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Graziosi G, Lupini C, Favera FD, Martini G, Dosa G, Trevisani G, Garavini G, Mannelli A, Catelli E. Characterizing the domestic-wild bird interface through camera traps in an area at risk for avian influenza introduction in Northern Italy. Poult Sci 2024; 103:103892. [PMID: 38865769 PMCID: PMC11223120 DOI: 10.1016/j.psj.2024.103892] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2024] [Revised: 05/16/2024] [Accepted: 05/20/2024] [Indexed: 06/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Direct or indirect interactions between sympatric wildlife and poultry can lead to interspecies disease transmission. Particularly, avian influenza (AI) is a viral epidemic disease for which the poultry-wild bird interface shapes the risks of new viral introductions into poultry holdings. Given this background, the study hereby presented aimed to identify wild bird species in poultry house surroundings and characterize the spatiotemporal patterns of these visits. Eight camera traps were deployed for a year (January to December 2021) in 3 commercial chicken layer farms, including free-range and barn-type setups, located in a densely populated poultry area in Northern Italy at high risk for AI introduction via wild birds. Camera traps' positions were chosen based on wildlife signs identified during preliminary visits to the establishments studied. Various methods, including time series analysis, correspondence analysis, and generalized linear models, were employed to analyze the daily wild bird visits. A total of 1,958 camera trap days yielded 5,978 videos of wild birds from 27 different species and 16 taxonomic families. The animals were predominantly engaged in foraging activities nearby poultry houses. Eurasian magpies (Pica pica), ring-necked pheasants (Phasianus colchicus), and Eurasian collared doves (Streptopelia decaocto) were the most frequent visitors. Mallards (Anas platyrhynchos), an AI reservoir species, were observed only in a farm located next to a fishing sport lake. Time series analysis indicated that wild bird visits increased during spring and winter. Farm and camera trap location also influenced visit frequencies. Overall, the results highlighted specific species that could be prioritized for future AI epidemiological surveys. However, further research is required to assess their susceptibility and infectivity to currently circulating AI viruses, essential for identifying novel bridge hosts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giulia Graziosi
- Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences, University of Bologna, Ozzano dell'Emilia, Bologna 40064, Italy.
| | - Caterina Lupini
- Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences, University of Bologna, Ozzano dell'Emilia, Bologna 40064, Italy
| | - Francesco Dalla Favera
- Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences, University of Bologna, Ozzano dell'Emilia, Bologna 40064, Italy
| | - Gabriella Martini
- Veterinary Services, Local Health Unit of Imola (A.U.S.L. di Imola), Imola, Bologna 40026, Italy
| | - Geremia Dosa
- Veterinary Services, Local Health Unit of Imola (A.U.S.L. di Imola), Imola, Bologna 40026, Italy
| | | | - Gloria Garavini
- Veterinary Services of Eurovo Group, Imola, Bologna 40026, Italy
| | - Alessandro Mannelli
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Torino, Grugliasco, Turin 10095, Italy
| | - Elena Catelli
- Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences, University of Bologna, Ozzano dell'Emilia, Bologna 40064, Italy
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2
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Herraiz C, Triguero-Ocaña R, Laguna E, Jiménez-Ruiz S, Peralbo-Moreno A, Martínez-López B, García-Bocanegra I, Risalde MÁ, Vicente J, Acevedo P. Movement-driven modelling reveals new patterns in disease transmission networks. J Anim Ecol 2024. [PMID: 39004905 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.14142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2023] [Accepted: 06/12/2024] [Indexed: 07/16/2024]
Abstract
Interspecific interactions are highly relevant in the potential transmission of shared pathogens in multi-host systems. In recent decades, several technologies have been developed to study pathogen transmission, such as proximity loggers, GPS tracking devices and/or camera traps. Despite the diversity of methods aimed at detecting contacts, the analysis of transmission risk is often reduced to contact rates and the probability of transmission given the contact. However, the latter process is continuous over time and unique for each contact, and is influenced by the characteristics of the contact and the pathogen's relationship with both the host and the environment. Our objective was to assess whether a more comprehensive approach, using a movement-based model which assigns a unique transmission risk to each contact by decomposing transmission into contact formation, contact duration and host characteristics, could reveal disease transmission dynamics that are not detected with more traditional approaches. The model was built from GPS-collar data from two management systems in Spain where animal tuberculosis (TB) circulates: a national park with extensively reared endemic cattle, and an area with extensive free-range pigs and cattle farms. In addition, we evaluated the effect of the GPS device fix rate on the performance of the model. Different transmission dynamics were identified between both management systems. Considering the specific conditions under which each contact occurs (i.e. whether the contact is direct or indirect, its duration, the hosts characteristics, the environmental conditions, etc.) resulted in the identification of different transmission dynamics compared to using only contact rates. We found that fix intervals greater than 30 min in the GPS tracking data resulted in missed interactions, and intervals greater than 2 h may be insufficient for epidemiological purposes. Our study shows that neglecting the conditions under which each contact occurs may result in a misidentification of the real role of each species in disease transmission. This study describes a clear and repeatable framework to study pathogen transmission from GPS data and provides further insights to understand how TB is maintained in multi-host systems in Mediterranean environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cesar Herraiz
- Health and Biotechnology Research Group (SaBio), Institute for Game and Wildlife Research (IREC), CSIC-JCCM-UCLM, Ciudad Real, Spain
| | - Roxana Triguero-Ocaña
- Health and Biotechnology Research Group (SaBio), Institute for Game and Wildlife Research (IREC), CSIC-JCCM-UCLM, Ciudad Real, Spain
| | - Eduardo Laguna
- Health and Biotechnology Research Group (SaBio), Institute for Game and Wildlife Research (IREC), CSIC-JCCM-UCLM, Ciudad Real, Spain
- Fundación Artemisan, Ciudad Real, Spain
| | - Saúl Jiménez-Ruiz
- Health and Biotechnology Research Group (SaBio), Institute for Game and Wildlife Research (IREC), CSIC-JCCM-UCLM, Ciudad Real, Spain
- Departamento de Sanidad Animal, Grupo de Investigación GISAZ, UIC Zoonosis y Enfermedades Emergentes ENZOEM, Universidad de Córdoba, Córdoba, Spain
| | - Alfonso Peralbo-Moreno
- Health and Biotechnology Research Group (SaBio), Institute for Game and Wildlife Research (IREC), CSIC-JCCM-UCLM, Ciudad Real, Spain
| | - Beatriz Martínez-López
- Department of Medicine and Epidemiology, Center for Animal Disease Modeling and Surveillance, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California-Davis, Davis, California, USA
| | - Ignacio García-Bocanegra
- Departamento de Sanidad Animal, Grupo de Investigación GISAZ, UIC Zoonosis y Enfermedades Emergentes ENZOEM, Universidad de Córdoba, Córdoba, Spain
| | - María Ángeles Risalde
- Departamento de Anatomía y Anatomía Patológica Comparadas y Toxicología, Grupo de Investigación GISAZ, UIC Zoonosis y Enfermedades Emergentes ENZOEM, Universidad de Córdoba, Córdoba, Spain
| | - Joaquín Vicente
- Health and Biotechnology Research Group (SaBio), Institute for Game and Wildlife Research (IREC), CSIC-JCCM-UCLM, Ciudad Real, Spain
| | - Pelayo Acevedo
- Health and Biotechnology Research Group (SaBio), Institute for Game and Wildlife Research (IREC), CSIC-JCCM-UCLM, Ciudad Real, Spain
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3
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Fernandez CM, Krockenberger MB, Ho SYW, Crowther MS, Mella VSA, Jelocnik M, Wilmott L, Higgins DP. Novel typing scheme reveals emergence and genetic diversity of Chlamydia pecorum at the local management scale across two koala populations. Vet Microbiol 2024; 293:110085. [PMID: 38581768 DOI: 10.1016/j.vetmic.2024.110085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2023] [Revised: 04/02/2024] [Accepted: 04/03/2024] [Indexed: 04/08/2024]
Abstract
To overcome shortcomings in discriminating Chlamydia pecorum strains infecting the koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) at the local level, we developed a novel genotyping scheme for this pathogen to inform koala management at a fine-scale subpopulation level. We applied this scheme to two geographically distinct koala populations in New South Wales, Australia: the Liverpool Plains and the Southern Highlands to South-west Sydney (SHSWS). Our method provides greater resolution than traditional multi-locus sequence typing, and can be used to monitor strain emergence, movement, and divergence across a range of fragmented habitats. Within the Liverpool Plains population, suspected recent introduction of a novel strain was confirmed by an absence of genetic diversity at the earliest sampling events and limited diversity at recent sampling events. Across the partially fragmented agricultural landscape of the Liverpool Plains, diversity within a widespread sequence type suggests that this degree of fragmentation may hinder but not prevent spread. In the SHSWS population, our results suggest movement of a strain from the south, where diverse strains exist, into a previously Chlamydia-free area in the north, indicating the risk of expansion towards an adjacent Chlamydia-negative koala population in South-west Sydney. In the south of the SHSWS where koala subpopulations appear segregated, we found evidence of divergent strain evolution. Our tool can be used to infer the risks of strain introduction across fragmented habitats in population management, particularly through practices such as wildlife corridor constructions and translocations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cristina M Fernandez
- Faculty of Science, Sydney School of Veterinary Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Mark B Krockenberger
- Faculty of Science, Sydney School of Veterinary Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia; Sydney Infectious Diseases, The University of Sydney, 176 Hawkesbury Road, Westmead, NSW 2145, Australia
| | - Simon Y W Ho
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Mathew S Crowther
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Valentina S A Mella
- Faculty of Science, Sydney School of Veterinary Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia; School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Martina Jelocnik
- School of Science, Technology and Engineering, University of the Sunshine Coast, Sippy Downs, QLD 4556, Australia; Centre for Bioinnovation, University of the Sunshine Coast, Sippy Downs, QLD 4556, Australia
| | - Lachlan Wilmott
- NSW Department of Planning and Environment, Wollongong, NSW 2005, Australia
| | - Damien P Higgins
- Faculty of Science, Sydney School of Veterinary Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.
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Conteddu K, English HM, Byrne AW, Amin B, Griffin LL, Kaur P, Morera-Pujol V, Murphy KJ, Salter-Townshend M, Smith AF, Ciuti S. A scoping review on bovine tuberculosis highlights the need for novel data streams and analytical approaches to curb zoonotic diseases. Vet Res 2024; 55:64. [PMID: 38773649 PMCID: PMC11110237 DOI: 10.1186/s13567-024-01314-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2023] [Accepted: 03/20/2024] [Indexed: 05/24/2024] Open
Abstract
Zoonotic diseases represent a significant societal challenge in terms of their health and economic impacts. One Health approaches to managing zoonotic diseases are becoming more prevalent, but require novel thinking, tools and cross-disciplinary collaboration. Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) is one example of a costly One Health challenge with a complex epidemiology involving humans, domestic animals, wildlife and environmental factors, which require sophisticated collaborative approaches. We undertook a scoping review of multi-host bTB epidemiology to identify trends in species publication focus, methodologies, and One Health approaches. We aimed to identify knowledge gaps where novel research could provide insights to inform control policy, for bTB and other zoonoses. The review included 532 articles. We found different levels of research attention across episystems, with a significant proportion of the literature focusing on the badger-cattle-TB episystem, with far less attention given to tropical multi-host episystems. We found a limited number of studies focusing on management solutions and their efficacy, with very few studies looking at modelling exit strategies. Only a small number of studies looked at the effect of human disturbances on the spread of bTB involving wildlife hosts. Most of the studies we reviewed focused on the effect of badger vaccination and culling on bTB dynamics with few looking at how roads, human perturbations and habitat change may affect wildlife movement and disease spread. Finally, we observed a lack of studies considering the effect of weather variables on bTB spread, which is particularly relevant when studying zoonoses under climate change scenarios. Significant technological and methodological advances have been applied to bTB episystems, providing explicit insights into its spread and maintenance across populations. We identified a prominent bias towards certain species and locations. Generating more high-quality empirical data on wildlife host distribution and abundance, high-resolution individual behaviours and greater use of mathematical models and simulations are key areas for future research. Integrating data sources across disciplines, and a "virtuous cycle" of well-designed empirical data collection linked with mathematical and simulation modelling could provide additional gains for policy-makers and managers, enabling optimised bTB management with broader insights for other zoonoses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kimberly Conteddu
- Laboratory of Wildlife Ecology and Behaviour, School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
| | - Holly M English
- Laboratory of Wildlife Ecology and Behaviour, School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Andrew W Byrne
- Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, One Health Scientific Support Unit, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Bawan Amin
- Laboratory of Wildlife Ecology and Behaviour, School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Laura L Griffin
- Laboratory of Wildlife Ecology and Behaviour, School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Prabhleen Kaur
- School of Mathematics and Statistics, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Virginia Morera-Pujol
- Laboratory of Wildlife Ecology and Behaviour, School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Kilian J Murphy
- Laboratory of Wildlife Ecology and Behaviour, School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | | | - Adam F Smith
- Department of Wildlife Ecology and Management, Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- The Frankfurt Zoological Society, Frankfurt, Germany
- Department of National Park Monitoring and Animal Management, Bavarian Forest National Park, Grafenau, Germany
| | - Simone Ciuti
- Laboratory of Wildlife Ecology and Behaviour, School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
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Olech M, Parzeniecka-Jaworska M. Detection of small ruminant Lentivirus proviral DNA in red deer from Poland. BMC Vet Res 2024; 20:195. [PMID: 38741095 DOI: 10.1186/s12917-024-04059-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2024] [Accepted: 05/06/2024] [Indexed: 05/16/2024] Open
Abstract
Small ruminant lentiviruses (SRLVs) are widespread and infect goats and sheep. Several reports also suggest that SRLVs can infect wild ruminants. The presence of specific antibodies against SRLVs has been identified in wild ruminants from Poland, but no studies have been conducted to detect proviral DNA of SRLVs in these animals. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine samples from Polish wild ruminants to determine whether these animals can serve as reservoirs of SRLVs under natural conditions. A total of 314 samples were tested from red deer (n = 255), roe deer (n = 52) and fallow deer (n = 7) using nested real-time PCR. DNA from positive real-time PCR samples was subsequently used to amplify a CA fragment (625 bp) of the gag gene, a 1.2 kb fragment of the pol gene and an LTR-gag fragment. Three samples (0.95%) were positive according to nested real-time PCR using primers and probe specific for CAEV (SRLV group B). All the samples were negative for the primers and probe specific for MVV (SRLV A group). Only SRLV LTR-gag sequences were obtained from two red deer. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that these sequences were more closely related to CAEV than to MVV. Our results revealed that deer can carry SRLV proviral sequences and therefore may play a role in the epidemiology of SRLVs. To our knowledge, this is the first study describing SRLV sequences from red deer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Monika Olech
- Department of Pathology, National Veterinary Research Institute, Pulawy, 24-100, Poland.
