scholarly journals Urban landscapes increase dispersal, gene flow, and pathogen transmission potential in banded mongoose ( Mungos mungo ) in northern Botswana

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelton Verble ◽  
Eric M. Hallerman ◽  
Kathleen A. Alexander
Keyword(s):  
Gene Flow ◽  
Pathogen Transmission ◽  
Urban Landscapes ◽  
Transmission Potential ◽  
Banded Mongoose ◽  
Mungos Mungo

scholarly journals Emerging Tuberculosis Pathogen Hijacks Social Communication Behavior in the Group-Living Banded Mongoose ( Mungos mungo )

mBio ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen A. Alexander ◽  
Claire E. Sanderson ◽  
Michelle H. Larsen ◽  
Suelee Robbe-Austerman ◽  
Mark C. Williams ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Social Communication ◽  
Pathogen Transmission ◽  
Physical Contact ◽  
Olfactory Communication ◽  
Communication Behavior ◽  
Anal Gland ◽  
Pathogen Invasion ◽  
Banded Mongoose ◽  
Mungos Mungo

ABSTRACT An emerging Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTC) pathogen, M. mungi , infects wild banded mongooses ( Mungos mungo ) in Northern Botswana, causing significant mortality. This MTC pathogen did not appear to be transmitted through a primary aerosol or oral route. We utilized histopathology, spoligotyping, mycobacterial interspersed repetitive units-variable number of tandem repeats (MIRU-VNTR), quantitative PCR (qPCR), and molecular markers (regions of difference [RDs] from various MTC members, including region of difference 1 [RD1] from M. bovis BCG [RD1 BCG ], M. microti [RD1 mic ], and M. pinnipedii [RD1 seal ], genes Rv1510 [RD4], Rv1970 [RD7], Rv3877/8 [RD1], and Rv3120 [RD12], insertion element IS 1561 , the 16S RNA gene, and gene Rv0577 [ cfp32 ]), including the newly characterized mongoose-specific deletion in RD1 (RD1 mon ), in order to demonstrate the presence of M. mungi DNA in infected mongooses and investigate pathogen invasion and exposure mechanisms. M. mungi DNA was identified in 29% of nasal planum samples ( n = 52), 56% of nasal rinses and swabs ( n = 9), 53% of oral swabs ( n = 19), 22% of urine samples ( n = 23), 33% of anal gland tissue ( n = 18), and 39% of anal gland secretions ( n = 44). The occurrence of extremely low cycle threshold values obtained with qPCR in anal gland and nasal planum samples indicates that high levels of M. mungi can be found in these tissue types. Histological data were consistent with these results, suggesting that pathogen invasion occurs through breaks in the nasal planum and/or skin of the mongoose host, which are in frequent contact with anal gland secretions and urine during olfactory communication behavior. Lesions in the lung, when present, occurred only with disseminated disease. No environmental sources of M. mungi DNA could be found. We report primary environmental transmission of an MTC pathogen that occurs in association with social communication behavior. IMPORTANCE Organisms causing infectious disease evolve modes of transmission that exploit environmental and host conditions favoring pathogen spread and persistence. We report a novel mode of environmental infectious disease transmission that occurs in association with olfactory secretions (e.g., urine and anal gland secretions), allowing pathogen exposure to occur within and between social groups through intricate social communication behaviors of the banded mongoose host. The presence of M. mungi in these environmentally deposited secretions would effectively circumvent natural social barriers (e.g., territoriality), facilitating between-group pathogen transmission in the absence of direct physical contact, a rare occurrence in this highly territorial species. This work identifies an important potential mechanism of pathogen transmission of epidemiological significance in social species. We also provide evidence of a novel mechanism of pathogen transmission for the MTC complex, where pathogen movement in the environment and host exposure dynamics are driven by social behavior.

scholarly journals Contact heterogeneity in deer mice: implications for Sin Nombre virus transmission

