| Titles | Abstract | Indexed Keywords | Author Keywords |
| Comparative metagenomics reveals poultry and swine farming are hotspots for multidrug and tetracycline resistance | Antibiotic misuse in livestock is a major threat to human health, as bacteria are quickly developing resistance to them. We performed a comparative analysis of 25 faecal metagenomes from swine, poultry, cattle, and humans to investigate their resistance profiles. Our analysis revealed that all genes conferring resistance to antibiotic classes assessed except tetracyclines were more prevalent in poultry manure than in the remaining species. We detected clinically relevant antibiotic resistance genes, such as mcr-1 which confers resistance to polymyxins. Among them, extended-spectrum β-lactamase blaCTX-M genes were particularly abundant in all species. Poultry manure was identified as a hotspot for multidrug resistance, which may compromise medical treatment options. Urgent actions in the livestock industry are imperative to hamper the emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance. © 2023 The Authors | Antibiotics; Fertilizers; Health risks; Manures; Antibiotic resistance genes; Genetic elements; Hotspots; Human health; Human medicine; Livestock manure; Metagenomics; Mobile genetic element; One health; Poultry manure; antibiotic resistance; Article; blaCTX-M gene; bovine; comparative study; feces analysis; gene; genetic association; genetic screening; mcr-1 gene; metagenomics; mobile genetic element; multidrug resistance; nonhuman; pig farming; polymyxin resistance; poultry farming; prevalence; species difference; tetracycline resistance; Genes | Antibiotic resistance genes; Human medicine; Livestock manure; Mobile genetic elements; One health |
| Herd turnover rate reexamined: a tool for improving profitability, welfare, and sustainability | Longevity and herd turnover rate are becoming common topics of discussion as the dairy industry strives for con-tinuous improvement in efficiency, profitability, animal welfare, and environmental sustainability. Having the most productive animal fill each slot on a dairy makes strategic replacement and the resulting herd turnover an important tool for producers. Dairy operations can be considered to have slots available to be occupied by cows. The number of slots available is governed by dairy characteristics including parlor size and facility design. With sustainability and profitability goals, producers should aim to fill each slot with the most productive animal. The advantages of a modest surplus of replacement heifers allowing for a higher herd turnover rate are examined and shown to improve herd profitability, enhance welfare, and reduce environmental impact. A model assuming constant demand for dairy foods is presented with increased herd turnover rate leading to more milk production per cow and reduced enteric methane emissions. This analysis demonstrates that all else being equal, raising more replacements (having a relatively higher herd turnover rate and decreased herd-level longevity) improves sustainability compared to management aimed at lower herd turnover rates. Understanding the drivers of herd turnover in dairy production has important implications for the components of one health: animal well-being, food production, and environmental stewardship. The present work examines one tool toward this goal, while the companion Currents in One Health by Nguyen et al, JAVMA, January 2023, takes a broader view of many aspects of dairy sustainability. © 2023, American Veterinary Medical Association. All rights reserved. | Animal Welfare; Animals; Cattle; Dairying; Female; Longevity; Methane; Milk; methane; animal experiment; animal well-being; article; controlled study; environmental impact; female; food industry; heifer; human; longevity; methane emission; milk production; nonhuman; One Health; turnover rate; animal; animal welfare; bovine; dairying; milk; procedures |
| Determining the acceptability of a novel One Health vaccine for Rift Valley Fever prior to phase II/III clinical trials in Uganda | Several vaccine candidates for Rift Valley Fever (RVF) are in development for use in humans. A promising candidate, ChAdOx1 RVF vaccine, has been developed for use in both humans and animals, and has undergone field trials in livestock in Kenya. We conducted a qualitative study to explore the acceptability of this novel One Health vaccine for Rift Valley Fever prior to phase II/III trials, in two rural Ugandan cohorts between January to June 2020. Data was obtained from 96 semi-structured interviews at Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (BINP) and Kyamulibwa, Kalungu District, in Southern Uganda. The study found that 42% of those interviewed were willing to receive a vaccine that was the same for both humans and animals. 45% of those interviewed said that they would not be willing to receive a One Health vaccine and a further 13% were unsure whether or not they would be happy to receive such a vaccine. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to explore their reasons for and against the acceptability of a novel One Health vaccine to highlight potential barriers to deployment once a vaccine candidate for RVF becomes available. © 2022 The Authors | Anthropology; One Health; RVF; Vaccines |
| One health zoonotic disease prioritization and systems mapping: An integration of two One Health tools | One Health is a collaborative approach that requires synergies between human, animal and environmental health sectors, other key sectors, and partners supporting these capacity-building efforts. Multiple One Health capacity-building tools are available that can be used independently or together. Two tools that have been used in sequence to inform each other include the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s One Health Zoonotic Disease Prioritization (OHZDP) Process and University of Minnesota/US Department of Agriculture’s One Health Systems Mapping and Analysis Resource Toolkit™ (OH-SMART). In August 2017, a workshop was held in Islamabad, Pakistan, that integrated these two tools for the first time. In this integrated workshop, we used the OHZDP to develop a list of priority zoonotic diseases for Pakistan and OH-SMART™ to conduct a partner assessment and disease-specific gap analysis. Both tools were used to identify areas for One Health collaboration for the priority zoonotic diseases. Additionally, we trained 11 in-country facilitators representing the human and animal health sectors on both tools. This manuscript describes the integration of these two tools—using the Pakistan workshop as a process case study—to inform future efforts to implement One Health tools synergistically. Implementation of the technical and logistical aspects of the integrated workshop was detailed: (1) workshop preparation, (2) facilitator training, (3) workshop implementation and (4) workshop outcomes. Sixteen months after the workshop, we conducted an in-country facilitator survey to follow-up on the utility of both tools and the training for facilitators. We evaluated facilitator survey results using a qualitative analysis software Atlas.ti. Using the OHZDP Process and OH-SMART™ together achieved continuity between the two processes and provided a professional development opportunity for in-country facilitators. Based on the success of this integrated workshop, partners developing and implementing One Health tools should recognize the importance of collaboration to maximize outcomes. © 2022 The Authors. Zoonoses and Public Health published by Wiley-VCH GmbH. This article has been contributed to by U.S. Government employees and their work is in the public domain in the USA. | Animals; Humans; One Health; Pakistan; Zoonoses; animal health; Article; follow up; human; nonhuman; One Health; Pakistan; professional development; qualitative analysis; workshop; zoonosis; animal; epidemiology; zoonosis | One Health; operational tools; prioritization; systems mapping; zoonoses |
| Survey of wild boar hunter interactions with pig farming in central Europe | African swine fever (ASF) is a fatal animal disease without zoonotic potential but greatly impacts human well-being, especially in the most vulnerable human communities. In Europe, ASF concerns mostly the wildlife domain of health. The main vector of the disease is confirmed to be the wild boar, though long-distance jumps of the infection are due to anthropogenic effects. This study aimed to evaluate the potential role of hunting assistant personnel (beaters and carcass handlers) in ASF spread in Hungary. Based on a personal interview survey, we attempted to identify the epidemiological risk caused by hunting activities and the hunting personnel. The interviews with 58 hunting workers confirmed that an extent backyard pig sector (13 pig farmers) and pork production system (31 pork producers) existed within the study region out of the authorities’ sight. Two pig farmers did not wear special working clothes for pig caring, seven pork producers disposed of slaughter offal in the settlements periphery, and six persons regularly contacted distant pig farms. The revealed knowledge, attitude, and practice of the questioned pig farmers suggested that this sector would be very vulnerable in an epidemic situation; moreover, backyard farms would cause a great risk for wildboar populations. Considering that the study region is the third poorest region of Hungary, these findings called attention to the high epidemiologic risk of socioeconomic inequality between different regions within the European Union. © 2022 The Authors. Veterinary Medicine and Science published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. | African Swine Fever; African Swine Fever Virus; Animal Husbandry; Animals; Animals, Wild; Disease Outbreaks; Europe; Farms; Humans; Risk Factors; Sus scrofa; Swine; Swine Diseases; African swine fever; agricultural land; agricultural worker; animal disease; animal hunting; Article; care behavior; European Union; European wild boar; geographic distribution; human; hypospadias; nonhuman; pig farming; questionnaire; seroprevalence; slaughtering; wild boar hunter; wildlife; wildlife conservation; work clothing; African swine fever; African swine fever virus; animal; animal husbandry; case report; epidemic; Europe; pig; risk factor; swine disease; veterinary medicine; wild animal | African swine fever; anthropogenic transmission risk; backyard pig; one health; socioeconomic |
| Metagenomic Insights for Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance in Soils with Different Land Uses in Brazil | Land-use conversion changes soil properties and their microbial communities, which, combined with the overuse of antibiotics in human and animal health, promotes the expansion of the soil resistome. In this context, we aimed to profile the resistome and the microbiota of soils under different land practices. We collected eight soil samples from different locations in the countryside of São Paulo (Brazil), assessed the community profiles based on 16S rRNA sequencing, and analyzed the soil metagenomes based on shotgun sequencing. We found differences in the communities’ structures and their dynamics that were correlated with land practices, such as the dominance of Staphylococcus and Bacillus genera in agriculture fields. Additionally, we surveyed the abundance and diversity of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and virulence factors (VFs) across studied soils, observing a higher presence and homogeneity of the vanRO gene in livestock soils. Moreover, three β-lactamases were identified in orchard and urban square soils. Together, our findings reinforce the importance and urgency of AMR surveillance in the environment, especially in soils undergoing deep land-use transformations, providing an initial exploration under the One Health approach of environmental levels of resistance and profiling soil communities. © 2023 by the authors. | antibiotic resistance; microbiota; One Health; soil; soil resistome; surveillance |
| Factors impacting antimicrobial resistance in the South East Asian food system and potential places to intervene: A participatory, one health study | Background: With AMU projected to increase, South East Asia (SEA) is at high risk of experiencing disproportionate health, social, and economic burdens due to antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Our objective was to identify factors influencing AMR in SEA’s food system and places for intervention by integrating the perspectives of experts from the region to inform policy and management decisions. Materials and methods: We conducted two 6.5 h workshops and two 90-min interviews involving 18 AMR and other disciplinary experts from human, animal, and environment sectors who brainstormed the factors influencing AMR and identified leverage points (places) for intervention. Transcripts and workshop materials were coded for factors and their connections and transcribed into a causal loop diagram (CLD). Thematic analysis described AMR dynamics in SEA’s food system and leverage points for intervention. The CLD and themes were confirmed via participant feedback. Results: Participants constructed a CLD of AMR in the SEA food system that contained 98 factors interlinked by 362 connections. CLD factors reflected eight sub-areas of the SEA food system (e.g., government). Seven themes [e.g., antimicrobial and pesticide use and AMR spread (n = 40 quotes)], six “overarching factors” that impact the entire AMR system [e.g., the drive to survive (n = 12 quotes)], and 10 places for intervention that target CLD factors (n = 5) and overarching factors (n = 2) emerged from workshop discussions. Conclusion: The participant derived CLD of factors influencing AMR in the SEA food system demonstrates that AMR is a product of numerous interlinked actions taken across the One Health spectrum and that finding solutions is no simple task. Developing the model enabled the identification of potentially promising leverage points across human, animal, and environment sectors that, if comprehensively targeted using multi-pronged interventions, could evoke system wide changes that mitigate AMR. Even targeting some leverage points for intervention, such as increasing investments in research and capacity building, and setting and enforcing regulations to control antimicrobial supply, demand, and use could, in turn, shift mindsets that lead to changes in more difficult to alter leverage points, such as redefining the profit-driven intent that drives system behavior in ways that transform AMU and sustainably mitigate AMR. Copyright © 2023 Lambraki, Chadag, Cousins, Graells, Léger, Henriksson, Troell, Harbarth, Wernli, Jørgensen, Carson, Parmley and Majowicz. | antibiotic agent; antiinfective agent; fungicide; pesticide; agricultural worker; agriculture; antibiotic resistance; Article; awareness; coinfection; environmental health; feedback system; female; food; food industry; food intake; food safety; health care cost; human; information processing; interview; male; microbiology; One Health; population density; public health; qualitative analysis; risk factor; scientist; socioeconomics; thematic analysis; veterinary medicine; workshop | antibiotics; antimicrobial resistance; antimicrobial use; causal loop diagram; food system; one health; participatory approach; South East Asia |
| First bovine vaccine to prevent human schistosomiasis – a cluster randomised Phase 3 clinical trial | Objective: Schistosomiasis is a neglected tropical parasitic disease caused by blood flukes of the genus Schistosoma. Schistosoma japonicum is zoonotic in China, the Philippines, and Indonesia, with bovines acting as major reservoirs of human infection. The primary objective of the trial was to examine the impact of a combination of human mass chemotherapy, snail control through mollusciciding, and SjCTPI bovine vaccination on the rate of human infection. Methods: A 5-year phase IIIa cluster randomized control trial was conducted among 18 schistosomiasis-endemic villages comprising 18,221 residents in Northern Samar, The Philippines. Results: Overall, bovine vaccination resulted in a statistically significant decrease in human infection (relative risk [RR] = 0.75; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.69 to 0.82) across all trial follow-ups. The best outcome of the trial was when bovine vaccination was combined with snail mollusciciding. This combination resulted in a 31% reduction (RR = 0.69; 95% CI = 0.61 to 0.78) in human infection. Conclusion: This is the first trial to demonstrate the effectiveness of a bovine vaccine for schistosomiasis in reducing human schistosome infection. The trial is registered with Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ACTRN12619001048178). © 2023 The Author(s) | Bovines; Control; One Health; Schistosomiasis; Vaccination; Zoonosis |
| A set of antibiotic-resistance mechanisms and virulence factors in GES-16-producing Klebsiella quasipneumoniae subsp. similipneumoniae from hospital wastewater revealed by whole-genome sequencing | Klebsiella quasipneumoniae subsp. similipneumoniae has emerged as a human pathogen and sporadic isolates from non-clinical sources were reported. Here, we described the phenotypic- and genomic-characteristics of a multidrug-resistant (MDR) and potentially hypervirulent (MDR-hv) Klebsiella quasipneumoniae subsp. similipneumoniae (KqA1) isolated from hospital wastewater. The antibiotic susceptibility profile of KqA1 was investigated using disk-diffusion method, broth microdilution method, and agar dilution method, and the genetic characteristics of antimicrobial resistance, mobile genetics elements, and virulence were evaluated by genomic DNA sequencing on the Illumina® NovaSeq6000 platform as well as by bioinformatic analysis. Resistome analyses revealed the presence of genes related to resistance to β-lactams, aminoglycosides, quinolones, tetracyclines, sulfonamides, trimethoprim, chloramphenicol, macrolides, and fosfomycin. New genetic contexts to blaGES-16 (carbapenemase gene) and to fosA (fosfomycin resistance gene) were described. A set of mechanisms that can contribute to antibiotic resistance, commonly detected in Klebsiella spp., was also found including chromosomal mutations, efflux systems, proteins, and regulators. Moreover, KqA1 presented genes related to tolerance to metals (arsenic, copper, nickel, cobalt, magnesium, cadmium, zinc, tellurium, selenium) and to biocides (quaternary-ammonium compounds). The isolate was classified as potentially hypervirulent due to a wide range of virulence factors found associated to regulation, motility, biofilm, effector delivery systems, immune modulation, nutritional/metabolic factors, adherence, invasion, and competitive advantage. The occurrence of MDR-hv KqA1 in hospital wastewater points out how this environment matrix plays a crucial role in the maintenance and selection of critical bacterial pathogens. Regarding One Health perspective, it is evident the need for multidisciplinary implementation of control measures for antibiotic-resistant bacteria, not only in hospital settings but also in a general environmental context to mitigate the dissemination of MDR and hv bacteria. © 2022 | Anti-Bacterial Agents; beta-Lactamases; Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial; Fosfomycin; Hospitals; Humans; Klebsiella; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Virulence Factors; Waste Water; Amides; Antibiotics; Competition; DNA sequences; Gene encoding; Genome; Hospitals; Sulfur compounds; Tellurium compounds; aerobactin; amikacin; aminoglycoside; amoxicillin plus clavulanic acid; antibiotic agent; arsenic; avibactam plus ceftazidime; aztreonam; benzalkonium chloride; biocide; cadmium; carbapenemase; cefepime; cefotaxime; cefoxitin; cefuroxime; chloramphenicol; chlorhexidine; ciprofloxacin; cobalt; copper; cotrimoxazole; cytosine; doripenem; enterochelin; ertapenem; extended spectrum beta lactamase; fosfomycin; gentamicin; guanine; imipenem; levofloxacin; macrolide; magnesium; meropenem; moxifloxacin; nickel; norfloxacin; piperacillin plus tazobactam; polymyxin B; pyoverdine; quinolone derivative; salmochelin; selenium; sulfonamide; sultamicillin; tellurium; tetracycline; tigecycline; tobramycin; triclosan; trimethoprim; unclassified drug; virulence factor; zinc; antiinfective agent; beta lactamase; fosfomycin; virulence factor; Antibiotics resistance; Fosfomycin; Hospital wastewater; Hypervirulence; Klebsiella; Multidrug resistants; One health; Resistance mechanisms; Virulence factors; Whole genome sequencing; antibiotic resistance; bacterium; DNA; genome; hospital sector; phenotype; solid waste; virulence; wastewater; agar dilution; antibiotic resistance; antibiotic resistome; antibiotic sensitivity; Article; bacterial virulence; bacterium isolation; biofilm; bioinformatics; broth dilution; carbapenemase producing Enterobacteriaceae; conjugation assay; controlled study; disk diffusion; DNA sequencing; drug sensitivity; effector delivery system; gene mutation; genome assembly; genome completeness; horizontal gene transfer; hospital wastewater; human; hydraulic retention time; hypervirulence; immunomodulation; Klebsiella pneumoniae; Klebsiella quasipneumoniae subsp. similipneumoniae; matrix assisted laser desorption ionization time of flight mass spectrometry; minimum inhibitory concentration; molecular genetics; multidrug resistant bacterium; multilocus sequence typing; nonhuman; nutritional status; plasmid; ResFinder database; taxonomy; type I secretion system; type II secretion system; type III secretion system; type IV secretion system; VFDB database; waste water management; whole genome sequencing; genetics; hospital; Klebsiella; metabolism; microbial sensitivity test; multidrug resistance; wastewater; Bacteria | Antibiotic resistance; Hypervirulence; Klebsiella; One health; Wastewater |
| High Genetic Similarity Among Salmonella Heidelberg Isolated from Poultry Farms, Wild Animals, Beef, Poultry and Pork Meat, and Humans in Brazil | Salmonellosis is an important gastrointestinal infection in humans and cause of foodborne outbreaks in the world. In this context, molecular characterization is essential to understand how the strains circulate. The aim of this study was to evaluate the genotypic distribution of S. Heidelberg according to the source of isolation. The genetic relatedness of the S. Heidelberg isolates was determined by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). The most prevalent pulsotypes of cluster A were BRJF6X01.006 (27/95 = 28,42%) related between 1995 and 2011 in broilers, poultry meat and poultry farms, meat product and human, and BRJF6X01.001 (21/95 = 22,10%) related between 2011 and 2017 in wild animals, broilers, poultry meat, poultry farms, meat product, animal feed, and pork meat. The pulsotype BRJF6X01.001 shows a high distribution in the environmental and productive chain. The degree of similarity between pulsotypes BRJF6X01.006 and BRJF6X01.001 is 88%. To ensure the safety of human and animal health, holistic approaches, including surveillance of Salmonella throughout the environment and in the production chain, together with control measures, are critical. As transmission of Salmonella from food producing animals to wildlife and to the environment is considered potential public health problem, information on the survival and persistence of Salmonella in the environment and in potential reservoirs is of considerable importance. © 2023, Fundacao APINCO de Ciencia e Tecnologia Avicolas. All rights reserved. | foodborne pathogens; one health; public health; pulsed-field gel electrophoresis; Salmonella Heidelberg |
| Academic Health Centers and Humanitarian Crises: One Health System’s Response to Unaccompanied Children at the Border | University of California Health (UCH) provided a system-wide, rapid response to the humanitarian crisis of unaccompanied children crossing the southern U.S. border in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021. In collaboration with multiple federal, state, and local agencies, UCH mobilized a multidisciplinary team to deliver acute general and specialty pediatric care to unaccompanied children at 2 Californian emergency intake sites (EISs). The response, which did not disrupt normal UCH operations, mobilized the capacities of the system and resulted in a safe and developmentally appropriate environment that supported the physical and mental health of migrant children during this traumatic period. The capacities of UCH’s 6 academic health centers ensured access to trauma-informed medical care and culturally sensitive psychological and social support. Child life professionals provided access to exercise, play, and entertainment. Overall, 260 physicians, 42 residents and fellows, 4 nurse practitioners participated as treating clinicians and were supported by hundreds of staff across the 2 EISs. Over 5 months and across both EISs, a total of 4,911 children aged 3 to 17 years were cared for. A total of 782 children had COVID-19, most infected before arrival. Most children (3,931) were reunified with family or sponsors. Continuity of care after reunification or placement in a long-term shelter was enhanced by use of an electronic health record. The effort provided an educational experience for residents and fellows with instruction in immigrant health and trauma-informed care. The effort benefitted from UCH’s recent experience of providing a system-wide response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Lessons learned are reported to encourage the alignment and integration of academic health centers’ capacities with federal, state, and local plans to better prepare for and respond to the accelerating need to care for those in the wake of disasters and humanitarian crises. Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. on behalf of the Association of American Medical Colleges. | Child; COVID-19; Disasters; Humans; One Health; Pandemics; Relief Work; child; disaster; human; One Health; pandemic; relief work |
| The Quinolone Resistance Genes in the Bacteriophage DNA Fractions in the Healthy Calf Stool Samples Via qPCR; [Sağlıklı Buzağı Dışkı Örneklerindeki Bakteriyofaj DNA Fraksiyonlarındaki Kinolon Direnç Genlerinin qPCR ile Belirlenmesi] | The One Health approach shows that people, animals, plants, and environmental factors can affect each other. Phages are one of the mobile genetic elements. Quinolones are a critical group of antibiotics for both human and animal health and monitoring their antimicrobial resistance is very important. The aim of the study is to determine the frequency of the quinolone resistance gene in bacteriophage DNA fractions obtained from healthy calf stool samples. In our study, 50 samples from 6-9 months old calves, which were found to be healthy and not treated with any group of antibiotics in Sanlıurfa province, were included. DNA isolation was made from phage lysates of stool samples and specific primers were used qnrA, qnrB and qnrS genes. qPCR was performed on LightCycler480. Despite not receiving any antibiotic treatment, qnrB was the most detected gene among the phage DNA fractions detected in 11 calves. While qnrA, qnrB and qnrS quinolone resistance genes were detected together in one sample, qnrB and qnrS resistance genes were found together in two samples. Our data, obtained from the study in Türkiye to search for antimicrobial resistance genes in phage fractions, showed the importance of the One Health approach and determined that it was highly effective in quinolone resistance gene shedding in healthy calves that had never been treated with antibiotics. It has been concluded that in empirical treatment with quinolone, attention should be paid to all living things and unconscious antibiotic use may cause the spread of resistance genes more than expected. © 2023, Veteriner Fakultesi Dergisi. All rights reserved. | bacteriophage DNA; quinolone; animal experiment; Article; bacterial gene; Bovine coronavirus; Bovine rotavirus A; calf (bovine); controlled study; Cryptosporidium; Escherichia coli; feces analysis; nonhuman; One Health; quinolone antibiotic resistance gene A; quinolone antibiotic resistance gene B; quinolone antibiotic resistance gene S; quinolone resistance gene; real time polymerase chain reaction | Antibiotic resistance genes; Bacteriophage; qPCR; Quinolone |