| | - Marta Parzeniecka-Jaworska
- Department of Small Animal Diseases and Clinic, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Warsaw, 02-766, Poland
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6
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Hartman CRA, Wilkinson GS, Razik I, Hamilton IM, Hobson EA, Carter GG. Hierarchically embedded scales of movement shape the social networks of vampire bats. Proc Biol Sci 2024; 291:20232880. [PMID: 38654645 PMCID: PMC11040254 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.2880] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2023] [Accepted: 03/25/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Social structure can emerge from hierarchically embedded scales of movement, where movement at one scale is constrained within a larger scale (e.g. among branches, trees, forests). In most studies of animal social networks, some scales of movement are not observed, and the relative importance of the observed scales of movement is unclear. Here, we asked: how does individual variation in movement, at multiple nested spatial scales, influence each individual's social connectedness? Using existing data from common vampire bats (Desmodus rotundus), we created an agent-based model of how three nested scales of movement-among roosts, clusters and grooming partners-each influence a bat's grooming network centrality. In each of 10 simulations, virtual bats lacking social and spatial preferences moved at each scale at empirically derived rates that were either fixed or individually variable and either independent or correlated across scales. We found that numbers of partners groomed per bat were driven more by within-roost movements than by roost switching, highlighting that co-roosting networks do not fully capture bat social structure. Simulations revealed how individual variation in movement at nested spatial scales can cause false discovery and misidentification of preferred social relationships. Our model provides several insights into how nonsocial factors shape social networks.
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Affiliation(s)
- C. Raven A. Hartman
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | | | - Imran Razik
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Ancón, Apartado Postal 0843-03092, Panama
| | - Ian M. Hamilton
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- Department of Mathematics, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | - Elizabeth A. Hobson
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45221, USA
| | - Gerald G. Carter
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Ancón, Apartado Postal 0843-03092, Panama
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Carson BD, Orians CM, Crone EE. Caterpillar movement mediates spatially local interactions and determines the relationship between population density and contact. MOVEMENT ECOLOGY 2024; 12:34. [PMID: 38689374 PMCID: PMC11061915 DOI: 10.1186/s40462-024-00473-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2023] [Accepted: 04/10/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND While interactions in nature are inherently local, ecological models often assume homogeneity across space, allowing for generalization across systems and greater mathematical tractability. Density-dependent disease models are a prominent example of models that assume homogeneous interactions, leading to the prediction that disease transmission will scale linearly with population density. In this study, we examined how the scale of larval butterfly movement interacts with the resource landscape to influence the relationship between larval contact and population density in the Baltimore checkerspot (Euphydryas phaeton). Our study was inspired by the recent discovery of a viral pathogen that is transmitted horizontally among Baltimore checkerspot larvae. METHODS We used multi-year larvae location data across six Baltimore checkerspot populations in the eastern U.S. to test whether larval nests are spatially clustered. We then integrated these spatial data with larval movement data in different resource contexts to investigate whether heterogeneity in spatially local interactions alters the assumed linear relationship between larval nest density and contact. We used Correlated Random Walk (CRW) models and field observations of larval movement behavior to construct Probability Distribution Functions (PDFs) of larval dispersal, and calculated the overlap in these PDFs to estimate conspecific contact within each population. RESULTS We found that all populations exhibited significant spatial clustering in their habitat use. Subsequent larval movement rates were influenced by encounters with host plants and larval age, and under many movement scenarios, the scale of predicted larval movement was not sufficient to allow for the "homogeneous mixing" assumed in density dependent disease models. Therefore, relationships between population density and larval contact were typically non-linear. We also found that observed use of available habitat patches led to significantly greater contact than would occur if habitat use were spatially random. CONCLUSIONS These findings strongly suggest that incorporating larval movement and spatial variation in larval interactions is critical to modeling disease outcomes in E. phaeton. Epidemiological models that assume a linear relationship between population density and larval contact have the potential to underestimate transmission rates, especially in small populations that are already vulnerable to extinction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brendan D Carson
- Department of Biology, Tufts University, Medford, MA, 02155, USA.
| | - Colin M Orians
- Department of Biology, Tufts University, Medford, MA, 02155, USA
| | - Elizabeth E Crone
- Department of Biology, Tufts University, Medford, MA, 02155, USA
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
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8
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Bushby EV, Thomas M, Vázquez-Diosdado JA, Occhiuto F, Kaler J. Early detection of bovine respiratory disease in pre-weaned dairy calves using sensor based feeding, movement, and social behavioural data. Sci Rep 2024; 14:9737. [PMID: 38679647 PMCID: PMC11056383 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-58206-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2023] [Accepted: 03/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/01/2024] Open
Abstract
Previous research shows that feeding and activity behaviours in combination with machine learning algorithms has the potential to predict the onset of bovine respiratory disease (BRD). This study used 229 novel and previously researched feeding, movement, and social behavioural features with machine learning classification algorithms to predict BRD events in pre-weaned calves. Data for 172 group housed calves were collected using automatic milk feeding machines and ultrawideband location sensors. Health assessments were carried out twice weekly using a modified Wisconsin scoring system and calves were classified as sick if they had a Wisconsin score of five or above and/or a rectal temperature of 39.5 °C or higher. A gradient boosting machine classification algorithm produced moderate to high performance: accuracy (0.773), precision (0.776), sensitivity (0.625), specificity (0.872), and F1-score (0.689). The most important 30 features were 40% feeding, 50% movement, and 10% social behavioural features. Movement behaviours, specifically the distance walked per day, were most important for model prediction, whereas feeding and social features aided in the model's prediction minimally. These results highlighting the predictive potential in this area but the need for further improvement before behavioural changes can be used to reliably predict the onset of BRD in pre-weaned calves.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily V Bushby
- School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, Sutton Bonington Campus, University of Nottingham, Leicestershire, LE12 5RD, UK
| | - Matthew Thomas
- School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, Sutton Bonington Campus, University of Nottingham, Leicestershire, LE12 5RD, UK
| | - Jorge A Vázquez-Diosdado
- School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, Sutton Bonington Campus, University of Nottingham, Leicestershire, LE12 5RD, UK
| | - Francesca Occhiuto
- School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, Sutton Bonington Campus, University of Nottingham, Leicestershire, LE12 5RD, UK
| | - Jasmeet Kaler
- School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, Sutton Bonington Campus, University of Nottingham, Leicestershire, LE12 5RD, UK.
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9
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McKee J, Dallas T. Structural network characteristics affect epidemic severity and prediction in social contact networks. Infect Dis Model 2024; 9:204-213. [PMID: 38293687 PMCID: PMC10824764 DOI: 10.1016/j.idm.2023.12.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2023] [Revised: 11/14/2023] [Accepted: 12/27/2023] [Indexed: 02/01/2024] Open
Abstract
Understanding and mitigating epidemic spread in complex networks requires the measurement of structural network properties associated with epidemic risk. Classic measures of epidemic thresholds like the basic reproduction number (R0) have been adapted to account for the structure of social contact networks but still may be unable to capture epidemic potential relative to more recent measures based on spectral graph properties. Here, we explore the ability of R0 and the spectral radius of the social contact network to estimate epidemic susceptibility. To do so, we simulate epidemics on a series of constructed (small world, scale-free, and random networks) and a collection of over 700 empirical biological social contact networks. Further, we explore how other network properties are related to these two epidemic estimators (R0 and spectral radius) and mean infection prevalence in simulated epidemics. Overall, we find that network properties strongly influence epidemic dynamics and the subsequent utility of R0 and spectral radius as indicators of epidemic risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jae McKee
- Bioinnovation Program, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, 70118, USA
- Department of Medicine, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA, 70112, USA
| | - Tad Dallas
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, 29208, USA
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10
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Mistrick J, Veitch JSM, Kitchen SM, Clague S, Newman BC, Hall RJ, Budischak SA, Forbes KM, Craft ME. Effects of food supplementation and helminth removal on space use and spatial overlap in wild rodent populations. J Anim Ecol 2024. [PMID: 38415301 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.14067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2022] [Accepted: 01/21/2024] [Indexed: 02/29/2024]
Abstract
Animal space use and spatial overlap can have important consequences for population-level processes such as social interactions and pathogen transmission. Identifying how environmental variability and inter-individual variation affect spatial patterns and in turn influence interactions in animal populations is a priority for the study of animal behaviour and disease ecology. Environmental food availability and macroparasite infection are common drivers of variation, but there are few experimental studies investigating how they affect spatial patterns of wildlife. Bank voles (Clethrionomys glareolus) are a tractable study system to investigate spatial patterns of wildlife and are amenable to experimental manipulations. We conducted a replicated, factorial field experiment in which we provided supplementary food and removed helminths in vole populations in natural forest habitat and monitored vole space use and spatial overlap using capture-mark-recapture methods. Using network analysis, we quantified vole space use and spatial overlap. We compared the effects of food supplementation and helminth removal and investigated the impacts of season, sex and reproductive status on space use and spatial overlap. We found that food supplementation decreased vole space use while helminth removal increased space use. Space use also varied by sex, reproductive status and season. Spatial overlap was similar between treatments despite up to threefold differences in population size. By quantifying the spatial effects of food availability and macroparasite infection on wildlife populations, we demonstrate the potential for space use and population density to trade-off and maintain consistent spatial overlap in wildlife populations. This has important implications for spatial processes in wildlife including pathogen transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janine Mistrick
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
| | - Jasmine S M Veitch
- W.M. Keck Science Department, Claremont McKenna, Pitzer, and Scripps Colleges, Claremont, California, USA
| | - Shannon M Kitchen
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA
| | - Samuel Clague
- W.M. Keck Science Department, Claremont McKenna, Pitzer, and Scripps Colleges, Claremont, California, USA
| | - Brent C Newman
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA
| | - Richard J Hall
- Odum School of Ecology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA
- Department of Infectious Diseases, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA
- Center for the Ecology of Infectious Diseases, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA
| | - Sarah A Budischak
- W.M. Keck Science Department, Claremont McKenna, Pitzer, and Scripps Colleges, Claremont, California, USA
| | - Kristian M Forbes
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA
| | - Meggan E Craft
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
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11
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Duarte L, Santos-Reis M, Cunha MV. Widespread circulation and transmission risk of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis at the livestock-wildlife-environment interface in a Mediterranean agro-forestry farmstead. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2024; 343:123272. [PMID: 38160777 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2023.123272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2023] [Revised: 12/17/2023] [Accepted: 12/28/2023] [Indexed: 01/03/2024]
Abstract
Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) is the etiological agent of paratuberculosis, a chronic infection affecting ruminants and other species worldwide. Information on the ecological factors that increase infection risk at the livestock-wildlife-environment interface remains scarce. Thus, this work aimed at determining which factors modulate the exposure of a mammal community within a Mediterranean agro-forestry farmstead to MAP. Through field, molecular and ecological modeling approaches, MAP prevalence, distribution and spatial risk at the livestock-wildlife-environment was estimated in the study area by screening 436 samples (cattle, n = 150; wildlife, n = 206; soil, n = 80). Using molecular detection of IS900 as proxy, MAP was identified in ten wild mammal species. Being a central prey of mesocarnivores in Portugal, the high prevalence of MAP in the wild rabbit (19%) may be related with red fox's (22%). MAP was also detected in cattle managed in the farmstead (animal and herd prevalence, 54% and 100%) and in soil (44%), which may perpetuate intraspecies and interspecies transmission. Wildlife diversity showed a positive influence on MAP presence in wild mammals, while wildlife abundance showed a negative effect. Land use variables exerted distinct degrees of impact upon MAP detection in specific groups of mammals: mixed forest cover showed positive influence on carnivores, and shrubland showed positive effect on wild rabbits. The prevalence of MAP in cattle showed a negative influence on the detection of MAP in lagomorph, which may stem from wild rabbit lower density and avoidance of cattle areas. Based on explanatory variables, the spatial prediction of MAP occurrence in wildlife indicated two hotspots with increased exposure risk but future studies are needed to confirm this projection. This work represents the most comprehensive molecular survey of MAP occurrence and determinants in Mediterranean agroecosystems leveraging the principles and tools of community ecology, debating potential biological and ecological effects underlying MAP transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leticia Duarte
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes (cE3c) & CHANGE - Global Change and Sustainability Institute, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Margarida Santos-Reis
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes (cE3c) & CHANGE - Global Change and Sustainability Institute, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Mónica V Cunha
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes (cE3c) & CHANGE - Global Change and Sustainability Institute, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal; Biosystems & Integrative Sciences Institute (BioISI), Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal.