2009 ◽  
Vol 276 (1660) ◽  
pp. 1305-1312 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine A Clay ◽  
Erin M Lehmer ◽  
Andrea Previtali ◽  
Stephen St. Jeor ◽  
M. Denise Dearing
Keyword(s):  
Great Basin ◽  
Large Fraction ◽  
General Pattern ◽  
Virus Transmission ◽  
Pathogen Transmission ◽  
Contact Dynamics ◽  
Deer Mice ◽  
Sin Nombre Virus ◽  
Transmission Potential ◽  
Contact Rates

Heterogeneities within disease hosts suggest that not all individuals have the same probability of transmitting disease or becoming infected. This heterogeneity is thought to be due to dissimilarity in susceptibility and exposure among hosts. As such, it has been proposed that many host–pathogen systems follow the general pattern whereby a small fraction of the population accounts for a large fraction of the pathogen transmission. This disparity in transmission dynamics is often referred to as ‘20/80 Rule’, i.e. approximately 20 per cent of the hosts are responsible for 80 per cent of pathogen transmission. We investigated the role of heterogeneity in contact rates among potential hosts of a directly transmitted pathogen by examining Sin Nombre virus (SNV) in deer mice ( Peromyscus maniculatus ). Using foraging arenas and powder marking, we documented contacts between wild deer mice in Great Basin Desert, central Utah. Our findings demonstrated heterogeneity among deer mice, both in frequency and in duration of contacts with other deer mice. Contact dynamics appear to follow the general pattern that a minority of the population accounts for a majority of the contacts. We found that 20 per cent of individuals in the population were responsible for roughly 80 per cent of the contacts observed. Larger-bodied individuals appear to be the functional group with the greatest SNV transmission potential. Contrary to our predictions, transmission potential was not influenced by breeding condition or sex.

scholarly journals The ecological foundations of transmission potential and vector‐borne disease in urban landscapes

2015 ◽  
Vol 29 (7) ◽  
pp. 889-901 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shannon L. LaDeau ◽  
Brian F. Allan ◽  
Paul T. Leisnham ◽  
Michael Z. Levy
Keyword(s):  
Urban Landscapes ◽  
Transmission Potential ◽  
Vector Borne Disease ◽  
Vector Borne

scholarly journals Strategic adjustment of begging effort by banded mongoose pups

2008 ◽  
Vol 275 (1640) ◽  
pp. 1313-1319 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew B.V Bell
Keyword(s):  
Signal Intensity ◽  
Internal State ◽  
Good Condition ◽  
General Phenomenon ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Poor Condition ◽  
Banded Mongoose ◽  
Strategic Adjustment ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Mungos Mungo

Variation in the intensity of conspicuous displays raises three basic questions: (i) the relationship between internal state and display intensity, (ii) the relationship between display intensity and receiver response, and (iii) the effect of variation in receiver responsiveness on signaller behaviour. Here, I investigate the interaction between pups and helpers in the communally breeding banded mongoose ( Mungos mungo ), where each pup forms an exclusive relationship with a single adult helper (termed its ‘escort’). By experimentally manipulating pup need, I demonstrate that changes in begging rate correspond to changes in short-term need. The data then suggest that escorts in good condition may be more responsive to increased begging and that pups associating with them increase their begging more than do pups paired with escorts in poor condition. Escorts also appear more responsive to increased begging by female pups, and female pups increase their begging more than do male pups. These results suggest that banded mongoose pups may strategically adjust their investment in begging in relation to variation in the expected pay-off. I argue that such adjustment is likely to be a general phenomenon: wherever there is variation in responsiveness to signals, signallers will be selected to identify different categories of receiver and adjust their signals in order to maximize the pay-offs. Therefore, differences in signal intensity may be as much a product of context as an indication of variation in individual phenotypic or genotypic state.

scholarly journals Pregnancy is detected via odour in a wild cooperative breeder

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 20170441 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Mitchell ◽  
M. A. Cant ◽  
H. J. Nichols
Keyword(s):  
Scent Marking ◽  
Alloparental Care ◽  
Scent Mark ◽  
Reproductive State ◽  
Reproductive Suppression ◽  
Pregnant Females ◽  
Direct Demonstration ◽  
Cooperatively Breeding ◽  
Banded Mongoose ◽  
Mungos Mungo