| Evolution and expansion of the One Health approach to promote sustainable and resilient health and well-being: A call to action | One Health is a transdisciplinary approach used to address complex concerns related to human, animal, plant, and ecosystem health. One Health frameworks and operational tools are available to support countries and communities, particularly for the prevention and control of zoonotic diseases and antimicrobial resistance and the protection of food safety. However, One Health has yet to be implemented in a manner that fully considers the complexities and interconnectedness of the diverse influences that have impacts at a larger system level. This lack of consideration can undermine the sustainability of any positive outcomes. To ensure the One Health approach can function effectively within the new global context of converging and escalating health, social, economic, and ecological crises, it must evolve and expand in three overlapping dimensions: (1) Scope: the partners, knowledge, and knowledge systems included, (2) Approach: the techniques, methodologies, and scholarship considered, and (3) Worldview inclusivity: the interweaving of other worldviews together with the mainstream scientific worldview that currently predominates. Diverse partners and knowledge from outside the mainstream health and scientific sectors, including Indigenous peoples and representatives of local communities, and traditionally generated knowledge, must be included. These systems of knowledge can then be braided together with mainstream science to comprise a holistic framework for decision-making. Scholarship and methodologies being applied in other fields and contexts to solve complex challenges and manage uncertainty, such as collaborative governance, social-ecologic systems theory, and complexity science, must be recognized and incorporated. The spectrum of considered worldviews must also expand to authentically integrate the expanded scope and approach into action and sustainable impact. By increasing community and social engagement and by recognizing and entwining different worldviews, the plurality of disciplines, and traditional and scientific ways of knowing to address community concerns in the contexts in which they exist, we can ensure that One Health remains effective and true to its paradigm in our rapidly changing and complex world. Copyright © 2023 Mumford, Martinez, Tyance-Hassell, Cook, Hansen, Labonté, Mazet, Mumford, Rizzo, Togami, Vreedzaam and Parrish-Sprowl. | Animals; Ecosystem; Humans; One Health; Zoonoses; animal; ecosystem; human; One Health; zoonosis | community; complexity; ecology; One Health; sustainability; systems; traditional indigenous knowledge; worldview |
| Understanding the Interplay between Antimicrobial Resistance, Microplastics and Xenobiotic Contaminants: A Leap towards One Health? | According to the World Health Organization, the two major public health threats in the twenty-first century are antibiotic-resistant bacteria and antibiotic-resistant genes. The reason for the global prevalence and the constant increase of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is owed to the steady rise in overall antimicrobial consumption in several medical, domestic, agricultural, industrial, and veterinary applications, with consequent environmental release. These antibiotic residues may directly contaminate terrestrial and aquatic environments in which antibiotic-resistance genes are also present. Reports suggest that metal contamination is one of the main drivers of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Moreover, the abundance of antibiotic-resistance genes is directly connected to the predominance of metal concentrations in the environment. In addition, microplastics have become a threat as emerging contaminants because of their ubiquitous presence, bio-inertness, toughness, danger to aquatic life, and human health implications. In the environment, microplastics and AMR are interconnected through biofilms, where genetic information (e.g., ARGs) is horizontally transferred between bacteria. From this perspective, we tried to summarize what is currently known on this topic and to propose a more effective One Health policy to tackle these threats. © 2022 by the authors. | Anti-Bacterial Agents; Anti-Infective Agents; Bacteria; Drug Resistance, Bacterial; Genes, Bacterial; Humans; Microplastics; One Health; Plastics; Xenobiotics; antibiotic agent; heavy metal; microplastic; xenobiotic agent; antiinfective agent; plastic; xenobiotic agent; antimicrobial activity; concentration (composition); polymer; public health; twenty first century; antibiotic resistance; antibiotic resistance gene; aquatic environment; Article; biofilm; concentration (parameter); environmental release; gene; global health; human; land biome; microplastic pollution; nonhuman; One Health; pollutant; prevalence; public health; antibiotic resistance; bacterial gene; bacterium; genetics; toxicity | antimicrobial resistance; environmental threatening; global health safety; microplastics; One Health; xenobiotic contaminants |
| Spore-Forming Clostridium (Clostridioides) difficile in Wastewater Treatment Plants in Western Australia | There is growing evidence that shows Clostridium (Clostridioides) difficile is a pathogen of One Health importance with a complex dissemination pathway involving animals, humans, and the environment. Thus, environmental discharge and agricultural recycling of human and animal waste have been suspected as factors behind the dissemination of Clostridium difficile in the community. Here, the presence of C. difficile in 12 wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in Western Australia was investigated. Overall, C. difficile was found in 90.5% (114/126) of raw sewage influent, 48.1% (50/104) of treated effluent, 40% (2/5) of reclaimed irrigation water, 100% (38/38) of untreated biosolids, 95.2% (20/21) of anaerobically digested biosolids, and 72.7% (8/11) of lime-amended biosolids. Over half of the isolates (55.3% [157/284]) were toxigenic, and 97 C. difficile ribotypes (RTs) were identified, with RT014/020 the most common (14.8% [42/284]). Thirteen C. difficile isolates with the toxin gene profile A1 B1 CDT1 (positive for genes coding for toxins A and B and the binary C. difficile transferase toxin [CDT]) were found, including the hypervirulent RT078 strain. Resistance to the antimicrobials fidaxomicin, vancomycin, metronidazole, rifaximin, amoxicillin-clavulanate, meropenem, and moxifloxacin was uncommon; however, resistance to clindamycin, erythromycin, and tetracycline was relatively frequent at 56.7% (161/284), 14.4% (41/284), and 13.7% (39/284), respectively. This study revealed that toxigenic C. difficile was commonly encountered in WWTPs and being released into the environment. This raises concern about the possible spillover of C. difficile into animal and/or human populations via land receiving the treated waste. In Western Australia, stringent measures are in place to mitigate the health and environmental risk of recycling human waste; however, further studies are needed to elucidate the public health significance of C. difficile surviving the treatment processes at WWTPs. IMPORTANCE Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) is a leading cause of antimicrobial-associated diarrhea in health care facilities. Extended hospital stays and recurrences increase the cost of treatment and morbidity and mortality. Community-associated CDI (CA-CDI) cases, with no history of antimicrobial use or exposure to health care settings, are increasing. The isolation of clinically important C. difficile strains from animals, rivers, soil, meat, vegetables, compost, treated wastewater, and biosolids has been reported. The objective of this study was to characterize C. difficile in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in Australia. We found that C. difficile can survive the treatment processes of WWTPs, and toxigenic C. difficile was being released into the environment, becoming a potential source/reservoir for CA-CDI. Copyright © 2022 Chisholm et al. | Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Biosolids; Clostridioides; Clostridioides difficile; Clostridium; Clostridium Infections; Humans; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Spores; Water Purification; Western Australia; bacterial toxin; clindamycin; Clostridium difficile toxin A; Clostridium difficile toxin B; Clostridium difficile transferase toxin; erythromycin; fidaxomicin; meropenem; metronidazole; moxifloxacin; rifaximin; tetracycline; unclassified drug; vancomycin; antiinfective agent; antibiotic sensitivity; Article; bacterial spore; bacterial strain; biosolid; Clostridioides difficile; Clostridium difficile infection; community acquired infection; diarrhea; effluent; environmental risk; genetic profile; health care facility; health hazard; irrigation (agriculture); molecular epidemiology; nonhuman; One Health; recycling; ribotyping; sewage; waste water management; waste water treatment plant; wastewater; Western Australia; animal; Clostridium; Clostridium infection; genetics; human; microbial sensitivity test; water management | bacterial spore; biosolids; Clostridium (Clostridioides) difficile; molecular epidemiology; One Health; sewage; wastewater |
| Detection of Morganella morganii bound to a plastic substrate in surface water | Objectives: Around the globe, escalation in rare opportunistic microbial infections is alarming as they are heading steadily towards ‘superbug’ status. In aquatic ecosystems, plastic fosters multidrug-resistant pathogenic bacteria and plays a significant role in trafficking antibiotic-resistant genes. In this study, we focused on a multidrug-resistant bacterial strain isolated from microbial communities found on plastic substrates of a volcanic lake in central Italy. Methods: Extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing strains were isolated from both raw water and plastic substrates for a comparative investigation using microbiological and molecular methods, and antibiotic susceptibility profiling was performed against a panel of ten antibiotics. Results: Molecular identification and Basic Local Alignment Search Tool analysis confirmed an almost identical sequencing pattern of two isolated strains and their homology with Morganella morganii. Antibiotic susceptibility tests revealed their resistance to almost all tested antibiotics. Class 1 integron-associated gene (intI1) and seven antibiotic resistance genes were detected in both strains, confirming their superbug status. Conclusion: To our knowledge, this is the first study on the characterization of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing M. morganii isolated from the biofilm of plastic substrates, depicting the potential toxicity of plastic in harbouring and dispersing virulent, multidrug-resistant, opportunistic human pathogens. © 2023 The Author(s) | Antibiotic resistance genes; Aquatic ecosystem; Artificial plastic substrate; Morganella morganii; One-Health |
| BOHEMIA: Broad One Health Endectocide-based Malaria Intervention in Africa—a phase III cluster-randomized, open-label, clinical trial to study the safety and efficacy of ivermectin mass drug administration to reduce malaria transmission in two African settings | Background: Residual malaria transmission is the result of adaptive mosquito behavior that allows malaria vectors to thrive and sustain transmission in the presence of good access to bed nets or insecticide residual spraying. These behaviors include crepuscular and outdoor feeding as well as intermittent feeding upon livestock. Ivermectin is a broadly used antiparasitic drug that kills mosquitoes feeding on a treated subject for a dose-dependent period. Mass drug administration with ivermectin has been proposed as a complementary strategy to reduce malaria transmission. Methods: A cluster randomized, parallel arm, superiority trial conducted in two settings with distinct eco-epidemiological conditions in East and Southern Africa. There will be three groups: human intervention, consisting of a dose of ivermectin (400 mcg/kg) administered monthly for 3 months to all the eligible population in the cluster (>15 kg, non-pregnant and no medical contraindication); human and livestock intervention, consisting human treatment as above plus treatment of livestock in the area with a single dose of injectable ivermectin (200 mcg/kg) monthly for 3 months; and controls, consisting of a dose of albendazole (400 mg) monthly for 3 months. The main outcome measure will be malaria incidence in a cohort of children under five living in the core of each cluster followed prospectively with monthly RDTs Discussion: The second site for the implementation of this protocol has changed from Tanzania to Kenya. This summary presents the Mozambique-specific protocol while the updated master protocol and the adapted Kenya-specific protocol undergo national approval in Kenya. BOHEMIA will be the first large-scale trial evaluating the impact of ivermectin-only mass drug administration to humans or humans and cattle on local malaria transmission Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.govNCT04966702. Registered on July 19, 2021. Pan African Clinical Trials Registry PACTR202106695877303. © 2023, The Author(s). | Animals; Cattle; Child; Culicidae; Humans; Insecticides; Ivermectin; Kenya; Malaria; Mass Drug Administration; Mosquito Control; Mosquito Vectors; One Health; insecticide; ivermectin; animal; bovine; child; clinical trial; controlled study; human; Kenya; malaria; mass drug administration; mosquito; mosquito control; mosquito vector; One Health; parasitology; phase 3 clinical trial; procedures; randomized controlled trial | Cluster-randomized; Endectocides; Ivermectin; Malaria; Mozambique |
| 2030 Agenda: discussion on Brazilian priorities facing air pollution and climate change challenges | The advance of human activities in a disorderly way has accelerated in recent decades, intensifying the environmental impacts directly linked to these practices. The atmosphere, essential for the maintenance of life, is increasingly saturated with pollutants, offering risks to practically all the inhabitants of the planet, a process that, in addition to causing illness and early mortality, is related to serious financial losses (including in the production of goods), dangerous temperature increase and severe natural disasters. Although this perception is not recent, the global initiative to control the different mechanisms that trigger the commitment of biodiversity and irreversible climate changes arising from pollution is still very incipient, given that global initiatives on the subject emerged just over 50 years ago. Brazil is a territory that centralizes many of these discussions, as it still faces both political and economic obstacles in achieving a sustainable growth model as it was agreed through the United Nations 2030 Agenda. Even though there is little time left for the completion of these goals, much remains to be done, and despite the fulfillment of this deadline, the works will certainly need to be extended for much longer until an effective reorientation of consciousness occurs. Scientific researches and discussions are fundamental tools to the understanding of issues still little explored in this field. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature. | Air Pollution; Biodiversity; Brazil; Climate Change; Environmental Pollution; Humans; Brazil; Latin America; atmospheric pollution; climate change; heat wave; human activity; pollutant; Sustainable Development Goal; wildfire; air pollution; biodiversity; Brazil; climate change; human; pollution | Contamination; Heat waves; Latin America; One health; Sustainable development goals; Wildfires |
| Aspergillosis in free-ranging Magellanic penguins | We evaluated the mortality due to aspergillosis in free-ranging Magellanic penguins during their migration and the reproductive season. A total of 98 carcasses of penguins were collected along 370 km of coastline in Southern Brazil, between June 2017 and October 2019, and from reproductive colonies in Patagonian Argentina, in January 2019. All animals were necropsied, and only proven cases were computed. Aspergillosis was diagnosed in 2.5% of the penguins evaluated during their migration route. Our study, of the Southern coast of Brazil, is the first to demonstrate that aspergillosis is an important cause of mortality in free-ranging penguins. The implications of these findings in the One Health context are discussed. © The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The International Society for Human and Animal Mycology.; We evaluated the mortality due to aspergillosis in free-ranging Magellanic penguins during their migration and the reproductive season. The mortality rate of penguins was 2.5% during their migration route. Our study is the first to demonstrate aspergillosis as an important cause of mortality in free-ranging penguins. | Animals; Argentina; Aspergillosis; Brazil; Seasons; Spheniscidae; animal; Argentina; aspergillosis; Brazil; epidemiology; penguin; season; veterinary medicine | Aspergillus spp; marine birds; One Health; opportunistic mycoses |
| Macroenvironmental interactions as driving indicators for detecting tetracycline resistance spread among A. hydrophila exposure to environmentally relevant oxytetracycline levels | There have been efforts dedicating to investigating the effect of high levels of oxytetracycline (OTC) on tetracycline (TC) resistance among zoonotic pathogen Aeromonas hydrophila (AH), an antibiotic-resistant bacterial indicator. However, the dynamic behavior of TC-resistant AH in response to environmentally relevant OTC concentrations at a population-level has not been fully understood. Here we developed a bacterial population dynamic model to quantify TC-resistant AH posed by OTC-dependent resistance selection pressure. The key environmental factors known as water temperature, water activity, and pH were incorporated into model to produce pattern-oriented simulation outcomes. We estimated resistance acquisition number (R0) and showed that R0 was >1 at water temperature <26 °C, indicating coexistence of resistant- and susceptible-AH. Sensitivity tests revealed that cell density-dependent conjugation rate indicated crucial for influencing R0 estimation. Our results also indicated that maximum fraction of TC-resistant AH was mostly affected by temperature/activity in water and increased with increasing of OTC concentrations. We estimated OTC concentrations causing 50 % maximum fold-change of TC-resistant AH fraction ranging from 7 to 19 µg/L. Our findings suggest that control of TC resistance in AH requires particularly attention to water with temperature 26 °C lower, water activity 0.95 higher with pH ∼ 5–8. Our mechanistic framework provides a useful tool-kit to improve our understanding of the critical role of OTC stress-induced macroenvironmental interactions in a TC resistance − AH system and highlights the potential for antimicrobial management to promote resilience in aquatic ecosystems. © 2023 The Author(s) | Water temperature; Aeromonas hydrophila; Bacterial indicators; Dynamic behaviors; Hydrophila; Macroenvironmental interaction; One health; Oxytetracycline; Tetracycline resistance; Water activity; Water temperatures; antibiotic resistance; bacterium; cell; coexistence; concentration (composition); density dependence; environmental indicator; oxytetracycline; pathogen; water temperature; Aquatic ecosystems | Aeromonas hydrophila; Aquatic ecosystems; Macroenvironmental interactions; One Health; Oxytetracycline; Tetracycline resistance |
| Assessment of knowledge, perception, practices and drivers of antimicrobial resistance and antimicrobial usage among veterinarians in Pakistan | Background: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and irrational antimicrobial usage (AMU) are a global problem, particularly evident in low- and middle-income countries including Pakistan. Our study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitudes and prescribing practices (KAP) of field veterinarians regarding AMR and AMU. Methods: A questionnaire-based online survey was conducted using Google forms to collect data on AMR and AMU from veterinary practitioners in Pakistan between July 25, 2020, and February 2, 2021. The questionnaire was comprised of four sections: 1) Demographic information of the respondents, 2) Knowledge about AMR, and AMU, 3) Antibiotic prescribing behavior, attitudes and influencing drivers and 4) Practices of respondents about AMU and drug disposal. Results: A total of 545 participants (Male 84%, Female 16%) completed the survey. The respondents’ qualification (P = 0.008), gender (P = 0.007) and type of practitioner (P < 0.001) had a significant association with the mean knowledge score about AMR. Most of the veterinarians had never attended any training, symposium, or awareness session on AMR (63%) and methods to detect antibiotic residues (71%). Participating veterinarians frequently included “critically important antimicrobials” in their treatment regimens. Most veterinarians (60%) prescribed antibiotics for viral diseases. Our study showed that about 44% of veterinarians disposed of expired drugs in the garbage. Antibiotics were prescribed as mass medication and for prophylaxis by 59% and 33% of the veterinarians, respectively, while about 60% of the veterinarians prescribed antibiotics starting with double doses in their treatment regimens. Importantly, only 4% of the veterinarians recognized the concept of One Health. Male veterinarians had higher odds of prescribing mass medication (OR=3.07, P < 0.001) and use of antibiotics for disease prophylaxis (OR=2.31, P = 0.002) than females, whereas improper disposal of expired antimicrobials (OR=2.12, P = 0.003) was more common in female veterinarians. Government veterinarians had 2 (OR=1.95, P = 0.016) and 3 (OR=3.05, P < 0.001) times higher odds to prescribe antibiotics prophylactically and for mass treatments, respectively compared to full-time private veterinarians. Conclusion: Our study identifies key factors influencing veterinarians’ decision about antimicrobial prescription and highlights important shortcomings such as lack of training on rational use of antimicrobials, frequent use of antimicrobials for mass medication and prophylaxis, widespread use of critically important antimicrobials, and improper disposal practices. There is a dire need to improve knowledge of veterinary practitioners regarding AMR and to adopt a One Health approach to rationalize AMU at the national level in line with the regional and international guidelines. © 2023 Elsevier B.V. | Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Anti-Infective Agents; Drug Resistance, Bacterial; Female; Humans; Male; Pakistan; Perception; Veterinarians; amoxicillin; antibiotic agent; ceftriaxone; enrofloxacin; gentamicin; oxytetracycline; penicillin derivative; tylosin; antiinfective agent; adult; antibiotic resistance; Article; controlled study; drug use; female; health personnel attitude; human; male; Pakistan; physician; prescribing practice; prophylaxis; questionnaire; veterinarian; virus infection; animal; antibiotic resistance; perception | Antimicrobial resistance; KAP survey; One Health; Pakistan; Veterinarians |
| Clinical characteristics and management of neurocysticercosis patients: a retrospective assessment of case reports from Europe | OBJECTIVES: Neurocysticercosis (NCC) is a parasitic disease caused by the larval stage of the tapeworm Taenia solium. NCC mainly occurs in Africa, Latin America and South-East Asia and can cause a variety of clinical signs/symptoms. Although it is a rare disease in Europe, it should nonetheless be considered as a differential diagnosis. The aim of this study was to describe clinical characteristics and management of patients with NCC diagnosed and treated in Europe. METHODS: We conducted a systematic search of published and unpublished data on patients diagnosed with NCC in Europe (2000-2019) and extracted demographic, clinical and radiological information on each case, if available. RESULTS: Out of 293 identified NCC cases, 59% of patients presented initially with epileptic seizures (21% focal onset); 52% presented with headache and 54% had other neurological signs/symptoms. The majority of patients had a travel or migration history (76%), mostly from/to Latin America (38%), Africa (32%) or Asia (30%). Treatment varied largely depending on cyst location and number. The outcome was favorable in 90% of the cases. CONCLUSIONS: Management of NCC in Europe varied considerably but often had a good outcome. Travel and migration to and from areas endemic for T. solium will likely result in continued low prevalence of NCC in Europe. Therefore, training and guidance of clinicians is recommended for optimal patient management. © International Society of Travel Medicine 2022. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com. | Animals; Europe; Humans; Neurocysticercosis; Prevalence; Retrospective Studies; Taenia solium; animal; case report; Europe; human; neurocysticercosis; prevalence; retrospective study; Taenia solium | Taenia solium ; Clinical epidemiology; Europe; Global Health; NCC management; neglected tropical diseases; Neurocysticercosis; One Health |
| Identification of risk areas for arboviruses transmitted by Aedes aegypti in northern Brazil: A One Health analysis | Introduction: The complex and growing problem generated by the rapid expansion of unplanned urban areas includes high population density and increased infestation by vectors responsible for the transmission of several diseases. This requires interdisciplinary and intersectoral interventions due to the burden of diseases, especially those caused by arboviruses, which can present severe forms and generate significant pressure on health systems, especially in more vulnerable regions. The objective of this study was to analyze the spatial distribution of arboviruses transmitted by Aedes aegypti (dengue, Zika, and chikungunya) and assess their correlations with demographic, social, and environmental data from the state of Tocantins, Brazil. Methods: This was an ecological time series study of the dengue, Zika, and chikungunya arboviruses in the state of Tocantins. Local Moran’s indices were used to observe the spatial autocorrelation of cases and to delimit clusters of high and low risks, correlating them with socioenvironmental indicators, in addition to analyses to detect case clusters. Results: The state reported a mean incidence of 591 annual cases of arbovirus infections per 100,000 inhabitants and a stationary trend with seasonal pattern. Female Pardo individuals aged 20–39 years, with an education level of below college education, were the most affected; Palmas and Araguaína, the two largest cities in the state in terms of economy and population, were the most affected. Conclusion: A better understanding of the interaction between social characteristics, the environment, and ecology of wild animals and vectors is important for the development of mechanisms to predict outbreaks as well as to develop strategies to reduce and/or mitigate recurring arboviral epidemics and other diseases. © 2023 The Authors | adult; Aedes aegypti; Article; autocorrelation; Brazil; chikungunya; Chikungunya virus; demographics; dengue; Dengue virus; economic aspect; education; environmental factor; female; human; infection risk; major clinical study; male; morbidity; nonhuman; season; social aspect; time series analysis; virus transmission; Zika fever; Zika virus | Arboviruses; Epidemiology; One health; Spatial analysis |
| Coping with in-locus factors and systemic contradictions affecting antibiotic prescription and dispensing practices in primary care-A qualitative One Health study in Brazil | Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is an increasing threat to global health. The risks and sanitary consequences of AMR are disproportionately experienced by those living in Low- and Middle- Income Countries (LMICs). While addressing antibiotic use has largely been documented in hospital settings, the understanding of social drivers affecting antibiotic prescribing and dispensing practices in the context of human and animal health in primary care (PC) in LMICs remains extremely limited. We seek to explore how in-locus and multi-level social factors influence antibiotic prescriptions and dispensing practices in the context of human and animal health in primary care in Brazil. This is a baseline qualitative One Health study; semi-structured interviews and field observations were undertaken in primary care sites located in a socioeconomically vulnerable area in the city of São Paulo, the most populated city of Brazil. Twenty-five human and animal healthcare professionals (HP) were purposely sampled. Interview data were subject to thematic analysis. Three overlapping social drivers were identified across HPs’ discourses: individual and behavioral challenges; relational and contextual factors influencing the overprescription of antibiotics (AB); and structural barriers and systemic contradictions in the health system. As a result of the interaction between multilevel in-locus and structural and contextual factors, HPs experience contextual and territorial challenges that directly influence their risk perception, diagnosis, use of laboratorial and image exams, time and decision to undergo treatment, choice of AB and strategies in coping with AB prescriptions. Additionally, in-locus factors influencing antibiotic prescriptions and dispensing practices are intertwined with individual accounts of risk management, systemic contradictions and ambivalences in the national health system. Our findings suggest interventions tackling AB use and AMR in Brazil should consider the social context, the complex health system structure and current integrated programs and services in PC. © 2023 da Silva-Brandao et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. | Adaptation, Psychological; Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Brazil; Humans; One Health; Prescriptions; Primary Health Care; antibiotic agent; antiinfective agent; adult; animal health; antibiotic therapy; Article; bacterial infection; Brazil; city; clinical practice; coping behavior; diagnosis; diagnostic imaging; dispensing practice; female; field observation; field study; health; health care organization; health care personnel; health care system; health program; health service; human; job experience; laboratory test; male; medical decision making; overprescribing; prescription; primary medical care; qualitative research; risk management; risk perception; Sao Paulo (state); semi structured interview; social aspect; socioeconomics; thematic analysis; veterinarian; animal; Brazil; coping behavior; One Health; prescription; primary health care |