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12
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Gubbins S. Quantifying the relationship between within-host dynamics and transmission for viral diseases of livestock. J R Soc Interface 2024; 21:20230445. [PMID: 38379412 PMCID: PMC10879856 DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2023.0445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2023] [Accepted: 01/18/2024] [Indexed: 02/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Understanding the population dynamics of an infectious disease requires linking within-host dynamics and between-host transmission in a quantitative manner, but this is seldom done in practice. Here a simple phenomenological model for viral dynamics within a host is linked to between-host transmission by assuming that the probability of transmission is related to log viral titre. Data from transmission experiments for two viral diseases of livestock, foot-and-mouth disease virus in cattle and swine influenza virus in pigs, are used to parametrize the model and, importantly, test the underlying assumptions. The model allows the relationship between within-host parameters and transmission to be determined explicitly through their influence on the reproduction number and generation time. Furthermore, these critical within-host parameters (time and level of peak titre, viral growth and clearance rates) can be computed from more complex within-host models, raising the possibility of assessing the impact of within-host processes on between-host transmission in a more detailed quantitative manner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon Gubbins
- The Pirbright Institute, Ash Road, Pirbright, Surrey GU24 0NF, UK
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13
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Matteson NL, Hassler GW, Kurzban E, Schwab MA, Perkins SA, Gangavarapu K, Levy JI, Parker E, Pride D, Hakim A, De Hoff P, Cheung W, Castro-Martinez A, Rivera A, Veder A, Rivera A, Wauer C, Holmes J, Wilson J, Ngo SN, Plascencia A, Lawrence ES, Smoot EW, Eisner ER, Tsai R, Chacón M, Baer NA, Seaver P, Salido RA, Aigner S, Ngo TT, Barber T, Ostrander T, Fielding-Miller R, Simmons EH, Zazueta OE, Serafin-Higuera I, Sanchez-Alavez M, Moreno-Camacho JL, García-Gil A, Murphy Schafer AR, McDonald E, Corrigan J, Malone JD, Stous S, Shah S, Moshiri N, Weiss A, Anderson C, Aceves CM, Spencer EG, Hufbauer EC, Lee JJ, King AJ, Ramesh KS, Nguyen KN, Saucedo K, Robles-Sikisaka R, Fisch KM, Gonias SL, Birmingham A, McDonald D, Karthikeyan S, Martin NK, Schooley RT, Negrete AJ, Reyna HJ, Chavez JR, Garcia ML, Cornejo-Bravo JM, Becker D, Isaksson M, Washington NL, Lee W, Garfein RS, Luna-Ruiz Esparza MA, Alcántar-Fernández J, Henson B, Jepsen K, Olivares-Flores B, Barrera-Badillo G, Lopez-Martínez I, Ramírez-González JE, Flores-León R, Kingsmore SF, Sanders A, Pradenas A, White B, Matthews G, Hale M, McLawhon RW, Reed SL, Winbush T, McHardy IH, Fielding RA, Nicholson L, Quigley MM, Harding A, Mendoza A, Bakhtar O, Browne SH, Olivas Flores J, Rincon Rodríguez DG, Gonzalez Ibarra M, Robles Ibarra LC, Arellano Vera BJ, Gonzalez Garcia J, Harvey-Vera A, Knight R, Laurent LC, Yeo GW, Wertheim JO, Ji X, Worobey M, Suchard MA, Andersen KG, Campos-Romero A, Wohl S, Zeller M. Genomic surveillance reveals dynamic shifts in the connectivity of COVID-19 epidemics. Cell 2023; 186:5690-5704.e20. [PMID: 38101407 PMCID: PMC10795731 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2023.11.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2023] [Revised: 08/21/2023] [Accepted: 11/21/2023] [Indexed: 12/17/2023]
Abstract
The maturation of genomic surveillance in the past decade has enabled tracking of the emergence and spread of epidemics at an unprecedented level. During the COVID-19 pandemic, for example, genomic data revealed that local epidemics varied considerably in the frequency of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) lineage importation and persistence, likely due to a combination of COVID-19 restrictions and changing connectivity. Here, we show that local COVID-19 epidemics are driven by regional transmission, including across international boundaries, but can become increasingly connected to distant locations following the relaxation of public health interventions. By integrating genomic, mobility, and epidemiological data, we find abundant transmission occurring between both adjacent and distant locations, supported by dynamic mobility patterns. We find that changing connectivity significantly influences local COVID-19 incidence. Our findings demonstrate a complex meaning of "local" when investigating connected epidemics and emphasize the importance of collaborative interventions for pandemic prevention and mitigation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Gabriel W Hassler
- Department of Computational Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Ezra Kurzban
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Madison A Schwab
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Sarah A Perkins
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Karthik Gangavarapu
- Department of Biomathematics, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Joshua I Levy
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Edyth Parker
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - David Pride
- Department of Pathology, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Abbas Hakim
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; COVID-19 Detection, Investigation, Surveillance, Clinical, and Outbreak Response, California Department of Public Health, Richmond, CA, USA
| | - Peter De Hoff
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; COVID-19 Detection, Investigation, Surveillance, Clinical, and Outbreak Response, California Department of Public Health, Richmond, CA, USA
| | - Willi Cheung
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; COVID-19 Detection, Investigation, Surveillance, Clinical, and Outbreak Response, California Department of Public Health, Richmond, CA, USA
| | - Anelizze Castro-Martinez
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Sanford Consortium of Regenerative Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Andrea Rivera
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Anthony Veder
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Ariana Rivera
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Cassandra Wauer
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Jacqueline Holmes
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Jedediah Wilson
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Shayla N Ngo
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Ashley Plascencia
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Elijah S Lawrence
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Elizabeth W Smoot
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Emily R Eisner
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Rebecca Tsai
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Marisol Chacón
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Nathan A Baer
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Phoebe Seaver
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Rodolfo A Salido
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Stefan Aigner
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Toan T Ngo
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Tom Barber
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Tyler Ostrander
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Rebecca Fielding-Miller
- Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Division of Infectious Disease and Global Public Health, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | | | - Oscar E Zazueta
- Department of Epidemiology, Secretaria de Salud de Baja California, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
| | | | - Manuel Sanchez-Alavez
- Centro de Diagnostico COVID-19 UABC, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico; Department of Molecular Medicine, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | | | - Abraham García-Gil
- Clinical Laboratory Department, Salud Digna, A.C, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
| | | | - Eric McDonald
- County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Jeremy Corrigan
- County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - John D Malone
- County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Sarah Stous
- County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Seema Shah
- County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Niema Moshiri
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Alana Weiss
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Catelyn Anderson
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Christine M Aceves
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Emily G Spencer
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Emory C Hufbauer
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Justin J Lee
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Alison J King
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Karthik S Ramesh
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Kelly N Nguyen
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Kieran Saucedo
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | | | - Kathleen M Fisch
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Center for Computational Biology and Bioinformatics, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Steven L Gonias
- Department of Pathology, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Amanda Birmingham
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Daniel McDonald
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Smruthi Karthikeyan
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Natasha K Martin
- Division of Infectious Disease and Global Public Health, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Robert T Schooley
- Division of Infectious Disease and Global Public Health, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Agustin J Negrete
- Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud Universidad Autonoma de Baja California Valle de Las Palmas, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
| | - Horacio J Reyna
- Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud Universidad Autonoma de Baja California Valle de Las Palmas, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
| | - Jose R Chavez
- Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud Universidad Autonoma de Baja California Valle de Las Palmas, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
| | - Maria L Garcia
- Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud Universidad Autonoma de Baja California Valle de Las Palmas, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
| | - Jose M Cornejo-Bravo
- Facultad de Ciencias Quimicas e Ingenieria, Universidad Autonoma de Baja California, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
| | | | | | | | | | - Richard S Garfein
- Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | | | | | - Benjamin Henson
- Institute for Genomic Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Kristen Jepsen
- Institute for Genomic Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Beatriz Olivares-Flores
- Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos (InDRE), Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
| | - Gisela Barrera-Badillo
- Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos (InDRE), Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
| | - Irma Lopez-Martínez
- Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos (InDRE), Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
| | - José E Ramírez-González
- Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos (InDRE), Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
| | - Rita Flores-León
- Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos (InDRE), Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
| | | | - Alison Sanders
- Return to Learn, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Allorah Pradenas
- Return to Learn, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Benjamin White
- Return to Learn, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Gary Matthews
- Return to Learn, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Matt Hale
- Return to Learn, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Ronald W McLawhon
- Return to Learn, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Sharon L Reed
- Return to Learn, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Terri Winbush
- Return to Learn, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Sara H Browne
- Division of Infectious Disease and Global Public Health, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Specialist in Global Health, Encinitas, CA, USA
| | - Jocelyn Olivas Flores
- Facultad de Ciencias Quimicas e Ingenieria, Universidad Autonoma de Baja California, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico; University of HealthMx, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
| | - Diana G Rincon Rodríguez
- University of HealthMx, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico; Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Xochicalco, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
| | - Martin Gonzalez Ibarra
- University of HealthMx, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico; Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Xochicalco, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
| | - Luis C Robles Ibarra
- University of HealthMx, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico; Instituto de Seguridad y Servicios Sociales de los Trabajadores del Estado, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
| | - Betsy J Arellano Vera
- University of HealthMx, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico; Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
| | - Jonathan Gonzalez Garcia
- University of HealthMx, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico; SIMNSA, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
| | | | - Rob Knight
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Department of Bioengineering, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Louise C Laurent
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Sanford Consortium of Regenerative Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Gene W Yeo
- Expedited COVID Identification Environment (EXCITE) Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Sanford Consortium of Regenerative Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Joel O Wertheim
- Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Xiang Ji
- Department of Mathematics, School of Science and Engineering, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, USA
| | - Michael Worobey
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Marc A Suchard
- Department of Human Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Kristian G Andersen
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA.
| | - Abraham Campos-Romero
- Innovation and Research Department, Salud Digna, A.C, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
| | - Shirlee Wohl
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Mark Zeller
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, USA.
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14
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Titcomb G, Hulke J, Mantas JN, Gituku B, Young H. Cattle aggregations at shared resources create potential parasite exposure hotspots for wildlife. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20232239. [PMID: 38052242 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.2239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2023] [Accepted: 11/08/2023] [Indexed: 12/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Globally rising livestock populations and declining wildlife numbers are likely to dramatically change disease risk for wildlife and livestock, especially at resources where they congregate. However, limited understanding of interspecific transmission dynamics at these hotspots hinders disease prediction or mitigation. In this study, we combined gastrointestinal nematode density and host foraging activity measurements from our prior work in an East African tropical savannah system with three estimates of parasite sharing capacity to investigate how interspecific exposures alter the relative riskiness of an important resource - water - among cattle and five dominant herbivore species. We found that due to their high parasite output, water dependence and parasite sharing capacity, cattle greatly increased potential parasite exposures at water sources for wild ruminants. When untreated for parasites, cattle accounted for over two-thirds of total potential exposures around water for wild ruminants, driving 2-23-fold increases in relative exposure levels at water sources. Simulated changes in wildlife and cattle ratios showed that water sources become increasingly important hotspots of interspecific transmission for wild ruminants when relative abundance of cattle parasites increases. These results emphasize that livestock have significant potential to alter the level and distribution of parasite exposures across the landscape for wild ruminants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Georgia Titcomb
- Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins 80523-1019, CO, USA
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Jenna Hulke
- Department of Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | | | - Benard Gituku
- Ecological Monitoring Unit, Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Nanyuki, Kenya
| | - Hillary Young
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
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15
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Yang A, Boughton R, Miller RS, Snow NP, Vercauteren KC, Pepin KM, Wittemyer G. Individual-level patterns of resource selection do not predict hotspots of contact. MOVEMENT ECOLOGY 2023; 11:74. [PMID: 38037089 PMCID: PMC10687890 DOI: 10.1186/s40462-023-00435-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2023] [Accepted: 11/08/2023] [Indexed: 12/02/2023]
Abstract
Contact among animals is crucial for various ecological processes, including social behaviors, disease transmission, and predator-prey interactions. However, the distribution of contact events across time and space is heterogeneous, influenced by environmental factors and biological purposes. Previous studies have assumed that areas with abundant resources and preferred habitats attract more individuals and, therefore, lead to more contact. To examine the accuracy of this assumption, we used a use-available framework to compare landscape factors influencing the location of contacts between wild pigs (Sus scrofa) in two study areas in Florida and Texas (USA) from those influencing non-contact space use. We employed a contact-resource selection function (RSF) model, where contact locations were defined as used points and locations without contact as available points. By comparing outputs from this contact RSF with a general, population-level RSF, we assessed the factors driving both habitat selection and contact. We found that the landscape predictors (e.g., wetland, linear features, and food resources) played different roles in habitat selection from contact processes for wild pigs in both study areas. This indicated that pigs interacted with their landscapes differently when choosing habitats compared to when they encountered other individuals. Consequently, relying solely on the spatial overlap of individual or population-level RSF models may lead to a misleading understanding of contact-related ecology. Our findings challenge prevailing assumptions about contact and introduce innovative approaches to better understand the ecological drivers of spatially explicit contact. By accurately predicting the spatial distribution of contact events, we can enhance our understanding of contact based ecological processes and their spatial dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anni Yang
- Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, 73019, USA.
