Displaying publications 1 - 20 of 90 in total

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  1. "Back to the Jungle": Investigating Rats, Grass, Scrub Typhus, and Plantations in Malaya, 1924 - 1974
    Greatrex JE
    Med Anthropol, 2023 May 19;42(4):340-353.
    PMID: 37022723 DOI: 10.1080/01459740.2023.2185887
    In this article, I examine epidemiological research into scrub typhus in British Malaya between 1924 and 1974. Interwar research, I show, explained the incidence of the disease through conjunctions of rats, mites, plantations, lalang grass, and "jungle." In the process, interwar researchers bridged a novel scientific vocabulary centering on disease "reservoirs" with older suspicions of plantations enabling "pests," as well as with a later, explicitly ecological understanding of infectious disease. In exploring this history I thereby help to re-historicize the emergence of ecological notions of disease reservoirs, whilst also pushing at the limit-points of influential notions of "tropicality."
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs
  2. A novel approach for collecting samples from fruit bats for isolation of infectious agents
    Chua KB
    Microbes Infect., 2003 May;5(6):487-90.
    PMID: 12758277
    During the outbreak of Nipah virus encephalitis involving pigs and humans in peninsular Malaysia in 1998/1999, a conventional approach was initially undertaken to collect specimens from fruit bats by mist-netting and shooting, as an integral part of wildlife surveillance of the natural reservoir host of Nipah virus. This study describes a novel method of collecting fruit bats' urine samples using plastic sheets for isolation of Nipah virus. This novel approach resulted in the isolation of several other known and unidentified infectious agents besides Nipah virus.
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs/veterinary
  3. A presumptive case of naturally occurring Plasmodium knowlesi malaria in man in Malaysia
    Fong YL, Cadigan FC, Coatney GR
    Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg, 1971;65(6):839-40.
    PMID: 5003320
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs
  4. Fulltext A spatio-temporal agent-based approach for modeling the spread of zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis in northeast Iran
    Tabasi M, Alesheikh AA, Sofizadeh A, Saeidian B, Pradhan B, AlAmri A
    Parasit Vectors, 2020 Nov 11;13(1):572.
    PMID: 33176858 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-020-04447-x
    BACKGROUND: Zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ZCL) is a neglected tropical disease worldwide, especially the Middle East. Although previous works attempt to model the ZCL spread using various environmental factors, the interactions between vectors (Phlebotomus papatasi), reservoir hosts, humans, and the environment can affect its spread. Considering all of these aspects is not a trivial task.

    METHODS: An agent-based model (ABM) is a relatively new approach that provides a framework for analyzing the heterogeneity of the interactions, along with biological and environmental factors in such complex systems. The objective of this research is to design and develop an ABM that uses Geospatial Information System (GIS) capabilities, biological behaviors of vectors and reservoir hosts, and an improved Susceptible-Exposed-Infected-Recovered (SEIR) epidemic model to explore the spread of ZCL. Various scenarios were implemented to analyze the future ZCL spreads in different parts of Maraveh Tappeh County, in the northeast region of Golestan Province in northeastern Iran, with alternative socio-ecological conditions.

    RESULTS: The results confirmed that the spread of the disease arises principally in the desert, low altitude areas, and riverside population centers. The outcomes also showed that the restricting movement of humans reduces the severity of the transmission. Moreover, the spread of ZCL has a particular temporal pattern, since the most prevalent cases occurred in the fall. The evaluation test also showed the similarity between the results and the reported spatiotemporal trends.

    CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates the capability and efficiency of ABM to model and predict the spread of ZCL. The results of the presented approach can be considered as a guide for public health management and controlling the vector population .

    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs/parasitology*
  5. Fulltext Admixture in Humans of Two Divergent Plasmodium knowlesi Populations Associated with Different Macaque Host Species
    Divis PC, Singh B, Anderios F, Hisam S, Matusop A, Kocken CH, et al.
    PLoS Pathog, 2015 May;11(5):e1004888.