| One Health Investigation of SARS-CoV-2 in People and Animals on Multiple Mink Farms in Utah | From July–November 2020, mink (Neogale vison) on 12 Utah farms experienced an increase in mortality rates due to confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection. We conducted epidemiologic investigations on six farms to identify the source of virus introduction, track cross-species transmission, and assess viral evolution. Interviews were conducted and specimens were collected from persons living or working on participating farms and from multiple animal species. Swabs and sera were tested by SARS-CoV-2 real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) and serological assays, respectively. Whole genome sequencing was attempted for specimens with cycle threshold values <30. Evidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection was detected by rRT-PCR or serology in ≥1 person, farmed mink, dog, and/or feral cat on each farm. Sequence analysis showed high similarity between mink and human sequences on corresponding farms. On farms sampled at multiple time points, mink tested rRT-PCR positive up to 16 weeks post-onset of increased mortality. Workers likely introduced SARS-CoV-2 to mink, and mink transmitted SARS-CoV-2 to other animal species; mink-to-human transmission was not identified. Our findings provide critical evidence to support interventions to prevent and manage SARS-CoV-2 in people and animals on mink farms and emphasizes the importance of a One Health approach to address emerging zoonoses. © 2022 by the authors. | Animals; Cats; COVID-19; Dogs; Farms; Humans; Mink; One Health; SARS-CoV-2; Utah; agricultural land; animal; cat; dog; epidemiology; genetics; human; Neovison vison; One Health; Utah; veterinary medicine | animals; coronavirus; COVID-19; mink; Neogale vison; One Health; SARS-CoV-2; zoonotic transmission |
| Genomic insights of mcr-1 harboring Escherichia coli by geographical region and a One-Health perspective | The importance of the One Health concept in attempting to deal with the increasing levels of multidrug-resistant bacteria in both human and animal health is a challenge for the scientific community, policymakers, and the industry. The discovery of the plasmid-borne mobile colistin resistance (mcr) in 2015 poses a significant threat because of the ability of these plasmids to move between different bacterial species through horizontal gene transfer. In light of these findings, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that countries implement surveillance strategies to detect the presence of plasmid-mediated colistin-resistant microorganisms and take suitable measures to control and prevent their dissemination. Seven years later, ten different variants of the mcr gene (mcr-1 to mcr-10) have been detected worldwide in bacteria isolated from humans, animals, foods, the environment, and farms. However, the possible transmission mechanisms of the mcr gene among isolates from different geographical origins and sources are largely unknown. This article presents an analysis of whole-genome sequences of Escherichia coli that harbor mcr-1 gene from different origins (human, animal, food, or environment) and geographical location, to identify specific patterns related to virulence genes, plasmid content and antibiotic resistance genes, as well as their phylogeny and their distribution with their origin. In general, E. coli isolates that harbor mcr-1 showed a wide plethora of ARGs. Regarding the plasmid content, the highest concentration of plasmids was found in animal samples. In turn, Asia was the continent that led with the largest diversity and occurrence of these plasmids. Finally, about virulence genes, terC, gad, and traT represent the most frequent virulence genes detected. These findings highlight the relevance of analyzing the environmental settings as an integrative part of the surveillance programs to understand the origins and dissemination of antimicrobial resistance. Copyright © 2023 Calero-Cáceres, Rodríguez, Medina, Medina, Ortuño-Gutiérrez, Sunyoto, Dias, Bastidas-Caldes, Ramírez and Harries. | agricultural land; animal food; antibiotic resistance; article; Asia; bacterial virulence; bacterium isolate; colistin resistance; Escherichia coli; human; human tissue; nonhuman; One Health; phylogeny; plasmid; whole genome sequencing | antibiotic resistance genes; colistin resistance; Escherichia coli; mcr-1; One Health; whole-genome sequencing |
| Mapping the evidence of the effects of environmental factors on the prevalence of antibiotic resistance in the non-built environment: Protocol for a systematic evidence map | Background: Human, animal, and environmental health are increasingly threatened by the emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance. Inappropriate use of antibiotic treatments commonly contributes to this threat, but it is also becoming apparent that multiple, interconnected environmental factors can play a significant role. Thus, a One Health approach is required for a comprehensive understanding of the environmental dimensions of antibiotic resistance and inform science-based decisions and actions. The broad and multidisciplinary nature of the problem poses several open questions drawing upon a wide heterogeneous range of studies. Objective: This study seeks to collect and catalogue the evidence of the potential effects of environmental factors on the abundance or detection of antibiotic resistance determinants in the outdoor environment, i.e., antibiotic resistant bacteria and mobile genetic elements carrying antibiotic resistance genes, and the effect on those caused by local environmental conditions of either natural or anthropogenic origin. Methods: Here, we describe the protocol for a systematic evidence map to address this, which will be performed in adherence to best practice guidelines. We will search the literature from 1990 to present, using the following electronic databases: MEDLINE, Embase, and the Web of Science Core Collection as well as the grey literature. We shall include full-text, scientific articles published in English. Reviewers will work in pairs to screen title, abstract and keywords first and then full-text documents. Data extraction will adhere to a code book purposely designed. Risk of bias assessment will not be conducted as part of this SEM. We will combine tables, graphs, and other suitable visualisation techniques to compile a database i) of studies investigating the factors associated with the prevalence of antibiotic resistance in the environment and ii) map the distribution, network, cross-disciplinarity, impact and trends in the literature. © 2022 The Authors | Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Bacteria; Bias; Drug Resistance, Microbial; Humans; Prevalence; Abstracting; Antibiotics; Bacteria; Genes; antiinfective agent; Antibiotic resistance genes; Antibiotic-resistant bacteria; Antibiotics resistance; ARB; ARG; Built environment; Environment; Environmental factors; One health; Systematic evidence mapping; abundance; antibiotic resistance; environmental conditions; environmental factor; mapping; scanning electron microscopy; antibiotic resistance; article; data extraction; drawing; Embase; environmental factor; grey literature; human; human experiment; Medline; mobile genetic element; One Health; practice guideline; prevalence; risk assessment; Web of Science; animal; antibiotic resistance; bacterium; genetics; prevalence; statistical bias; Risk assessment | Antibiotic resistance gene; Antibiotic resistant bacteria; ARB; ARG; Environment; One Health; SEM; Systematic evidence mapping |
| Antibiotic resistance genes, mobile elements, virulence genes, and phages in cultivated ESBL-producing Escherichia coli of poultry origin in Kwara State, North Central Nigeria | The paucity of information on the genomic diversity of drug-resistant bacteria in most food-producing animals, including poultry in Nigeria, has led to poor hazard characterization and the lack of critical control points to safeguard public health. Hence, this study used whole genome sequencing (WGS) to assess the presence and the diversity of antibiotic resistance genes, mobile genetic elements, virulence genes, and phages in Extended Spectrum Beta Lactamase producing Escherichia coli (ESBL – E. coli) isolates obtained from poultry via the EURL guideline of 2017 in Ilorin, Nigeria. The prevalence of ESBL – E. coli in poultry was 10.5 % (n = 37/354). The phenotypic antibiotic susceptibility testing showed that all the ESBL— E. coli isolates were multi-drug resistant (MDR). The in-silico analysis of the WGS raw-read data from 11 purposively selected isolates showed that the isolates had a wide array of ARGs that conferred resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics, and 8 other classes of antibiotics (fluoroquinolones, foliate pathway antagonists, aminoglycoside, phenicol, tetracycline, epoxide, macrolides, and rifamycin). All the ARGs were in the bacterial chromosome except in two isolates where plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance (PMQR) was detected. Two isolates carried the gyrAp.S83L mutation which confers resistance to certain fluoroquinolones. The mobilome consisted of several Col-plasmids and the predominant IncF plasmids belonged to the IncF64:A-:B27 sequence type. The virulome consisted of genes that function as adhesins, iron acquisition genes, toxins, and protectins. Intact phages were found in 8 of the 11 isolates and the phageome consisted of representatives of four families of viruses: Myoviridae (62.5 %, n = 5/8), Siphoviridae (37.5 %, n = 3/8), Inoviridae (12.5 %, n = 1), and Podoviridae (12.5 %, n = 1/8). ESBL – E. coli isolates harboured 1–5 intact phages and no ARGs were identified on any of the phages. Although five of the isolates belonged to phylogroup A, the isolates were diverse as they belonged to different serotype and sequence types. Our findings demonstrate the high genomic diversity of ESBL – E. coli of poultry origin in Ilorin, Nigeria. These diverse isolates harbor clinically relevant ARGs, mobile elements, virulence genes, and phages that may have detrimental zoonotic potentials on human health. © 2023 The Authors | Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Bacteriophages; beta-Lactamases; Drug Resistance, Microbial; Escherichia coli; Escherichia coli Infections; Fluoroquinolones; Humans; Nigeria; Plasmids; Poultry; Virulence; aminoglycoside antibiotic agent; ampicillin; antibiotic agent; azithromycin; beta lactam antibiotic; cefotaxime; ceftazidime; chloramphenicol; ciprofloxacin; colistin; epoxide; fosfomycin; genomic DNA; gentamicin; macrolide; meropenem; nalidixic acid; nucleotide; quinoline derived antiinfective agent; rifamycin; sulfamethoxazole; tetracycline; tigecycline; trimethoprim; virulence factor; antiinfective agent; beta lactamase; quinolone derivative; aminoglycoside resistance; ampicillin resistance; antibiotic resistance; antibiotic resistome; antibiotic sensitivity; Article; bacterial chromosome; bacterial virulence; bacterium isolate; beta-lactam resistance; broiler; broth dilution; cefotaxime resistance; ceftazidime resistance; chloramphenicol resistance; ciprofloxacin resistance; coliphage; colistin resistance; consanguinity; controlled study; extended spectrum beta lactamase producing Escherichia coli; fluoroquinolone resistance; gene insertion sequence; gentamicin resistance; illumina sequencing; Inoviridae; macrolide resistance; matrix assisted laser desorption ionization time of flight mass spectrometry; microbial diversity; minimum inhibitory concentration; mobile genetic element; multiplex polymerase chain reaction; Myoviridae; Nigeria; nonhuman; nucleotide sequence; Podoviridae; point mutation; poultry; serotype; Siphoviridae; tetracycline resistance; transposon; trimethoprim resistance; whole genome sequencing; animal; antibiotic resistance; bacteriophage; Escherichia coli; Escherichia coli infection; genetics; human; metabolism; microbiology; plasmid; poultry; veterinary medicine; virulence | AMR; ARGs; Coliphages; ESBL- E. coli; Nigeria; One-health; Poultry; WGS |
| Integrated human behavior and tick risk maps to prioritize Lyme disease interventions using a ‘One Health’ approach | Lyme disease (LD) risk is emerging rapidly in Canada due to range expansion of its tick vectors, accelerated by climate change. The risk of contracting LD varies geographically due to variability in ecological characteristics that determine the hazard (the densities of infected host-seeking ticks) and vulnerability of the human population determined by their knowledge and adoption of preventive behaviors. Risk maps are commonly used to support public health decision-making on Lyme disease, but the ability of the human public to adopt preventive behaviors is rarely taken into account in their development, which represents a critical gap. The objective of this work was to improve LD risk mapping using an integrated social-behavioral and ecological approach to: (i) compute enhanced integrated risk maps for prioritization of interventions and (ii) develop a spatially-explicit assessment tool to examine the relative contribution of different risk factors. The study was carried out in the Estrie region located in southern Québec. The blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis, infected with the agent of LD is widespread in Estrie and as a result, regional LD incidence is the highest in the province. LD knowledge and behaviors in the population were measured in a cross-sectional health survey conducted in 2018 reaching 10,790 respondents in Estrie. These data were used to create an index for the social-behavioral component of risk in 2018. Local Empirical Bayes estimator technique were used to better quantify the spatial variance in the levels of adoption of LD preventive activities. For the ecological risk analysis, a tick abundance model was developed by integrating data from ongoing long-term tick surveillance programs from 2007 up to 2018. Social-behavioral and ecological components of the risk measures were combined to create vulnerability index maps and, with the addition of human population densities, prioritization index maps. Map predictions were validated by testing the association of high-risk areas with the current spatial distribution of human cases of LD and reported tick exposure. Our results demonstrated that social-behavioral and ecological components of LD risk have markedly different distributions within Estrie. The occurrence of human LD cases or reported tick exposure in a municipality was positively associated with tick density and the prioritization risk index (p < 0.001). This research is a second step towards a more comprehensive integrated LD risk assessment approach, examining social-behavioral risk factors that interact with ecological risk factors to influence the management of emerging tick-borne diseases, an approach that could be applied more widely to vector-borne and zoonotic diseases. © 2022 | Animals; Bayes Theorem; Canada; Cross-Sectional Studies; Humans; Ixodes; Lyme Disease; Tick Bites; Article; Bayes theorem; behavior; cross-sectional study; disease association; human; incidence; Ixodes scapularis; Lyme disease; nonhuman; One Health; population abundance; Quebec; risk assessment; risk factor; social behavior; spatial analysis; animal; Canada; Ixodes; Lyme disease; tick bite | Ecological; Lyme disease; One health; Prevention; Risk maps; Social-behavioral |
| Presence of Anaplasma phagocytophilum Ecotype I in UK Ruminants and Associated Zoonotic Risk | Anaplasma phagocytophilum is the causative agent of tick-borne fever in sheep, pasture fever in cattle, and granulocytic anaplasmosis in humans. The increasing prevalence and transboundary spread of A. phagocytophilum in livestock, ticks, and wildlife in the UK poses a potential zoonotic risk that has yet to be estimated. Several ecotypes of A. phagocytophilum show variable zoonotic potential. To evaluate the possible risk associated with the transmission of A. phagocytophilum from ruminants to humans, the ecotype was determined by sequencing the groEL gene from 71 positive blood and tissue samples from UK ruminants. Thirty-four groEL sequences were obtained, fourteen of which were identified in multiple samples. Of the 13 nucleotide polymorphisms identified through pairwise comparison, all corresponded to synonymous substitutions. The subsequent phylogenetic estimation of the relationship with other European/world isolates indicated that all the groEL sequences clustered with other ecotype I sequences. The presence of ecotype I closely reflects that observed in ruminants in continental Europe and suggests a lower risk of zoonotic transmission from this reservoir. © 2023 by the authors. | Anaplasma phagocytophilum; ecotype; emerging zoonosis; One Health; phylogeny; reservoir; ruminants; surveillance; tick-borne fever; tick-borne pathogen |
| Gender and urban-rural influences on antibiotic purchasing and prescription use in retail drug shops: a one health study | Introduction: Few studies have reported antibiotic purchases from retail drug shops in relation to gender in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). Using a One Health approach, we aimed to examine gender dimensions of antibiotic purchases for humans and animals and use of prescriptions in retail drug shops in Bangladesh. Methods: We conducted customer observations in 20 drug shops in one rural and one urban area. Customer gender, antibiotic purchases, and prescription use were recorded during a four-hour observation (2 sessions of 2 hours) in each shop. We included drug shops selling human medicine (n = 15); animal medicine (n = 3), and shops selling both human and animal medicine (n = 2). Results: Of 582 observations, 31.6% of drug shop customers were women. Women comprised almost half of customers (47.1%) in urban drug shops but only 17.2% of customers in rural drug shops (p < 0.001). Antibiotic purchases were more common in urban than rural shops (21.6% versus 12.2% of all transactions, p = 0.003). Only a quarter (26.0%) of customers who purchased antibiotics used a prescription. Prescription use for antibiotics was more likely among women than men (odds ratio (OR) = 4.04, 95% CI 1.55, 10.55) and more likely among urban compared to rural customers (OR = 4.31 95% CI 1.34, 13.84). After adjusting for urban-rural locality, women remained more likely to use a prescription than men (adjusted OR = 3.38, 95% CI 1.26, 9.09) but this was in part due to antibiotics bought by men for animals without prescription. Customers in drug shops selling animal medicine had the lowest use of prescriptions for antibiotics (4.8% of antibiotic purchases). Conclusion: This study found that nearly three-quarters of all antibiotics sold were without prescription, including antibiotics on the list of critically important antimicrobials for human medicine. Men attending drug shops were more likely to purchase antibiotics without a prescription compared to women, while women customers were underrepresented in rural drug shops. Antibiotic stewardship initiatives in the community need to consider gender and urban-rural dimensions of drug shop uptake and prescription use for antibiotics in both human and animal medicine. Such initiatives could strengthen National Action Plans. © 2023, The Author(s). | Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Consumer Behavior; Female; Humans; Male; One Health; Prescriptions; Rural Population; antiinfective agent; animal; consumer attitude; female; human; male; One Health; prescription; rural population | Antibiotics; Community health services; Drug resistance; Drug shop; Gender equality and social inclusion (GESI); Low income and middle-income countries; Observation; Pharmacy; Prescription |
| Investigation of antibiotic-resistant vibrios associated with shrimp (Penaeus vannamei) farms | For the sustainable farming of disease-free and healthy shrimps, antimicrobial use is frequent nowadays in shrimp-cultured system. Considering the serious impact of global antimicrobial resistance (AMR), the present study was focused to investigate the prevalence of antimicrobial-resistant vibrios among infected shrimps (Penaeus vannamei) from two brackish water-cultured farms. Diverse species of vibrios viz. V. alginolyticus, V. parahaemolyticus, V. cholerae, V. mimicus, and V. fluvialis along with Aeromonas hydrophila, A. salmonicida and Shewanella algae were recovered from the shrimps on TCBS medium. Shannon–Wiener diversity index and H’ (loge) were 1.506 and 1.69 for the isolates from farm 1 and farm 2, respectively. V. alginolyticus was found to be the most resistant isolate by showing multiple antibiotic resistance (MAR) index of 0.60 followed by V. mimicus (0.54) and V. parahaemolyticus (0.42). Among the 35 antibiotics of 15 different classes tested, tetracyclines, beta-lactams and cephalosporins were found as the most resistant antibiotic classes. All the isolates possessed a MAR index > 0.2 and the majority exhibited minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) > 256 mcg/ml, thereby indicating the excess exposure of antibiotics in the systems. An enhanced altered resistance phenotype and a significant shift in the MAR index were noticed after plasmid curing. Public health is further concerning because plasmid-borne AMR is evident among the isolates and the studied shrimp samples are significant in the food industry. This baseline information will help the authorities to curb antimicrobial use and pave the way for establishing new alternative strategies by undertaking a multidimensional “One-Health” approach. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature. | Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Anti-Infective Agents; Penaeidae; Vibrio; Vibrio cholerae; Vibrio parahaemolyticus; amikacin; aminoglycoside; amoxicillin; amoxicillin plus clavulanic acid; ampicillin; antibiotic agent; arabinose; arginine decarboxylase; azithromycin; aztreonam; beta lactam antibiotic; brackish water; carbapenem; carbohydrate; catalase; cefalotin; cefazolin; cefepime; cefixime; cefoperazone; cefotaxime; cefoxitin; ceftazidime; ceftriaxone; cefuroxime; cephalosporin derivative; chloramphenicol; ciprofloxacin; cotrimoxazole; doripenem; enrofloxacin; erythromycin; gelatin; genomic DNA; gentamicin; glucose; glycerol; glycopeptide; imipenem; lactose; levofloxacin; mannitol; mannose; meropenem; nitrate; nitrofuran derivative; nitrofurantoin; norfloxacin; ornithine decarboxylase; oxidoreductase; oxytetracycline; piperacillin; polymyxin B; rifampicin; RNA 16S; streptomycin; sucrose; sulfonamide; tetracycline derivative; tobramycin; urease; vancomycin; antiinfective agent; Aeromonas hydrophila; Aeromonas salmonicida; agricultural land; animal experiment; animal model; animal tissue; antibiotic resistance; antibiotic sensitivity; Article; controlled study; hemolymph; hepatopancreas; loss of appetite; microbial community; minimum inhibitory concentration; nonhuman; One Health; Penaeus vannamei; phenotypic variation; plasmid; prevalence; public health; salt tolerance; Shannon index; Shewanella; Shewanella algae; shrimp farming; species richness; Vibrio; Vibrio alginolyticus; Vibrio cholerae; Vibrio fluvialis; Vibrio mimicus; Vibrio parahaemolyticus; vibriosis; animal; Penaeidae; Vibrio cholerae; Vibrio parahaemolyticus | Antimicrobial resistance; Penaeus vannamei; Plasmid curing; Shrimp; Vibrio |
| Genome-based risk assessment for foodborne Salmonella enterica from food animals in China: A One Health perspective | Salmonella is one of the most common causes of foodborne bacterial disease. Animal-borne foods are considered the primary sources of Salmonella transmission to humans. However, genomic assessment of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and virulence of Salmonella based on One Health approach remains obscure in China. For this reason, we analyzed the whole genome sequencing data of 134 Salmonella isolates recovered from different animal and meat samples in China. The 134 Salmonella were isolated from 2819 samples (4.75 %) representing various sources (pig, chicken, duck, goose, and meat) from five Chinese provinces (Zhejiang, Guangdong, Jiangxi, Hunan, and Qinghai). AMR was evaluated by the broth dilution method using 13 different antimicrobial agents, and results showed that 85.82 % (115/134) of isolates were resistant to three or more antimicrobial classes and were considered multidrug-resistant (MDR). Twelve sequence types (STs) were detected, with a dominance of ST469 (29.85 %, 40/134). The prediction of virulence genes showed the detection of cdtB gene encoding typhoid toxins in one isolate of S. Muenster recovered from chicken, while virulence genes associated with type III secretion systems were detected in all isolates. Furthermore, plasmid-type prediction showed the abundance of IncFII(S) (13/134; 9.7 %) and IncFIB(S) (12/134; 8.95 %) in the studied isolates. Together, this study demonstrated the ability to use whole-genome sequencing (WGS) as a cost-effective method to provide comprehensive knowledge about foodborne Salmonella isolates in One Health surveillance approach. © 2023 Elsevier B.V. | Antimicrobial resistance gene; Food animals; One health; Salmonella; Whole genome sequencing |
| Emerging parasites and vectors in a rapidly changing world: from ecology to management | Global changes have influenced our societies in several ways with both positive (e.g., technology, transportation, and food security), and negative impacts (e.g., mental health problems, spread of diseases, and pandemics). Overall, these changes have affected the distribution patterns of parasites and arthropod vectors with the introduction and spreading of alien species in new geographical areas, eventually posing new challenges in public health. In this framework, the Acta Tropica Special Issue “Emerging parasites and vectors in a rapidly changing world: from ecology to management” provides a focus on the biology, ecology and management of emerging parasites and vectors of human and veterinary importance. Herein we review and discuss novel studies dealing with interactions of parasites and vectors with animals in changing environmental settings. In our opinion, a special focus on the implementation of management strategies of parasitic diseases to face anthropogenic environmental changes still represent a priority for public health. In the final section, key research challenges in this rapidly changing scenario are outlined. © 2022 Elsevier B.V. | Animals; Arthropod Vectors; Ecology; Environment; Humans; Parasites; Parasitic Diseases; anthropogenic effect; climate change; disease vector; environmental stress; fly; globalization; mosquito; parasite; parasitic disease; parasitology; public health; tick; Article; disease carrier; ecology; entomology; environmental change; host parasite interaction; human; mental disease; mosquito; One Health; parasite; parasitology; parasitosis; Phlebotominae; public health; tick; zoonosis; animal; arthropod vector; ecology; environment; parasitosis | anthropogenic stressors; climatic changes; delusional parasitology; globalization; helminths; mosquitoes; One Health; parasitic protozoans; sand flies; ticks; zoonoses |
| Xenobiotic-induced ribosomal stress compromises dysbiotic gut barrier aging: A one health perspective | Upon exposure to internal or environmental insults, ribosomes stand sentinel. In particular, stress-driven dysregulation of ribosomal homeostasis is a potent trigger of adverse outcomes in mammalians. The present study assessed whether the ribosomal insult affects the aging process via the regulation of sentinel organs such as the gut. Analyses of the human aging dataset demonstrated that elevated features of ribosomal stress are inversely linked to barrier maintenance biomarkers during the aging process. Ribosome-insulted worms displayed reduced lifespan, which was associated with the disruption of gut barriers. Mechanistically, ribosomal stress-activated Sek-1/p38 signaling, a central platform of ribosomal stress responses, counteracted the gut barrier deterioration through the maintenance of the gut barrier, which was consistent with the results in a murine insult model. However, since the gut-protective p38 signaling was attenuated with aging, the ribosomal stress-induced distress was exacerbated in the gut epithelia and mucosa of the aged animals, subsequently leading to increased bacterial exposure. Moreover, the bacterial community-based evaluation predicted concomitant increases in the abundance of mucosal sugar utilizers and mucin metabolic enzymes in response to ribosomal insult in the aged host. All of the present evidence on ribosomal insulting against the gut barrier integrity from worms to mammals provides new insights into organelle-associated translational modulation of biological longevity in a one health perspective. © 2022 The Authors | Aged; Aging; Animals; Humans; Longevity; Mammals; Mice; One Health; Ribosomes; Signal Transduction; Xenobiotics; xenobiotic agent; aged; aging; animal; human; longevity; mammal; metabolism; mouse; One Health; ribosome; signal transduction | Deoxynivalenol; Gut aging; Gut barrier; Microbiota; Ribosomal stress |