| | - Raoul Boughton
- Archbold Biological Station, Buck Island Ranch, Lake Placid, FL, 33852, USA
| | - Ryan S Miller
- United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Veterinary Service, Center for Epidemiology and Animal Health, 2150 Centre Avenue, Fort Collins, CO, 80526, USA
| | - Nathan P Snow
- United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, National Wildlife Research Center, Wildlife Services, Fort Collins, CO, 80521, USA
| | - Kurt C Vercauteren
- United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, National Wildlife Research Center, Wildlife Services, Fort Collins, CO, 80521, USA
| | - Kim M Pepin
- United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, National Wildlife Research Center, Wildlife Services, Fort Collins, CO, 80521, USA
| | - George Wittemyer
- Department of Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
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16
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Liao F, Xia Y, Gu W, Fu X, Yuan B. Comparative analysis of shotgun metagenomics and 16S rDNA sequencing of gut microbiota in migratory seagulls. PeerJ 2023; 11:e16394. [PMID: 37941936 PMCID: PMC10629391 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.16394] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2023] [Accepted: 10/11/2023] [Indexed: 11/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Shotgun metagenomic and 16S rDNA sequencing are commonly used methods to identify the taxonomic composition of microbial communities. Previously, we analysed the gut microbiota and intestinal pathogenic bacteria configuration of migratory seagulls by using 16S rDNA sequencing and culture methods. Methods To continue in-depth research on the gut microbiome and reveal the applicability of the two methods, we compared the metagenome and 16S rDNA amplicon results to further demonstrate the features of this animal. Results The number of bacterial species detected by metagenomics gradually increased from the phylum to species level, consistent with 16S rDNA sequencing. Several taxa were commonly shared by both sequencing methods. However, Escherichia, Shigella, Erwinia, Klebsiella, Salmonella, Escherichia albertii, Shigella sonnei, Salmonella enterica, and Shigella flexneri were unique taxa for the metagenome compared with Escherichia-Shigella, Hafnia-Obesumbacterium, Catellicoccus marimammalium, Lactococcus garvieae, and Streptococcus gallolyticus for 16S rDNA sequencing. The largest differences in relative abundance between the two methods were identified at the species level, which identified many pathogenic bacteria to humans using metagenomic sequencing. Pearson correlation analysis indicated that the correlation coefficient for the two methods gradually decreased with the refinement of the taxonomic levels. The high consistency of the correlation coefficient was identified at the genus level for the beta diversity of the two methods. Conclusions In general, relatively consistent patterns and reliability could be identified by both sequencing methods, but the results varied following the refinement of taxonomic levels. Metagenomic sequencing was more suitable for the discovery and detection of pathogenic bacteria of gut microbiota in seagulls. Although there were large differences in the numbers and abundance of bacterial species of the two methods in terms of taxonomic levels, the patterns and reliability results of the samples were consistent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Feng Liao
- Department of Respiratory Medicine, The First People’s Hospital of Yunnan Province, Kunming, Yunnan, China
- The Affiliated Hospital of Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, Yunnan, China
| | - Yilan Xia
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Hepatology, The First People’s Hospital of Yunnan Province, Kunming, Yunnan, China
| | - Wenpeng Gu
- Department of Acute Infectious Diseases Control and Prevention, Yunnan Provincial Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Kunming, Yunnan, China
| | - Xiaoqing Fu
- Department of Acute Infectious Diseases Control and Prevention, Yunnan Provincial Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Kunming, Yunnan, China
| | - Bing Yuan
- Department of Respiratory Medicine, The First People’s Hospital of Yunnan Province, Kunming, Yunnan, China
- The Affiliated Hospital of Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, Yunnan, China
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17
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Fountain-Jones NM, Silk M, Appaw RC, Hamede R, Rushmore J, VanderWaal K, Craft ME, Carver S, Charleston M. The spectral underpinnings of pathogen spread on animal networks. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20230951. [PMID: 37727089 PMCID: PMC10509581 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.0951] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2023] [Accepted: 08/14/2023] [Indexed: 09/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Predicting what factors promote or protect populations from infectious disease is a fundamental epidemiological challenge. Social networks, where nodes represent hosts and edges represent direct or indirect contacts between them, are important in quantifying these aspects of infectious disease dynamics. However, how network structure and epidemic parameters interact in empirical networks to promote or protect animal populations from infectious disease remains a challenge. Here we draw on advances in spectral graph theory and machine learning to build predictive models of pathogen spread on a large collection of empirical networks from across the animal kingdom. We show that the spectral features of an animal network are powerful predictors of pathogen spread for a variety of hosts and pathogens and can be a valuable proxy for the vulnerability of animal networks to pathogen spread. We validate our findings using interpretable machine learning techniques and provide a flexible web application for animal health practitioners to assess the vulnerability of a particular network to pathogen spread.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Mathew Silk
- CEFE, University of Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, University of Paul Valéry Montpellier 3, Montpellier, France
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, UK
| | - Raima Carol Appaw
- School of Natural Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart 7001, Australia
| | - Rodrigo Hamede
- School of Natural Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart 7001, Australia
| | - Julie Rushmore
- Odum School of Ecology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Kimberly VanderWaal
- Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, University of Minnesota, St Paul, MN, USA
| | - Meggan E. Craft
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St Paul, MN, USA
| | - Scott Carver
- School of Natural Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart 7001, Australia
| | - Michael Charleston
- School of Natural Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart 7001, Australia
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18
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Hayes BH, Vergne T, Andraud M, Rose N. Mathematical modeling at the livestock-wildlife interface: scoping review of drivers of disease transmission between species. Front Vet Sci 2023; 10:1225446. [PMID: 37745209 PMCID: PMC10511766 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2023.1225446] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2023] [Accepted: 08/17/2023] [Indexed: 09/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Modeling of infectious diseases at the livestock-wildlife interface is a unique subset of mathematical modeling with many innate challenges. To ascertain the characteristics of the models used in these scenarios, a scoping review of the scientific literature was conducted. Fifty-six studies qualified for inclusion. Only 14 diseases at this interface have benefited from the utility of mathematical modeling, despite a far greater number of shared diseases. The most represented species combinations were cattle and badgers (for bovine tuberculosis, 14), and pigs and wild boar [for African (8) and classical (3) swine fever, and foot-and-mouth and disease (1)]. Assessing control strategies was the overwhelming primary research objective (27), with most studies examining control strategies applied to wildlife hosts and the effect on domestic hosts (10) or both wild and domestic hosts (5). In spatially-explicit models, while livestock species can often be represented through explicit and identifiable location data (such as farm, herd, or pasture locations), wildlife locations are often inferred using habitat suitability as a proxy. Though there are innate assumptions that may not be fully accurate when using habitat suitability to represent wildlife presence, especially for wildlife the parsimony principle plays a large role in modeling diseases at this interface, where parameters are difficult to document or require a high level of data for inference. Explaining observed transmission dynamics was another common model objective, though the relative contribution of involved species to epizootic propagation was only ascertained in a few models. More direct evidence of disease spill-over, as can be obtained through genomic approaches based on pathogen sequences, could be a useful complement to further inform such modeling. As computational and programmatic capabilities advance, the resolution of the models and data used in these models will likely be able to increase as well, with a potential goal being the linking of modern complex ecological models with the depth of dynamics responsible for pathogen transmission. Controlling diseases at this interface is a critical step toward improving both livestock and wildlife health, and mechanistic models are becoming increasingly used to explore the strategies needed to confront these diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brandon H. Hayes
- IHAP, Université de Toulouse, INRAE, ENVT, Toulouse, France
- Ploufragan-Plouzané-Niort Laboratory, The French Agency for Food, Agriculture and the Environment (ANSES), Ploufragan, France
| | | | - Mathieu Andraud
- Ploufragan-Plouzané-Niort Laboratory, The French Agency for Food, Agriculture and the Environment (ANSES), Ploufragan, France
| | - Nicolas Rose
- Ploufragan-Plouzané-Niort Laboratory, The French Agency for Food, Agriculture and the Environment (ANSES), Ploufragan, France
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19
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Guilder J, Ryder D, Taylor NGH, Alewijnse SR, Millard RS, Thrush MA, Peeler EJ, Tidbury HJ. The aquaculture disease network model (AquaNet-Mod): A simulation model to evaluate disease spread and controls for the salmonid industry in England and Wales. Epidemics 2023; 44:100711. [PMID: 37562182 DOI: 10.1016/j.epidem.2023.100711] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2023] [Revised: 07/27/2023] [Accepted: 07/28/2023] [Indexed: 08/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Infectious disease causes significant mortality in wild and farmed systems, threatening biodiversity, conservation and animal welfare, as well as food security. To mitigate impacts and inform policy, tools such as mathematical models and computer simulations are valuable for predicting the potential spread and impact of disease. This paper describes the development of the Aquaculture Disease Network Model, AquaNet-Mod, and demonstrates its application to evaluating disease epidemics and the efficacy of control, using a Viral Haemorrhagic Septicaemia (VHS) case study. AquaNet-Mod is a data-driven, stochastic, state-transition model. Disease spread can occur via four different mechanisms, i) live fish movement, ii) river based, iii) short distance mechanical and iv) distance independent mechanical. Sites transit between three disease states: susceptible, clinically infected and subclinically infected. Disease spread can be interrupted by the application of disease mitigation measures and controls such as contact tracing, culling, fallowing and surveillance. Results from a VHS case study highlight the potential for VHS to spread to 96% of sites over a 10 year time horizon if no disease controls are applied. Epidemiological impact is significantly reduced when live fish movement restrictions are placed on the most connected sites and further still, when disease controls, representative of current disease control policy in England and Wales, are applied. The importance of specific disease control measures, particularly contact tracing and disease detection rate, are also highlighted. The merit of this model for evaluation of disease spread and the efficacy of controls, in the context of policy, along with potential for further application and development of the model, for example to include economic parameters, is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- James Guilder
- Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science (Cefas), Weymouth Laboratory, DT4 8UB, UK
| | - David Ryder
- Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science (Cefas), Weymouth Laboratory, DT4 8UB, UK
| | - Nick G H Taylor
- Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science (Cefas), Weymouth Laboratory, DT4 8UB, UK
| | - Sarah R Alewijnse
- Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science (Cefas), Weymouth Laboratory, DT4 8UB, UK
| | - Rebecca S Millard
- Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science (Cefas), Weymouth Laboratory, DT4 8UB, UK
| | - Mark A Thrush
- Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science (Cefas), Weymouth Laboratory, DT4 8UB, UK
| | - Edmund J Peeler
- Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science (Cefas), Weymouth Laboratory, DT4 8UB, UK
| | - Hannah J Tidbury
- Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science (Cefas), Weymouth Laboratory, DT4 8UB, UK.
