Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis in Pet Ring-Tailed Lemur, Madagascar.
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: LaFleur M
PROVIDER: S-EPMC7920673 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Similar Datasets
Project description:Madagascar's ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta) are experiencing rapid population declines due to ongoing habitat loss and fragmentation, as well as increasing exploitation for bushmeat and the illegal pet trade. Despite being the focus of extensive and ongoing behavioral studies, there is comparatively little known about the genetic population structuring of the species. Here, we present the most comprehensive population genetic analysis of ring-tailed lemurs to date from across their likely remaining geographic range. We assessed levels of genetic diversity and population genetic structure using multilocus genotypes for 106 adult individuals from nine geographically representative localities. Population structure and F ST analyses revealed moderate genetic differentiation with localities being geographically partitioned into northern, southern, western and also potentially central clusters. Overall genetic diversity, in terms of allelic richness and observed heterozygosity, was high in the species (AR = 4.74, H O = 0.811). In fact, it is the highest among all published lemur estimates to date. While these results are encouraging, ring-tailed lemurs are currently affected by ongoing habitat fragmentation and occur at lower densities in poorer quality habitats. The effects of continued isolation and fragmentation, coupled with climate-driven environmental instability, will therefore likely impede the long-term viability of the species.
| S-EPMC7417237 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Primates are extracted from the wild for the pet trade across the world. In Madagascar, lemurs are kept as illegal pets and an understanding of lemur pet ownership at the national level is lacking. In 2013 and 2016, we undertook a national survey in 11 of Madagascar's 22 administrative regions (n = 28 towns) with 1,709 households. To our knowledge, this is the first national survey of the household ownership of pet primates in a country where they are endemic. In the 1.5 years prior to being surveyed, 8% ± 4% (towns as replicates) of respondents had seen a captive lemur while a further 0.7% ± 0.5% of respondents had owned one personally. We estimate that 33,428 ± 24,846 lemurs were kept in Malagasy households in the six months prior to our survey efforts, with 18,462 ± 12,963 of these pet lemurs estimated in urban household alone. Rates of lemur ownership did not differ by province but increased with the human population of a town and with the popularity of the town on Flickr (a proxy indicator for tourism). We found that the visibility of pet lemur ownership did not differ across the country, but it did increase with the size of the town and popularity with tourists. Areas with visible pet lemurs were not always the areas with the highest rates of pet lemur ownership, highlighting that many pet lemurs are hidden from the general public. Our study highlights the need for conservation programs to consider both the proportion of inhabitants that own pet lemurs and the total number of lemurs that are potentially being kept as pets in those towns. We close by noting that for some species, even just a small amount of localized live extraction for pet ownership could be enough to cause localized population extinctions over time. Moreover, an urgent response is needed to combat a recent and alarming rise in illegal exploitation of biodiversity across Madagascar.
| S-EPMC6506143 | biostudies-literature
Project description:(1) Background: Taenia crassiceps is a cosmopolitan tapeworm endemic to the northern hemisphere with an indirect lifecycle. Its definitive hosts are carnivores, and its intermediate hosts are rodents and rabbits. Nonhuman primates in zoos appear to be highly susceptible to T. crassiceps cysticercosis. The aim of this study was to confirm the presence and the molecular characterization of T. crassiceps cysts isolated from a captive ring-tailed lemur. (2) Methods: Surgery revealed multifocal, transparent saccules containing several thin-walled tapeworm cysticerci. In some of the metacestodes, single or multiple exogenous buds from daughter cysticerci were spotted. A molecular analysis was performed to confirm our morphological examinations, using two protocols to obtain the partial nad1 and cox1 genes of the Taenia sp. (3) Results: On the basis of morphological features and molecular analysis, the cysticerci were identified as T. crassiceps metacestodes, and products taken from the PCRs were sequenced. With respect to interpreting the sequencing results of the obtained amplicons, we compared them with data in the GenBank database, proving that, in this case, the causative agent was indeed T. crassiceps. (4) Conclusions: The received data can be used to supplement descriptions of this species. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of cysticercosis caused by T. crassiceps in a nonhuman primate in Poland.