| Impact of Dementia on Long-Term Hip Fracture Surgery Outcomes: An Electronic Health Record Analysis | Objective: Older adults with dementia are at higher risk for sustaining hip fracture and their long-term health outcomes after surgery are usually worse than those without dementia. Widespread adoption of electronic health records (EHRs) may allow hospitals to better monitor long-term health outcomes in patients with dementia after hospitalization. This study aimed to (1) estimate how dementia influences discharge location, mortality, and readmission 180 days and 1 year after hip fracture surgery in older adults, and (2) demonstrate the feasibility of using selection-bias reduced EHR data for research and long-term health outcomes monitoring. Design: Retrospective observational cohort study using EHRs. Setting and Participants: A cohort of 1171 patients over age 65 years who had an initial hip fracture surgery between October 2015 and December 2018 was extracted from EHRs of one health system; 376 of these patients had dementia. Methods: Logistic regression was applied to estimate influences of dementia on discharge disposition and Cox proportional hazards model for mortality. The Fine and Gray regression model was used to analyze readmission, accounting for the competing risk of death. To reduce selection bias in EHRs, inverse probability of treatment weighting using propensity scores was implemented before modeling. Results: Dementia had significant impacts on all outcomes: being discharged to facilities [odds ratio (OR) = 2.11, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.19–3.74], 180-day mortality [hazard ratio (HR) = 1.69, 95% CI 1.20–2.38], 1-year mortality (HR = 1.78, 95% CI 1.33–2.38), 180-day readmission (HR = 1.62, 95% CI 1.39–1.89), and 1 year readmission (HR = 1.39, 95% CI 1.21–1.58). Conclusions and Implications: Dementia was a significant risk factor for worse long-term outcomes. The inverse probability of treatment weighting approach can be used to reduce selection bias in EHR data for research and monitoring long-term health outcomes in the target population. Such monitoring could foster collaborations with post-acute and long-term health care services to improve recovery outcomes in patients with dementia after hip fracture surgery. © 2022 AMDA – The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine | Aged; Dementia; Electronic Health Records; Hip Fractures; Humans; Retrospective Studies; Risk Factors; aged; alcohol consumption; Article; Charlson Comorbidity Index; cognitive defect; cohort analysis; comorbidity; controlled study; cumulative incidence; dementia; electronic health record; female; femoral neck fracture; femur intertrochanteric fracture; femur subtrochanteric fracture; follow up; health service; hip fracture; hip hemiarthroplasty; hospital admission; hospital discharge; hospital readmission; hospitalization; human; length of stay; long term care; major clinical study; male; medicare; mortality; multidisciplinary team; nursing home; observational study; One Health; open fracture reduction; osteosynthesis; propensity score; randomized controlled trial (topic); retrospective study; total hip replacement; risk factor | dementia; Electronic health records; hip fracture; mortality; propensity score; readmission |
| “Carbon Net Zer0 2030” strategy of Canary Islands Health Service; [Estrategia «Salud Zer0 Emisiones Netas 2030» del Servicio Canario de la Salud] | The Canary Islands Health Service is aware of the health risks arising from climate change. So health systems must be, with their action, part of the solution, not part of the problem. Currently, 4.4% of global carbon dioxide emissions come from activities related to the health field. To respond to this situation, the Canary Islands Health Service has launched the “Carbon Net Zer0 2030” strategy intending to achieve neutrality in net carbon emissions in the year 2030, applying measures direct and indirect, especially on the supply chain of the public health system. This is a ground-breaking project in Spain and is under continuous review, adding new specific actions to the strategy as the carbon footprint of the different procedures involved in the provision of health services is quantified. © 2022 SESPAS | Air Pollutants; Climate Change; Health Services; Humans; Spain; air pollutant; case report; climate change; health service; human; Spain | Air pollutants; Carbon footprint; Environment; Environmental pollution; Global warming; One health; Zoonoses |
| Antibiotic use by poultry farmers in Kiambu County, Kenya: exploring practices and drivers of potential overuse | Background: Antibiotic resistance is a global concern threatening achievements in health care since the discovery of antibiotics. In Kenya, this topic remains understudied in a context of rising demand for livestock products, intensification and the concomitant increase in antibiotic use. Our study investigates drivers and practices of antibiotic use in poultry farming. The study was conducted in Kiambu County, Kenya. Methods: A qualitative research methodology was employed: fourteen key informant interviews, twenty in-depth interviews, and four focus group discussions were undertaken. The interviews were semi-structured. Themes and subthemes from the interviews were generated through inductive analysis. Findings: Of the farmers interviewed, sixty eight percent were female, thirty three percent of the sampled farmers could not read, and the majority (eight five percent) of farmers had reared poultry for at least ten years. Research findings showed that farmers extensively used antibiotics. Antibiotic use was influenced by factors such as high disease burden, access to medicines and economic pressure. Common practices included prophylactic use, use of antibiotics to enhance production, self-prescription use, use of combination antibiotics (A combination antibiotic is one in which two or more antibiotics are added together for additional therapeutic effect.), and antibiotics classified as critically important in human medicine. Key information sources for the farmers were agro- veterinary dispensers, sellers of day-old chicks, and peer-learning. External factors driving the inappropriate use of antibiotics included access to the antibiotics, influence by marketers such as sellers of day-old chicks, and branding. Use of antibiotics was also driven by economic factors among the farmers, sellers of day-old chicks and agro-veterinary dispensers. Conclusions: Our findings indicate widespread use of antibiotics among poultry farmers in our study site. The use of antibiotics is influenced by an interplay of issues at the farmers’ level as well as broader social, economic and structural level factors. A multifaceted One Health approach focusing on regulatory frameworks, knowledge transfer, and research is required to promote stewardship and judicious use of antibiotics. © 2023, The Author(s). | Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Farmers; Female; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Humans; Kenya; Male; Poultry; antiinfective agent; agricultural worker; animal; attitude to health; female; human; Kenya; male; poultry | Antibiotic resistance; Drivers; One health; Perceptions and practices; Poultry; Qualitative methods |
| Insights on seroprevalence of leptospirosis in dogs and cats from people with animal hoarding disorder profile in a semiarid region of Brazil; [Percepções sobre a soroprevalência de leptospirose em cães e gatos de pessoas com perfil de acumuladores de animais em uma região semiárida do Brasil] | Animal hoarding disorder, especially dogs and cats, is a complex issue that occurs in almost all communities, and it is necessary to collect data that contribute to the understanding of leptospirosis within the One Health initiative. In order to determine the seroprevalence of Leptospira sp., 71 dogs and 39 cats from 33 people with animal hoarding profile in the municipality of Patos, state of Paraíba, semi-arid region of Northeastern Brazil were evaluated by using the microscopic serum agglutination test (MAT) as diagnostic test. Thirty-eight animals (34.5%; 95% CI = 25.7 – 43.4%) were seroreactive, with 46.5% in dogs and 12.8% in cats (P < 0.01), with the highest frequency of the Icterohaemorrhagiae serogroup in both species. The high seroprevalence reported suggests the need for public policies for this vulnerable population in order to prevent the transmission of zoonoses. © 2023, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria. All rights reserved. | companion animals; Leptospira sp; One Health; public policies |
| Rapid response screening for emerging zoonotic pathogens, barriers and opportunities: A study for enhanced preparedness of the Netherlands | Background: Outbreaks of zoonotic emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) require rapid identification of potential reservoir hosts and mapping disease spread in these hosts to inform risk assessment and adequate control measures. Animals are often understudied when a novel EID is detected in humans and acquisition of animal samples is hampered by practical, ethical, and legal barriers, of which there is currently no clear overview. Therefore, the three aims of this study are (1) to map potentially available collections of animal samples, (2) to assess possibilities and barriers for reuse of these samples and (3) to assess possibilities and barriers for active animal and environmental sampling in the Netherlands. Methods: A literature search was performed to identify ongoing sampling activities and opportunities for reuse or active sampling. Semi-structured interviews with stakeholder organizations were conducted to gain further insight into the three research questions. Results: Various sample collections of surveillance, diagnostic and research activities exist in the Netherlands. Sample size, coverage, storage methods and type of samples collected differs per animal species which influences reuse suitability. Organizations are more likely to share samples, for reuse in outbreak investigations, when they have a pre-existing relationship with the requesting institute. Identified barriers for sharing were, among others, unfamiliarity with legislation and unsuitable data management systems. Active sampling of animals or the environment is possible through several routes. Related barriers are acquiring approval from animal- or property owners, conflicts with anonymization, and time needed to acquire ethical approval. Conclusion: The animal sample collections identified would be very valuable for use in outbreak investigations. Barriers for sharing may be overcome by increasing familiarity with legislation, building (international) sharing networks and agreements before crises occur and developing systems for sample registration and biobanking. Proactive setting up of ethical approvals will allow for rapid animal sample collection to identify EID hosts and potential spillovers. © 2023 | anonymization; Article; diagnostic procedure; disease surveillance; environmental parameters; epidemic; human; legal aspect; Netherlands; nonhuman; publication; sample size; screening test; semi structured interview; stakeholder engagement; zoonosis | Animals; Emerging diseases; Netherlands; One health; Outbreak investigation; Zoonoses |
| Does a One Health approach to human African trypanosomiasis control hasten elimination? A stochastic compartmental modeling approach | Background:. In response to large strides in the control of human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), in the early 2000s the WHO set targets for elimination of both the gambiense (gHAT) and rhodesiense (rHAT) forms as a public health (EPHP) problem by 2020, and elimination of gHAT transmisson (EOT) by 2030. While global EPHP targets have been met, and EOT appears within reach, current control strategies may fail to achieve gHAT EOT in the presence of animal reservoirs, the role of which is currently uncertain. Furthermore, rHAT is not targeted for EOT due to the known importance of animal reservoirs for this form. Methods:. To evaluate the utility of a One Health approach to gHAT and rHAT EOT, we built and parameterized a compartmental stochastic model, using the Institute for Disease Modeling’s Compartmental Modeling Software, to six HAT epidemics: the national rHAT epidemics in Uganda and Malawi, the national gHAT epidemics in Uganda and South Sudan, and two separate gHAT epidemics in Democratic Republic of Congo distinguished by dominant vector species. In rHAT foci the reservoir animal sub-model was stratified on four species groups, while in gHAT foci domestic swine were assumed to be the only competent reservoir. The modeled time horizon was 2005-2045, with calibration performed using HAT surveillance data and Optuna. Interventions included insecticide and trypanocide treatment of domestic animal reservoirs at varying coverage levels. Results:. Validation against HAT surveillance data indicates favorable performance overall, with the possible exception of DRC. EOT was not observed in any modeled scenarios for rHAT, however insecticide treatment consistently performed better than trypanocide treatment in terms of rHAT control. EOT was not observed for gHAT at 0% coverage of domestic reservoirs with trypanocides or insecticides, but was observed by 2030 in all test scenarios; again, insecticides demonstrated superior performance to trypanocides. Conclusions: EOT likely cannot be achieved for rHAT without control of wildlife reservoirs, however insecticide treatment of domestic animals holds promise for improved control. In the presence of domestic animal reservoirs, gHAT EOT may not be achieved under current control strategies. © 2022 Elsevier B.V. | Africa; Democratic Republic Congo; Malawi; South Sudan; Uganda; disease control; disease incidence; disease prevalence; disease treatment; disease vector; health geography; health monitoring; medical geography; performance assessment; stochasticity; trypanosomiasis; World Health Organization | HAT; Human African trypanosomiasis; One Health; Stochastic compartmental models; Zoonoses |
| Feline Susceptibility to Leptospirosis and Presence of Immunosuppressive Co-Morbidities: First European Report of L. interrogans Serogroup Australis Sequence Type 24 in a Cat and Survey of Leptospira Exposure in Outdoor Cats | Leptospirosis is one of the most widespread zoonotic diseases and can infect both humans and animals worldwide. The role of the cat as a susceptible host and potential environmental reservoir of Leptospira is still not well understood, due to the lack of obvious clinical signs associated with Leptospira spp. infection in this species. This study aims to describe the first European detection of Leptospira interrogans serogroup Australis ST 24 in a young outdoor cat with a severe comorbidity (feline panleukopenia virus). In addition, the results of a preliminary study conducted in 2014–2016 are presented (RC IZSVE 16/12), which reports an investigation of Leptospira exposure of outdoor cats in Northeast Italy by means of serological investigation and molecular evaluation of urine. The animals included in the survey are part of samples collected during active and passive surveillance (diagnostic samples). The study reported a seroprevalence of 10.5% among outdoor cats and the serogroups identified were Grippotyphosa, Icterohaemorrhagiae, Bratislava, Canicola and Ballum. Symptomatic cats reported high MAT titres (ranging from 1:800 to 1:1600) towards antigens belonging to the serovars Grippotyphosa (1:800), Bratislava (1:1600), Icterohaemorrhagiae (1:200) and Copenhageni (1:200–1:800). In one subject, urine tested positive for Leptospira PCR. Cats with high antibody titres for Leptospira and/or positivity on molecular test suffered from immunosuppressive comorbidities (feline immunodeficiency virus and feline leukaemia virus; feline herpesvirus and lymphoma; hyperthyroidism). The overall prevalence of serum antibodies against Leptospira found in free-ranging cats (10.53%, 95% CI: 4.35–16.70%) and the identification of L. interrogans ST 24 in a young cat with immunosuppressive disease (feline panleukopenia virus) suggest the possibility of natural resistance to clinical leptospirosis in healthy cats. In a One Health perspective, further studies are needed to better define the pathogenesis of leptospirosis in cats and their epidemiological role as environmental sentinels or possible carriers of pathogenic Leptospira. © 2023 by the authors. | antigen; itraconazole; itrafungol; agglutination test; animal experiment; animal tissue; animal welfare; antibody blood level; antibody titer; Article; bacterium identification; cat; clinical feature; controlled study; dermatomycosis; DNA isolation; Feline herpesvirus; Feline immunodeficiency virus; Feline leukemia virus; Feline panleukopenia virus; genetic susceptibility; Italy; kidney tissue; Leptospira interrogans; leptospirosis; nonhuman; One Health; passive surveillance; private practice; real time polymerase chain reaction; sentinel species; seroprevalence; sudden death | cat; co-morbidities; immunosuppression; Leptospira; microscopic agglutination test (MAT); multi locus sequence typing; real-time PCR; susceptibility |
| One health system supporting surveillance during COVID-19 epidemic in Abruzzo region, southern Italy | The Istituti Zooprofilattici Sperimentali (IZSs) are public health institutes dealing with the aetiology and pathogenesis of infectious diseases of domestic and wild animals. During Coronavirus Disease 2019 epidemic, the Italian Ministry of Health appointed the IZSs to carry out diagnostic tests for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 in human samples. In particular, the IZS of Abruzzo and Molise (IZS-Teramo) was involved in the diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 through testing nasopharyngeal swabs by Real Time RT-PCR. Activities and infrastructures were reorganised to the new priorities, in a “One Health” framework, based on interdisciplinary, laboratory promptness, accreditation of the test for the detection of the RNA of SARS-CoV-2 in human samples, and management of confidentiality of sensitive data. The laboratory information system – SILAB – was implemented with a One Health module for managing data of human origin, with tools for the automatic registration of information improving the quality of the data. Moreover, the “National Reference Centre for Whole Genome Sequencing of microbial pathogens – database and bioinformatics analysis” – GENPAT – formally established at the IZS-Teramo, developed bioinformatics workflows and IT dashboard with ad hoc surveillance tools to support the metagenomics-based SARS-CoV-2 surveillance, providing molecular sequencing analysis to quickly intercept the variants circulating in the area. This manuscript describes the One Health system developed by adapting and integrating both SILAB and GENPAT tools for supporting surveillance during COVID-19 epidemic in the Abruzzo region, southern Italy. The developed dashboard permits the health authorities to observe the SARS-CoV-2 spread in the region, and by combining spatio-temporal information with metagenomics provides early evidence for the identification of emerging space-time clusters of variants at the municipality level. The implementation of the One Health module was designed to be easily modelled and adapted for the management of other diseases and future hypothetical events of pandemic nature. © 2022 | Article; bioinformatics; coronavirus disease 2019; diagnostic procedure; diagnostic test; epidemic; geographic mapping; health care surveillance; health care system; human; Italy; metagenomics; nasopharyngeal swab; One Health; real time polymerase chain reaction; sequence analysis; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; spatiotemporal analysis; virus detection | Bioinformatics analysis; COVID-19 surveillance; GIS; Laboratory information system; Metagenomics; One health |
| The Pork Food Chain as a Route of Transmission of Antimicrobial Resistant Escherichia coli: A Farm-to-Fork Perspective | Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a public health risk that needs to be faced from a One Health perspective that includes humans, animals, and environmental health. The food production chain has been identified as a possible route of transmission of AMR bacteria to humans. The most critical phenomenon is related to Critically Important Antimicrobial (CIA) resistance. β-lactams antibiotics (cephalosporin of 3rd, 4th generation, carbapenem, monobactams, and penicillins), quinolones, aminoglycosides, polymyxin, and glycylcyclines were the CIAs chosen in this study. Samples derived from all the stages of the pork food production chain were collected, including pig feces, carcasses, and pork food products (fresh meat, fermented, and seasoned). Escherichia coli were isolated, and AMR and MDR profiles were evaluated. Enterobacterial Repetitive Intragenic Consensus (ERIC-PCR) was used to evaluate phylogenetic similarities. Data showed that 50% of phenotypical AMR observed in the entire pork food chain were related phylogenetically. The contamination of fresh meat, in half of the cases, was not directly related to contamination from feces or carcasses. Despite this, some similarities were found between feces and carcasses. In group analysis, phylogenetic similarities were detected in a 3/36 cluster (8.3%). Nevertheless, further studies are needed to improve consumer risk communication and access to clear and reliable information and health concerns on food labels. © 2023 by the authors. | AMR; E. coli; farm-to-fork; food chain; one health; pork |
| Are microplastics contributing to pollution-induced neurotoxicity? A pilot study with wild fish in a real scenario | Pollution-induced neurotoxicity is of high concern. This pilot study investigated the potential relationship between the presence of microplastics (MPs) in the brain of 180 wild fish (Dicentrarchus labrax, Platichthys flesus, Mugil cephalus) from a contaminated estuary and the activity of the acetylcholinesterase (AChE) enzyme. MPs were found in 9 samples (5% of the total), all of them from D. labrax collected in the summer, which represents 45% of the samples of this species collected in that season (20). Seventeen MPs were recovered from brain samples, with sizes ranging from 8 to 96 μm. Polyacrylamide, polyacrylic acid and one biopolymer (zein) were identified by Micro-Raman spectroscopy. Fish with MPs showed lower (p ≤ 0.05) AChE activity than those where MPs were not found. These findings point to the contribution of MPs to the neurotoxicity induced by long-term exposure to pollution, stressing the need of further studies on the topic to increase ‘One Health’ protection. © 2023 | AChE activity; Brain; Microplastics; Neurotoxicity; One health; Wild fish |
| Antimicrobial usage and associated residues and resistance emergence in smallholder beef cattle production systems in Nigeria: A One Health challenge | Livestock intensification has facilitated antimicrobial use (AMU) with consequent antimicrobial resistance (AMR) development. We assessed AMU in beef farms, pathways for residues and resistance dissemination to humans, risk status, residues identification, and drivers for antimicrobial residues and resistance emergence in beef cattle production systems. A cross-sectional survey was conducted in randomly selected beef farms of Northern Nigeria, between 2018 and 2019. Traffic Light model and Disc Diffusion Test were used to assess risk status and determined residues, respectively. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and logistic regression models at 95% confidence level. About 92% (n = 608) farmers participated. The majority of farmers managing intensive (78.9%) and semi-intensive (76.6%) farms did not follow antimicrobial dosage instructions. Also, 72.4% and 83.9% of the farmers on intensive and semi-intensive systems, respectively, did not observed withdrawal periods after AMU. Furthermore, 71.5% farmers in intensive and 53.2% in semi-intensive farms used antimicrobials as growth promoters. Antimicrobials frequently used include tetracyclines, sulfonamides and penicillin. Antimicrobial residues and resistance dissemination pathways from beef herds were: consumption of contaminated meat with residues (p = 0.007); contacts with contaminated cattle and fomites (p < 0.001); and contaminated manure and aerosols in farm environment (p = 0.003). Significant drivers of residues and resistance emergence were antimicrobial misuse and overuse (OR = 2.72; 95% CI:1.93–3.83), non-enforcement of laws (OR = 2.98; 95% CI:2.11–4.21), poor education and expertise (OR = 1.52; 95% CI:1.09–2.12), and husbandry management system (OR = 10.24; 95% CI:6.75–15.54). The majority of intensive (63.6%) and semi-intensive (57.63%) farm systems belonged to Class 3 (Red risk) status. Antimicrobial residues were detected in 48.4% intensively and 34.4% semi-intensively managed farms. The study revealed poor practices of AMU in beef cattle production. Many factors were found to influenced antimicrobial residues and resistance occurrence and dissemination. A ‘One Health’ approach mitigation with adequate sanitation, hygiene, and good biosecurity measures will assure food safety, public and environmental health. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V. | Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Anti-Infective Agents; Cattle; Cross-Sectional Studies; Farmers; Humans; Nigeria; penicillin derivative; sulfonamide; tetracycline; antiinfective agent; antibiotic resistance; antibiotic sensitivity; antimicrobial usage; Article; beef cattle; beef cattle production; breeding; controlled study; disk diffusion; drug misuse; drug use; environmental health; food safety; geographic distribution; Nigeria; nonhuman; residue analysis; socioeconomics; agricultural worker; animal; bovine; cross-sectional study; human; Nigeria | Antimicrobial residues; Antimicrobial resistance; Antimicrobial use; Beef animals; Food safety; One Health |
| Characterization of the bacterial microbiome of Swedish ticks through 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing of whole ticks and of individual tick organs | Background: The composition of the microbial flora associated with ixodid ticks has been studied in several species, revealing the importance of geographical origin, developmental stage(s) and feeding status of the tick, as well as substantial differences between tissues and organs. Studying the microbiome in the correct context and scale is therefore necessary for understanding the interactions between tick-borne pathogens and other microorganisms as well as other aspects of tick biology. Methods: In the present study the microbial flora of whole Ixodes ricinus, I. persulcatus and I. trianguliceps ticks were analyzed with 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing. Additionally, tick organs (midguts, Malpighian tubules, ovaries, salivary glands) from flat and engorged I. ricinus female ticks were examined with the same methodology. Results: The most abundant bacteria belonged to the group of Proteobacteria (Cand. Midichloria mitochondrii and Cand. Lariskella). 16S amplicon sequencing of dissected tick organs provided more information on the diversity of I. ricinus-associated microbial flora, especially when organs were collected from engorged ticks. Bacterial genera significantly associated with tick feeding status as well as genera associated with the presence of tick-borne pathogens were identified. Conclusions: These results contribute to the knowledge of microbial flora associated with ixodid ticks in their northernmost distribution limit in Europe and opens new perspectives for other investigations on the function of these bacteria, including those using other approaches like in vitro cultivation and in vitro models. Graphical Abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]. © 2023, The Author(s). | Animals; Bacteria; Female; Ixodes; Microbiota; RNA, Ribosomal, 16S; Sweden; RNA 16S; animal; bacterium; female; genetics; Ixodes; microbiology; microflora; Sweden | 16S; Borrelia; Community profiling; Endosymbiont; Ixodes ricinus; Microbiota; Midichloria; NGS; One Health; Tick-borne pathogens |