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20
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Sulaimon TA, Chaters GL, Nyasebwa OM, Swai ES, Cleaveland S, Enright J, Kao RR, Johnson PCD. Modeling the effectiveness of targeting Rift Valley fever virus vaccination using imperfect network information. Front Vet Sci 2023; 10:1049633. [PMID: 37456963 PMCID: PMC10340087 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2023.1049633] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2022] [Accepted: 06/12/2023] [Indexed: 07/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Livestock movements contribute to the spread of several infectious diseases. Data on livestock movements can therefore be harnessed to guide policy on targeted interventions for controlling infectious livestock diseases, including Rift Valley fever (RVF)-a vaccine-preventable arboviral fever. Detailed livestock movement data are known to be useful for targeting control efforts including vaccination. These data are available in many countries, however, such data are generally lacking in others, including many in East Africa, where multiple RVF outbreaks have been reported in recent years. Available movement data are imperfect, and the impact of this uncertainty in the utility of movement data on informing targeting of vaccination is not fully understood. Here, we used a network simulation model to describe the spread of RVF within and between 398 wards in northern Tanzania connected by cattle movements, on which we evaluated the impact of targeting vaccination using imperfect movement data. We show that pre-emptive vaccination guided by only market movement permit data could prevent large outbreaks. Targeted control (either by the risk of RVF introduction or onward transmission) at any level of imperfect movement information is preferred over random vaccination, and any improvement in information reliability is advantageous to their effectiveness. Our modeling approach demonstrates how targeted interventions can be effectively used to inform animal and public health policies for disease control planning. This is particularly valuable in settings where detailed data on livestock movements are either unavailable or imperfect due to resource limitations in data collection, as well as challenges associated with poor compliance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tijani A. Sulaimon
- The Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush Campus, Midlothian, United Kingdom
- Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush Campus, Midlothian, United Kingdom
| | - Gemma L. Chaters
- School of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
- Institute of Infection and Global Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
- Global Burden of Animal Diseases (GBADs) Programme, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Obed M. Nyasebwa
- Veterinary Council of Tanzania, Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries, Dodoma, Tanzania
| | - Emanuel S. Swai
- Department of Veterinary Services, Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries, Dodoma, Tanzania
| | - Sarah Cleaveland
- School of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Jessica Enright
- School of Computing Science, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Rowland R. Kao
- The Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush Campus, Midlothian, United Kingdom
- Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush Campus, Midlothian, United Kingdom
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Paul C. D. Johnson
- School of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
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21
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Ke Z, Vikalo H. Graph-Based Reconstruction and Analysis of Disease Transmission Networks Using Viral Genomic Data. J Comput Biol 2023. [PMID: 37347892 DOI: 10.1089/cmb.2022.0373] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding the patterns of viral disease transmissions helps establish public health policies and aids in controlling and ending a disease outbreak. Classical methods for studying disease transmission dynamics that rely on epidemiological data, such as times of sample collection and duration of exposure intervals, struggle to provide desired insight due to limited informativeness of such data. A more precise characterization of disease transmissions may be acquired from sequencing data that reveal genetic distance between viral genomes in patient samples. Indeed, genetic distance between viral strains present in hosts contains valuable information about transmission history, thus motivating the design of methods that rely on genomic data to reconstruct a directed disease transmission network, detect transmission clusters, and identify significant network nodes (e.g., super-spreaders). In this article, we present a novel end-to-end framework for the analysis of viral transmissions utilizing viral genomic (sequencing) data. The proposed framework groups infected hosts into transmission clusters based on the reconstructed viral strains infecting them; the genetic distance between a pair of hosts is calculated using Earth Mover's Distance, and further used to infer transmission direction between the hosts. To quantify the significance of a host in the transmission network, the importance score is calculated by a graph convolutional autoencoder. The viral transmission network is represented by a directed minimum spanning tree utilizing the Edmond's algorithm modified to incorporate constraints on the importance scores of the hosts. The proposed framework outperforms state-of-the-art techniques for the analysis of viral transmission dynamics in several experiments on semiexperimental as well as experimental data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ziqi Ke
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, USA
| | - Haris Vikalo
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, USA
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22
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Thakur K, Kaur M, Kumar Y. A Comprehensive Analysis of Deep Learning-Based Approaches for Prediction and Prognosis of Infectious Diseases. ARCHIVES OF COMPUTATIONAL METHODS IN ENGINEERING : STATE OF THE ART REVIEWS 2023; 30:1-21. [PMID: 37359745 PMCID: PMC10249943 DOI: 10.1007/s11831-023-09952-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2022] [Accepted: 05/25/2023] [Indexed: 06/28/2023]
Abstract
Artificial intelligence is the most powerful and promising tool for the present analytic technologies. It can provide real-time insights into disease spread and predict new pandemic epicenters by processing massive amount of data. The main aim of the paper is to detect and classify multiple infectious diseases using deep learning models. The work is conducted by using 29,252 images of COVID-19, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus, Pneumonia, normal, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, tuberculosis, viral pneumonia, and lung opacity which has been collected from various disease datasets. These datasets are used to train the deep learning models such as EfficientNetB0, EfficientNetB1, EfficientNetB2, EfficientNetB3, NASNetLarge, DenseNet169, ResNet152V2, and InceptionResNetV2. The images have been initially graphically represented using exploratory data analysis to study the pixel intensity and find anomalies by extracting the color channels in an RGB histogram. Later, the dataset has been pre-processed to remove noisy signals using image augmentation and contrast enhancement techniques. Further, feature extraction techniques such as morphological values of contour features and Otsu thresholding have been applied to extract the feature. The models have been evaluated on the basis of various parameters, and it has been discovered that during the testing phase, the InceptionResNetV2 model generated the highest accuracy of 88%, best loss value of 0.399, and root mean square error of 0.63.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kavita Thakur
- Desh Bhagat University, Mandi Gobindgarh, Punjab India
| | - Manjot Kaur
- Desh Bhagat University, Mandi Gobindgarh, Punjab India
| | - Yogesh Kumar
- Department of CSE, School of Technology, Pandit Deendayal Energy University, Gandhinagar, Gujarat India
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23
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Ansari S, Heitzig J, Moosavi MR. Optimizing testing strategies for early detection of disease outbreaks in animal trade networks via MCMC. CHAOS (WOODBURY, N.Y.) 2023; 33:043144. [PMID: 37114989 DOI: 10.1063/5.0125434] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2022] [Accepted: 03/30/2023] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
The animal trades between farms and other livestock holdings form a complex livestock trade network. The movement of animals between trade actors plays an important role in the spread of infectious diseases among premises. Particularly, the outbreak of silent diseases that have no clinically obvious symptoms in the animal trade system should be diagnosed by taking special tests. In practice, the authorities regularly conduct examinations on a random number of farms to make sure that there was no outbreak in the system. However, these actions, which aim to discover and block a disease cascade, are yet far from the effective and optimum solution and often fail to prevent epidemics. A testing strategy is defined as making decisions about distributing the fixed testing budget N between farms/nodes in the network. In this paper, first, we apply different heuristics for selecting sentinel farms on real and synthetic pig-trade networks and evaluate them by simulating disease spreading via the SI epidemic model. Later, we propose a Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) based testing strategy with the aim of early detection of outbreaks. The experimental results show that the proposed method can reasonably well decrease the size of the outbreak on both the realistic synthetic and real trade data. A targeted selection of an N/52 fraction of nodes in the real pig-trade network based on the MCMC or simulated annealing can improve the performance of a baseline strategy by 89%. The best heuristic-based testing strategy results in a 75% reduction in the average size of the outbreak compared to that of the baseline testing strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Ansari
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Shiraz University, 7193616548 Shiraz, Iran
- FutureLab on Game Theory and Networks of Interacting Agents, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, 14473 Potsdam, Germany
| | - Jobst Heitzig
- FutureLab on Game Theory and Networks of Interacting Agents, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, 14473 Potsdam, Germany
| | - Mohammad R Moosavi
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Shiraz University, 7193616548 Shiraz, Iran
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24
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Egan ME, Pepin KM, Fischer JW, Hygnstrom SE, VerCauteren KC, Bastille‐Rousseau G. Social network analysis of white‐tailed deer scraping behavior: Implications for disease transmission. Ecosphere 2023. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.4434] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/22/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Michael E. Egan
- Cooperative Wildlife Research Laboratory Southern Illinois University Carbondale Illinois USA
- School of Biological Sciences Southern Illinois University Carbondale Illinois USA
| | - Kim M. Pepin
- National Wildlife Research Center United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services, Wildlife Service Fort Collins Colorado USA
| | - Justin W. Fischer
- National Wildlife Research Center United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services, Wildlife Service Fort Collins Colorado USA
| | - Scott E. Hygnstrom
- Wisconsin Center for Wildlife College of Natural Resources, University of Wisconsin‐Stevens Point Stevens Point Wisconsin USA
| | - Kurt C. VerCauteren
- National Wildlife Research Center United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services, Wildlife Service Fort Collins Colorado USA
| | - Guillaume Bastille‐Rousseau
- Cooperative Wildlife Research Laboratory Southern Illinois University Carbondale Illinois USA
- School of Biological Sciences Southern Illinois University Carbondale Illinois USA
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25
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Kozakiewicz CP, Burridge CP, Lee JS, Kraberger SJ, Fountain-Jones NM, Fisher RN, Lyren LM, Jennings MK, Riley SPD, Serieys LEK, Craft ME, Funk WC, Crooks KR, VandeWoude S, Carver S. Habitat connectivity and host relatedness influence virus spread across an urbanising landscape in a fragmentation-sensitive carnivore. Virus Evol 2022; 9:veac122. [PMID: 36694819 PMCID: PMC9865512 DOI: 10.1093/ve/veac122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2022] [Revised: 10/22/2022] [Accepted: 12/20/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Spatially heterogeneous landscape factors such as urbanisation can have substantial effects on the severity and spread of wildlife diseases. However, research linking patterns of pathogen transmission to landscape features remains rare. Using a combination of phylogeographic and machine learning approaches, we tested the influence of landscape and host factors on feline immunodeficiency virus (FIVLru) genetic variation and spread among bobcats (Lynx rufus) sampled from coastal southern California. We found evidence for increased rates of FIVLru lineage spread through areas of higher vegetation density. Furthermore, single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) variation among FIVLru sequences was associated with host genetic distances and geographic location, with FIVLru genetic discontinuities precisely correlating with known urban barriers to host dispersal. An effect of forest land cover on FIVLru SNP variation was likely attributable to host population structure and differences in forest land cover between different populations. Taken together, these results suggest that the spread of FIVLru is constrained by large-scale urban barriers to host movement. Although urbanisation at fine spatial scales did not appear to directly influence virus transmission or spread, we found evidence that viruses transmit and spread more quickly through areas containing higher proportions of natural habitat. These multiple lines of evidence demonstrate how urbanisation can change patterns of contact-dependent pathogen transmission and provide insights into how continued urban development may influence the incidence and management of wildlife disease.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Justin S Lee
- Genomic Sequencing Laboratory, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | | | | | - Robert N Fisher
- Western Ecological Research Center, U.S. Geological Survey, San Diego, CA 92101, USA
| | - Lisa M Lyren
- Western Ecological Research Center, U.S. Geological Survey, San Diego, CA 92101, USA
| | - Megan K Jennings
- Biology Department, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA 92182, USA
| | - Seth P D Riley
- National Park Service, Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, Thousand Oaks, CA 91360, USA
| | | | - Meggan E Craft
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St Paul, MN 55108, USA
| | - W Chris Funk
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA,Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Kevin R Crooks
- Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA,Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Sue VandeWoude
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
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26
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Johnson KVA, Watson KK, Dunbar RIM, Burnet PWJ. Sociability in a non-captive macaque population is associated with beneficial gut bacteria. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:1032495. [PMID: 36439813 PMCID: PMC9691693 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.1032495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2022] [Accepted: 10/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The relationship between social behaviour and the microbiome is known to be reciprocal. Research in wild animal populations, particularly in primate social groups, has revealed the role that social interactions play in microbial transmission, whilst studies in laboratory animals have demonstrated that the gut microbiome can affect multiple aspects of behaviour, including social behaviour. Here we explore behavioural variation in a non-captive animal population with respect to the abundance of specific bacterial genera. Social behaviour based on grooming interactions is assessed in a population of rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta), and combined with gut microbiome data. We focus our analyses on microbiome genera previously linked to sociability and autistic behaviours in rodents and humans. We show in this macaque population that some of these genera are also related to an individual's propensity to engage in social interactions. Interestingly, we find that several of the genera positively related to sociability, such as Faecalibacterium, are well known for their beneficial effects on health and their anti-inflammatory properties. In contrast, the genus Streptococcus, which includes pathogenic species, is more abundant in less sociable macaques. Our results indicate that microorganisms whose abundance varies with individual social behaviour also have functional links to host immune status. Overall, these findings highlight the connections between social behaviour, microbiome composition, and health in an animal population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katerina V.-A. Johnson
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom,Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom,*Correspondence: Katerina V.-A. Johnson,
| | - Karli K. Watson
- Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, United States
| | - Robin I. M. Dunbar
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
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27
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Boonyayatra S, Wang Y, Singhla T, Kongsila A, VanderWaal K, Wells SJ. Analysis of dairy cattle movements in the northern region of Thailand. Front Vet Sci 2022; 9:961696. [PMID: 36268049 PMCID: PMC9577029 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2022.961696] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2022] [Accepted: 09/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Dairy farming in northern Thailand is expanding, with dairy cattle populations increasing up to 8% per year. In addition, disease outbreaks frequently occur in this region, especially foot-and-mouth disease and bovine tuberculosis. Our goal was to quantify the underlying pattern of dairy cattle movements in the context of infectious disease surveillance and control as movements have been identified as risk factors for several infectious diseases. Movements at district levels within the northern region and between the northern and other regions from 2010 to 2017 were recorded by the Department of Livestock Development. Analyzed data included origin, destination, date and purpose of the movement, type of premise of origin and destination, and type and number of moved cattle. Social network analysis was performed to demonstrate patterns of dairy cattle movement within and between regions. The total numbers of movements and moved animals were 3,906 and 180,305, respectively. Decreasing trends in both the number of cattle moved and the number of movements were observed from 2010 to 2016, with increases in 2017. The majority (98%) of the animals moved were male dairy calves, followed by dairy cows (1.7%). The main purpose of the movements was for slaughter (96.3%). Most movements (67.4%) were shipments from central to northern regions, involving 87.1% of cattle moved. By contrast, 56% of the movements for growing and selling purposes occurred within the northern region, commonly involving dairy cows. Constructed movement networks showed heterogeneity of connections among districts. Of 110 districts, 28 were found to be influential to the movement networks, among which 11 districts showed high centrality measures in multiple networks stratified for movement purposes and regions, including eight districts in the northern and one district in each of the central, eastern, and lower northeastern regions of Thailand. These districts were more highly connected than others in the movement network, which may be important for disease transmission, surveillance, and control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sukolrat Boonyayatra
- Department of Food Animal Clinic, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand,*Correspondence: Sukolrat Boonyayatra
| | - Yuanyuan Wang
- Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN, United States
| | - Tawatchai Singhla
- Department of Food Animal Clinic, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand
| | - Apisek Kongsila
- The 5th Regional Livestock Office, Department of Livestock Development, Chiang Mai, Thailand
| | - Kimberly VanderWaal
- Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN, United States
| | - Scott J. Wells
- Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN, United States