    PMID: 26020959 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1004888
    Human malaria parasite species were originally acquired from other primate hosts and subsequently became endemic, then spread throughout large parts of the world. A major zoonosis is now occurring with Plasmodium knowlesi from macaques in Southeast Asia, with a recent acceleration in numbers of reported cases particularly in Malaysia. To investigate the parasite population genetics, we developed sensitive and species-specific microsatellite genotyping protocols and applied these to analysis of samples from 10 sites covering a range of >1,600 km within which most cases have occurred. Genotypic analyses of 599 P. knowlesi infections (552 in humans and 47 in wild macaques) at 10 highly polymorphic loci provide radical new insights on the emergence. Parasites from sympatric long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) and pig-tailed macaques (M. nemestrina) were very highly differentiated (FST = 0.22, and K-means clustering confirmed two host-associated subpopulations). Approximately two thirds of human P. knowlesi infections were of the long-tailed macaque type (Cluster 1), and one third were of the pig-tailed-macaque type (Cluster 2), with relative proportions varying across the different sites. Among the samples from humans, there was significant indication of genetic isolation by geographical distance overall and within Cluster 1 alone. Across the different sites, the level of multi-locus linkage disequilibrium correlated with the degree of local admixture of the two different clusters. The widespread occurrence of both types of P. knowlesi in humans enhances the potential for parasite adaptation in this zoonotic system.
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs
  6. Fulltext Anthropogenic deforestation, El Niño and the emergence of Nipah virus in Malaysia
    Chua KB, Chua BH, Wang CW
    Malays J Pathol, 2002 Jun;24(1):15-21.
    PMID: 16329551
    In late 1998, a novel paramyxovirus named Nipah virus, emerged in Malaysia, causing fatal disease in domestic pigs and humans with substantial economic loss to the local pig industry. Pteropid fruitbats have since been identified as a natural reservoir host. Over the last two decades, the forest habitat of these bats in Southeast Asia has been substantially reduced by deforestation for pulpwood and industrial plantation. In 1997/1998, slash-and-burn deforestation resulted in the formation of a severe haze that blanketed much of Southeast Asia in the months directly preceding the Nipah virus disease outbreak. This was exacerbated by a drought driven by the severe 1997-1998 El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) event. We present data suggesting that this series of events led to a reduction in the availability of flowering and fruiting forest trees for foraging by fruitbats and culminated in unprecedented encroachment of fruitbats into cultivated fruit orchards in 1997/1998. These anthropogenic events, coupled with the location of piggeries in orchards and the design of pigsties allowed transmission of a novel paramyxovirus from its reservoir host to the domestic pig and ultimately to the human population.
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs
  7. Arbovirus infections in Sarawak, October 1968--February 1970: Japanese encephalitis virus isolations from mosquitoes
    Simpson DI, Bowen ET, Way HJ, Platt GS, Hill MN, Kamath S, et al.
    Ann Trop Med Parasitol, 1974 Dec;68(4):393-404.
    PMID: 4155608
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs
  8. Arbovirus infections in Sarawak: the role of the domestic pig
    Simpson DI, Smith CE, Marshall TF, Platt GS, Way HJ, Bowen ET, et al.
    Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg, 1976;70(1):66-72.
    PMID: 1265821
    The possible role of pigs as arbovirus maintenance hosts and their importance as amplifier hosts was studied. Blood samples from 464 pigs of all ages collected in 1962 and 1964 were tested against 10 arboviruses. Antibodies to Japanese encephalitis and Getah viruses were particularly prevalent and their calculated monthly infection rates were 19-5% and 13-3% respectively. In 1969, 447 pigs were bled monthly throughout the year and the infection rates for Japanese encephalitis virus were calculated in pigs during the first year of life. Infection rates were not uniform throughout the year; the rate increases as the pig grew older and there was a marked seasonal increase in the infection rate in the period from November to January. This coincided with the seasonal major population peak of Culex tritaeniorhynchus following intense breeding of this mosquito prior to rice planting. It is suggested that, in Sarawak, the pig acts as a maintenance host of Japanese encephalitis in a cycle involving C. gelidus mosquitoes and also acts as an important amplifier host towards the end of the year in a cycle involving C. tritaeniorhynchus. It is further suggested that Getah virus is maintained in a similar cycle between C. tritaeniorhynchus and pigs.
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs*
  9. Fulltext Asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection: is it all about being refractile to innate immune sensing of viral spare-parts?-Clues from exotic animal reservoirs
    Shankar EM, Che KF, Yong YK, Girija ASS, Velu V, Ansari AW, et al.
    Pathog Dis, 2021 Jan 09;79(1).
