Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland.
Association OPPAL - Chemin de la Cotze 26, 1941, Vollèges, Switzerland.
Parasit Vectors. 2023 Oct 17;16(1):363. doi: 10.1186/s13071-023-06000-y.
Pathogen outbreaks mostly originate from animals, but some species are more likely to trigger epidemics. The giant land snail (Lissachatina fulica) is a widespread invader, a popular exotic pet, and a notorious vector of the rat lungworm, causing eosinophilic meningitis in humans. However, a comprehensive assessment of the risks of disease outbreak associated with this species is lacking.
We assessed and mapped the risk of disease transmission associated with the invasion and pet trade of L. fulica. First, we conducted a review of the scientific literature to list all known L. fulica parasites and pathogens and query host-pathogen databases to identify their potential mammalian hosts. Then, to assess the potential for L. fulica to spread globally, we modelled its suitable climatic conditions and tested whether, within climatically suitable areas, the species tended to occur near humans or not. Finally, we used social media data to map L. fulica possession as an exotic pet and to identify human behaviours associated with increased risk of disease transmission.
Lissachatina fulica can carry at least 36 pathogen species, including two-thirds that can infect humans. The global invasion of L. fulica is climatically limited to tropical areas, but the species is strongly associated with densely populated areas where snails are more likely to enter in contact with humans. In temperate countries, however, climatic conditions should prevent L. fulica's spread. However, we show that in Europe, giant snails are popular exotic pets and are often handled with direct skin contact, likely increasing the risk of pathogen transmission to their owners.
It is urgent to raise public awareness of the health risks associated with L. fulica in both tropical countries and Europe and to regulate its trade and ownership internationally. Our results highlight the importance of accounting for multiple types of human-wildlife interactions when assessing risks of infectious disease emergence. Furthermore, by targeting the species most likely to spread pathogens, we show that it is possible to rapidly identify emerging disease risks on a global scale, thus guiding timely and appropriate responses.
病原体的爆发大多源自动物，但有些物种更容易引发疫情。巨型陆地蜗牛（Lissachatina fulica）是一种广泛入侵的物种，作为一种受欢迎的外来宠物，它还是鼠肺线虫的臭名昭著的载体，会导致人类嗜酸性脑膜炎。然而，目前缺乏对与该物种相关的疾病爆发风险的全面评估。
我们评估并绘制了与巨型陆地蜗牛的入侵和宠物贸易相关的疾病传播风险图。首先，我们对科学文献进行了综述，列出了所有已知的巨型陆地蜗牛寄生虫和病原体，并查询宿主-病原体数据库，以确定其潜在的哺乳动物宿主。然后，为了评估巨型陆地蜗牛在全球范围内传播的潜力，我们模拟了其适宜的气候条件，并测试了在气候适宜的地区内，该物种是否倾向于靠近人类。最后，我们利用社交媒体数据绘制了作为外来宠物的巨型陆地蜗牛拥有情况，并确定了与增加疾病传播风险相关的人类行为。
巨型陆地蜗牛至少可以携带 36 种病原体，其中三分之二可以感染人类。巨型陆地蜗牛的全球入侵在气候上仅限于热带地区，但该物种与人口稠密地区密切相关，在这些地区蜗牛更有可能与人类接触。然而，在温带国家，气候条件应该可以阻止巨型陆地蜗牛的传播。然而，我们表明，在欧洲，巨型蜗牛是受欢迎的外来宠物，经常直接接触皮肤进行处理，这可能会增加病原体传播给其主人的风险。
在热带国家和欧洲，迫切需要提高公众对与巨型陆地蜗牛相关的健康风险的认识，并在国际上规范其贸易和所有权。我们的研究结果强调了在评估传染病出现风险时，考虑多种类型的人类与野生动物相互作用的重要性。此外，通过针对最有可能传播病原体的物种，我们表明有可能在全球范围内快速识别新出现的疾病风险，从而指导及时和适当的应对措施。
