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Dubrulle J, Kauffman K, Soarimalala V, Randriamoria T, Goodman SM, Herrera J, Nunn C, Tortosa P. Effect of habitat degradation on hantavirus infection among introduced and endemic small mammals of Madagascar. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.12.24.573235. [PMID: 38187621 PMCID: PMC10769451 DOI: 10.1101/2023.12.24.573235] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2024]
Abstract
Hantaviruses are globally distributed zoonotic pathogens capable of causing fatal disease in humans. Rodents and other small mammals are the typical reservoirs of hantaviruses, though the particular host varies regionally. Addressing the risk of hantavirus spillover from animal reservoirs to humans requires identifying the local mammal reservoirs and the predictors of infection in those animals, such as their population density and habitat characteristics. We screened native and non-native small mammals and bats in northeastern Madagascar for hantavirus infection to investigate the influence of habitat, including effects of human land use on viral prevalence. We trapped 227 bats and 1663 small mammals over 5 successive years in and around Marojejy National Park across a range of habitat types including villages, agricultural fields, regrowth areas, and secondary and semi-intact forests. Animals sampled included endemic tenrecs (Tenrecidae), rodents (Nesomyidae) and bats (6 families), along with non-native rodents (Muridae) and shrews (Soricidae). A hantavirus closely related to the previously described Anjozorobe virus infected 9.5% of Rattus rattus sampled. We did not detect hantaviruses in any other species. Habitat degradation had a complex impact on hantavirus prevalence in our study system: more intensive land use increase the abundance of R. rattus. The average body size of individuals varied between agricultural and nonagricultural land-use types, which in turn affected infection prevalence. Smaller R.rattus had lower probability of infection and were captured more commonly in villages and forests. Thus, infection prevalence was highest in agricultural areas. These findings provide new insights to the gradients of hantavirus exposure risk for humans in areas undergoing rapid land use transformations associated with agricultural practices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jérémy Dubrulle
- Unité Mixte de Recherche Processus Infectieux en Milieu Insulaire Tropical (UMR PIMIT). Université de la Réunion, CNRS 9192, INSERM 1187, IRD 249, 97490 Sainte-Clotilde, Réunion Island, France
| | - Kayla Kauffman
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
- University of California Santa Barbara, Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, California, 93106-6150, USA
| | | | | | - Steven M Goodman
- Association Vahatra, BP 3972, Antananarivo 101, Madagascar
- Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, Illinois 60605-2496, USA
| | - James Herrera
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Charles Nunn
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
- Duke Global Health Institute, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Pablo Tortosa
- Unité Mixte de Recherche Processus Infectieux en Milieu Insulaire Tropical (UMR PIMIT). Université de la Réunion, CNRS 9192, INSERM 1187, IRD 249, 97490 Sainte-Clotilde, Réunion Island, France
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