    PMID: 33289808 DOI: 10.1093/femspd/ftaa076
    A vast proportion of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) individuals remain asymptomatic and can shed severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS-CoV) type 2 virus to transmit the infection, which also explains the exponential increase in the number of COVID-19 cases globally. Furthermore, the rate of recovery from clinical COVID-19 in certain pockets of the globe is surprisingly high. Based on published reports and available literature, here, we speculated a few immunovirological mechanisms as to why a vast majority of individuals remain asymptomatic similar to exotic animal (bats and pangolins) reservoirs that remain refractile to disease development despite carrying a huge load of diverse insidious viral species, and whether such evolutionary advantage would unveil therapeutic strategies against COVID-19 infection in humans. Understanding the unique mechanisms that exotic animal species employ to achieve viral control, as well as inflammatory regulation, appears to hold key clues to the development of therapeutic versatility against COVID-19.
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs
  10. Bats and emerging zoonoses: henipaviruses and SARS
    Field HE
    Zoonoses Public Health, 2009 Aug;56(6-7):278-84.
    PMID: 19497090 DOI: 10.1111/j.1863-2378.2008.01218.x
    Nearly 75% of all emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) that impact or threaten human health are zoonotic. The majority have spilled from wildlife reservoirs, either directly to humans or via domestic animals. The emergence of many can be attributed to predisposing factors such as global travel, trade, agricultural expansion, deforestation/habitat fragmentation, and urbanization; such factors increase the interface and/or the rate of contact between human, domestic animal, and wildlife populations, thereby creating increased opportunities for spillover events to occur. Infectious disease emergence can be regarded as primarily an ecological process. The epidemiological investigation of EIDs associated with wildlife requires a trans-disciplinary approach that includes an understanding of the ecology of the wildlife species, and an understanding of human behaviours that increase risk of exposure. Investigations of the emergence of Nipah virus in Malaysia in 1999 and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in China in 2003 provide useful case studies. The emergence of Nipah virus was associated with the increased size and density of commercial pig farms and their encroachment into forested areas. The movement of pigs for sale and slaughter in turn led to the rapid spread of infection to southern peninsular Malaysia, where the high-density, largely urban pig populations facilitated transmission to humans. Identifying the factors associated with the emergence of SARS in southern China requires an understanding of the ecology of infection both in the natural reservoir and in secondary market reservoir species. A necessary extension of understanding the ecology of the reservoir is an understanding of the trade, and of the social and cultural context of wildlife consumption. Emerging infectious diseases originating from wildlife populations will continue to threaten public health. Mitigating and managing the risk requires an appreciation of the connectedness between human, livestock and wildlife health, and of the factors and processes that disrupt the balance.
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs/veterinary
  11. Fulltext Characterization of Nipah virus from naturally infected Pteropus vampyrus bats, Malaysia
    Rahman SA, Hassan SS, Olival KJ, Mohamed M, Chang LY, Hassan L, et al.
    Emerg Infect Dis, 2010 Dec;16(12):1990-3.
    PMID: 21122240 DOI: 10.3201/eid1612.091790
    We isolated and characterized Nipah virus (NiV) from Pteropus vampyrus bats, the putative reservoir for the 1998 outbreak in Malaysia, and provide evidence of viral recrudescence. This isolate is monophyletic with previous NiVs in combined analysis, and the nucleocapsid gene phylogeny species.
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs/virology*
  12. Fulltext Characterization of multiple-antimicrobial-resistant Salmonella enterica Subsp. enterica isolated from indigenous vegetables and poultry in Malaysia
    Yoke-Kqueen C, Learn-Han L, Noorzaleha AS, Son R, Sabrina S, Jiun-Horng S, et al.
    Lett Appl Microbiol, 2008 Mar;46(3):318-24.
    PMID: 18179445 DOI: 10.1111/j.1472-765X.2007.02311.x
    The aims of this communication were to study characterization of serogroups among Salmonella isolates and the relationship of antimicrobial resistance to serogroups. Multiple antimicrobial resistance (MAR) was performed on 189 Salmonella enterica isolates associated with 38 different serovars that were recovered from poultry and four types of indigenous vegetables.
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs
  13. Fulltext Cholera outbreak in Tumpat, Kelantan-1990
    Isa AR, Othman WM, Ishak A
    Med J Malaysia, 1990 Sep;45(3):187-93.
