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The ecology and epidemiology of malaria parasitism in wild chimpanzee reservoirs
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

The ecology and epidemiology of malaria parasitism in wild chimpanzee reservoirs

Erik J Scully, Weimin Liu, Yingying Li, Jean-Bosco N Ndjango, Martine Peeters, Shadrack Kamenya, Anne E Pusey, Elizabeth V Lonsdorf, Crickette M Sanz, David B Morgan, …
Communications biology, v 5(1), pp 1020-1020
01 Jan 2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-022-03962-0
Featured in Collection :   UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
url
https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-022-03962-0View
Published, Version of Record (VoR)CC BY V4.0,  Open

Abstract

Epidemiology Feces Hepatocystis Infections Laverania Malaria Mitochondrial DNA Monkeys & apes Pan troglodytes Parasites Parasitism Phylogeny Plasmodium falciparum Seasonal variations Spatial variations Vectors
Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) harbor rich assemblages of malaria parasites, including three species closely related to P. falciparum (sub-genus Laverania), the most malignant human malaria parasite. Here, we characterize the ecology and epidemiology of malaria infection in wild chimpanzee reservoirs. We used molecular assays to screen chimpanzee fecal samples, collected longitudinally and cross-sectionally from wild populations, for malaria parasite mitochondrial DNA. We found that chimpanzee malaria parasitism has an early age of onset and varies seasonally in prevalence. A subset of samples revealed Hepatocystis mitochondrial DNA, with phylogenetic analyses suggesting that Hepatocystis appears to cross species barriers more easily than Laverania. Longitudinal and cross-sectional sampling independently support the hypothesis that mean ambient temperature drives spatiotemporal variation in chimpanzee Laverania infection. Infection probability peaked at ~24.5 °C, consistent with the empirical transmission optimum of P. falciparum in humans. Forest cover was also positively correlated with spatial variation in Laverania prevalence, consistent with the observation that forest-dwelling Anophelines are the primary vectors. Extrapolating these relationships across equatorial Africa, we map spatiotemporal variation in the suitability of chimpanzee habitat for Laverania transmission, offering a hypothetical baseline indicator of human exposure risk. Chimpanzees are known to suffer from malaria parasitism. Here, the prevalence and epidemiology of several malaria parasites is examined in a wild chimpanzee population.

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#3 Good Health and Well-Being

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Collaboration types
Domestic collaboration
International collaboration
Web of Science research areas
Biology
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