| Emergence of Anaplasma Species Related to A. phagocytophilum and A. platys in Senegal | The genus Anaplasma (Anaplasmataceae, Rickettsiales) includes tick-transmitted bacterial species of importance to both veterinary and human medicine. Apart from the traditionally recognized six Anaplasma species (A. phagocytophilum, A. platys, A. bovis, A. ovis, A. centrale, A. marginale), novel strains and candidate species, also of relevance to veterinary and human medicine, are emerging worldwide. Although species related to the zoonotic A. platys and A. phagocytophilum have been reported in several African and European Mediterranean countries, data on the presence of these species in sub-Saharan countries are still lacking. This manuscript reports the investigation of Anaplasma strains related to zoonotic species in ruminants in Senegal by combining different molecular tests and phylogenetic approaches. The results demonstrated a recent introduction of Candidatus (Ca) Anaplasma turritanum, a species related to the pathogenic A. platys, possibly originating by founder effect. Further, novel undetected strains related to Candidatus (Ca) Anaplasma cinensis were detected in cattle. Based on groEL and gltA molecular comparisons, we propose including these latter strains into the Candidatus (Ca) Anaplasma africanum species. Finally, we also report the emergence of Candidatus (Ca) A. boleense in Senegal. Collectively, results confirm that Anaplasma species diversity is greater than expected and should be further investigated, and that Anaplasma routine diagnostic procedures and epidemiological surveillance should take into account specificity issues raised by the presence of these novel strains, suggesting the use of a One Health approach for the management of Anaplasmataceae in sub-Saharan Africa. © 2022 by the authors. | Anaplasma; Anaplasmataceae; Animals; Cattle; Humans; Phylogeny; RNA, Ribosomal, 16S; Ruminants; Senegal; Sheep; RNA 16S; Anaplasma; Anaplasmataceae; animal; bovine; epidemiology; genetics; human; phylogeny; ruminant; Senegal; sheep | Anaplasma diversity; obligate intracellular bacteria; one health; tick-borne diseases; zoonosis |
| One health clones of multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli carried by synanthropic animals in Brazil | WHO priority pathogens have disseminated beyond hospital settings and are now being detected in urban and wild animals worldwide. In this regard, synanthropic animals such as urban pigeons (Columba livia) and rodents (Rattus rattus, Rattus norvegicus and Mus musculus) are of interest to public health due to their role as reservoirs of pathogens that can cause severe diseases. These animals usually live in highly contaminated environments and have frequent interactions with humans, domestic animals, and food chain, becoming sentinels of anthropogenic activities. In this study, we report genomic data of Escherichia coli strains selected for ceftriaxone and ciprofloxacin resistance, isolated from pigeons and black rats. Genomic analysis revealed the occurrence of international clones belonging to ST10, ST155, ST224 and ST457, carrying a broad resistome to beta-lactams, aminoglycosides, trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole, fluoroquinolones, tetracyclines and/or phenicols. SNP-based phylogenomic investigation confirmed clonal relatedness with high-risk lineages circulating at the human-animal-environmental interface globally. Our results confirm the dissemination of WHO priority CTX-M-positive E. coli in urban rodents and pigeons in Brazil, highlighting potential of these animals as infection sources and hotspot for dissemination of clinically relevant pathogens and their resistance genes, which is a critical issue within a One Health perspective. © 2022 The Authors | aminoglycoside antibiotic agent; beta lactam antibiotic; ceftriaxone; ciprofloxacin; cotrimoxazole; quinoline derived antiinfective agent; tetracycline derivative; antibiotic resistance; antibiotic sensitivity; Article; bacterial genome; bacterium culture; bacterium identification; Brazil; Columba livia; controlled study; disease reservoir; disease severity; domestic animal; food chain; genetic analysis; genetic resistance; human; human impact (environment); molecular cloning; multidrug resistant Escherichia coli; Mus musculus; nonhuman; One Health; phylogenomics; public health; rat; Rattus norvegicus; Rattus rattus; sentinel species; single nucleotide polymorphism; social interaction; whole genome sequencing; World Health Organization | Antimicrobial resistance; Enterobacterales; ESBL; Genomic surveillance; One health; Pigeons; Rats; Resistome; Urban wildlife |
| Effect of a karst system (France) on extended spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli | Karst aquifers are an important water resource worldwide particularly exposed to anthropogenic pollution, including antibiotic-resistance. The release of antibiotic-resistant bacterial pathogens in the environment is a major public health challenge worldwide. In this One Health study, we aimed to determine the effect of karst on antibiotic-resistant bacteria. For this purpose, we determined the concentrations of extended-spectrum β-lactamases-producing Escherichia coli (ESBL-Ec) for 92 weeks in a rural karst hydrosystem providing drinking water. ESBL-Ec isolates (n = 130) were sequenced by whole genome sequencing. We analysed the isolates at different levels of granularity, i.e., phylogroup, sequence type, presence of antibiotic-resistance genes, mutations conferring antibiotic-resistance, and virulence genes. The ESBL-Ec concentrations were spatially and temporally heterogeneous in the studied karst hydrosystem. ESBL-Ec isolates survived in the karst and their concentrations were mostly explained by the hydrodynamic of the hydrosystem. We demonstrate that the studied karst has no filtration effect on ESBL-Ec, either quantitatively (i.e., in the ESBL-Ec concentrations) or qualitatively (i.e., in the genetic characteristics of ESBL-Ec isolates). © 2023 | Anti-Bacterial Agents; beta-Lactamases; Drug Resistance, Microbial; Escherichia coli; Escherichia coli Infections; Humans; France; Antibiotics; Aquifers; Genes; Hydrogeology; Landforms; Potable water; Water pollution; bacterial DNA; caffeine; ciprofloxacin; clarithromycin; clindamycin; cotrimoxazole; dissolved oxygen; drinking water; erythromycin; metronidazole; norfloxacin; ofloxacin; organic carbon; sulfadimidine; water; antiinfective agent; beta lactamase; Antibiotic resistance genes; Antibiotics resistance; Hydro-system; Karst; Karst aquifer; Karst system; Lactamases; One health; Spectra’s; Waters resources; antibiotic resistance; coliform bacterium; karst; public health; water resource; antibiotic resistance; aquifer; Article; bacterial mutation; bacterial survival; bacterial virulence; core genome; extended spectrum beta lactamase producing Escherichia coli; flow rate; France; genetic trait; genotyping; hydrodynamics; limit of quantitation; maximum likelihood method; nonhuman; physical chemistry; waste water treatment plant; watershed; whole genome sequencing; antibiotic resistance; Escherichia coli; Escherichia coli infection; genetics; human; microbiology; Escherichia coli | Antibiotic-resistance; Escherichia coli; Karst; One health; Water resource |
| Data report on three datasets: Mortality patterns between agricultural and non-agricultural ward areas | The health of the farming community in Northern Ireland (NI) requires further research as previous mortality studies have reported contradictory results regarding farmers’ health outcomes compared against other occupations and the general population. This study collated the NINIS area-level farm census with the population census information across 582 non-overlapping wards of NI to compile three mortality datasets (2001, 2011, and pooled dataset) (NISRA 2019). These datasets allow future researchers to investigate the influence of demographic, farming, and economic predictors on all-cause mortality at the ward level. The 2001 and 2011 mortality datasets were compiled for cross-sectional analyses and subsequently pooled for longitudinal analyses. Findings from these datasets will provide evidence of the influence of Farming Intensity scores influence on death risk within the wards for future researchers to utilise. This data report will aid in the understanding of socio-ecological variables’ additive contribution to the risk of death at the ward level within NI. This data report is of interest to the One Health research community as it standardises the environment−human−animal data to pave the way towards a new One Health research paradigm. For example, future researchers can use this nationally representative data to investigate whether agriculturally saturated wards have a higher mortality risk than non-agriculturally based wards of NI. Copyright © 2023 Trearty, Bunting and Mallett. | agricultural worker; all cause mortality; animal experiment; animal model; article; cross-sectional study; demography; human; medical research; mortality; mortality risk; neighborhood; nonhuman; Northern Ireland; One Health; population | aggregated data; agricultural versus non-agricultural wards; area-level data; death trends; farm census; Northern Ireland; Northern Ireland Neighbourhood Service (NINIS); population census |
| Leptospira borgpetersenii Leucine-Rich Repeat Proteins Provide Strong Protective Efficacy as Novel Leptospiral Vaccine Candidates | Leucine-rich repeat (LRR) proteins are advocated for being assessed in vaccine development. Leptospiral LRR proteins were identified recently in silico from the genome of Leptospira borgpetersenii serogroup Sejroe, the seroprevalence of leptospiral infections of cattle in Thailand. Two LRR recombinant proteins, rKU_Sej_LRR_2012M (2012) and rhKU_Sej_LRR_2271 (2271), containing predicted immunogenic epitopes, were investigated for their cross-protective efficacies in an acute leptospirosis model with heterologous Leptospira serovar Pomona, though, strains from serogroup Sejroe are host-adapted to bovine, leading to chronic disease. Since serovar Pomona is frequently reported as seropositive in cattle, buffaloes, pigs, and dogs in Thailand and causes acute and severe leptospirosis in cattle by incidental infection, the serogroup Sejroe LRR proteins were evaluated for their cross-protective immunity. The protective efficacies were 37.5%, 50.0%, and 75.0% based on the survival rate for the control, 2012, and 2271 groups, respectively. Sera from 2012-immunized hamsters showed weak bactericidal action compared to sera from 2271-immunized hamsters (p < 0.05). Therefore, bacterial tissue clearances, inflammatory responses, and humoral and cell-mediated immune (HMI and CMI) responses were evaluated only in 2271-immunized hamsters challenged with virulent L. interrogans serovar Pomona. The 2271 protein induced prompt humoral immune responses (p < 0.05) and leptospiral tissue clearance, reducing tissue inflammation in immunized hamsters. In addition, protein 2271 and its immunogenic peptides stimulated splenocyte lymphoproliferation and stimulated both HMI and CMI responses by activating Th1 and Th2 cytokine gene expression in vaccinated hamsters. Our data suggest that the immunogenic potential renders rhKU_Sej_LRR_2271 protein a promising candidate for the development of a novel cross-protective vaccine against animal leptospirosis. © 2022 by the authors. | disease prevention; emerging and re-emerging diseases; leptospirosis; leucine-rich repeat (LRR); one health; tropical infectious diseases; vaccine |
| WildHealthNet: Supporting the development of sustainable wildlife health surveillance networks in Southeast Asia | Wildlife and wildlife interfaces with people and livestock are essential surveillance targets to monitor emergent or endemic pathogens or new threats affecting wildlife, livestock, and human health. However, limitations of previous investments in scope and duration have resulted in a neglect of wildlife health surveillance (WHS) systems at national and global scales, particularly in lower and middle income countries (LMICs). Building on decades of wildlife health activities in LMICs, we demonstrate the implementation of a locally-driven multi-pronged One Health approach to establishing WHS in Cambodia, Lao PDR and Viet Nam under the WildHealthNet initiative. WildHealthNet utilizes existing local capacity in the animal, public health, and environmental sectors for event based or targeted surveillance and disease detection. To scale up surveillance systems to the national level, WildHealthNet relies on iterative field implementation and policy development, capacity bridging, improving data collection and management systems, and implementing context specific responses to wildlife health intelligence. National WHS systems piloted in Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Viet Nam engaged protected area rangers, wildlife rescue centers, community members, and livestock and human health sector staff and laboratories. Surveillance activities detected outbreaks of H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza in wild birds, African swine fever in wild boar (Sus scrofa), Lumpy skin disease in banteng (Bos javanicus), and other endemic zoonotic pathogens identified as surveillance priorities by local stakeholders. In Cambodia and Lao PDR, national plans for wildlife disease surveillance are being signed into legislation. Cross-sectoral and trans-disciplinary approaches are needed to implement effective WHS systems. Long-term commitment, and paralleled implementation and policy development are key to sustainable WHS networks. WildHealthNet offers a roadmap to aid in the development of locally-relevant and locally-led WHS systems that support the global objectives of the World Organization for Animal Health’s Wildlife Health Framework and other international agendas. © 2022 The Authors | African Swine Fever; Animals; Animals, Wild; Asia, Southeastern; Cattle; Humans; Influenza A Virus, H5N1 Subtype; Influenza in Birds; Swine; Cambodia; Laos; Viet Nam; Agriculture; Conservation; Health risks; Information management; Sustainable development; Cambodia; Health surveillances; Human health; Network; One health; Surveillance; Surveillance networks; Surveillance systems; Wildlife disease; Wildlife health; disease; international organization; local participation; pathogen; stakeholder; sustainability; wildlife management; African swine fever; animal; avian influenza; bovine; epidemiology; human; Influenza A virus (H5N1); pig; Southeast Asia; wild animal; Animals | Network; One Health; Pathogen; Surveillance; Wildlife disease |
| Molecular screening of SARS-CoV-2 in dogs and cats from households with infected owners diagnosed with COVID-19 during Delta and Omicron variant waves in Iran | Objective: The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in dogs and cats in different countries worldwide raises concerns that pets are at a higher risk for spreading or transmitting of SARS-CoV-2 to humans and other pets and increased the research works about the zoonotic aspects and natural routes of infection in companion animals. The current study aimed to detect the SARS-CoV-2 in household dogs and cats living with COVID-19 positive owners. Methods: Deep oropharyngeal and rectal swabs were collected from 30 household pets (20 cats and 10 dogs) living with COVID-19 positive owners from April 2021 to 2022 in Kerman, Iran. All dogs’ and cats’ samples were tested by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction for detection of SARS-CoV-2. Results: Two household cats out of 20 examined (10%) were positive for SARS-CoV-2, whereas none of the examined dogs were positive for SARS-CoV-2. The two cats positive for SARS-CoV-2 were symptomatic and suffered from severe anorexia with maximum contact with their infected owners. Conclusion: This study reported the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in household cats in close contact with COVID-19 positive owners during the circulation of new SARS-CoV-2 variants (Delta and Omicron) in Iran and suggested that the transmission may have occurred from owners to their cats. Therefore, infected owners should eagerly limit close contact with their pets during COVID-19 illness. © 2022 The Authors. Veterinary Medicine and Science published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. | Animals; Cat Diseases; Cats; COVID-19; Dog Diseases; Dogs; Humans; Iran; SARS-CoV-2; RNA directed RNA polymerase; animal experiment; animal model; anorexia; Article; cat; controlled study; coronavirus disease 2019; DNA extraction; dog; feces analysis; female; fever; gene amplification; household; male; nonhuman; polymerase chain reaction; questionnaire; real time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction; rectal swab; reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction; RNA extraction; SARS-CoV-2 Delta; SARS-CoV-2 Omicron; sequence analysis; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; virus isolation; virus transmission; animal; cat disease; dog; dog disease; human; Iran; veterinary medicine | One Health; pet owners; pets; SARS-CoV-2 delta and Omicron variant |
| Molecular epidemiology of Clostridioides difficile in companion animals: Genetic overlap with human strains and public health concerns | Introduction: The changing epidemiology of Clostridioides difficile reflects a well-established and intricate community transmission network. With rising numbers of reported community-acquired infections, recent studies tried to identify the role played by non-human reservoirs in the pathogen’s transmission chain. This study aimed at describing the C. difficile strains circulating in canine and feline populations, and to evaluate their genetic overlap with human strains to assess the possibility of interspecies transmission. Methods: Fecal samples from dogs (n = 335) and cats (n = 140) were collected from two populations (group A and group B) in Portugal. C. difficile isolates were characterized for toxigenic profile and PCR-ribotyping. The presence of genetic determinants of antimicrobial resistance was assessed in all phenotypically resistant isolates. To evaluate the genetic overlap between companion animals and human isolates from Portugal, RT106 (n = 42) and RT014/020 (n = 41) strains from both sources were subjected to whole genome sequencing and integrated with previously sequenced RT106 (n = 43) and RT014/020 (n = 142) genomes from different countries. The genetic overlap was assessed based on core-single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) using a threshold of 2 SNP. Results: The overall positivity rate for C. difficile was 26% (76/292) in group A and 18.6% (34/183) in group B. Toxigenic strains accounted for 50% (38/76) and 52.9% (18/34) of animal carriage rates, respectively. The most prevalent ribotypes (RT) were the toxigenic RT106 and RT014/020, and the non-toxigenic RT010 and RT009. Antimicrobial resistance was found for clindamycin (27.9%), metronidazole (17.1%) and moxifloxacin (12.4%), associated with the presence of the ermB gene, the pCD-METRO plasmid and point mutations in the gyrA gene, respectively. Both RT106 and RT014/020 genetic analysis revealed several clusters integrating isolates from animal and human sources, supporting the possibility of clonal interspecies transmission or a shared environmental contamination source. Discussion: This study shows that companion animals may constitute a source of infection of toxigenic and antimicrobial resistant human associated C. difficile isolates. Additionally, it contributes with important data on the genetic proximity between C. difficile isolates from both sources, adding new information to guide future work on the role of animal reservoirs in the establishment of community associated transmission networks and alerting for potential public health risk. Copyright © 2023 Alves, Castro, Pinto, Nunes, Pomba, Oliveira, Silveira, Gomes and Oleastro. | Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Cat Diseases; Cats; Clostridioides; Clostridioides difficile; Clostridium Infections; Dog Diseases; Dogs; Humans; Molecular Epidemiology; Public Health; antiinfective agent; animal; cat; cat disease; Clostridium infection; dog; dog disease; genetics; human; molecular epidemiology; public health; veterinary medicine | antimicrobial resistance; CDI trends; Clostridioides difficile; companion animals; one health; SNP analysis; whole genome sequencing |
| First detection of Blastocystis sp. in migratory whooper swans (Cygnus cygnus) in China | Blastocystis is a usual intestinal protist that always found in humans and various animals. Currently, the prevalence of Blastocystis in the migratory whooper swan (Cygnus cygnus) is unknown. In our research, we aimed to determine the occurrence, prevalence, subtype distribution and dynamic transmission mechanisms of Blastocystis in the migratory whooper swan in China. We also assessed the zoonotic potential of Blastocystis isolates, as well as possible routes of transmission and impact of this organism on One Health perspective. Fecal samples (n = 770) were collected from whooper swans inhabiting the Sanmenxia Swan Lake National Urban Wetland Park, China. The overall prevalence of Blastocystis was 11.6% (89/770). We identified 9 subtypes of Blastocystis sp., including 5 zoonotic subtypes [ST1 (Cakir et al., 2019 (8)), ST4 (Selma and Karanis, 2011 (4)), ST5 (Stensvold et al., 2009 (1)), ST6 (Fare et al., 2019 (5)) and ST7(58)] and 3 host-specific subtypes [ST10 (Zhao et al., 2018 (7)), ST14 (Tan et al., 2010 (2)), ST23 (Wang et al., 2018 (3)), and ST25 (Stensvold et al., 2009 (1))]. Subtypes ST4, ST5, ST6, ST10, ST14, ST23, and ST25 were first identified in the whooper swan. Among these subtypes, ST23 and ST25 were identified in birds for the first time, indicating that these subtypes are expanding their host range. So far, this is the first research reporting on the prevalence and subtypes distribution of Blastocystis in the migratory whooper swan in China. The findings obtained in this study will provide new insights into the genetic diversity and transmission routes of Blastocystis, and the possible public health concerns posed by this organism. © 2023 The Authors | article; Blastocystis; China; feces; genetic variability; host range; human; human cell; major clinical study; nonhuman; One Health; prevalence; public health; swan; wetland | Blastocystis; Cygnus cygnus; Public health; Zoonotic |
| A retrospective analysis of schistosomiasis related literature from 2011-2020: Focusing on the next decade | Background: Schistosomiasis, an ancient and neglected tropical disease, which poses a huge threat to over 200 million people globally. It is necessary to have a general summary of schistosomiasis research after the new roadmap 2021–2030 issued by WHO. This study analyzes the current status of schistosomiasis research from the perspective of the One Health concept by analyzing important research literature published from 2011 to 2020, while further highlighting research priorities, difficulties, and research directions in order to propose suggestions for tropical disease studies research. Methods: Published literature related to schistosomiasis was searched from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) database. Focusing on a visual analysis of the main research literature in the field of schistosomiasis, CiteSpace software was used to conduct co-occurrence analysis with keywords, countries, institutions, and authors. Moreover, clustering and burst analyses of keywords and co-citation analysis of authors, publications, and journals were performed. Results: A total of 6638 schistosomiasis-related articles were published from 2011 to 2020, all of which can be sourced from the WoSCC database. The publication of schistosomiasis research has remained stable over the past 10 years, and contains studies in the area of human epidemiology, animal surveillance and the environment. The top five high-frequency keywords included Schistosoma mansoni, schistosomiasis, infection, praziquantel, and Schistosoma japonicum. The keywords formed nine clusters, including praziquantel, epidemiology, Schistosoma japonicum, helminths, protein, diagnosis, schistosomiasis, response, and haematobium. In recent years, most research studies focused on the mechanism of liver fibrosis, eliminating schistosomiasis, controlling risk factors, and the relationship between schistosomiasis infection and host immunity. The most productive countries include the United States, China, and Brazil, and the most productive institutions are the University of Basel, the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, and the University of São Paulo. Highly productive authors include Jürg Utzinger and Donald P. McManus. At the time of writing, the author with the highest co-citation frequency (993 times) was Peter Hotez, and the journal with the highest co-citation frequency (3,720 times) was PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases. Human schistosomiasis, published by Colley et al. (2014), was the most frequently co-cited publication (494 times). Conclusions: This study provides a preliminary description of the current status of schistosomiasis research and an initial exploration of future research directions. The One Health concept was applied in the field of schistosomiasis control, as confirmed by this bibliometric analysis. Our study provides guidance for the development of research on schistosomiasis and other neglected tropical diseases. © 2022 | Animals; Bibliometrics; Humans; Neglected Diseases; Praziquantel; Retrospective Studies; Schistosoma japonicum; Schistosomiasis; United States; praziquantel; cohort analysis; database; disease control; schistosomiasis; software; tropical region; World Health Organization; Article; Brazil; China; data base; disease elimination; human; immunity; liver fibrosis; One Health; risk factor; Schistosoma japonicum; Schistosoma mansoni; schistosomiasis; software; United States; World Health Organization; animal; bibliometrics; neglected disease; retrospective study; Schistosoma japonicum; schistosomiasis | Bibliometrics; CiteSpace; One Health; Schistosomiasis; World health organization NTD roadmap |
| Micro- and macroalgae blend modulates the mucosal and systemic immune responses of European seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax) upon infection with Tenacibaculum maritimum | Intensification of aquaculture practices is often associated with disease outbreaks. These outbreaks can heavily affect the production of several fish species such as European seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax) that is of high economic relevance in Mediterranean countries. Nutritional approaches are promising solutions to alleviate the burden caused by diseases. In this context, algae-derived bioactive compounds, which can stimulate fish’s immune system, should be considered to elevate the health status of farmed fish. Here we thoroughly evaluated the immunomodulatory activity of a commercially produced micro- (Nannochloropsis oceanica and Chlorella vulgaris) and macroalgae (Gracilaria gracilis and Ulva rigida) blend, both at the systemic and mucosal levels, focusing on the protective potential against Tenacibaculum maritimum, a pathogen heavily affecting farmed seabass. A commercial-based diet rich in plant proteins (CTRL) was compared against 3 experimental diets (blend 2, 4 and 6) with increasing levels of the algae blend (2, 4 and 6% inclusion, respectively). After a 12-weeks feeding trial, European seabass juveniles were subjected to a bath challenge with T. maritimum and relocated to two new systems: one system to collect tissues 48 h post-infection, and a second system to register mortalities over 8 days. The results indicate that the algae blend is able to improve fish growth performance and evoke appropriate mucosal immune response upon infection with T. maritimum. The blend promoted a more exacerbated immune response, in a dose-dependent manner, by favoring the migration of monocytes and lymphocytes to mucosal tissues, which are the first sites to be affected by the pathogen. Such cellular responses were accompanied by an upregulation of genes associated with cell migration and proliferation (mmp9 and pcna), and pro-inflammatory responses (il-1β and il-8) in skin and gut tissues. At the systemic level, all blend diets elevated the plasma bactericidal activity and increased the expression of the antimicrobial peptide hepcidin in the head-kidney. The 4% incorporation level, but not the other levels, also led to a higher number of circulating peripheral neutrophils and acidic goblet cells in the intestine. Altogether, and although all blend diets improved fish growth and had some immunomodulatory effects, the 4% inclusion level seems the most suitable to prevent the adhesion and colonization of the pathogen on mucosal tissues, thereby inhibiting the progression of the disease and reducing mortality upon a challenge with T. maritimum. The present results highlight the importance of the mucosal immune response during bacterial infection and the potential of algae to modulate the mucosal immunity. © 2023 The Authors | aquaculture; bacterial disease; bacterium; colonization; immune response; macroalga; microalga; perciform | Bath challenge; Functional algae feeds; Mucosal immunity; One health; Tenacibaculosis |
| Prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. in Horses from communities of the Mapuche native people, Araucanía Region, Chile | Background: There are no studies of potential zoonotic diseases in Mapuche communities’ horses. Objectives: The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of Cryptosporidium in horses of the Mapuche communities. Study design: This was a cross-sectional study. Methods: Faecal samples from 100 randomly selected horses (n = 100) were taken from rural Mapuche communities from four municipalities from the Araucanía Region. These samples were processed with the modified Ziehl-Neelsen staining technique and grouped by sex, age and municipality. Results: The general prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. was 67.0% (n = 67). The prevalence was 51.0% (n = 51) in males and 49.0% (n = 49) in females, and there is no gender association to the presentation of Cryptosporidium spp. The prevalence by municipality was 60.0%, 80.0%, 64.0% and 64.0% in Curarrehue, Lonquimay, Padre las Casas and Teodoro Schmidt, respectively. The above shows no significant association between the sector and the presence of Cryptosporidium spp. The prevalence by age was 95.4% of horses tested positive for Cryptosporidium between birth and 6 years of age. About 27.3% of horses were tested positive in the age group between 7 and 10 years. There was no presence of Cryptosporidium spp. in the age group older than 11 years, showing a significant relationship between the age of the animal and the presence of Cryptosporidium (P ˂ 0.05). Main limitations: The sample analysis did not specifically identify the type of Cryptosporidium, and it was not possible to evaluate the zoonotic risk in the Mapuche communities. Conclusions: Cryptosporidium spp. is present in working horses in Mapuche communities, with a 67.7% general prevalence, and there is a significant association between this parasite and the age of the horses, being higher in the age group between 0 and 6 years, with a prevalence of 95.4%. There may be a potential zoonotic risk in the Mapuche communities. © 2022 EVJ Ltd. | Cryptosporidium spp.; horse; Mapuche; One Health; prevalence; working equid; zoonosis |
| One Health in Kenya | [No abstract available] | Humans; Kenya; One Health; human; Kenya; One Health |
| Presence of Staphylococcus spp. carriers of the mecA gene in the nasal cavity of piglets in the nursery phase | The presence of Staphylococcus spp. resistant to methicillin in the nasal cavity of swine has been previously reported. Considering the possible occurrence of bacterial resistance and presence of resistance genes in intensive swine breeding and the known transmissibility and dispersion potential of such genes, this study aimed to investigate the prevalence of resistance to different antibiotics and the presence of the mecA resistance gene in Staphylococcus spp. from piglets recently housed in a nursery. For this, 60 nasal swabs were collected from piglets at the time of their housing in the nursery, and then Staphylococcus spp. were isolated and identified in coagulase-positive (CoPS) and coagulase-negative (CoNS) isolates. These isolates were subjected to the disk-diffusion test to evaluate the bacterial resistance profile and then subjected to molecular identification of Staphylococcus aureus and analyses of the mecA gene through polymerase chain reaction. Of the 60 samples collected, 60 Staphylococcus spp. were isolated, of which 38 (63.33%) were classified as CoNS and 22 (36.67%) as CoPS. Of these, ten (45.45%) were identified as Staphylococcus aureus. The resistance profile of these isolates showed high resistance to different antibiotics, with 100% of the isolates resistant to chloramphenicol, clindamycin, and erythromycin, 98.33% resistant to doxycycline, 95% resistant to oxacillin, and 85% resistant to cefoxitin. Regarding the mecA gene, 27 (45%) samples were positive for the presence of this gene, and three (11.11%) were phenotypically sensitive to oxacillin and cefoxitin. This finding highlights the importance of researching the phenotypic profile of resistance to different antimicrobials and resistance genes in the different phases of pig rearing to identify the real risk of these isolates from a One Health perspective. The present study revealed the presence of samples resistant to different antibiotics in recently weaned production animal that had not been markedly exposed to antimicrobials as growth promoters or even as prophylactics. This information highlights the need for more research on the possible sharing of bacteria between sows and piglets, the environmental pressure within production environments, and the exposure of handlers during their transport, especially considering the community, hospital, and political importance of the presence of circulating resistant strains. © 2023 Elsevier Ltd | Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Bacterial Proteins; Cefoxitin; Coagulase; Female; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Nasal Cavity; Oxacillin; Penicillin-Binding Proteins; Staphylococcal Infections; Staphylococcus; Staphylococcus aureus; Swine; Swine Diseases; amikacin; amoxicillin; amoxicillin plus clavulanic acid; cefoxitin; ceftiofur; chloramphenicol; clindamycin; doxycycline; erythromycin; meropenem; norfloxacin; oxacillin; rifampicin; antiinfective agent; bacterial protein; coagulase; penicillin binding protein; amikacin resistance; antibiotic resistance; antibiotic sensitivity; Article; bacterial gene; bacterium identification; bacterium isolate; bacterium isolation; chloramphenicol resistance; coagulase negative Staphylococcus; coagulase positive Staphylococcus; controlled study; disk diffusion; erythromycin resistance; mecA gene; nonhuman; nose cavity; nose smear; phenotype; piglet; polymerase chain reaction; rifampicin resistance; Staphylococcus; Staphylococcus aureus; animal; chemistry; female; genetics; microbial sensitivity test; microbiology; nose cavity; pig; Staphylococcus; Staphylococcus infection; swine disease; veterinary medicine | Nursery pigs; One Health; Production phase; Weaning |
| Strengthening a One Health approach to emerging zoonoses | Given the enormous global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza in Canada, and manifold other zoonotic pathogen activity, there is a pressing need for a deeper understanding of the human-animal-environment interface and the intersecting biological, ecological, and societal factors contributing to the emergence, spread, and impact of zoonotic diseases. We aim to apply a One Health approach to pressing issues related to emerging zoonoses, and propose a functional framework of interconnected but distinct groups of recommendations around strategy and governance, technical leadership (operations), equity, education and research for a One Health approach and Action Plan for Canada. Change is desperately needed, beginning by reorienting our approach to health and recalibrating our perspectives to restore balance with the natural world in a rapid and sustainable fashion. In Canada, a major paradigm shift in how we think about health is required. All of society must recognize the intrinsic value of all living species and the importance of the health of humans, other animals, and ecosystems to health for all. © 2022 Authors: Mubareka, Amuasi, Banerjee, Carabin, Jack, Jardine, Jaroszewicz, Keefe, Kotwa, Kutz, McGregor, Mease, Nicholson, Nowak, Reed, Saint-Charles, Simonienko, Weese, Parmley, and The Crown. | education; equity; governance; One Health; policy recommendations; research; technical leadership; zoonoses |
| Elevated lead exposure in Australian hunting dogs during a deer hunting season | There is growing recognition of the threat posed by toxic lead-based ammunition. One group of domestic animals known to be susceptible to harmful lead exposure via this route is hunting dogs. Scent-trailing dogs (‘hounds’) are used to hunt introduced sambar deer (Cervus unicolor) during a prescribed eight-month (April–November) annual hunting season, during which they are fed fresh venison, in Victoria, south-eastern Australia. We used this annual season as a natural experiment to undertake longitudinal sampling of dogs for lead exposure. Blood was collected from 27 dogs owned by four different deer hunters and comprising three different breeds just prior to the start of the hound hunting season (March 2022) and in the middle of the season (August 2022), and blood lead levels (BLLs) (μg/dL) were determined via inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Using Tobit regression, the expected BLLs across all dogs were significantly lower before the season (0.50 μg/dL, standard error [SE] = 0.32 μg/dL) than during the season (1.39 μg/dL, SE = 0.35 μg/dL) (p = 0.01). However, when the breed of dog was included in the analyses, this effect was only significant in beagles (P < 0.001), not bloodhounds (p = 0.73) or harriers (p = 0.43). For 32% of the dogs before the season, and 56% during the season, BLLs exceeded the established threshold concentration for developmental neurotoxicity in humans (1.2 μg/dL). Time since most recent venison feeding, sex of dog and owner were not associated with BLLs. The finding that BLLs more than doubled during the hunting season indicates that lead exposure is a risk in this context. These results expand the sphere of impact from environmental lead in Australia from wild animals and humans, to include some groups of domestic animals, a textbook example of a One Health issue. © 2023 Elsevier Ltd | Animals; Blood; Blood lead; Deer hunting; Dog; Domestic animals; Eco-toxicology; Lead exposure; One health; Recreational hunting; Standard errors; Wildlife management; Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry | Dogs; Domestic animals; Ecotoxicology; One health; Recreational hunting; Wildlife management |
| One health systems strengthening in countries: Tripartite tools and approaches at the human-Animal-environment interface | Unexpected pathogen transmission between animals, humans and their shared environments can impact all aspects of society. The Tripartite organisations-the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH)-have been collaborating for over two decades. The inclusion of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) with the Tripartite, forming the â € Quadripartite’ in 2021, creates a new and important avenue to engage environment sectors in the development of additional tools and resources for One Health coordination and improved health security globally. Beginning formally in 2010, the Tripartite set out strategic directions for the coordination of global activities to address health risks at the human-Animal-environment interface. This paper highlights the historical background of this collaboration in the specific area of health security, using country examples to demonstrate lessons learnt and the evolution and pairing of Tripartite programmes and processes to jointly develop and deliver capacity strengthening tools to countries and strengthen performance for iterative evaluations. Evaluation frameworks, such as the International Health Regulations (IHR) Monitoring and Evaluation Framework, the WOAH Performance of Veterinary Services (PVS) Pathway and the FAO multisectoral evaluation tools for epidemiology and surveillance, support a shared global vision for health security, ultimately serving to inform decision making and provide a systematic approach for improved One Health capacity strengthening in countries. Supported by the IHR-PVS National Bridging Workshops and the development of the Tripartite Zoonoses Guide and related operational tools, the Tripartite and now Quadripartite, are working alongside countries to address critical gaps at the human-Animal-environment interface. © 2023 BMJ Publishing Group. All rights reserved. | animal health; Article; capacity building; conceptual framework; decision making; disease surveillance; environmental factor; epidemiological data; health care system; health hazard; human; international health regulation; intersectoral collaboration; nonhuman; One Health; planning; social security; veterinary clinic; workshop; zoonosis | COVID-19; Health policy; Health systems; Health systems evaluation; Public Health |
| Enterococcus spp. from chicken meat collected 20 years apart overcome multiple stresses occurring in the poultry production chain: Antibiotics, copper and acids | Poultry meat has been a vehicle of antibiotic resistant bacteria and genes. Yet, the diversity of selective pressures associated with their maintenance in the poultry-production chain remains poorly explored. We evaluated the susceptibility of Enterococcus spp. from chicken meat collected 20 years apart to antibiotics, metals, acidic pH and peracetic acid-PAA. Contemporary chicken-meat samples (n = 53 batches, each including a pool of neck skin from 10 single carcasses) were collected in a slaughterhouse facility using PAA as disinfectant (March–August 2018, North of Portugal). Broilers were raised in intensive farms (n = 29) using CuSO4 and organic acids as feed additives. Data were compared with that of 67 samples recovered in the same region during 1999–2001. All 2018 samples had multidrug resistant-MDR isolates, with >45 % carrying Enterococcus faecalis, Enterococcus faecium or Enterococcus gallinarum resistant to tetracycline, erythromycin, ampicillin, quinupristin-dalfopristin, ciprofloxacin, chloramphenicol or aminoglycosides. Resistance rates were similar (P > 0.05) to those of 1999–2001 samples for all but five antibiotics. The decrease of samples carrying vancomycin-resistant isolates from 46 % to 0 % between 1999-2001 and 2018 was the most striking difference. Isolates from both periods were similarly susceptible to acid pH [minimum-growth pH (4.5-5.0), minimum-survival pH (3.0-4.0)] and to PAA (MIC90 = 100–120 mg/L/MBC90 = 140–160 mg/L; below concentrations used in slaughterhouse). Copper tolerance genes (tcrB and/or cueO) were respectively detected in 21 % and 4 % of 2018 and 1999-2001 samples. The tcrB gene was only detected in E. faecalis (MICCuSO4 > 12 mM), and their genomes were compared with other international ones of chicken origin (PATRIC database), revealing a polyclonal population and a plasmid or chromosomal location for tcrB. The tcrB plasmids shared diverse genetic modules, including multiple antimicrobial resistance genes (e.g. to tetracyclines, chloramphenicol, macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin B-MLSB, aminoglycosides, bacitracin, coccidiostats). When in chromosome, the tcrB gene was co-located closely to merA (mercury) genes. Chicken meat remains an important vehicle of MDR Enterococcus spp. able to survive under diverse stresses (e.g. copper, acid) potentially contributing to these bacteria maintenance and flux among animal-environment-humans. © 2022 The Authors | Aminoglycosides; Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Chickens; Chloramphenicol; Copper; Drug Resistance, Bacterial; Enterococcus; Enterococcus faecium; Humans; Meat; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Poultry; acid; aminoglycoside; ampicillin; antibiotic agent; bacitracin; chloramphenicol; ciprofloxacin; coccidiostatic agent; copper; copper sulfate; dalfopristin plus quinupristin; disinfectant agent; erythromycin; food additive; mercury; peracetic acid; tetracycline; vancomycin; antiinfective agent; copper; agricultural land; antibiotic resistance; Article; bacterial chromosome; bacterial gene; bacterial genome; bacterial growth; broiler; carcass; chicken meat; controlled study; Enterococcus; Enterococcus faecalis; Enterococcus faecium; Enterococcus gallinarum; food industry; food safety; minimum inhibitory concentration; multidrug resistant bacterium; neck; nonhuman; pH; plasmid; Portugal; poultry meat; skin; slaughterhouse; vancomycin resistant Enterococcus; animal; chicken; Enterococcus; Enterococcus faecium; genetics; human; meat; microbial sensitivity test; microbiology; poultry | Acid pH; Antibiotic resistance; Copper; One Health; Peracetic acid |
| Using integrated wildlife monitoring to prevent future pandemics through one health approach | In the One Health context, Integrated Wildlife Monitoring (IWM) merges wildlife health monitoring (WHM) and host community monitoring to early detect emerging infections, record changes in disease dynamics, and assess the impact of interventions in complex multi-host and multi-pathogen networks. This study reports the deployment and results obtained from a nationwide IWM pilot test in eleven sites representing the habitat diversity of mainland Spain. In each study site, camera-trap networks and sampling of indicator species for antibody and biomarker analysis were used to generate information. The results allowed identifying differences in biodiversity and host community characteristics among the study sites, with a range of 8 to 19 relevant host species per point. The Eurasian wild boar (Sus scrofa) was the most connected and central species of the host communities, becoming a key target indicator species for IWM. A negative relationship between biodiversity and disease risk was detected, with a lower number and prevalence of circulating pathogens in the sites with more species in the community and larger network size. However, this overall trend was modified by specific host-community and environmental factors, such as the relative index of wild boar – red deer interactions or the proximity to urban habitats, suggesting that human-driven imbalances may favour pathogen circulation. The effort of incorporating wildlife population monitoring into the currently applied WHM programs to achieve effective IWM was also evaluated, allowing to identify population monitoring as the most time-consuming component, which should be improved in the future. This first nationwide application of IWM allowed to detect drivers and hotspots for disease transmission risk among wildlife, domestic animals, and humans, as well as identifying key target indicator species for monitoring. Moreover, anthropogenic effects such as artificially high wildlife densities and urbanisation were identified as risk factors for disease prevalence and interspecific transmission. © 2022 The Authors | Anthropogenic imbalances; Disease risk; Host community; Integrated wildlife monitoring; One health; Wildlife health monitoring |
| Mobile Zoos and Other Itinerant Animal Handling Events: Current Status and Recommendations for Future Policies | Mobile zoos are events in which non-domesticated (exotic) and domesticated species are transported to venues such as schools, hospitals, parties, and community centres, for the purposes of education, entertainment, or social and therapeutic assistance. We conducted literature searches and surveyed related government agencies regarding existing provisions within laws and policies, number of mobile zoos, and formal guidance issued concerning operation of such events in 74 countries or regions. We also examined governmental and non-governmental guidance standards for mobile zoos, as well as websites for mobile zoo operations, assessed promotional or educational materials for scientific accuracy, and recorded the diversity of species in use. We used the EMODE (Easy, Moderate, Difficult, or Extreme) algorithm, to evaluate identified species associated with mobile zoos for their suitability for keeping. We recorded 14 areas of concern regarding animal biology and public health and safety, and 8 areas of false and misleading content in promotional or educational materials. We identified at least 341 species used for mobile zoos. Mobile zoos are largely unregulated, unmonitored, and uncontrolled, and appear to be increasing. Issues regarding poor animal welfare, public health and safety, and education raise several serious concerns. Using the precautionary principle when empirical evidence was not available, we advise that exotic species should not be used for mobile zoos and similar itinerant events. © 2023 by the authors. | algorithm; animal husbandry; animal model; animal welfare; antibiotic resistance; Article; biosurveillance; Campylobacter; Cryptosporidium; decontamination; disease transmission; dog; domestic species; environmental enrichment; environmental impact; Escherichia coli; exotic species; government; health legislation; helminthiasis; homeostasis; infection control; kangaroo; law; legal service; leishmaniasis; leptospirosis; Listeria monocytogenes; mobile zoos; mongoose; morbidity; nonhuman; physiological stress; public health; risk assessment; risk factor; Salmonella; Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium; salmonellosis; species diversity; systematic review; vibriosis; wildlife; Yersinia enterocolitica; zebra fish; zoo animal; zoonosis | animal assisted interventions; animal welfare; injury; legislation; mobile live animal programs; mobile zoos; one-health; precautionary principle; public health; safety |
| Neoehrlichia mikurensis—A New Emerging Tick-Borne Pathogen in North-Eastern Poland? | Neoehrlichia mikurensis is a new emerging tick-borne Gram-negative bacterium, belonging to the family Anaplasmataceae, the main vector of which in Europe is the tick Ixodes ricinus. N. mikurensis is responsible for neoehrlichiosis, occurring mostly in patients with underlying diseases. In the present study, a total of 348 I. ricinus and Dermacentor reticulatus ticks collected in north-eastern Poland were analyzed for the prevalence of N. mikurensis. A total of 140 questing ticks (124 of I. ricinus ticks and 16 D. reticulatus) collected with the flagging method and 208 ticks (105 and 103 I. ricinus and D. reticulatus, respectively) removed from dogs were selected for the study. cDNA (questing ticks) and total DNA (questing and feeding ticks) were analyzed by qPCR targeting the 16S rRNA gene of N. mikurensis. Positive samples were further analyzed by nested PCR and sequencing. The prevalence differed between ticks collected from vegetation (19.3%; 27/140) and ticks removed from dogs (6.7%; 14/208). The presence of the pathogen in questing and feeding D. reticulatus ticks was proven in Poland for the first time. In summary, our research showed that infections of ticks of both the most common tick species I. ricinus and D. reticulatus in north-eastern Poland are present and ticks collected from urban areas were more often infected than ticks from suburban and natural areas. The detection of N. mikurensis in I. ricinus and D. reticulatus ticks from north-eastern Poland indicates potential transmission risk for tick-bitten humans at this latitude. © 2023 by the authors. | Dermacentor reticulatus; Ixodes ricinus; Neoehrlichia mikurensis; One Health; tick-borne pathogen; ticks |
| Bats Are Carriers of Antimicrobial-Resistant Staphylococcaceae in Their Skin | Bats have emerged as potential carriers of zoonotic viruses and bacteria, including antimicrobial-resistant bacteria. Staphylococcaceae has been isolated from their gut and nasopharynx, but there is little information about Staphylococcaceae on bat skin. Therefore, this study aimed to decipher the Staphylococci species in bat skin and their antimicrobial susceptibility profile. One hundred and forty-seven skin swabs were collected from bats during the spring and summer of 2021 and 2022. Bats were captured in different areas of the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo, Brazil, according to the degree of anthropization: Area 1 (Forested), Area 2 (Rural), Area 3 (Residential-A), Area 4 (Slum-– up to two floors), Area 5 (Residential-B—condo buildings), and Area 6 (Industrial). Swabs were kept in peptone water broth at 37 °C for 12 h when bacterial growth was streaked in Mannitol salt agar and incubated at 37 °C for 24 h. The disc-diffusion test evaluated antimicrobial susceptibility. Staphylococcaceae were isolated from 42.8% of bats, mostly from young, from the rural area, and during summer. M. sciuri was the most frequent species; S. aureus was also isolated. About 95% of isolates were resistant to at least one drug, and most strains were penicillin resistant. Eight isolates were methicillin resistant, and the mecA gene was detected in one isolate (S. haemolyticus). Antimicrobial resistance is a One Health issue that is not evaluated enough in bats. The results indicate that bats are carriers of clinically meaningful S. aureus and antimicrobial-resistant bacteria. Finally, the results suggest that we should intensify action plans to control the spread of resistant bacteria. © 2023 by the authors. | antimicrobial resistance; One Health; Staphylococci; surveillance |
| Farming Practice Influences Antimicrobial Resistance Burden of Non-Aureus Staphylococci in Pig Husbandries | Non-aureus staphylococci (NAS) are ubiquitous bacteria in livestock-associated environments where they may act as reservoirs of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes for pathogens such as Staphylococcus aureus. Here, we tested whether housing conditions in pig farms could influence the overall AMR-NAS burden. Two hundred and forty porcine commensal and environmental NAS isolates from three different farm types (conventional, alternative, and organic) were tested for phenotypic antimicrobial susceptibility and subjected to whole genome sequencing. Genomic data were analysed regarding species identity and AMR gene carriage. Seventeen different NAS species were identified across all farm types. In contrast to conventional farms, no AMR genes were detectable towards methicillin, aminoglycosides, and phenicols in organic farms. Additionally, AMR genes to macrolides and tetracycline were rare among NAS in organic farms, while such genes were common in conventional husbandries. No differences in AMR detection existed between farm types regarding fosfomycin, lincosamides, fusidic acid, and heavy metal resistance gene presence. The combined data show that husbandry conditions influence the occurrence of resistant and multidrug-resistant bacteria in livestock, suggesting that changing husbandry practices may be an appropriate means of limiting the spread of AMR bacteria on farms. © 2022 by the authors. | alternative pig farming; antimicrobial resistance; intervention strategies; livestock-associated staphylococci; NAS; non-aureus staphylococci; one-health approach; organic farming; pig farming methods |
| A meta-transcriptomic study of mosquito virome and blood feeding patterns at the human-animal-environment interface in Guangdong Province, China | Mosquitoes are a formidable reservoir of viruses and important vectors of zoonotic pathogens. Blood-fed mosquitoes have been utilized to determine host infection status, overcoming the difficulties associated with sampling from human and animal populations. Comprehensive surveillance of potential pathogens at the interface of humans, animals, and the environment is currently an accredited method to provide an early warning of emerging or re-emerging infectious diseases and to proactively respond to them. Herein we performed comprehensive sampling of mosquitoes from seven habitats (residential areas, hospital, airplane, harbor, zoo, domestic sheds, and forest park) across five cities in Guangdong Province, China. Our aim was to characterize the viral communities and blood feeding patterns at the human-animal-environment interface and analyze the potential risk of cross-species transmission using meta-transcriptomic sequencing. 1898 female adult mosquitoes were collected, including 1062 Aedes and 836 Culex mosquitoes, of which approximately 12% (n = 226) were satiated with blood. Consequently, 101 putative viruses were identified, which included DNA and RNA viruses, and positive-stranded RNA viruses (+ssRNA) were the most abundant. According to viral diversity analysis, the composition of the viral structure was highly dependent on host species, and Culex mosquitoes showed richer viral diversity than Aedes mosquitoes. Although the virome of mosquitoes from different sampling habitats showed an overlap of 39.6%, multiple viruses were specific to certain habitats, particularly at the human-animal interface. Blood meal analysis found four mammals and one bird bloodmeal source, including humans, dogs, cats, poultry, and rats. Further, the blood feeding patterns of mosquitoes were found to be habitat dependent, and mosquitoes at the human-animal interface and from forests had a wider choice of hosts, including humans, domesticated animals, and wildlife, which in turn considerably increases the risk of spillover of potential zoonotic pathogens. To summarize, we are the first to investigate the virome of mosquitoes from multiple interfaces based on the One Health concept. The characteristics of viral community and blood feeding patterns of mosquitoes at the human-animal-environment interface were determined. Our findings should support surveillance activities to identify known and potential pathogens that are pathogenic to vertebrates. © 2023 | adult; Aedes; aircraft; animal experiment; Article; bird; blood feeding; cat; China; city; controlled study; Culex; DNA virus; dog; domestic animal; feeding behavior; female; forest; geographic distribution; habitat; hospital; human; human animal environment interface; infection risk; meta transcriptomic; mosquito; nonhuman; One Health; positive-strand RNA virus; poultry; residential area; RNA virus; rural area; sampling; sanguivore; species difference; species diversity; transcriptome sequencing; transcriptomics; virome; virus identification; virus morphology; wildlife; zoonotic transmission | Blood feeding; Human-animal-environment interface; Meta-transcriptomic; Mosquito; One health; Virome |