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28
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Gilbertson MLJ, Fountain-Jones NM, Malmberg JL, Gagne RB, Lee JS, Kraberger S, Kechejian S, Petch R, Chiu ES, Onorato D, Cunningham MW, Crooks KR, Funk WC, Carver S, VandeWoude S, VanderWaal K, Craft ME. Apathogenic proxies for transmission dynamics of a fatal virus. Front Vet Sci 2022; 9:940007. [PMID: 36157183 PMCID: PMC9493079 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2022.940007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2022] [Accepted: 08/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Identifying drivers of transmission-especially of emerging pathogens-is a formidable challenge for proactive disease management efforts. While close social interactions can be associated with microbial sharing between individuals, and thereby imply dynamics important for transmission, such associations can be obscured by the influences of factors such as shared diets or environments. Directly-transmitted viral agents, specifically those that are rapidly evolving such as many RNA viruses, can allow for high-resolution inference of transmission, and therefore hold promise for elucidating not only which individuals transmit to each other, but also drivers of those transmission events. Here, we tested a novel approach in the Florida panther, which is affected by several directly-transmitted feline retroviruses. We first inferred the transmission network for an apathogenic, directly-transmitted retrovirus, feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), and then used exponential random graph models to determine drivers structuring this network. We then evaluated the utility of these drivers in predicting transmission of the analogously transmitted, pathogenic agent, feline leukemia virus (FeLV), and compared FIV-based predictions of outbreak dynamics against empirical FeLV outbreak data. FIV transmission was primarily driven by panther age class and distances between panther home range centroids. FIV-based modeling predicted FeLV dynamics similarly to common modeling approaches, but with evidence that FIV-based predictions captured the spatial structuring of the observed FeLV outbreak. While FIV-based predictions of FeLV transmission performed only marginally better than standard approaches, our results highlight the value of proactively identifying drivers of transmission-even based on analogously-transmitted, apathogenic agents-in order to predict transmission of emerging infectious agents. The identification of underlying drivers of transmission, such as through our workflow here, therefore holds promise for improving predictions of pathogen transmission in novel host populations, and could provide new strategies for proactive pathogen management in human and animal systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie L. J. Gilbertson
- Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN, United States
| | | | - Jennifer L. Malmberg
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY, United States
| | - Roderick B. Gagne
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States
- Wildlife Futures Program, Department of Pathobiology, University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, Kennett Square, PA, United States
| | - Justin S. Lee
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States
| | - Simona Kraberger
- The Biodesign Center for Fundamental and Applied Microbiomics, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United States
| | - Sarah Kechejian
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States
| | - Raegan Petch
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States
| | - Elliott S. Chiu
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States
| | - Dave Onorato
- Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Naples, FL, United States
| | - Mark W. Cunningham
- Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Kevin R. Crooks
- Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States
| | - W. Chris Funk
- Department of Biology, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States
| | - Scott Carver
- School of Natural Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart, TAS, Australia
| | - Sue VandeWoude
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States
| | - Kimberly VanderWaal
- Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN, United States
| | - Meggan E. Craft
- Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN, United States
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN, United States
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29
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Chakraborty D, Guinat C, Müller NF, Briand F, Andraud M, Scoizec A, Lebouquin S, Niqueux E, Schmitz A, Grasland B, Guerin J, Paul MC, Vergne T. Phylodynamic analysis of the highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N8 epidemic in France, 2016-2017. Transbound Emerg Dis 2022; 69:e1574-e1583. [PMID: 35195353 PMCID: PMC9790735 DOI: 10.1111/tbed.14490] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2021] [Revised: 01/14/2022] [Accepted: 02/15/2022] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
In 2016-2017, France experienced a devastating epidemic of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N8, with more than 400 outbreaks reported in poultry farms. We analyzed the spatiotemporal dynamics of the epidemic using a structured-coalescent-based phylodynamic approach that combined viral genomic data (n = 196; one viral genome per farm) and epidemiological data. In the process, we estimated viral migration rates between départements (French administrative regions) and the temporal dynamics of the effective viral population size (Ne) in each département. Viral migration rates quantify viral spread between départements and Ne is a population genetic measure of the epidemic size and, in turn, is indicative of the within-département transmission intensity. We extended the phylodynamic analysis with a generalized linear model to assess the impact of multiple factors-including large-scale preventive culling and live-duck movement bans-on viral migration rates and Ne. We showed that the large-scale culling of ducks that was initiated on 4 January 2017 significantly reduced the viral spread between départements. No relationship was found between the viral spread and duck movements between départements. The within-département transmission intensity was found to be weakly associated with the intensity of duck movements within départements. Together, these results indicated that the virus spread in short distances, either between adjacent départements or within départements. Results also suggested that the restrictions on duck transport within départements might not have stopped the viral spread completely. Overall, we demonstrated the usefulness of phylodynamics in characterizing the dynamics of a HPAI epidemic and assessing control measures. This method can be adapted to investigate other epidemics of fast-evolving livestock pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Claire Guinat
- Department of Biosystems Science and EngineeringETH ZürichMattenstrasseBaselSwitzerland,Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics (SIB)LausanneSwitzerland
| | - Nicola F. Müller
- Vaccine and Infectious DiseaseFred Hutchinson Cancer Research CentreSeattleWashingtonUSA
| | - Francois‐Xavier Briand
- French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) Laboratory of Ploufragan‐Plouzané‐NiortPloufraganFrance
| | - Mathieu Andraud
- French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) Laboratory of Ploufragan‐Plouzané‐NiortPloufraganFrance
| | - Axelle Scoizec
- French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) Laboratory of Ploufragan‐Plouzané‐NiortPloufraganFrance
| | - Sophie Lebouquin
- French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) Laboratory of Ploufragan‐Plouzané‐NiortPloufraganFrance
| | - Eric Niqueux
- French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) Laboratory of Ploufragan‐Plouzané‐NiortPloufraganFrance
| | - Audrey Schmitz
- French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) Laboratory of Ploufragan‐Plouzané‐NiortPloufraganFrance
| | - Beatrice Grasland
- French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) Laboratory of Ploufragan‐Plouzané‐NiortPloufraganFrance
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30
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Romano V, Lussiana A, Monteith KM, MacIntosh AJJ, Vale PF. Host genetics and pathogen species modulate infection-induced changes in social aggregation behaviour. Biol Lett 2022; 18:20220233. [PMID: 36043302 PMCID: PMC9428545 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2022.0233] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Identifying how infection modifies host behaviours that determine social contact networks is important for understanding heterogeneity in infectious disease dynamics. Here, we investigate whether group social behaviour is modified during bacterial infection in fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) according to pathogen species, infectious dose, host genetic background and sex. In one experiment, we find that systemic infection with four different bacterial species results in a reduction in the mean pairwise distance within infected female flies, and that the extent of this change depends on pathogen species. However, susceptible flies did not show any evidence of avoidance in the presence of infected flies. In a separate experiment, we observed genetic- and sex-based variation in social aggregation within infected, same-sex groups, with infected female flies aggregating more closely than infected males. In general, our results confirm that bacterial infection induces changes in fruit fly behaviour across a range of pathogen species, but also highlight that these effects vary between fly genetic backgrounds and can be sex-specific. We discuss possible explanations for sex differences in social aggregation and their consequences for individual variation in pathogen transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valéria Romano
- IMBE, Aix Marseille Univ., Avignon Univ., CNRS, IRD, Marseille, France.,Kyoto University Wildlife Research Center, Japan
| | - Amy Lussiana
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Katy M Monteith
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | | | - Pedro F Vale
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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31
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Balasubramaniam KN, Aiempichitkijkarn N, Kaburu SSK, Marty PR, Beisner BA, Bliss-Moreau E, Arlet ME, Atwill E, McCowan B. Impact of joint interactions with humans and social interactions with conspecifics on the risk of zooanthroponotic outbreaks among wildlife populations. Sci Rep 2022; 12:11600. [PMID: 35804182 PMCID: PMC9263808 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-15713-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2021] [Accepted: 06/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Pandemics caused by pathogens that originate in wildlife highlight the importance of understanding the behavioral ecology of disease outbreaks at human–wildlife interfaces. Specifically, the relative effects of human–wildlife and wildlife-wildlife interactions on disease outbreaks among wildlife populations in urban and peri-urban environments remain unclear. We used social network analysis and epidemiological Susceptible-Infected-Recovered models to simulate zooanthroponotic outbreaks, through wild animals’ joint propensities to co-interact with humans, and their social grooming of conspecifics. On 10 groups of macaques (Macaca spp.) in peri-urban environments in Asia, we collected behavioral data using event sampling of human–macaque interactions within the same time and space, and focal sampling of macaques’ social interactions with conspecifics and overall anthropogenic exposure. Model-predicted outbreak sizes were related to structural features of macaques’ networks. For all three species, and for both anthropogenic (co-interactions) and social (grooming) contexts, outbreak sizes were positively correlated to the network centrality of first-infected macaques. Across host species and contexts, the above effects were stronger through macaques’ human co-interaction networks than through their grooming networks, particularly for rhesus and bonnet macaques. Long-tailed macaques appeared to show intraspecific variation in these effects. Our findings suggest that among wildlife in anthropogenically-impacted environments, the structure of their aggregations around anthropogenic factors makes them more vulnerable to zooanthroponotic outbreaks than their social structure. The global features of these networks that influence disease outbreaks, and their underlying socio-ecological covariates, need further investigation. Animals that consistently interact with both humans and their conspecifics are important targets for disease control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Krishna N Balasubramaniam
- School of Life Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, CB1 1PT, UK. .,Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine (SVM), University of California at Davis, Davis, CA, 95616, USA.
| | | | - Stefano S K Kaburu
- Department of Biomedical Science and Physiology, Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Wolverhampton, Wolverhampton, WV1 1LY, UK
| | - Pascal R Marty
- Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine (SVM), University of California at Davis, Davis, CA, 95616, USA.,Zoo Zürich, Zürichbergstrasse 221, 8044, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Brianne A Beisner
- Animal Resources Division, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, 30329, USA
| | - Eliza Bliss-Moreau
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis, CA, 95616, USA.,California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| | - Malgorzata E Arlet
- Institute of Human Biology and Evolution, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, 61614, Poznan, Poland
| | - Edward Atwill
- Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine (SVM), University of California at Davis, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| | - Brenda McCowan
- Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine (SVM), University of California at Davis, Davis, CA, 95616, USA.,California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
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32
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Izenour K, Zohdy S, Kalalah A, Starkey L, Blagburn B, Sundermann C, Salib F. Detection of zoonotic vector-borne pathogens in domestic dogs in Giza, Egypt. Vet Parasitol Reg Stud Reports 2022; 32:100744. [PMID: 35725107 DOI: 10.1016/j.vprsr.2022.100744] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2021] [Revised: 04/15/2022] [Accepted: 05/30/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The public health implications of zoonotic vector-borne pathogens are numerous because domestic animals, such as dogs, live in close proximity to humans. Blood was collected from 116 domestic dogs in Cairo, Egypt from three different settings at the human-animal interface. The three settings the dogs came from were: privately owned animals seeking care at the Cairo University Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Clinic, non-laboratory reared research dogs maintained at the Cairo University Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, and an urban private animal rescue in Shabramont, Giza, Egypt. Enrolled animals were visually inspected for presence of flea or tick ectoparasites, Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato ticks were recovered from 56 enrolled animals and a flea identified as Ctenocephalides felis was recovered from one animal. To test for past and/or current infection with vector-borne pathogens, conventional PCR and IDEXX SNAP® 4Dx® Plus were performed on whole blood. Pathogen targets included: Anaplasma spp., Ehrlichia spp., Babesia spp., Borrelia spp., Bartonella spp., Dirofilaria spp., and Rickettsia spp. Among dogs sampled across all locations, one dog was positive for Babesia sp. infection and one dog was positive for Anaplasma sp. infection as detected by PCR and confirmed by Sanger sequencing. Three additional dogs were positive for infection but had incomplete sequences obtained: two for Ehrlichia sp. and one for Borrelia sp. The SNAP® test results for all sampled dogs included: eight dogs positive for Anaplasma spp., 14 dogs positive for Ehrlichia spp., and five additional dogs positive for both Anaplasma spp. and Ehrlichia spp. SNAP® test results by sampling location showed that 66% of the dogs at the animal rescue were positive for Anaplasma spp. and/or Ehrlichia spp., 17% of the privately owned dogs at the Faculty of Veterinary medicine were positive for Anaplasma spp. and/or Ehrlichia spp., and none of the research dogs were positive for any of the targets on the SNAP® test. This high proportion of seropositivity in the animals sampled indicates a vector population which is not well controlled and a need for continued owner education and promotion of consistent use of preventive medications and the risk for zoonotic transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katie Izenour
- Department of Pathobiology, Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine, 166 Greene Hall Auburn, AL 36849, United States of America.
| | - Sarah Zohdy
- Department of Pathobiology, Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine, 166 Greene Hall Auburn, AL 36849, United States of America; College of Forestry, Wildlife and Evironment, Auburn University, 600 Duncan Drive, AL 36849, United States of America
| | - Anwar Kalalah
- Department of Pathobiology, Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine, 166 Greene Hall Auburn, AL 36849, United States of America
| | - Lindsay Starkey
- Department of Pathobiology, Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine, 166 Greene Hall Auburn, AL 36849, United States of America
| | - Byron Blagburn
- Department of Pathobiology, Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine, 166 Greene Hall Auburn, AL 36849, United States of America
| | - Christine Sundermann
- Department of Biological Sciences, Auburn University College of Science and Mathematics, 101 Rouse Life Sciences Building Auburn, AL 36849, United States of America
| | - Fayez Salib
- Cairo University, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Giza Governorate, Cairo, Egypt
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33
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Brambilla A, von Hardenberg A, Canedoli C, Brivio F, Sueur C, Stanley CR. Long term analysis of social structure: evidence of age‐based consistent associations in male Alpine ibex. OIKOS 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.09511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Alice Brambilla
- Dept of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, Univ. of Zurich Zurich Switzerland
- Alpine Wildlife Research Center, Gran Paradiso National Park Torino Italy
| | - Achaz von Hardenberg
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Dept of Biological Sciences, Univ. of Chester Chester UK
| | - Claudia Canedoli
- Dept of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Univ. of Milano Bicocca Milano Italy
| | | | - Cédric Sueur
- Univ. de Strasbourg, CNRS, IPHC UMR 7178 Strasbourg France
- Inst. Universitaire de France, Saint‐Michel 103 Paris France
| | - Christina R. Stanley
- Conservation Biology Research Group, Dept of Biological Sciences, Univ. of Chester Chester UK
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34
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Quantification and characterisation of commensal wild birds and their interactions with domestic ducks on a free-range farm in southwest France. Sci Rep 2022; 12:9764. [PMID: 35697735 PMCID: PMC9192735 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-13846-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2021] [Accepted: 05/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The role of commensal birds in the epidemiology of pathogens in poultry farms remains unclear. Our study aimed to identify potential key species for interactions with domestic ducks on one free-range duck farm in southwest France. Methods combined direct individual observations on duck outdoor foraging areas, network analysis, and general linear mixed models of abundances. Results showed a wide diversity of wild bird species visiting foraging areas, heavily dominated in frequency by White wagtails (Motacilla alba) and Sparrows (Passer domesticus and Passer montanus). These also were the only species seen entering duck premises or perching on drinkers in the presence of ducks. Moreover, White wagtails were the species most frequently observed on the ground and in close proximity to ducks. Network analysis suggested the role of White wagtails and Sparrows in linking ducks to other wild birds on the farm. The abundance of White wagtails was positively associated with open vegetation, with the presence of ducks and particularly in the afternoon, while the abundance of Sparrows was positively associated only with the fall-winter season. By precisely characterising interactions, the study was able to identify few wild bird species which should be prioritized in infectious investigations at the interface with poultry.
