Kolby Jonathan E
One Health Research Group, School of Public Health, Tropical Medicine, and Rehabilitation Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia.
PLoS One. 2014 Mar 5;9(3):e89660. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0089660. eCollection 2014.
The emerging infectious disease chytridiomycosis is driven by the spread of amphibian chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, Bd), a highly virulent pathogen threatening global amphibian biodiversity. Although pandemic in distribution, previous intensive field surveys have failed to detect Bd in Madagascar, a biodiversity hotspot home to hundreds of endemic amphibian species. Due to the presence of Bd in nearby continental Africa and the ecological crisis that can be expected following establishment in Madagascar, enhanced surveillance is imperative. I sampled 565 amphibians commercially exported from Madagascar for the presence of Bd upon importation to the USA, both to assist early detection efforts and demonstrate the conservation potential of wildlife trade disease surveillance. Bd was detected in three animals via quantitative PCR: a single Heterixalus alboguttatus, Heterixalus betsileo, and Scaphiophryne spinosa. This is the first time Bd has been confirmed in amphibians from Madagascar and presents an urgent call to action. Our early identification of pathogen presence prior to widespread infection provides the necessary tools and encouragement to catalyze a swift, targeted response to isolate and eradicate Bd from Madagascar. If implemented before establishment occurs, an otherwise likely catastrophic decline in amphibian biodiversity may be prevented.
新出现的传染病壶菌病是由两栖类壶菌（蛙壶菌，Bd）的传播引起的，这种高致病性病原体威胁着全球两栖动物的生物多样性。尽管其分布具有全球性，但此前的密集野外调查未能在马达加斯加发现蛙壶菌，马达加斯加是一个生物多样性热点地区，有数百种两栖类特有物种。由于在附近的非洲大陆存在蛙壶菌，且预计蛙壶菌在马达加斯加定殖后会引发生态危机，加强监测势在必行。我对565只从马达加斯加商业出口到美国的两栖动物在进口时进行了蛙壶菌检测，以协助早期检测工作，并展示野生动物贸易疾病监测的保护潜力。通过定量PCR在三只动物中检测到了蛙壶菌：一只白纹异趾蟾、贝氏异趾蟾和多刺短头蛙。这是首次在来自马达加斯加的两栖动物中确认有蛙壶菌，这发出了紧急行动呼吁。我们在广泛感染之前就早期识别出病原体的存在，这为迅速采取有针对性的应对措施提供了必要的工具和动力，以隔离并从马达加斯加根除蛙壶菌。如果在定殖发生之前实施，否则可能发生的两栖动物生物多样性灾难性下降或许可以避免。
