Dataset Information

Isolation of Treponema DNA from Necrophagous Flies in a Natural Ecosystem.

ABSTRACT: Recently, the World Health Organization launched a campaign to eradicate the tropical disease yaws, caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum subsp. pertenue; however, for decades researchers have questioned whether flies act as a vector for the pathogen that could facilitate transmission.A total of 207 fly specimens were trapped in areas of Africa in which T. pallidum-induced skin ulcerations are common in wild baboons; 88 flies from Tarangire National Park and 119 from Lake Manyara National Park in Tanzania were analyzed by PCR for the presence of T. pallidum DNA.We report that in the two study areas, T. pallidum DNA was found in 17-24% of wild-caught flies of the order Diptera. Treponemal DNA sequences obtained from many of the flies match sequences derived from nearby baboon T. pallidum strains, and one of the fly species with an especially high prevalence of T. pallidum DNA, Musca sorbens, has previously been shown to transmit yaws in an experimental setting.Our results raise the possibility that flies play a role in yaws transmission; further research is warranted, given how important understanding transmission is for the eradication of this disfiguring disease.

SUBMITTER: Knauf S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5049926 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Isolation of Treponema DNA from Necrophagous Flies in a Natural Ecosystem.

Knauf Sascha S Raphael Jane J Mitjà Oriol O Mitjà Oriol O Lejora Inyasi A V IAV Chuma Idrissa S IS Batamuzi Emmanuel K EK Keyyu Julius D JD Fyumagwa Robert R Lüert Simone S Godornes Charmie C Liu Hsi H Schwarz Christiane C Šmajs David D Grange Philippe P Zinner Dietmar D Roos Christian C Lukehart Sheila A SA

EBioMedicine 20160728

<h4>Background</h4>Recently, the World Health Organization launched a campaign to eradicate the tropical disease yaws, caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum subsp. pertenue; however, for decades researchers have questioned whether flies act as a vector for the pathogen that could facilitate transmission.<h4>Methods</h4>A total of 207 fly specimens were trapped in areas of Africa in which T. pallidum-induced skin ulcerations are common in wild baboons; 88 flies from Tarangire National Park a ...[more]

PMID: 27488881

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Project description:The past 2 decades have seen fruit flies being widely adopted for research on social behavior and aggression. This fruitful research, however, has not been well tied to fruit flies' natural history. To address this knowledge gap, I conducted a field study. My goal was to inform future research conducted in artificial surroundings, and to inspire new investigations that can rely more heavily on fruit flies' actual natural behavior. My two main novel findings were first, that flies in the field showed significant sociability, as they formed social groups rather than dispersed randomly among fruits of similar quality. Second, males showed fair levels of aggression towards each other as indicated by a lunging rate of 17 per hour, and lower rates of wing threat and boxing. Courtship was the most prominent activity on fruits, with females rejecting almost all males' advances. This resulted in an estimated mating rate of 0.6 per female per day. Flies showed a striking peak of activity early in the mornings, even at cold temperatures, followed by inactivity for much of the day and night. Flies, however, handled well high temperatures approaching 40 °C by hiding away from fruit and concentrating activity in the cooler, early mornings. My field work highlights a few promising lines of future research informed by fruit flies' natural history. Most importantly, we do not understand the intriguing dynamics that generate significant sociability despite frequent aggressive interactions on fruits. Males' responses to female rejection signals varied widely, perhaps because the signals differed in information content perceived by flies but not humans. Finally, flies tolerated cold early mornings perhaps owing to fitness benefits associated with increased mating and feeding opportunities at this time. Flies were adept at handling very high temperatures under the natural daily temperature fluctuations and availability of shelters, and this can inform more realistic research on the effects of global warming on animals in their natural settings.

Project description:BACKGROUND:The first yaws eradication campaign reduced the prevalence of yaws by 95%. In recent years, however, yaws has reemerged and is currently subject to a second, ongoing eradication campaign. Yet, the epidemiological status of Tanzania and 75 other countries with a known history of human yaws is currently unknown. Contrary to the situation in humans in Tanzania, recent infection of nonhuman primates (NHPs) with the yaws bacterium Treponema pallidum subsp. pertenue (TPE) have been reported. In this study, we consider a One Health approach to investigate yaws and describe skin ulcers and corresponding T. pallidum serology results among children living in the Tarangire-Manyara ecosystem, an area with increasing wildlife-human interaction in northern Tanzania. METHODS:To investigate human yaws in Tanzania, we conducted a cross-sectional study to screen and interview skin-ulcerated children aged 6 to 15?years, who live in close proximity to two national parks with high numbers of naturally TPE-infected monkeys. Serum samples from children with skin ulcers were tested for antibodies against the bacterium using a treponemal (Treponema pallidum Particle Agglutination assay) and a non-treponemal (Rapid Plasma Reagin) test. RESULTS:A total of 186 children aged between 6 and 15?years (boys: 10.7?±?2.1 (mean?±?SD), N?=?132; girls: 10.9?±?2.0 (mean?±?SD), N?=?54) were enrolled. Seven children were sampled at health care facilities and 179 at primary schools. 38 children (20.4%) reported active participation in bushmeat hunting and consumption and 26 (13.9%) reported at least one physical contact with a NHP. None of the lesions seen were pathognomonic for yaws. Two children tested positive for treponemal antibodies (1.2%) in the treponemal test, but remained negative in the non-treponemal test. CONCLUSIONS:We found no serological evidence of yaws among children in the Tarangire-Manyara ecosystem. Nevertheless, the close genetic relationship of human and NHPs infecting TPE strains should lead to contact prevention with infected NHPs. Further research investigations are warranted to study the causes and possible prevention measures of spontaneous chronic ulcers among children in rural Tanzania and to certify that the country is free from human yaws.

Dataset Information

Isolation of Treponema DNA from Necrophagous Flies in a Natural Ecosystem.

Publications

Isolation of Treponema DNA from Necrophagous Flies in a Natural Ecosystem.

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