| S-EPMC9331665 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Ring-tailed Lemur (Lemur catta) is the only surviving semi-terrestrial diurnal lemur in Madagascar. Despite being the most intensively studied of lemur taxa, only a few helminths have been described in this species. In this study we describe a persistent infection due to Trichostrongylus colubriformis in a captive population of L. catta hosted in a zoological park of northern Italy. In the context of a parasitological survey on zoo animals, we investigated parasites in a captive colony of ring-tailed lemurs within a zoological park. Parasitological analysis included necropsy of a deceased lemur in 2019, subsequent fecal sample collections in 2021-2022, followed by coprological examination and coprocolture. Morphological and molecular analyses were conducted on adult helminths, larvae and eggs, involving microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and sequencing of the ITS rDNA region. Trichostrongylidae parasites were primarily found after necropsy in the intestine of the lemur. Morphological and molecular investigations on adults and eggs/larvae recovered from feces collected at different times from lemurs of the same captive population, allowed to properly identify the parasite as T. colubriformis. To the best of our knowledge this is the first description of T. colubriformis in L. catta. Although its presence in wild populations is not necessarily implied by our finding, this parasitosis represent a cause of concern in captive lemurs, considering the possibility of interspecies transmission and the zoonotic implications.
| S-EPMC10711362 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Across species, diversity at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) is critical to individual disease resistance and, hence, to population health; however, MHC diversity can be reduced in small, fragmented, or isolated populations. Given the need for comparative studies of functional genetic diversity, we investigated whether MHC diversity differs between populations which are open, that is experiencing gene flow, versus populations which are closed, that is isolated from other populations. Using the endangered ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta) as a model, we compared two populations under long-term study: a relatively "open," wild population (n = 180) derived from Bezà Mahafaly Special Reserve, Madagascar (2003-2013) and a "closed," captive population (n = 121) derived from the Duke Lemur Center (DLC, 1980-2013) and from the Indianapolis and Cincinnati Zoos (2012). For all animals, we assessed MHC-DRB diversity and, across populations, we compared the number of unique MHC-DRB alleles and their distributions. Wild individuals possessed more MHC-DRB alleles than did captive individuals, and overall, the wild population had more unique MHC-DRB alleles that were more evenly distributed than did the captive population. Despite management efforts to maintain or increase genetic diversity in the DLC population, MHC diversity remained static from 1980 to 2010. Since 2010, however, captive-breeding efforts resulted in the MHC diversity of offspring increasing to a level commensurate with that found in wild individuals. Therefore, loss of genetic diversity in lemurs, owing to small founder populations or reduced gene flow, can be mitigated by managed breeding efforts. Quantifying MHC diversity within individuals and between populations is the necessary first step to identifying potential improvements to captive management and conservation plans.
| S-EPMC5632616 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundInter-population variation in host-associated microbiota reflects differences in the hosts' environments, but this characterization is typically based on studies comparing few populations. The diversity of natural habitats and captivity conditions occupied by any given host species has not been captured in these comparisons. Moreover, intraspecific variation in gut microbiota, generally attributed to diet, may also stem from differential acquisition of environmental microbes-an understudied mechanism by which host microbiomes are directly shaped by environmental microbes. To more comprehensively characterize gut microbiota in an ecologically flexible host, the ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta; n = 209), while also investigating the role of environmental acquisition, we used 16S rRNA sequencing of lemur gut and soil microbiota sampled from up to 13 settings, eight in the wilderness of Madagascar and five in captivity in Madagascar or the U.S. Based on matched fecal and soil samples, we used microbial source tracking to examine covariation between the two types of consortia.ResultsThe diversity of lemur gut microbes varied markedly within and between settings. Microbial diversity was not consistently greater in wild than in captive lemurs, indicating that this metric is not necessarily an indicator of host habitat or environmental condition. Variation in microbial composition was inconsistent both with a single, representative gut community for wild conspecifics and with a universal 'signal of captivity' that homogenizes the gut consortia of captive animals. Despite the similar, commercial diets of captive lemurs on both continents, lemur gut microbiomes within Madagascar were compositionally most similar, suggesting that non-dietary factors govern some of the variability. In particular, soil microbial communities varied across geographic locations, with the few samples from different continents being the most distinct, and there was significant and context-specific covariation between gut and soil microbiota.ConclusionsAs one of the broadest, single-species investigations of primate microbiota, our study highlights that gut consortia are sensitive to multiple scales of environmental differences. This finding begs a reevaluation of the simple 'captive vs. wild' dichotomy. Beyond the important implications for animal care, health, and conservation, our finding that environmental acquisition may mediate aspects of host-associated consortia further expands the framework for how host-associated and environmental microbes interact across different microbial landscapes.
