DST-NRF Centre of Excellence for Invasion Biology (CIB), Department Zoology & Entomology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa.
Mammal Research Institute, Department Zoology & Entomology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa.
Yale J Biol Med. 2021 Jun 30;94(2):217-226. eCollection 2021 Jun.
Rat-bite fever is an over-looked, global zoonotic disease that has a mortality rate of up to 13%, if untreated. Historically, this rat-borne disease has been attributed to one of two causative agents, or . Given the confirmed presence of multiple invasive host species, high rat densities in urban, informal human settlements and increasing reports of rat bites in South Africa, we undertook a retrospective assessment of in rats sampled from 16 urban sites, in Gauteng, the smallest but most populous Province in South Africa. Using a multi-gene PCR-sequencing approach, we confirmed presence in 50.9% of oral swabs from three rat species and the presence of two species, and . The two members of the cryptic species complex ( and ), which are morphologically indistinguishable from each other, had markedly different colonization rates. Whereas 48.6% of rats from this species complex were -positive, only 32.3% of were positive compared to 61.5% had an intermediate prevalence of 55.6%. Phylogenetic analysis of four gene regions (16S rRNA, , , ) identified two discrete lineages; occurred exclusively in , and was restricted to the two members of the species complex; this represents the first report of in . These results highlight a largely overlooked zoonotic threat posed by invasive rats and confirm the presence of two discrete and potentially host-specific lineages in South Africa.
鼠咬热是一种被忽视的全球性动物源性疾病，如果不治疗，其死亡率高达 13%。从历史上看，这种由老鼠传播的疾病归因于两种病原体之一， 或 。鉴于已确认存在多种入侵 宿主物种、城市中非正规人类住区的老鼠密度较高以及南非越来越多的老鼠咬伤报告，我们对采自南非豪登省 16 个城市地点的老鼠进行了回顾性评估，豪登省是南非最小但人口最多的省份。使用多基因 PCR 测序方法，我们在来自三个鼠种的口腔拭子中确认了 存在于 50.9%的样本中，并且存在两种 物种， 和 。在形态上无法区分的两个 种（ 和 ）的隐匿种复合体成员，其定植率有明显差异。而来自该种复合体的 48.6%的老鼠呈阳性，只有 32.3%的 呈阳性，而 有 61.5%呈中间阳性，阳性率为 55.6%。四个基因区域（16S rRNA、 、 、 ）的系统发育分析确定了两个离散的谱系； 仅存在于 中，而 仅存在于 种复合体的两个成员中；这是在南非首次报告 。这些结果突出了入侵老鼠带来的严重被忽视的人畜共患病威胁，并证实了南非存在两种离散的、潜在宿主特异性的 谱系。