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35
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Acosta A, Cardenas NC, Imbacuan C, Lentz HH, Dietze K, Amaku M, Burbano A, Gonçalves VS, Ferreira F. Modelling control strategies against Classical Swine Fever: influence of traders and markets using static and temporal networks in Ecuador. Prev Vet Med 2022; 205:105683. [DOI: 10.1016/j.prevetmed.2022.105683] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2021] [Revised: 05/17/2022] [Accepted: 05/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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36
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Wilber MQ, Yang A, Boughton R, Manlove KR, Miller RS, Pepin KM, Wittemyer G. A model for leveraging animal movement to understand spatio-temporal disease dynamics. Ecol Lett 2022; 25:1290-1304. [PMID: 35257466 DOI: 10.1111/ele.13986] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2021] [Revised: 12/27/2021] [Accepted: 02/04/2022] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
The ongoing explosion of fine-resolution movement data in animal systems provides a unique opportunity to empirically quantify spatial, temporal and individual variation in transmission risk and improve our ability to forecast disease outbreaks. However, we lack a generalizable model that can leverage movement data to quantify transmission risk and how it affects pathogen invasion and persistence on heterogeneous landscapes. We developed a flexible model 'Movement-driven modelling of spatio-temporal infection risk' (MoveSTIR) that leverages diverse data on animal movement to derive metrics of direct and indirect contact by decomposing transmission into constituent processes of contact formation and duration and pathogen deposition and acquisition. We use MoveSTIR to demonstrate that ignoring fine-scale animal movements on actual landscapes can mis-characterize transmission risk and epidemiological dynamics. MoveSTIR unifies previous work on epidemiological contact networks and can address applied and theoretical questions at the nexus of movement and disease ecology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark Q Wilber
- Forestry, Wildlife, and Fisheries, Institute of Agriculture, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Anni Yang
- United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Wildlife Services, National Wildlife Research Center, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA.,Department of Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA.,Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma, USA
| | - Raoul Boughton
- Archbold Biological Station, Buck Island Ranch, Lake Placid, Florida, USA
| | - Kezia R Manlove
- Department of Wildland Resources and Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, Utah, USA
| | - Ryan S Miller
- United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Veterinary Service, Center for Epidemiology and Animal Health, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
| | - Kim M Pepin
- United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Wildlife Services, National Wildlife Research Center, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
| | - George Wittemyer
- Department of Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
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37
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Hundt PJ, White LA, Craft ME, Bajer PG. Social associations in common carp (
Cyprinus carpio
): Insights from induced feeding aggregations for targeted management strategies. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e8666. [PMID: 35309746 PMCID: PMC8901867 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8666] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2021] [Revised: 12/30/2021] [Accepted: 01/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Peter J. Hundt
- Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology University of Minnesota St. Paul Minnesota USA
- Minnesota Aquatic Invasive Species Research Center (MAISRC) St. Paul Minnesota USA
| | - Lauren A. White
- National Socio‐Environmental Synthesis Center University of Maryland Annapolis Maryland USA
| | - Meggan E. Craft
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior University of Minnesota St. Paul Minnesota USA
| | - Przemyslaw G. Bajer
- Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology University of Minnesota St. Paul Minnesota USA
- Minnesota Aquatic Invasive Species Research Center (MAISRC) St. Paul Minnesota USA
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38
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Gervasi V, Gubertì V. Combining hunting and intensive carcass removal to eradicate African swine fever from wild boar populations. Prev Vet Med 2022; 203:105633. [PMID: 35367934 PMCID: PMC9127340 DOI: 10.1016/j.prevetmed.2022.105633] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2021] [Revised: 03/21/2022] [Accepted: 03/25/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
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39
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Bacigalupo SA, Dixon LK, Gubbins S, Kucharski AJ, Drewe JA. Wild boar visits to commercial pig farms in southwest England: implications for disease transmission. EUR J WILDLIFE RES 2022; 68:69. [PMID: 36213142 PMCID: PMC9532280 DOI: 10.1007/s10344-022-01618-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2021] [Revised: 09/22/2022] [Accepted: 09/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Contact between wild animals and farmed livestock may result in disease transmission with huge financial, welfare and ethical consequences. Conflicts between people and wildlife can also arise when species such as wild boar (Sus scrofa) consume crops or dig up pasture. This is a relatively recent problem in England where wild boar populations have become re-established in the last 20 years following a 500-year absence. The aim of this pilot study was to determine if and how often free-living wild boar visited two commercial pig farms near the Forest of Dean in southwest England. We placed 20 motion-sensitive camera traps at potential entry points to, and trails surrounding, the perimeter of two farmyards housing domestic pigs between August 2019 and February 2021, covering a total of 6030 trap nights. Forty wild boar detections were recorded on one farm spread across 27 nights, with a median (range) of 1 (0 to 7) night of wild boar activity per calendar month. Most of these wild boar detections occurred between ten and twenty metres of housed domestic pigs. No wild boar was detected at the other farm. These results confirm wild boar do visit commercial pig farms, and therefore, there is potential for contact and pathogen exchange between wild boar and domestic pigs. The visitation rates derived from this study could be used to parameterise disease transmission models of pathogens common to domestic pigs and wild boars, such as the African swine fever virus, and subsequently to develop mitigation strategies to reduce unwanted contacts.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Adam J Kucharski
- London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, University of London, London, UK
| | - Julian A Drewe
- Royal Veterinary College, University of London, Hatfield, AL9 7TA UK
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40
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Ansari S, Heitzig J, Brzoska L, Lentz HHK, Mihatsch J, Fritzemeier J, Moosavi MR. A Temporal Network Model for Livestock Trade Systems. Front Vet Sci 2021; 8:766547. [PMID: 34966806 PMCID: PMC8710670 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2021.766547] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2021] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
The movements of animals between farms and other livestock holdings for trading activities form a complex livestock trade network. These movements play an important role in the spread of infectious diseases among premises. For studying the disease spreading among animal holdings, it is of great importance to understand the structure and dynamics of the trade system. In this paper, we propose a temporal network model for animal trade systems. Furthermore, a novel measure of node centrality important for disease spreading is introduced. The experimental results show that the model can reasonably well describe these spreading-related properties of the network and it can generate crucial data for research in the field of the livestock trade system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Ansari
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran
- Department of Complexity Science, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Jobst Heitzig
- Department of Complexity Science, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Laura Brzoska
- Department of Complexity Science, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Hartmut H. K. Lentz
- Institute of Epidemiology, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Greifswald-Insel Riems, Germany
| | - Jakob Mihatsch
- Department of Complexity Science, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Jörg Fritzemeier
- Landkreis Osnabrück, Veterinärdienst für Stadt und Landkreis Osnabrück, Osnabruck, Germany
| | - Mohammad R. Moosavi
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran
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41
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Arancibia PA, Morin PJ. Network topology and patch connectivity affect dynamics in experimental and model metapopulations. J Anim Ecol 2021; 91:496-505. [PMID: 34873688 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13647] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2021] [Accepted: 11/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Biological populations are rarely isolated in space and instead interact with others via dispersal in metapopulations. Theory predicts that network connectivity patterns can have critical effects on network robustness, as certain topologies, such as scale-free networks, are more tolerant to disturbances than other patterns. However, at present, experimental evidence of how these topologies affect population dynamics in a metapopulation framework is lacking. We used experimental metapopulations of the aquatic protist Paramecium tetraurelia to determine how network topology influences occupation patterns. We created metapopulations engineered to be comparable in linkage density, but differing in their degree distribution. We compared random networks to scale-free networks by evaluating local population occupancy and abundance throughout 18-30 protist generations. In parallel, we used simulations to explore differences in patch occupation patterns among topologies. Our experimental results highlighted the importance of the balance between dispersal and extinction in the interaction with spatial network topology. Under low dispersal conditions, random metapopulations of P. tetraurelia reached higher abundance and higher occupancy (proportion of occupied patches) compared to scale-free systems in both experimental and simulated systems. Under high dispersal conditions, we did not detect differences between types of metapopulations. Increasing patch degree (i.e. number of connections per patch) reduced the probability of extinction of local populations in both types of networks. We suggest the interaction between colonization/extinction rates and network topology alters the likelihood of rescue effects which results in differential patterns of occupancy and abundance in metapopulations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paulina A Arancibia
- Graduate Program in Ecology and Evolution, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, USA.,Department of Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
| | - Peter J Morin
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
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42
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Doeschl-Wilson A, Knap PW, Opriessnig T, More SJ. Review: Livestock disease resilience: from individual to herd level. Animal 2021; 15 Suppl 1:100286. [PMID: 34312089 PMCID: PMC8664713 DOI: 10.1016/j.animal.2021.100286] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2021] [Revised: 04/12/2021] [Accepted: 04/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Infectious diseases are a major threat to the sustainable production of high-producing animals. Control efforts, such as vaccination or breeding approaches often target improvements to individual resilience to infections, i.e., they strengthen an animal's ability to cope with infection, rather than preventing infection per se. There is increasing evidence for the contribution of non-clinical carriers (animals that become infected and are infectious but do not develop clinical signs) to the overall health and production of livestock populations for a wide range of infectious diseases. Therefore, we strongly advocate a shift of focus from increasing the disease resilience of individual animals to herd disease resilience as the appropriate target for sustainable disease control in livestock. Herd disease resilience not only captures the direct effects of vaccination or host genetics on the health and production performance of individuals but also the indirect effects on the environmental pathogen load that herd members are exposed to. For diseases primarily caused by infectious pathogens shed by herd members, these indirect effects on herd resilience are mediated both by individual susceptibility to infection and by characteristics (magnitude of infectiousness, duration of infectious period) that influence pathogen shedding from infected individuals. We review what is currently known about how vaccination and selective breeding affect herd disease resilience and its underlying components, and outline the changes required for improvement. To this purpose, we also seek to clarify and harmonise the terminology used in the different animal science disciplines to facilitate future collaborative approaches to infectious disease control in livestock.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Doeschl-Wilson
- The Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Roslin Institute Building, Easter Bush EH25 9RG, Scotland, UK.
| | - P W Knap
- Genus-PIC, 24837 Schleswig, Germany
| | - T Opriessnig
- The Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Roslin Institute Building, Easter Bush EH25 9RG, Scotland, UK
| | - S J More
- Centre for Veterinary Epidemiology and Risk Analysis, School of Veterinary Medicine, University College Dublin, Veterinary Science Centre Belfield, Dublin D04 W6F6, Ireland
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43
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Ellington C, Hebron C, Crespo R, Machado G. Unraveling the Contact Network Patterns between Commercial Turkey Operation in North Carolina and the Distribution of Salmonella Species. Pathogens 2021; 10:pathogens10121539. [PMID: 34959494 PMCID: PMC8708296 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens10121539] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2021] [Revised: 11/20/2021] [Accepted: 11/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Salmonellosis originating from poultry poses a significant threat to human health. Surveillance within production is thus needed to minimize risk. The objectives of this work were to investigate the distribution of Salmonella spp. from a commercial turkey operation and describe the animal movement patterns to investigate the association between contact network structure and Salmonella infection status. Four years of routine growout farm samples along with data on facility location, time since barns were built, production style, and bird movement data were utilized. From all of the surveillance samples collected, Salmonella serotyping was performed on positive samples and results showed that the most represented groups were C1 (28.67%), B (24.37%) and C2 (17.13%). The serovar Infantis (26.44%) was the most highly represented, followed by Senftenberg (12.76%) and Albany (10.93%). Results illustrated the seasonality of Salmonella presence with a higher number of positive samples being collected in the second half of each calendar year. We also demonstrated that Salmonella was more likely to occur in samples from older farms compared to farms built more recently. The contact network connectivity was low, although a few highly connected farms were identified. Results of the contact network showed that the farms which tested positive for Salmonella were not clustered within the network, suggesting that even though Salmonella dissemination occurs via transferring infected birds, for this study case it is unlikely the most important route of transmission. In conclusion, this study identified seasonality of Salmonella with significantly more cases in the second half of each year and also uncovered the role of between-farm movement of birds as not a major mode of Salmonella transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cameron Ellington
- Department of Population Health and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA; (C.E.); (R.C.)
| | | | - Rocio Crespo
- Department of Population Health and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA; (C.E.); (R.C.)
| | - Gustavo Machado
- Department of Population Health and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA; (C.E.); (R.C.)