    PMID: 2152079
    Two episodes of El Tor cholera outbreak occurred in Tumpat, Kelantan between the 13th of January and the 16th of May 1990. Every case and carrier reported were investigated to determine the source and mode of transmission and to identify specific preventive measures to break the chain of transmission. There were 109 cases and 85 carriers involved in this study. The first episode of one case only was of Inaba serotype while the second episode was caused by the imported Ogawa serotype. Two foci of spread were identified from cluster occurrence but the majority of infection had no discernible link between them. The outbreak became both explosive and protracted indicating poor basic sanitation and personal hygiene. Person-to-person transmission via food and water was the main mode of spread. The Kelantan river water and river clams were confirmed sources of reservoir during the outbreak. Recommendations for prevention are intensified surveillance throughout the year,urgent upgrading of potable water supply and concerted effort in public health education especially against the use of river water and the consumption of raw food.
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs/statistics & numerical data
  14. Fulltext Cross-sectional serosurvey for Japanese encephalitis specific antibody from animal sera in Malaysia 1993
    Oda K, Igarashi A, Kheong CT, Hong CC, Vijayamalar B, Sinniah M, et al.
    Southeast Asian J. Trop. Med. Public Health, 1996 Sep;27(3):463-70.
    PMID: 9185254
    Serum specimens were collected from 6 species of animals living in 9 states of Malaysia including Sabah, North Borneo in 1993. Antibodies against Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus in these sera were detected by means of hemagglutination-inhibition (HI) and neutralization (NT) tests. By HI test, 702 of 2,152 (32.6%) sera showed positive results. Higher positive rates were obtained by the NT test, in which 1,787 of 1,927 (92.7%) sera had antibodies against JE virus. All serum specimens with positive HI were confirmed as positive by the NT. Swine sera showed especially higher rates of antibody positive and higher antibody titers compared with other animals. These results suggest that JE infections are widely distributed among many animals of Malaysia, and pig is the most susceptible amplifier host for JE virus.
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs*
  15. Current status and future trends in Cryptosporidium and Giardia epidemiology in Malaysia
    Lim YA, Ahmad RA, Smith HV
    J Water Health, 2008 Jun;6(2):239-54.
    PMID: 18209286 DOI: 10.2166/wh.2008.023
    Cryptosporidium and Giardia are major causes of diarrhoeal diseases of humans worldwide, and are included in the World Health Organisation's 'Neglected Diseases Initiative'. Cryptosporidium and Giardia occur commonly in Malaysian human and non-human populations, but their impact on disease, morbidity and cost of illness is not known. The commonness of contributions from human (STW effluents, indiscriminate defaecation) and non-human (calving, lambing, muck spreading, slurry spraying, pasturing/grazing of domestic animals, infected wild animals) hosts indicate that many Malaysian environments, particularly water and soil, are sufficiently contaminated to act as potential vehicles for the transmission of disease. To gain insight into the morbidity and mortality caused by human cryptosporidiosis and giardiasis, they should be included into differential diagnoses, and routine laboratory testing should be performed and (as for many infectious diseases) reported to a centralised public health agency. To understand transmission routes and the significance of environmental contamination better will require further multidisciplinary approaches and shared resources, including raising national perceptions of the parasitological quality of drinking water. Here, the detection of Cryptosporidium and Giardia should be an integral part of the water quality requirement. A multidisciplinary approach among public health professionals in the water industry and other relevant health- and environment-associated agencies is also required in order to determine the significance of Cryptosporidium and Giardia contamination of Malaysian drinking water. Lastly, adoption of validated methods to determine the species, genotype and subgenotype of Cryptosporidium and Giardia present in Malaysia will assist in developing effective risk assessment, management and communication models.
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs/parasitology*
  16. Fulltext Dampened NLRP3-mediated inflammation in bats and implications for a special viral reservoir host
    Ahn M, Anderson DE, Zhang Q, Tan CW, Lim BL, Luko K, et al.
    Nat Microbiol, 2019 05;4(5):789-799.
    PMID: 30804542 DOI: 10.1038/s41564-019-0371-3
    Bats are special in their ability to host emerging viruses. As the only flying mammal, bats endure high metabolic rates yet exhibit elongated lifespans. It is currently unclear whether these unique features are interlinked. The important inflammasome sensor, NLR family pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3), has been linked to both viral-induced and age-related inflammation. Here, we report significantly dampened activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome in bat primary immune cells compared to human or mouse counterparts. Lower induction of apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a CARD (ASC) speck formation and secretion of interleukin-1β in response to both 'sterile' stimuli and infection with multiple zoonotic viruses including influenza A virus (-single-stranded (ss) RNA), Melaka virus (PRV3M, double-stranded RNA) and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (+ssRNA) was observed. Importantly, this reduction of inflammation had no impact on the overall viral loads. We identified dampened transcriptional priming, a novel splice variant and an altered leucine-rich repeat domain of bat NLRP3 as the cause. Our results elucidate an important mechanism through which bats dampen inflammation with implications for longevity and unique viral reservoir status.