| Wastewater-based epidemiology for comprehensive community health diagnostics in a national surveillance study: Mining biochemical markers in wastewater | This manuscript showcases results from a large scale and comprehensive wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) study focussed on multi-biomarker suite analysis of both chemical and biological determinants in 10 cities and towns across England equating to a population of ∼7 million people. Multi-biomarker suite analysis, describing city metabolism, can provide a holistic understanding to encompass all of human, and human-derived, activities of a city in a single model: from lifestyle choices (e.g. caffeine intake, nicotine) through to health status (e.g. prevalence of pathogenic organisms, usage of pharmaceuticals as proxy for non-communicable disease, NCD, conditions or infectious disease status), and exposure to harmful chemicals due to environmental and industrial sources (e.g. pesticide intake via contaminated food and industrial exposure). Population normalised daily loads (PNDLs) of many chemical markers were found, to a large extent, driven by the size of population contributing to wastewater (especially NCDs). However, there are several exceptions providing insights into chemical intake that can inform either disease status in various communities or unintentional exposure to hazardous chemicals: e.g. very high PNDLs of ibuprofen in Hull resulting from its direct disposal (confirmed by ibuprofen/2-hydroxyibuprofen ratios) and bisphenol A (BPA) in Hull, Lancaster and Portsmouth likely related to industrial discharge. An importance for tracking endogenous health markers such as 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal-mercapturic acid (HNE-MA, an oxidative stress marker) as a generic marker of health status in communities was observed due to increased levels of HNE-MA seen at Barnoldswick wastewater treatment plant that coincided with higher-than-average paracetamol usage and SARS-CoV-2 prevalence in this community. PNDLs of virus markers were found to be highly variable. Being very prevalent in communities nationwide during sampling, SARS-CoV-2 presence in wastewater was to a large extent community driven. The same applies to the fecal marker virus, crAssphage, which is very prevalent in urban communities. In contrast, norovirus and enterovirus showed much higher variability in prevalence across all sites investigated, with clear cases of localized outbreaks in some cities while maintaining low prevalence in other locations. In conclusion, this study clearly demonstrates the potential for WBE to provide an integrated assessment of community health which can help target and validate policy interventions aimed at improving public health and wellbeing. © 2023 The Authors | Biomarkers; Chemical contamination; Diagnosis; Drug products; Epidemiology; Indicators (chemical); Industrial chemicals; Organic chemicals; Wastewater disposal; Wastewater treatment; Biochemical markers; Chemical and viral biomarker; Community health; COVID-19 surveillance; Health status; Large-scales; One health; SARS-CoV-2 monitoring; Wastewater-based epidemiology; Coronavirus; COVID-19 | Chemical and viral biomarkers; COVID-19 surveillance; One Health; Pharmaceuticals; SARS-CoV-2 monitoring; Viruses; Wastewater-based epidemiology; WBE |
| Antimicrobial resistance patterns of bacteria isolated from chicks of Canarian Egyptian vultures (Neophron percnopterus majorensis): A “one health” problem? | Antimicrobial resistance in Gram-negative bacteria isolated from cloacal samples of chicks of Canarian Egyptian vultures was investigated. Prevalence of Salmonella was also studied. Forty-seven isolates, obtained from 23 animals, were analysed. Escherichia coli (n = 29), Proteus mirabilis (n = 17) and Salmonella spp. (n = 1) were identified using API 20E system. Antimicrobial susceptibility to 13 antibiotics included in nine different categories was determined using disk-diffusion technique. The higher percentages of susceptible E. coli isolates were found for aminoglycosides and cefoxitin, and the lower ones were found for ampicillin, enrofloxacin and tetracycline. Proteus mirabilis isolates were susceptible to most of antimicrobials tested. Multidrug resistance patterns were found in 13 E. coli and four Proteus mirabilis. Salmonella spp. was detected in one chick (4.37%), and the isolate was also resistant to ampicillin and tetracycline. Thirteen E. coli isolates and four Proteus isolates showed a multidrug-resistance pattern, being resistant at least to one antibiotic in three or more different antimicrobial categories. This high level of antibiotic resistance in chickens of an endangered bird may be a limitation for possible treatments of infections in this species, as well as representing a source of resistant bacteria for animal care staff and for other animals in wildlife recovery centres. A “One Health” approach to this problem is necessary to reduce the levels of antimicrobial resistance in wild birds. © 2022 The Authors | Antimicrobial resistance; Canarian Egyptian vultures; Chicks; E. coli, Proteus, wildlife; Multidrug resistance; One health; Salmonella |
| White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) may serve as a wildlife reservoir for nearly extinct SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern | The spillover of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) from humans to white-tailed deer (WTD) and its ability to transmit from deer to deer raised concerns about the role of WTD in the epidemiology and ecology of the virus. Here, we present a comprehensive cross-sectional study assessing the prevalence, genetic diversity, and evolution of SARS-CoV-2 in WTD in the State of New York (NY). A total of 5,462 retropharyngeal lymph node samples collected from free-ranging hunter-harvested WTD during the hunting seasons of 2020 (Season 1, September to December 2020, n = 2,700) and 2021 (Season 2, September to December 2021, n = 2,762) were tested by SARS-CoV-2 real-time RT–PCR (rRT-PCR). SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected in 17 samples (0.6%) from Season 1 and in 583 samples (21.1%) from Season 2. Hotspots of infection were identified in multiple confined geographic areas of NY. Sequence analysis of SARS-CoV-2 genomes from 164 samples demonstrated the presence of multiple SARS-CoV-2 lineages and the cocirculation of three major variants of concern (VOCs) (Alpha, Gamma, and Delta) in WTD. Our analysis suggests the occurrence of multiple spillover events (human to deer) of the Alpha and Delta lineages with subsequent deer-to-deer transmission and adaptation of the viruses. Detection of Alpha and Gamma variants in WTD long after their broad circulation in humans in NY suggests that WTD may serve as a wildlife reservoir for VOCs no longer circulating in humans. Thus, implementation of continuous surveillance programs to monitor SARS-CoV-2 dynamics in WTD is warranted, and measures to minimize virus transmission between humans and animals are urgently needed. Copyright © 2023 the Author(s). Published by PNAS. | Animals; Animals, Wild; COVID-19; Cross-Sectional Studies; Deer; Humans; RNA, Viral; SARS-CoV-2; virus RNA; animal hunting; article; controlled study; cross-sectional study; genetic variability; human; lymph node; major clinical study; New York; nonhuman; prevalence; real time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction; season; sequence analysis; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; variant of concern; virus transmission; white tailed deer; wildlife; animal; deer; epidemiology; genetics; wild animal | one health; SARS-CoV-2; spillover; white-tailed deer; wildlife reservoir |
| Therapeutic Oral Application of Carvacrol Alleviates Acute Campylobacteriosis in Mice Harboring a Human Gut Microbiota | Human Campylobacter jejuni infections are rising globally. Since antibiotics are usually not indicated in acute campylobacteriosis, antibiotic-independent intervention measures are desirable. The phenolic compound carvacrol constitutes a promising candidate molecule given its antimicrobial and immune-modulatory features. To test the disease-alleviating effects of oral carvacrol treatment in acute murine campylobacteriosis, IL-10−/− mice harboring a human gut microbiota were perorally infected with C. jejuni and treated with carvacrol via the drinking water. Whereas C. jejuni stably established in the gastrointestinal tract of mice from the placebo cohort, carvacrol treatment resulted in lower pathogen loads in the small intestines on day 6 post infection. When compared to placebo, carvacrol ameliorated pathogen-induced symptoms including bloody diarrhea that was accompanied by less distinct histopathological and apoptotic cell responses in the colon. Furthermore, innate and adaptive immune cell numbers were lower in the colon of carvacrol- versus placebo-treated mice. Notably, carvacrol application dampened C. jejuni-induced secretion of pro-inflammatory mediators in intestinal, extra-intestinal and systemic organs to naive levels and furthermore, resulted in distinct shifts in the fecal microbiota composition. In conclusion, our preclinical placebo-controlled intervention study provides evidence that therapeutic carvacrol application constitutes a promising option to alleviate campylobacteriosis in the infected vertebrate host. © 2023 by the authors. | Campylobacter jejuni; campylobacteriosis model; carvacrol; enteropathogenic infection; food safety; host–pathogen interaction; human-gut-microbiota-associated IL-10<sup>−/−</sup> mice; immune-modulatory effects; One Health concept; placebo-controlled preclinical intervention study |
| Gastrointestinal Parasites of Dogs in Egypt: An Update on the Prevalence in Dakahlia Governorate and a Meta-Analysis for the Published Data from the Country | Since the last survey on gastrointestinal (GIT) parasites infecting dogs in Dakahlia governorate, Egypt, was published 40 years ago, the present study detected various GIT parasites in feces of 78 stray dogs in this governorate. Twenty-one dogs (35.9%) had eggs/oocysts of eight different parasites including Toxocara canis (19.2%), Toxascaris leonina (2.6%), hookworms (1.3%), Taenia species (5.1%), Dipylidium caninum (2.6%), Cystoisospora canis (5.1%), Cystoisospora ohioensis (2.6%), and Neospora caninum-like oocysts (1.3%). These results were combined in various meta-analyses with findings of all published surveys on GIT parasites of dogs in Egypt to underline the potential parasitic zoonoses from dogs in the country. Feces and/or gastrointestinal tracts of 19,807 dogs from various Egyptian governorates, but particularly Cairo, have been microscopically tested in 182 datasets published between 1938 and 2022, revealed during our systematic database search. Toxocara canis, interestingly, displayed a twofold higher pooled prevalence (24.7%) when compared to the published global pooled prevalence for T. canis, indicating that dogs represent a major risk for toxocariasis in humans from Egypt. Dipylidium caninum (25.4%) as well as various Taenia species (17.1%) also displayed high pooled prevalences. On the contrary, lower pooled prevalence was estimated for the most important zoonotic taeniid “Echinococcus granulosus” (2.4%) as well as for hookworms (1.8%) in comparison to what has been published from other countries in the region. Relatively high prevalences were estimated for three protozoa detected in dogs and are common to infect children in Egypt; Cryptosporidium (5.5%), Giardia (7.4%), and Entamoeba histolytica (9.8%). In general, the pooled prevalence estimated for various parasites detected in dogs from Egypt has decreased in the recent years, sometimes by as much as one-fifth, but this great decline is statistically insignificant, which should alert the veterinary and public health authorities to continue their efforts for controlling these parasites in a “One Health” approach. © 2023 by the authors. | adult; animal experiment; Article; autopsy; cestode; Cryptosporidium; Cystoisospora canis; Cystoisospora ohioensis; data analysis; dipylidiasis; Dipylidium caninum; dog; Echinococcus; Echinococcus granulosus; Egypt; Entamoeba histolytica; feces; gastrointestinal tract; Giardia; hookworm; intestine parasite; meta analysis; Neospora; nonhuman; One Health; oocyst; polymerase chain reaction; prevalence; protozoon; public health; publication bias; sporozoite; Taenia; Taenia hydatigena; Taenia multiceps; Toxascaris leonina; Toxocara canis; toxocariasis; zoonosis | dogs; Egypt; gastrointestinal parasites; meta-analysis; Toxocara canis; zoonoses |
| Anthrax bio-surveillance of livestock in Arua District, Uganda, 2017–2018 | Anthrax, caused by Bacillus anthracis, is a widespread zoonotic disease with many human cases, especially in developing countries. Even with its global distribution, anthrax is a neglected disease with scarce information about its actual impact on the community level. Due to the ecological dynamics of anthrax transmission at the wildlife-livestock interface, the Sub-Saharan Africa region becomes a high-risk zone for maintaining and acquiring the disease. In this regard, some subregions of Uganda are endemic to anthrax with regular seasonal trends. However, there is scarce data about anthrax outbreaks in Uganda. Here, we confirmed the presence of B. anthracis in several livestock samples after a suspected anthrax outbreak among livestock and humans in Arua District. Additionally, we explored the potential risk factors of anthrax through a survey within the community kraals. We provide evidence that the most affected livestock species during the Arua outbreak were cattle (86%) compared to the rest of the livestock species present in the area. Moreover, the farmers’ education level and the presence of people’s anthrax cases were the most critical factors determining the disease’s knowledge and awareness. Consequently, the lack of understanding of the ecology of anthrax may contribute to the spread of the infection between livestock and humans, and it is critical to reducing the presence and persistence of the B. anthracis spores in the environment. Finally, we discuss the increasingly recognized necessity to strengthen global capacity using a One Health approach to prevent, detect, control, and respond to public threats in Uganda. © 2023 The Author(s) | Uganda; anthrax; bacterium; cattle; developing world; disease transmission; livestock; risk factor; adult; aged; agricultural worker; anthrax; Article; awareness; Bacillus anthracis; biosurveillance; bovine; controlled study; education; epidemic; female; human; knowledge; livestock; male; nonhuman; One Health; risk assessment; risk factor; Uganda | B. anthracis; Cattle; Detection; One health; Sub-saharan Africa region; Zoonosis |
| Indian sewage microbiome has unique community characteristics and potential for population-level disease predictions | Sewage wastewater pollutes water and poses a public health issue but it could also prove useful in certain research domains. Sewage is a complex niche relevant for research concerning ‘one-health’, human health, pollution and antibiotic resistance. Indian gut microbiome is also understudied due to sampling constraints and sewage could be used to explore it. Ostensibly, Indian sewage needs to be studied and here, we performed a cross-sectional pan-India sewage sampling to generate the first comprehensive Indian sewage microbiome. Indian sewage showed predominance of Burkholderiaceae, Rhodocyclaceae, Veillonellaceae, Prevotellaceae, etc. and has high representation of gut microbes. The identified gut microbes have overrepresentation of Veillonellaceae, Rikenellaceae, Streptococcaceae, and Bacillaceae. Imputed metagenomics of sewage microbiome indicated dominance of transport, motility, peptidases, amino acid metabolism, and antibiotic resistance genes. Microbiome-disease associations drawn using simple decision tree and random forest analysis identified specific microbes as potential predictors of diabetes and obesity in a city. Altogether, we generated the first Indian sewage microbiome and our non-invasive, high-throughput workflow could be emulated for future research, wastewater-based epidemiology and designing policies concerning public health. © 2022 Elsevier B.V. | Cross-Sectional Studies; Humans; India; Metagenomics; Sewage; India; Antibiotics; Bacteria; Decision trees; Public health; Wastewater treatment; aminoglycoside antibiotic agent; antibiotic agent; bacitracin; beta lactam antibiotic; chloramphenicol; erythromycin; fosmidomycin; genomic DNA; imipenem; macrolide; quinoline derived antiinfective agent; RNA 16S; tetracycline; vancomycin; Gut microbes; Indian gut microbiome; Indian sewage microbiome; Microbiome; Next-generation sequencing; One-health and microbiome; Sewage-treatment plants; Wastewater-based epidemiology; biome; disease; epidemiology; microbial community; prediction; public health; sewage treatment; amino acid metabolism; anemia; antibiotic resistance; Article; Bacillaceae; Burkholderiaceae; decision tree; diabetes mellitus; disease association; health care policy; high throughput analysis; hyperglycemia; hypertension; India; intestine flora; metagenomics; microbiome; non invasive measurement; nonhuman; obesity; One Health; polymerase chain reaction; prediction; Prevotellaceae; public health; random forest; Rhodocyclaceae; Rikenellaceae; sewage; species dominance; Streptococcaceae; transport kinetics; Veillonellaceae; wastewater; water pollution; cross-sectional study; human; India; metagenomics; Sewage treatment plants | Indian gut microbiome; Indian sewage microbiome; Next-generation sequencing; One-health and microbiome; Sewage treatment plant; Wastewater-based epidemiology |
| Mitigating the environmental impact of NSAIDs – physiotherapy as a contribution to One Health and the SDGs | Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) continue to be amongst the most frequently used pharmaceutical treatments for mild to moderate musculoskeletal pain globally. In this short communication, we continue to expand the growing field of environmental physiotherapy by tracing NSAIDs journey through aquatic ecosystems, and the potential of physiotherapy to mitigate these negative environmental impacts and so contribute to achieving a range of UN Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and the aspirations of One Health. Through metabolic excretion into waterways, NSAIDs negatively impact the health and survival of various aquatic lifeforms, which, in turn, has consequences for human health. By reducing and delaying the need for pharmacotherapy for mild to moderate musculoskeletal pain, physiotherapy presents an important sustainable healthcare solution. Beyond this, however, the ecological persistence of NSAIDs also underscores the need for transformative change in healthcare and physiotherapy, towards the full recognition of the interconnected nature of human, animal, and ecosystems health and the complex questions and responsibilities this raises. For this, we need to increase our understanding of the entangled nature of health and its negotiation with human and non-human others and develop approaches to include them in our thinking, pursuit, and practice of health and care. © 2021 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. | nonsteroid antiinflammatory agent; aquatic environment; Article; environmental impact; environmental mitigation; excretion; health; health care; human; land biome; medical practice; medical research; musculoskeletal pain; nonhuman; One Health; physiotherapy; sustainable development goal; wellbeing | environmental degradation; NSAIDs; one health; posthuman healthcare; sustainable development goals |
| Detection and Molecular Characterization of the SARS-CoV-2 Delta Variant and the Specific Immune Response in Companion Animals in Switzerland | In human beings, there are five reported variants of concern of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2). However, in contrast to human beings, descriptions of infections of animals with specific variants are still rare. The aim of this study is to systematically investigate SARS-CoV-2 infections in companion animals in close contact with SARS-CoV-2-positive owners (“COVID-19 households”) with a focus on the Delta variant. Samples, obtained from companion animals and their owners were analyzed using a real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and next-generation sequencing (NGS). Animals were also tested for antibodies and neutralizing activity against SARS-CoV-2. Eleven cats and three dogs in nine COVID-19-positive households were RT-qPCR and/or serologically positive for the SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant. For seven animals, the genetic sequence could be determined. The animals were infected by one of the pangolin lineages B.1.617.2, AY.4, AY.43 and AY.129 and between zero and three single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were detected between the viral genomes of animals and their owners, indicating within-household transmission between animal and owner and in multi-pet households also between the animals. NGS data identified SNPs that occur at a higher frequency in the viral sequences of companion animals than in viral sequences of humans, as well as SNPs, which were exclusively found in the animals investigated in the current study and not in their owners. In conclusion, our study is the first to describe the SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant transmission to animals in Switzerland and provides the first-ever description of Delta-variant pangolin lineages AY.129 and AY.4 in animals. Our results reinforce the need of a One Health approach in the monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 in animals. © 2023 by the authors. | neutralizing antibody; animal experiment; Article; blood sampling; coronavirus disease 2019; enzyme linked immunosorbent assay; high throughput sequencing; immune response; nasopharyngeal swab; neutralization test; nonhuman; nucleic acid analysis; phylogenetic tree; phylogeny; real time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction; receptor binding; RNA extraction; SARS-CoV-2 Delta; single nucleotide polymorphism; virus characterization; virus detection | animal; AY.129; AY.4; AY.43; B.1.617.2; Delta; next-generation sequencing; One Health; phylogenetic analysis; SARS-CoV-2; variant of concern; variant specific antibodies; viral adaptation |
| Antibiotic prescription patterns and non-clinical factors influencing antibiotic use by Ecuadorian veterinarians working on cattle and poultry farms: A cross-sectional study | Understanding antibiotic prescription patterns and non-clinical factors influencing antibiotic use is essential for implementing strategies to promote appropriate antibiotic use. There is, however, limited research exploring these issues with Ecuadorian veterinarians. Therefore, a questionnaire was developed and applied cross-sectionally to veterinarians (n = 173) from two professional organizations to explore the antibiotic prescription patterns and non-clinical factors (e.g., attitudes and perceptions) influencing antibiotic use, and to identify strategies to reduce antibiotic use. The response rate was 78.4%. Responses were compared between veterinarians working mainly on cattle and poultry farms using Mann-Whitney U tests. The most important attitudes, beliefs and perceptions towards antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and antibiotic use were identified with the Relative Importance Index (RII). Veterinarians showed high awareness of AMR and its implications for public health, as well as the necessity of reducing antibiotic use. However, some veterinarians appear to underestimate the potential contribution of veterinary antibiotic use on AMR in humans. Veterinarians self-reported high prescription (> 20%) of antibiotics for cattle and poultry that are critically important for human medicine, such as 3rd and 4th generation cephalosporins, polymyxins and quinolones. Further, antibiotic therapy was not tailored to disease type. Cattle and poultry veterinarians perceived similar barriers to increasing antibiotic stewardship including: poor biosecurity measures, animal confinement, low feed quality, farmers’ behaviors (such as stopping antibiotic treatment, storing antibiotics on farms, buying antibiotics in veterinary supply stores), and sales agents’ roles as non-professional prescribers of antibiotics. Overall, veterinarians were broadly supportive (>90%) of most strategies to promote appropriate antibiotic use. They saw more merit in improving biosecurity of farms and implementing educational programs for farmers and veterinarians. This study provides insight into the complexity of antibiotic use on Ecuadorian farms and the need for holistic strategies in a One Health context, to achieve antibiotic stewardship. © 2023 The Authors | aminoglycoside; aminopenicillin; antibiotic agent; cephalosporin derivative; chloramphenicol; macrolide; nitrofuran derivative; penicillin derivative; polymyxin; quinolone derivative; sulfonamide; tetracycline derivative; trimethoprim; agricultural worker; antibiotic therapy; Article; awareness; biosecurity; bovine; controlled study; cross-sectional study; human; medical society; nonhuman; One Health; poultry; prescribing practice; questionnaire; rank sum test; veterinary medicine | Antibiotic prescribing; Antimicrobial resistance; Antimicrobial stewardship; Beliefs; Latin America; Veterinarians |
| A one-health approach to identifying and mitigating the impact of endocrine disorders on human and equine athletes | Endocrinopathies affect multiple species in ever-increasing percentages of their populations, creating an oppor-tunity to apply one-health approaches to determining creative preventative measures and therapies in athletes. Obesity and alterations in insulin and glucose dynamics are medical concerns that play a role in whole-body health and homeostasis in both horses and humans. The role and impact of endocrine disorders on the musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, and reproductive systems are of particular interest to the athlete. Elucidation of both physiologic and pathophysiologic mechanisms involved in disease processes, starting in utero, is important for development of prevention and treatment strategies for the health and well-being of all species. This review focuses on the unrec-ognized effects of endocrine disorders associated with the origins of metabolic disease; inflammation at the inter-section of endocrine disease and related diseases in the musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, and reproductive systems; novel interventions; and diagnostics that are informed via multiomic and one-health approaches. Readers interested in further details on specific equine performance conditions associated with endocrine disease are invited to read the companion Currents in One Health by Manfredi et al, JAVMA, February 2023. © 2023, American Veterinary Medical Association. All rights reserved. | Animals; Athletes; Endocrine System Diseases; Horses; Humans; Insulin; Lung; One Health; adipocytokine; adiponectin; canagliflozin; glucose; insulin; interleukin 1beta; interleukin 6; leptin; levothyroxine; metformin; myostatin; resistin; resveratrol; serum amyloid A; stevioside; insulin; abdominal obesity; animal lameness; Article; athlete; bioinformatics; body mass; cardiovascular disease; cell infiltration; chondrocyte; colostrum; DNA methylation; dysbiosis; dyslipidemia; embryo transfer; endocrine disease; Equus; fatigue; gene expression; genetic risk; genital system; genomics; glucose intake; glucose transport; glycogenolysis; homeostasis; human; Huntington chorea; hypercholesterolemia; hyperglycemia; hypertriglyceridemia; hypogonadism; hypoxia; immune response; inflammation; insulin resistance; insulin sensitivity; intestine flora; kinematics; laminitis; lipid storage; maternal obesity; mean arterial pressure; metabolic disorder; metabolomics; mitigation; muscle atrophy; muscle strength; nerve degeneration; non insulin dependent diabetes mellitus; nonhuman; obesity; One Health; osteoarthritis; osteochondrosis; personalized medicine; placenta function; protein expression; protein synthesis; proteomics; risk factor; shoulder dystocia; stomach emptying; transcriptomics; walking speed; animal; athlete; endocrine disease; horse; lung; veterinary medicine |