- Correspondence:
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Muylaert RL, Davidson B, Ngabirano A, Kalema-Zikusoka G, MacGregor H, Lloyd-Smith JO, Fayaz A, Knox MA, Hayman DTS. Community health and human-animal contacts on the edges of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0254467. [PMID: 34818325 PMCID: PMC8612581 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0254467] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2021] [Accepted: 11/01/2021] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Cross-species transmission of pathogens is intimately linked to human and environmental health. With limited healthcare and challenging living conditions, people living in poverty may be particularly susceptible to endemic and emerging diseases. Similarly, wildlife is impacted by human influences, including pathogen sharing, especially for species in close contact with people and domesticated animals. Here we investigate human and animal contacts and human health in a community living around the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (BINP), Uganda. We used contact and health survey data to identify opportunities for cross-species pathogen transmission, focusing mostly on people and the endangered mountain gorilla. We conducted a survey with background questions and self-reported diaries to investigate 100 participants' health, such as symptoms and behaviours, and contact patterns, including direct contacts and sightings over a week. Contacts were revealed through networks, including humans, domestic, peri-domestic, and wild animal groups for 1) contacts seen in the week of background questionnaire completion, and 2) contacts seen during the diary week. Participants frequently felt unwell during the study, reporting from one to 10 disease symptoms at different intensity levels, with severe symptoms comprising 6.4% of the diary records and tiredness and headaches the most common symptoms. After human-human contacts, direct contact with livestock and peri-domestic animals were the most common. The contact networks were moderately connected and revealed a preference in contacts within the same taxon and within their taxa groups. Sightings of wildlife were much more common than touching. However, despite contact with wildlife being the rarest of all contact types, one direct contact with a gorilla with a timeline including concerning participant health symptoms was reported. When considering all interaction types, gorillas mostly exhibited intra-species contact, but were found to interact with five other species, including people and domestic animals. Our findings reveal a local human population with recurrent symptoms of illness in a location with intense exposure to factors that can increase pathogen transmission, such as direct contact with domestic and wild animals and proximity among animal species. Despite significant biases and study limitations, the information generated here can guide future studies, such as models for disease spread and One Health interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renata L. Muylaert
- Molecular Epidemiology and Public Health Laboratory, Hopkirk Research Institute, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
| | - Ben Davidson
- Molecular Epidemiology and Public Health Laboratory, Hopkirk Research Institute, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
| | - Alex Ngabirano
- Conservation Through Public Health, Uring Crescent, Entebbe, Uganda
- Bwindi Development Network, Buhoma, Kanungu, Uganda
| | | | - Hayley MacGregor
- Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex and STEPS, Brighton, United Kingdom
| | - James O. Lloyd-Smith
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | - Ahmed Fayaz
- Molecular Epidemiology and Public Health Laboratory, Hopkirk Research Institute, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
| | - Matthew A. Knox
- Molecular Epidemiology and Public Health Laboratory, Hopkirk Research Institute, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
| | - David T. S. Hayman
- Molecular Epidemiology and Public Health Laboratory, Hopkirk Research Institute, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
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45
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Greening SS, Zhang J, Midwinter AC, Wilkinson DA, Fayaz A, Williamson DA, Anderson MJ, Gates MC, French NP. Transmission dynamics of an antimicrobial resistant Campylobacter jejuni lineage in New Zealand's commercial poultry network. Epidemics 2021; 37:100521. [PMID: 34775297 DOI: 10.1016/j.epidem.2021.100521] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2020] [Revised: 08/05/2021] [Accepted: 11/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Understanding the relative contribution of different between-farm transmission pathways is essential in guiding recommendations for mitigating disease spread. This study investigated the association between contact pathways linking poultry farms in New Zealand and the genetic relatedness of antimicrobial resistant Campylobacter jejuni Sequence Type 6964 (ST-6964), with the aim of identifying the most likely contact pathways that contributed to its rapid spread across the industry. Whole-genome sequencing was performed on 167C. jejuni ST-6964 isolates sampled from across 30 New Zealand commercial poultry enterprises. The genetic relatedness between isolates was determined using whole genome multilocus sequence typing (wgMLST). Permutational multivariate analysis of variance and distance-based linear models were used to explore the strength of the relationship between pairwise genetic associations among the C. jejuni isolates and each of several pairwise distance matrices, indicating either the geographical distance between farms or the network distance of transportation vehicles. Overall, a significant association was found between the pairwise genetic relatedness of the C. jejuni isolates and the parent company, the road distance and the network distance of transporting feed vehicles. This result suggests that the transportation of feed within the commercial poultry industry as well as other local contacts between flocks, such as the movements of personnel, may have played a significant role in the spread of C. jejuni. However, further information on the historical contact patterns between farms is needed to fully characterise the risk of these pathways and to understand how they could be targeted to reduce the spread of C. jejuni.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabrina S Greening
- Epicentre, School of Veterinary Science, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand.
| | - Ji Zhang
- mEpiLab, Infectious Disease Research Centre, School of Veterinary Science, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand; New Zealand Food Safety Science and Research Centre, Hopkirk Research Institute, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
| | - Anne C Midwinter
- mEpiLab, Infectious Disease Research Centre, School of Veterinary Science, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
| | - David A Wilkinson
- mEpiLab, Infectious Disease Research Centre, School of Veterinary Science, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand; New Zealand Food Safety Science and Research Centre, Hopkirk Research Institute, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
| | - Ahmed Fayaz
- mEpiLab, Infectious Disease Research Centre, School of Veterinary Science, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
| | - Deborah A Williamson
- Microbiological Diagnostic Unit and Public Health Laboratory, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
| | - Marti J Anderson
- New Zealand Institute for Advanced Study, Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - M Carolyn Gates
- Epicentre, School of Veterinary Science, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
| | - Nigel P French
- mEpiLab, Infectious Disease Research Centre, School of Veterinary Science, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand; New Zealand Food Safety Science and Research Centre, Hopkirk Research Institute, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
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46
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Strydom T, Catchen MD, Banville F, Caron D, Dansereau G, Desjardins-Proulx P, Forero-Muñoz NR, Higino G, Mercier B, Gonzalez A, Gravel D, Pollock L, Poisot T. A roadmap towards predicting species interaction networks (across space and time). Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2021; 376:20210063. [PMID: 34538135 PMCID: PMC8450634 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0063] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Networks of species interactions underpin numerous ecosystem processes, but comprehensively sampling these interactions is difficult. Interactions intrinsically vary across space and time, and given the number of species that compose ecological communities, it can be tough to distinguish between a true negative (where two species never interact) from a false negative (where two species have not been observed interacting even though they actually do). Assessing the likelihood of interactions between species is an imperative for several fields of ecology. This means that to predict interactions between species-and to describe the structure, variation, and change of the ecological networks they form-we need to rely on modelling tools. Here, we provide a proof-of-concept, where we show how a simple neural network model makes accurate predictions about species interactions given limited data. We then assess the challenges and opportunities associated with improving interaction predictions, and provide a conceptual roadmap forward towards predictive models of ecological networks that is explicitly spatial and temporal. We conclude with a brief primer on the relevant methods and tools needed to start building these models, which we hope will guide this research programme forward. This article is part of the theme issue 'Infectious disease macroecology: parasite diversity and dynamics across the globe'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanya Strydom
- Sciences Biologiques, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada H2V 0B3
- Québec Centre for Biodiversity Sciences, Montréal, Canada
| | - Michael D. Catchen
- Québec Centre for Biodiversity Sciences, Montréal, Canada
- McGill University, Montréal, Canada
| | - Francis Banville
- Sciences Biologiques, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada H2V 0B3
- Québec Centre for Biodiversity Sciences, Montréal, Canada
- Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Canada
| | - Dominique Caron
- Québec Centre for Biodiversity Sciences, Montréal, Canada
- McGill University, Montréal, Canada
| | - Gabriel Dansereau
- Sciences Biologiques, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada H2V 0B3
- Québec Centre for Biodiversity Sciences, Montréal, Canada
| | - Philippe Desjardins-Proulx
- Sciences Biologiques, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada H2V 0B3
- Québec Centre for Biodiversity Sciences, Montréal, Canada
| | - Norma R. Forero-Muñoz
- Sciences Biologiques, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada H2V 0B3
- Québec Centre for Biodiversity Sciences, Montréal, Canada
| | | | - Benjamin Mercier
- Québec Centre for Biodiversity Sciences, Montréal, Canada
- Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Canada
| | - Andrew Gonzalez
- Québec Centre for Biodiversity Sciences, Montréal, Canada
- McGill University, Montréal, Canada
| | - Dominique Gravel
- Québec Centre for Biodiversity Sciences, Montréal, Canada
- Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Canada
| | - Laura Pollock
- Québec Centre for Biodiversity Sciences, Montréal, Canada
- McGill University, Montréal, Canada
| | - Timothée Poisot
- Sciences Biologiques, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada H2V 0B3
- Québec Centre for Biodiversity Sciences, Montréal, Canada
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Wielgus E, Caron A, Bennitt E, De Garine‐Wichatitsky M, Cain B, Fritz H, Miguel E, Cornélis D, Chamaillé‐Jammes S. Inter‐Group Social Behavior, Contact Patterns and Risk for Pathogen Transmission in Cape Buffalo Populations. J Wildl Manage 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/jwmg.22116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Elodie Wielgus
- Department of Natural Sciences Manchester Metropolitan University, All Saints Manchester M15 6BH UK
| | - Alexandre Caron
- Faculdade de Veterinária Universidade Eduardo Mondlane Av. De Moçambique, CP 257 Maputo Mozambique
| | - Emily Bennitt
- Okavango Research Institute University of Botswana Shorobe Road Maun Botswana
| | | | - Bradley Cain
- Department of Natural Sciences Manchester Metropolitan University, All Saints Manchester M15 6BH UK
| | - Herve Fritz
- REHABS, CNRS ‐ Université Lyon 1 ‐ Nelson Mandela University International Research Laboratory George Campus, Madiba Drive George South Africa
| | - Eve Miguel
- Maladies Infectieuses et Vecteurs: Ecologie, Génétique, Evolution et Contrôle Institut de Recherche pour le Développement 911 Avenue Agropolis, 34394 Montpellier cedex 5 France
| | - Daniel Cornélis
- CIRAD, Forêts et Sociétés, F‐34398 Montpellier, France; Forêts et Sociétés Université de Montpellier CIRAD, 34090 Montpellier France
| | - Simon Chamaillé‐Jammes
- CEFE, University of Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD University Paul Valéry Montpellier 3 Montpellier France
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48
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Rossi G, Crispell J, Brough T, Lycett SJ, White PCL, Allen A, Ellis RJ, Gordon SV, Harwood R, Palkopoulou E, Presho EL, Skuce R, Smith GC, Kao RR. Phylodynamic analysis of an emergent
Mycobacterium bovis
outbreak in an area with no previously known wildlife infections. J Appl Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.14046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Gianluigi Rossi
- Roslin Institute and R(D)SVS University of Edinburgh Edinburgh UK
| | - Joseph Crispell
- School of Veterinary Medicine University College Dublin Dublin Ireland
| | - Tanis Brough
- Advice Services Team Service Delivery Directorate APHA Penrith UK
| | | | | | - Adrian Allen
- Bacteriology Branch Veterinary Sciences Division Agri‐food and Biosciences Institute Belfast UK
| | - Richard J. Ellis
- Surveillance and Laboratory Services Department APHA Addlestone UK
| | - Stephen V. Gordon
- School of Veterinary Medicine University College Dublin Dublin Ireland
- Conway Institute University College Dublin Dublin Ireland
| | | | | | - Eleanor L. Presho
- Bacteriology Branch Veterinary Sciences Division Agri‐food and Biosciences Institute Belfast UK
| | - Robin Skuce
- Bacteriology Branch Veterinary Sciences Division Agri‐food and Biosciences Institute Belfast UK
| | | | - Rowland R. Kao
- Roslin Institute and R(D)SVS University of Edinburgh Edinburgh UK
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49
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Morrison RE, Mushimiyimana Y, Stoinski TS, Eckardt W. Rapid transmission of respiratory infections within but not between mountain gorilla groups. Sci Rep 2021; 11:19622. [PMID: 34620899 PMCID: PMC8497490 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-98969-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2021] [Accepted: 09/09/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Minimizing disease transmission between humans and wild apes and controlling outbreaks in ape populations is vital to both ape conservation and human health, but information on the transmission of real infections in wild populations is rare. We analyzed respiratory outbreaks in a subpopulation of wild mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei) between 2004 and 2020. We investigated transmission within groups during 7 outbreaks using social networks based on contact and proximity, and transmission between groups during 15 outbreaks using inter-group encounters, transfers and home range overlap. Patterns of contact and proximity within groups were highly predictable based on gorillas' age and sex. Disease transmission within groups was rapid with a median estimated basic reproductive number (R0) of 4.18 (min = 1.74, max = 9.42), and transmission was not predicted by the social network. Between groups, encounters and transfers did not appear to have enabled disease transmission and the overlap of groups' ranges did not predict concurrent outbreaks. Our findings suggest that gorilla social structure, with many strong connections within groups and weak ties between groups, may enable rapid transmission within a group once an infection is present, but limit the transmission of infections between groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robin E Morrison
- Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, Musanze, Rwanda.
- Centre for Research in Animal Behavior, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK.
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50
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Farthing TS, Dawson DE, Sanderson MW, Seger H, Lanzas C. Combining epidemiological and ecological methods to quantify social effects on Escherichia coli transmission. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2021; 8:210328. [PMID: 34754493 PMCID: PMC8493196 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.210328] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2021] [Accepted: 09/09/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Enteric microparasites like Escherichia coli use multiple transmission pathways to propagate within and between host populations. Characterizing the relative transmission risk attributable to host social relationships and direct physical contact between individuals is paramount for understanding how microparasites like E. coli spread within affected communities and estimating colonization rates. To measure these effects, we carried out commensal E. coli transmission experiments in two cattle (Bos taurus) herds, wherein all individuals were equipped with real-time location tracking devices. Following transmission experiments in this model system, we derived temporally dynamic social and contact networks from location data. Estimated social affiliations and dyadic contact frequencies during transmission experiments informed pairwise accelerated failure time models that we used to quantify effects of these sociobehavioural variables on weekly E. coli colonization risk in these populations. We found that sociobehavioural variables alone were ultimately poor predictors of E. coli colonization in feedlot cattle, but can have significant effects on colonization hazard rates (p ≤ 0.05). We show, however, that observed effects were not consistent between similar populations. This work demonstrates that transmission experiments can be combined with real-time location data collection and processing procedures to create an effective framework for quantifying sociobehavioural effects on microparasite transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Trevor S. Farthing
- Department of Population Health and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA
| | - Daniel E. Dawson
- Department of Population Health and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA
| | - Mike W. Sanderson
- Department of Diagnostic Medicine and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506, USA
| | - Hannah Seger
- Department of Diagnostic Medicine and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506, USA
| | - Cristina Lanzas
- Department of Population Health and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA
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