, Cetacea, Carnivora, Chiroptera, Insectivora, Lagomorpha, Primates, and Rodentia (Boulouis et al., 2005; Concannon et al., 2005; Maggi et al., 2005). Results have demonstrated that the prevalence of bacteremia can range from 0 to almost 100% in vertebrate populations. Persistent infections in domestic and wild animals result in a substantial reservoir of bartonellae in nature. Several mammalian species, such as rodents, cats, and dogs are reservoir hosts of some of these pathogenic Bartonella species. However, animal reservoirs remain unknown for some newly identified human Bartonella species, such as B. tamiae and B. rochalimae. Knowledge of the transmission of Bartonella bacteria between mammalian hosts is incomplete. However, hematophagous arthropods, such as fleas, flies, lice, mites, and ticks, have been found naturally infected and are frequently implicated in transmitting Bartonella species (Baker, 1946; Garcia-Caceres & Garcia, 1991; Chomel et al., 1995& 1996; Higgins et al., 1996; Pappalardo et al., 1997; Roux & Raoult, 1999; Welch et al., 1999). Bartonella infections can cause a wide spectrum of emerging and reemerging diseases, ranging from a short-term fever that resolves quickly on its own to potentially fatal diseases with cardiovascular, nervous system, or hepatosplenic involvement (Anderson & Neuman, 1997; Koehler, 1996). These findings have shown the emerging medical importance of bartonellae. In fact, bartonella infections have become a big world-wide issue. This review
3 citations
Cites background from "Bats as the reservoir for outbreaks..."
...viruses, Marburg virus, Ebola viruses, and the very recently emerged inferred for SARSCoV-like virus and other coronaviruses and others (Halpin et al., 2000; Li et al., 2005; Williams, 2005; Tang et al., 2006)....
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...…lyssaviruses, Nipah and Hendra www.intechopen.com Current Topics in Tropical Medicine 58 viruses, Marburg virus, Ebola viruses, and the very recently emerged inferred for SARSCoV-like virus and other coronaviruses and others (Halpin et al., 2000; Li et al., 2005; Williams, 2005; Tang et al., 2006)....
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