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs/virology*
  17. Fulltext Defining the geographical range of the Plasmodium knowlesi reservoir
    Moyes CL, Henry AJ, Golding N, Huang Z, Singh B, Baird JK, et al.
    PLoS Negl Trop Dis, 2014 Mar;8(3):e2780.
    PMID: 24676231 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0002780
    BACKGROUND: The simian malaria parasite, Plasmodium knowlesi, can cause severe and fatal disease in humans yet it is rarely included in routine public health reporting systems for malaria and its geographical range is largely unknown. Because malaria caused by P. knowlesi is a truly neglected tropical disease, there are substantial obstacles to defining the geographical extent and risk of this disease. Information is required on the occurrence of human cases in different locations, on which non-human primates host this parasite and on which vectors are able to transmit it to humans. We undertook a systematic review and ranked the existing evidence, at a subnational spatial scale, to investigate the potential geographical range of the parasite reservoir capable of infecting humans.

    METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: After reviewing the published literature we identified potential host and vector species and ranked these based on how informative they are for the presence of an infectious parasite reservoir, based on current evidence. We collated spatial data on parasite occurrence and the ranges of the identified host and vector species. The ranked spatial data allowed us to assign an evidence score to 475 subnational areas in 19 countries and we present the results on a map of the Southeast and South Asia region.

    CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: We have ranked subnational areas within the potential disease range according to evidence for presence of a disease risk to humans, providing geographical evidence to support decisions on prevention, management and prophylaxis. This work also highlights the unknown risk status of large parts of the region. Within this unknown category, our map identifies which areas have most evidence for the potential to support an infectious reservoir and are therefore a priority for further investigation. Furthermore we identify geographical areas where further investigation of putative host and vector species would be highly informative for the region-wide assessment.

    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs*
  18. Fulltext Domesticated animals as hosts of henipaviruses and filoviruses: A systematic review
    Glennon EE, Restif O, Sbarbaro SR, Garnier R, Cunningham AA, Suu-Ire RD, et al.
    Vet J, 2018 03;233:25-34.
    PMID: 29486875 DOI: 10.1016/j.tvjl.2017.12.024
    Bat-borne viruses carry undeniable risks to the health of human beings and animals, and there is growing recognition of the need for a 'One Health' approach to understand their frequently complex spill-over routes. While domesticated animals can play central roles in major spill-over events of zoonotic bat-borne viruses, for example during the pig-amplified Malaysian Nipah virus outbreak of 1998-1999, the extent of their potential to act as bridging or amplifying species for these viruses has not been characterised systematically. This review aims to compile current knowledge on the role of domesticated animals as hosts of two types of bat-borne viruses, henipaviruses and filoviruses. A systematic literature search of these virus-host interactions in domesticated animals identified 72 relevant studies, which were categorised by year, location, design and type of evidence generated. The review then focusses on Africa as a case study, comparing research efforts in domesticated animals and bats with the distributions of documented human cases. Major gaps remain in our knowledge of the potential ability of domesticated animals to contract or spread these zoonoses. Closing these gaps will be necessary to fully evaluate and mitigate spill-over risks of these viruses, especially with global agricultural intensification.
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs/virology*
  19. Emerging diseases. Malaysian researchers trace Nipah virus outbreak to bats
    Enserink M
    Science, 2000 Jul 28;289(5479):518-9.
    PMID: 10939954 DOI: 10.1126/science.289.5479.518
    Scientists are a step closer to unraveling a medical mystery that killed 105 people in Malaysia last year and destroyed the country's pig industry. The Nipah virus, which caused the disease, most likely originated in a native fruit bat species, Malaysian researchers reported here at a meeting last week. They say the findings will help Malaysian health authorities prevent future outbreaks of the Nipah virus. Others see the case as an argument for expanding research into infections that can leap the boundary between animals and humans.
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs*
  20. Emerging viral diseases
    Nichol ST, Arikawa J, Kawaoka Y
    Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, 2000 Nov 07;97(23):12411-2.
    PMID: 11035785
    Matched MeSH terms: Disease Reservoirs
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