| S-EPMC9052671 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Environmental enrichment is a management tool used to promote positive animal welfare by stimulating species-specific behaviors and providing animals with opportunities to exert choice and control over the environment. Our study aimed to evaluate the combined effect of three enrichment types and environmental/individual factors (i.e., individual age and rank position) on the behavior of six adult Lemur catta hosted at Pistoia Zoo (Italy). We collected data from June to September 2013 using a within-subject experimental design consisting of five conditions: Baseline, Food-based enrichment, Physical enrichment, Auditory enrichment and No enrichment provided. We conducted six 30-minute observation sessions per sampling day (total = 107 h). We recorded the animals' behavior via 2-minute focal animal sampling per individual per observation period and analyzed data with Generalized Linear Models. The study group only performed normal species-specific behaviors. Enrichments decreased stress-related behavioral patterns, whreas environmental and individual factors influenced the other recorded behaviors. Our study confirmed the usefulness of employing an integrated methodological approach to enrichment assessment for enhancing captive lemur care.
| S-EPMC9597830 | biostudies-literature
Project description:During the period April 1992 to September 1994 a total of 2288 patients of pulmonary tuberculosis were treated at our centre. M. tuberculosis could be isolated from the sputa of 1037 patients (45.3%). All the isolates were subjected to indirect susceptibility testing using drug incorporated Lowenstein-Jensen medium slants. A total of 142 (13.7%) patients showed drug resistance. Single drug resistance was observed in 86 (8.3%) patients whereas resistance to two or more drugs was observed in 56 (5.4%) patients. Patients showing initial drug resistance were more in number (83 cases) than those showing acquired drug resistance (59 cases). Resistance to streptomycin was commonest (8.3% of isolates) followed by isoniazid (5.7%) and rifampicin (5.0%). Multiple drug resistance was mostly acquired (71.4% of drug-resistant isolates).
| S-EPMC5530262 | biostudies-other
Project description:The treatment of drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) is complicated and has evolved significantly in the past decade with the advent of rapid molecular tests and updated evidence-based guidelines of the World Health Organization and other organizations. The latest recommendations incorporate the use of new drugs and regimens that maximize efficacy and minimize toxicity to improve treatment outcomes for the patients. This article provides an overview of the latest published strategies for clinical and programmatic management of drug-resistant TB.
| S-EPMC7000172 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Quaternary climatic changes have been invoked as important drivers of species diversification worldwide. However, the impact of such changes on vegetation and animal population dynamics in tropical regions remains debated. To overcome this uncertainty, we integrated high-resolution paleoenvironmental reconstructions from a sedimentary record covering the past 25,000 years with demographic inferences of a forest-dwelling primate species (Microcebus arnholdi), in northern Madagascar. Result comparisons suggest that climate changes through the African Humid Period (15.2 - 5.5 kyr) strongly affected the demographic dynamics of M. arnholdi. We further inferred a population decline in the last millennium which was likely shaped by the combination of climatic and anthropogenic impacts. Our findings demonstrate that population fluctuations in Malagasy wildlife were substantial prior to a significant human impact. This provides a critical knowledge of climatically driven, environmental and ecological changes in the past, which is essential to better understand the dynamics and resilience of current biodiversity.
| S-EPMC8443640 | biostudies-literature