Among mammals, scent has long been known to encode oestrus; however, in many species, detecting pregnancy may also be important in terms of both competition and mate-choice. Here, we show, through odour presentation experiments, that pregnancy is discernible via scent by both sexes in the cooperatively breeding banded mongoose, Mungos mungo . Males spent more time investigating and were more likely to scent mark the odours of non-pregnant females, compared to pregnant females. Females showed increased levels of scent marking when odours were of the same reproductive state as themselves. These results present the first direct demonstration that pregnancy is detectable via scent in wild cooperative breeders. Detecting pregnancy may be particularly important in cooperative breeders as, in addition to the competition between males for receptive mates, there is also intense competition between females for access to alloparental care. Consequently, dominant females benefit from targeting reproductive suppression towards subordinates that represent direct threats, such as pregnant females.

scholarly journals Dissecting genetic and sex-specific sources of host heterogeneity in pathogen shedding and spread

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. e1009196
Author(s):  
Jonathon A. Siva-Jothy ◽  
Pedro F. Vale
Keyword(s):  
Viral Load ◽  
Individual Variation ◽  
Disease Transmission ◽  
Genetic Background ◽  
Pathogen Transmission ◽  
Published Data ◽  
Virus Shedding ◽  
Transmission Potential ◽  
Sources Of Variation ◽  
Host Heterogeneity

Host heterogeneity in disease transmission is widespread but precisely how different host traits drive this heterogeneity remains poorly understood. Part of the difficulty in linking individual variation to population-scale outcomes is that individual hosts can differ on multiple behavioral, physiological and immunological axes, which will together impact their transmission potential. Moreover, we lack well-characterized, empirical systems that enable the quantification of individual variation in key host traits, while also characterizing genetic or sex-based sources of such variation. Here we used Drosophila melanogaster and Drosophila C Virus as a host-pathogen model system to dissect the genetic and sex-specific sources of variation in multiple host traits that are central to pathogen transmission. Our findings show complex interactions between genetic background, sex, and female mating status accounting for a substantial proportion of variance in lifespan following infection, viral load, virus shedding, and viral load at death. Two notable findings include the interaction between genetic background and sex accounting for nearly 20% of the variance in viral load, and genetic background alone accounting for ~10% of the variance in viral shedding and in lifespan following infection. To understand how variation in these traits could generate heterogeneity in individual pathogen transmission potential, we combined measures of lifespan following infection, virus shedding, and previously published data on fly social aggregation. We found that the interaction between genetic background and sex explained ~12% of the variance in individual transmission potential. Our results highlight the importance of characterising the sources of variation in multiple host traits to understand the drivers of heterogeneity in disease transmission.

scholarly journals Comparing transmission potential networks based on social network surveys, close contacts and environmental overlap in rural Madagascar

2022 ◽  
Vol 19 (186) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kayla Kauffman ◽  
Courtney S. Werner ◽  
Georgia Titcomb ◽  
Michelle Pender ◽  
Jean Yves Rabezara ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Spatial Data ◽  
Disease Transmission ◽  
Close Contact ◽  
Pathogen Transmission ◽  
Centrality Measures ◽  
Data Types ◽  
Transmission Potential ◽  
Spatial Network Analysis ◽  
Transmission Pathways

Social and spatial network analysis is an important approach for investigating infectious disease transmission, especially for pathogens transmitted directly between individuals or via environmental reservoirs. Given the diversity of ways to construct networks, however, it remains unclear how well networks constructed from different data types effectively capture transmission potential. We used empirical networks from a population in rural Madagascar to compare social network survey and spatial data-based networks of the same individuals. Close contact and environmental pathogen transmission pathways were modelled with the spatial data. We found that naming social partners during the surveys predicted higher close-contact rates and the proportion of environmental overlap on the spatial data-based networks. The spatial networks captured many strong and weak connections that were missed using social network surveys alone. Across networks, we found weak correlations among centrality measures (a proxy for superspreading potential). We conclude that social network surveys provide important scaffolding for understanding disease transmission pathways but miss contact-specific heterogeneities revealed by spatial data. Our analyses also highlight that the superspreading potential of individuals may vary across transmission modes. We provide detailed methods to construct networks for close-contact transmission pathogens when not all individuals simultaneously wear GPS trackers.

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