| Multisectoral prioritization of zoonotic diseases in Haryana (India) using one health approach | Zoonotic diseases have huge livestock and public health burden worldwide, including India. Prioritizing zoonotic diseases is one of the important tasks under ‘One Health’ as it facilitates effective policy making, proper allocation of resources and promotion of multisectoral collaboration. Although some efforts have been made to prioritizing zoonotic diseases at national level in India, it is important to identify priority diseases in regional settings due to wide variation in climate and demography of different states. Therefore, the present study aims to prioritize zoonotic diseases for the state of Haryana (India). One Health Zoonotic Disease Prioritization (OHZDP) tool was used in this study to prioritize zoonotic diseases. Based on literature review of the past 23 years (2000–2022) on prevalence, morbidity, and mortality of zoonotic diseases, twenty-three high-scoring zoonotic diseases in Haryana and neighboring states of India were initially shortlisted for prioritization. A three-day participatory workshop was conducted involving 17 experts representing the Health, Animal Husbandry and Wildlife departments of Haryana. The Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) was used to rank the criteria, which were used to score the selected diseases using the decision tree analysis. The participants selected the following 7 criteria along with their relative weights to score the diseases: (1) Severity of disease in humans, (2) Severity of disease in animals, (3) Presence of disease in the region, (4) Transmission and outbreak potential, (5) Socio-economic impact, (6) Availability of interventions, and (7) Existing inter-sectoral collaboration for surveillance and reporting. The top scoring eight diseases selected as priority zoonotic diseases for Haryana were rabies, Japanese encephalitis, bovine tuberculosis, leptospirosis, avian influenza (H5N1), brucellosis, glanders and Influenza A (H1N1). Sensitivity analysis did not reveal any significant variation in prioritization results by varying criteria weights. This is the first systemic attempt to prioritize zoonotic diseases in the state and this will help in formulating effective monitoring, prevention, and control strategies for zoonotic diseases in the regional settings. © 2023 Elsevier B.V. | Animals; Humans; India; Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype; Influenza A Virus, H5N1 Subtype; Influenza in Birds; Public Health; Zoonoses; adult; analytic hierarchy process; animal husbandry; anthrax; Article; avian influenza (H5N1); bovine tuberculosis; brucellosis; controlled study; Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever; cysticercosis; decision tree; disease severity; echinococcosis; encephalitis; glanders; Haryana; hepatitis E; human; Indian spotted fever; influenza A (H1N1); Japanese encephalitis; leishmaniasis; leptospirosis; Lyme disease; nonhuman; One Health; participatory research; Q fever; rabies; Rickettsiaceae infection; scrub typhus; toxocariasis; toxoplasmosis; trypanosomiasis; West Nile encephalitis; zoonosis; animal; avian influenza; India; Influenza A virus (H1N1); Influenza A virus (H5N1); procedures; public health; zoonosis | Haryana; India; One-health; Prioritization; Zoonotic diseases |
| Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Dissemination in the Wildlife, Livestock, and Water of Maiella National Park, Italy | Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global health concern that has been linked to humans, animals, and the environment. The One Health approach highlights the connection between humans, animals, and the environment and suggests that a multidisciplinary approached be used in studies investigating AMR. The present study was carried out to identify and characterize the antimicrobial resistance profiles of bacteria isolated from wildlife and livestock feces as well as from surface water samples in Maiella National Park, Italy. Ecological and georeferenced data were used to select two sampling locations, one where wildlife was caught within livestock grazing areas (sympatric group) and one where wildlife was caught outside of livestock grazing areas (non-sympatric group). Ninety-nine bacterial isolates from 132 feces samples and seven isolates from five water samples were collected between October and December 2019. The specimens were examined for species identification, antibiotic susceptibility and molecular detection of antibiotic resistance. Forty isolates were identified as Escherichia coli, forty-eight as Enterococcus spp., eight as Streptococcus spp. and ten as other gram-negative bacteria. Phenotypic antibiotic resistance to at least one antimicrobial agent, including some antibiotics that play a critical role in human medicine, was detected in 36/106 (33.9%, 95% CI: 25–43) isolates and multidrug resistance was detected in 9/106 isolates (8.49%, 95% CI: 3.9–15.5). In addition, genes associated with antibiotic resistance were identified in 61/106 (57.55%, 95% CI: 47.5–67) isolates. The samples from sympatric areas were 2.11 (95% CI: 1.2–3.5) times more likely to contain resistant bacterial isolates than the samples from non-sympatric areas. These data suggest that drug resistant bacteria may be transmitted in areas where wildlife and livestock cohabitate. This emphasizes the need for further investigations focusing on the interactions between humans, wildlife, and the environment, the results of which can aid in the early detection of emerging AMR profiles and possible transmission routes. © 2023 by the authors. | colistin; dalfopristin plus quinupristin; linezolid; macrolide; meropenem; nitrofurantoin; surface water; tetracycline; vancomycin; water; Aeromonas; antibiotic resistance; antibiotic sensitivity; Article; bacterium contamination; bacterium identification; bacterium isolate; dissemination; Enterococcus; Enterococcus faecium; Enterococcus gallinarum; Escherichia coli; geographic distribution; Gram negative bacterium; infection control; livestock; multidrug resistance; nonhuman; polymerase chain reaction; prevalence; risk factor; species identification; Streptococcus; wildlife | Aeromonas; drug resistance; Enterococcus; Escherichia coli; livestock; one health; Streptococcus; water; wild animals |
| Facilitating implementation of the one health approach: A definition of a one health intervention | The last two decades has witnessed a disruption of socio-economic, security and political foundation worldwide due to surging of health events arising at the ecosystem, animal and human interface. The unprecedent magnitude of these events has led to the adoption of One Health approach. Several theoretical definitions and an operational one were released to help common user to understand the approach. To provide evidence of the impact of implementing the One Health approach and to assess the process outputs, a definition of a One Health intervention is required. We are proposing a definition and characteristics of a One Health intervention which will complement the operational definition of the One Health approach by the One Health High-Level Expert Panel. © 2023 The Author(s) | adoption; article; economic security; ecosystem; human; One Health; theoretical study | Impact; One health approach; One health intervention |
| A cross-sectional study of avian influenza A virus in Myanmar live bird markets: Detection of a newly introduced H9N2? | BACKGROUND: Zoonotic influenza surveillance in Myanmar is sparse, despite the risks of introduction of such viruses from neighboring countries that could impact the poultry industry and lead to spillover to humans. METHODS: In July and August 2019, our multi-institutional partnership conducted a One Health-oriented, cross-sectional surveillance (weekly for 3 weeks) for influenza A and influenza D viruses at the three largest live bird markets in Yangon, Myanmar. RESULTS: The 27 bioaerosols, 90 bird cage swabs, 90 bird oropharyngeals, and 90 human nasopharyngeal samples yielded molecular influenza A detections in 8 bioaerosols (30.0%), 16 bird cages (17.8%), 15 bird oropharyngeals (16.7%), and 1 human nasopharyngeal (1.1%) samples. No influenza D was detected. Seven of the influenza A virus detections were found to be subtype A/H9N2, and one human nasopharyngeal sample was found to be subtype A/H1pdm. Among all IAV-positive samples, three of the A/H9N2-positive samples yielded live viruses from egg culture and their whole genome sequences revealing they belonged to the G9/Y280 lineage of A/H9N2 viruses. Phylogenetic analyses showed that these A/H9N2 sequences clustered separately from A/H9N2 viruses that were previously detected in Myanmar, supporting the notion that A/H9N2 viruses similar to those seen in wider Southeast Asia may have been introduced to Myanmar on multiple occasions. CONCLUSIONS: These findings call for increased surveillance efforts in Myanmar to monitor for the introduction of novel influenza viruses in poultry, as well as possible reassortment and zoonotic virus transmission. © 2023 The Authors. Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. | Animals; Chickens; Cross-Sectional Studies; Humans; Influenza A Virus, H9N2 Subtype; Influenza in Birds; Influenza, Human; Myanmar; Phylogeny; Poultry; Poultry Diseases; animal; avian influenza; bird disease; cross-sectional study; Gallus gallus; genetics; human; influenza; Influenza A virus (H9N2); Myanmar; phylogeny; poultry | H9N2; influenza virus; live bird market; Myanmar; One Health |
| Tea contamination by mycotoxins and azole-resistant mycobiota – The need of a One Health approach to tackle exposures | Despite tea beneficial health effects, there is a substantial risk of tea contamination by harmful pathogens and mycotoxins. A total of 40 tea samples (17 green (raw) tea; 13 black (fermented) tea; 10 herbal infusions or white tea) were purchased from different markets located in Lisbon district during 2020. All products were directly available to consumers either in bulk (13) and or in individual packages (27). Bacterial analysis was performed by inoculating 150 μL of samples extracts in tryptic soy agar (TSA) supplemented with 0.2 % nystatin medium for mesophilic bacteria, and in Violet Red bile agar (VRBA) medium for coliforms (Gram-negative bacteria). Fungal research was performed by spreading 150 μL of samples in malt extract agar (MEA) supplemented with 0.05 % chloramphenicol and in dichloran-glycerol agar (DG18) media. The molecular detection of the Aspergillus sections Fumigati, Nidulantes, Circumdati and Flavi was carried out by Real Time PCR (qPCR). Detection of mycotoxins was performed using high performance liquid chromatograph (HPLC) with a mass spectrometry detector. Azole resistance screening was achieved following the EUCAST guidelines. The highest counts of total bacteria (TSA) were obtained in green raw tea (81.6 %), while for coliform counts (VRBA) were found in samples from black raw tea (96.2 %). The highest fungal counts were obtained in green raw tea (87.7 % MEA; 69.6 % DG18). Aspergillus sp. was the most prevalent genus in all samples on MEA (54.3 %) and on DG18 (56.2 %). In the raw tea 23 of the samples (57.5 %) presented contamination by one to five mycotoxins in the same sample. One Aspergillus section Fumigati isolate from green tea beverage recovered form itraconazole-Sabouraud dextrose agar (SDA) medium, presented itraconazole and posaconazole E-test MICs above MIC90 values. Our findings open further discussion regarding the One-Health approach and the necessary investment in researching biological hazards and azole-resistance associated with the production and consumption of tea (in particular green tea). © 2022 | Agar; Aspergillus; Azoles; Bacteria; Camellia sinensis; Culture Media; Itraconazole; Mycotoxins; One Health; Tea; chloramphenicol; itraconazole; mycotoxin; nystatin; posaconazole; pyrrole derivative; agar; itraconazole; mycotoxin; pyrrole derivative; theasinensin A; Article; Aspergillus; bacterial count; bacterium contamination; bacterium isolate; biosafety; Camellia sinensis; coliform bacterium; consumer; controlled study; Echinacea; Equisetum; food contamination; food safety; fungal contamination; herbal tea; in vitro study; malt; mass spectrometry; Melissa officinalis; mesophilic bacterium; MIC90; microbial contamination; nonhuman; One Health; Peumus boldus; practice guideline; real time polymerase chain reaction; Shannon index; Simpson index; solid state; species diversity; tea; analysis; bacterium; Camellia sinensis; culture medium; microbiology; tea | Aspergillus; Azole resistance; Camellia sinensis; Food safety; Herbal tea; Mycotoxins |
| Household-level risk factors for water contamination and antimicrobial resistance in drinking water among households with children under 5 in rural San Marcos, Cajamarca, Peru | Household water contamination at point of use depends on human, animal and environmental factors embodying all aspects of a One Health approach. This study investigated the association between household factors, the presence of thermotolerant coliform, and the presence of antibiotic resistant bacteria in drinking water among 314 households with children under 5 in Cajamarca, Peru. This study analysed data from a baseline sampling of a randomized controlled trial, including household surveys covering household water management and factors such as household animals, as well as microbiological data from samples collected from drinking water. Data were analysed using generalized linear models. Drinking water samples collected from narrow-mouthed containers were less likely to be contaminated than samples collected from the faucet (OR = 0.55, p = 0.030) or wide mouthed containers. The presence of thermotolerant coliform was associated with owning farm birds, which increased the proportion of contamination from 42.2% to 59.1% (OR = 1.98, p = 0.017) and with animal waste observed in the kitchen area, which increased the prevalence of contamination from 51.4% to 65.6% (OR = 1.80, p = 0.024). Resistance to any antibiotic was higher among pig owners at 60%, relative to non-pig owners at 36.4% (OR = 1.97, p = 0.012) as well as households with free-roaming animals in the kitchen area at 59.6% compared to households without free-roaming animals at 39.7% (OR = 2.24, p = 0.035). Recent child antibiotic use increased the prevalence of trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole resistance among E. coli isolates to 22.3% relative to 16.7% (OR = 3.00, p = 0.037). Overall, these findings suggest that water storage in a secure container to protect from in-home contamination is likely to be important in providing safe drinking water at point of use. In addition, transmission of thermotolerant coliform and AMR between domestic animals and human drinking water supplies is likely. Further research should explore transmission pathways and methods to support safe drinking water access in multi-species households. © 2023 | amoxicillin plus clavulanic acid; ampicillin; antibiotic agent; azithromycin; cefotaxime; cefoxitin; chloramphenicol; ciprofloxacin; cotrimoxazole; drinking water; gentamicin; nalidixic acid; nitrofurantoin; tetracycline; adolescent; adult; antibiotic resistance; Article; bacterium isolate; bird; child; coliform bacterium; comparative study; domestic animal; Escherichia coli; groups by age; heat tolerance; household; human; kitchen; manure; microbiological examination; Peru; pig farming; preschool child; prevalence; risk factor; rural area; water contamination; water management; water sampling; water supply | Antimicrobial resistance; Domestic animals; Drinking water; One health; Thermotolerant coliforms |
| COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) in Patients Treated in the Unified Health System (SUS) with Flu and Respiratory Symptoms from Three Brazilian Municipalities in the Border Region | Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence and carry out epidemiology using sociodemographic data from patients with symptoms suggestive of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) (SARS-CoV-2) in 3 bordering Brazilian municipalities. Methods: An epidemiological survey of positive cases of COVID-19 through reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was carried out in 1874 patients, seen in the Unified Health System (SUS), ages between 0 and 99 years, who had symptoms suggestive of COVID-19, from the cities of Assis Chateaubriand, Tupãssi, and Formosa do Oeste. Results: It was possible to observe that of the 1874 patients seen in the public health network of the 3 municipalities, 354 were diagnosed as positive. The predominance of cases was in female patients (51.97%) and in patients who lived in urban areas (93.50%), and the predominant age group was 20-29 years (19.78%). Conclusion: The result of this study demonstrated the epidemiological profile of patients with respiratory and flu-like symptoms, positive for COVID-19, in 3 municipalities bordering Paraguay and Argentina. It was evident that the age group has its specificities regarding the susceptibility of the infection. Although the borders are closed, there was probably a spread of the virus in this region, due to the diversion, which showed an increase during the pandemic period. © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc. | Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Brazil; Child; Child, Preschool; Cities; COVID-19; COVID-19 Testing; Female; Humans; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Middle Aged; SARS-CoV-2; Young Adult; adolescent; adult; aged; Brazil; child; city; epidemiology; female; human; infant; middle aged; newborn; preschool child; very elderly; young adult | Brazilian border; emerging diseases; One Health; pandemic |
| Pinnipeds carriers of pathogenic Leptospira: New data based on molecular characterization | Leptospirosis is a bacterial disease caused by the infection of pathogenic strains of the genus Leptospira, endemic in tropical and subtropical regions. Although well documented in terrestrial animals and humans, little information is available on its distribution and impact on marine animals. Despite clinical manifestations that may occur, the occurrence of carriers was suggested in some species. Nevertheless, there are few studies regarding the infection by Leptospira sp. in marine mammals. In this context, and considering the One Health approach, the present aimed to investigate pinnipeds’ role as Leptospira sp. carriers. Kidneys of 47 pinnipeds of two species, Arctocephalus australis (n = 40) and Arctocephalus tropicalis (n = 7) were collected. DNA was extracted and the diagnosis was performed through LipL32-PCR and genetic characterization based on secY gene sequencing. Phylogenetic analysis and haplotype networks were constructed. Pathogenic Leptospira sp. DNA was detected in 31.9% (15/47) of the tested pinnipeds. It was possible to amplify and sequence eight strains (6 for A. australis, 2 for A. tropicalis), all identified as L. interrogans, with high similarity with sequences from Icterohaemorrhagiae serogroup. Phylogenetic analysis revealed sequences from the present study grouped in species-specific unique clusters, but very close to others from humans, wild animals, and domestic animals. We demonstrate that pinnipeds could act as carriers, and play an important role in leptospirosis dynamics. © 2022 | Animals; Caniformia; Fur Seals; Humans; Leptospira; Leptospirosis; Phylogeny; bacterial DNA; outer membrane protein LipL32; SecY protein; adult; animal experiment; animal tissue; Arctocephalus australis; Arctocephalus tropicalis; Article; bacterial strain; bacterium carrier; bacterium identification; controlled study; DNA extraction; female; gene amplification; gene sequence; genetic analysis; genetic variability; haplotype; kidney parenchyma; Leptospira interrogans serovar Icterohaemorrhagiae; leptospirosis; male; molecular diagnosis; molecular phylogeny; nonhuman; nucleotide sequence; One Health; Pinnipedia; polymerase chain reaction; secY gene; serotype; animal; Caniformia; genetics; human; Leptospira; leptospirosis; microbiology; Otariidae; phylogeny; veterinary medicine | Leptospirosis; LipL32; Marine mammals; Molecular diagnosis; Phylogenetic analysis, one health; secY |
| A one-health perspective: use of hemoderivative regenerative therapies in canine and equine patients | Regenerative medicine therapies have become significant tools for treatment of joint, soft tissue, and a variety of other conditions in animals and humans. Regenerative medicine aims to restore form and function of injured tissues using the body’s own resources such as cells, fluids (ie, plasma and serum), and their resulting anti-inflammatory and prohealing cytokines. Platelet-rich plasma and other hemoderivatives have application for joint disorders such as osteoarthritis, cartilage injury, synovitis, and soft tissue injuries. These therapies achieve anti-inflammatory and healing effects without the use of corticosteroid therapy. This response is an advantage when treating young animals or human patients, and in animals with metabolic or hormonal issues such as equine pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction. Also, these therapies may have beneficial effects when traditional IA treatments such as corticosteroids and/or hyaluronan are no longer effective at reducing joint inflammation and pain. Examples of hemoderivative regenerative therapies to be discussed include platelet-rich plasma, autologous conditioned serum, autologous protein solution, and α-2 macroglobulin. | Animals; Anti-Inflammatory Agents; Dog Diseases; Dogs; Horse Diseases; Horses; Humans; One Health; Osteoarthritis; Pain; Platelet-Rich Plasma; Wound Healing; antiinflammatory agent; animal; dog; dog disease; horse; horse disease; human; metabolism; One Health; osteoarthritis; pain; thrombocyte rich plasma; veterinary medicine; wound healing |
| A systematic approach toward progressive improvement of national antimicrobial resistance surveillance systems in food and agriculture sectors | The first Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Action Plan on antimicrobial resistance (AMR), published in 2016, identified the need to develop capacity for AMR surveillance and monitoring in food and agriculture sectors. As part of this effort, FAO has developed the “Assessment Tool for Laboratories and AMR Surveillance Systems” (FAO-ATLASS) to assist countries in systematically assessing their AMR surveillance system in food and agriculture. FAO-ATLASS includes two different modules for surveillance and laboratory assessment. Each module includes two questionnaires that collect either qualitative or semi-quantitative data to describe and score the performance of national AMR surveillance system data production network, data collection and analysis, governance, communication and overall sustainability in a standardized manner. Based on information captured in the questionnaire by trained assessors (1) tables and figures describing the outputs of the surveillance system are automatically generated (2) a Progressive Improvement Pathway (PIP) stage, ranging from “1-limited” to “5-sustainable”, is assigned to each laboratory assessed in the country, each area of the surveillance system and also to the overarching national AMR surveillance system. FAO-ATLASS allows national authorities to implement a strategic stepwise approach to improving their AMR surveillance systems via the FAO-ATLASS PIP system and provides an evidence base for actions and advocacy. The implementation of FAO-ATLASS at regional and global levels can contribute to harmonize and better coordinate strategies aimed at implementing an integrated AMR surveillance system under the One Health approach. Copyright © Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations 2023. | agriculture; antibiotic resistance; article; human; human experiment; One Health; quantitative analysis; questionnaire; United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization | agriculture; antimicrobial resistance; assessment; FAO-ATLASS; food; laboratory; One Health; surveillance |
| Impact of antimicrobial use in dogs on antimicrobial resistance and shared flora with human owners | Transmission of bacteria between animals and humans in domestic households is increasingly recognized. We evaluated the presence of antimicrobial-resistant fecal bacteria in 8 dog-owner-dog pairs before and after the dog received amoxicillin-clavulanate. The study identified shared flora in the humans and dogs that were affected by antimicrobial administration. © 2023 The Author(s). | antimicrobial resistance; antimicrobial stewardship; One Health |
| Proof-of-concept study for a long-acting formulation of ivermectin injected in cattle as a complementary malaria vector control tool | Background: Domesticated animals play a role in maintaining residual transmission of Plasmodium parasites of humans, by offering alternative blood meal sources for malaria vectors to survive on. However, the blood of animals treated with veterinary formulations of the anti-helminthic drug ivermectin can have an insecticidal effect on adult malaria vector mosquitoes. This study therefore assessed the effects of treating cattle with long-acting injectable formulations of ivermectin on the survival of an important malaria vector species, to determine whether it has potential as a complementary vector control measure. Methods: Eight head of a local breed of cattle were randomly assigned to either one of two treatment arms (2 × 2 cattle injected with one of two long-acting formulations of ivermectin with the BEPO® technology at the therapeutic dose of 1.2 mg/kg), or one of two control arms (2 × 2 cattle injected with the vehicles of the formulations). The lethality of the formulations was evaluated on 3–5-day-old Anopheles coluzzii mosquitoes through direct skin-feeding assays, from 1 to 210 days after treatment. The efficacy of each formulation was evaluated and compared using Cox proportional hazards survival models, Kaplan–Meier survival estimates, and log-logistic regression on cumulative mortality. Results: Both formulations released mosquitocidal concentrations of ivermectin until 210 days post-treatment (hazard ratio > 1). The treatments significantly reduced mosquito survival, with average median survival time of 4–5 days post-feeding. The lethal concentrations to kill 50% of the Anopheles (LC50) before they became infectious (10 days after an infectious blood meal) were maintained for 210 days post-injection for both formulations. Conclusions: This long-lasting formulation of ivermectin injected in cattle could complement insecticide-treated nets by suppressing field populations of zoophagic mosquitoes that are responsible, at least in part, for residual malaria transmission. The impact of this approach will of course depend on the field epidemiological context. Complementary studies will be necessary to characterize ivermectin withdrawal times and potential environmental toxicity. Graphical Abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]. © 2023, The Author(s). | Adult; Animals; Anopheles; Cattle; Humans; Insecticides; Ivermectin; Malaria; Mosquito Control; Mosquito Vectors; insecticide; ivermectin; adult; animal; Anopheles; bovine; human; malaria; mosquito control; mosquito vector; parasitology; veterinary medicine | Anopheles; Burkina Faso; Cattle; Ivermectin; Long-acting formulation; Malaria; One health; Residual transmission |
| A one-health lens offers new perspectives on the importance of endocrine disorders in the equine athlete | Endocrine disorders are associated with joint pain and tendon injury in humans, but the effects in the horse are only starting to be understood. Similar patterns of clinical signs and injury appear to affect horses and humans for both orthopedic and endocrine disorders, supporting the use of a one-health approach to tackle these issues. In this Currents in One Health, we will discuss common equine endocrinopathies, current testing recommendations, dietary management, genetic predispositions, and endocrine disorders’ effects on performance. Our aim is to use a one-health lens to describe current comparative research so that veterinarians can employ cutting-edge preventative, diagnostic, and therapeutic recommendations. Identified key gaps in knowledge include whether equine metabolic osteoarthritis exists, if steroid joint injections are safe in horses with endocrine disorders, and if the return to performance percentage improves with concurrent treatment of endocrine and musculoskeletal disorders. Key takeaways include that the relationship between endocrine disorders and musculoskeletal disease in the horse goes beyond laminitis to include lameness, muscle atrophy, suspensory ligament degeneration, osteochondritis dissecans, and potentially metabolic osteoarthritis. Approaches learned from human and equine comparative studies can offer insight into injury recognition and management, thus mitigating the impact of endocrine disorders on performance in both species. Readers interested in an in-depth description of current and future research involving pathophysiology, novel interventions, and multiomic approaches to identify individuals with athletic limitations induced by endocrine disorders are invited to read the companion Currents in One Health by Manfredi et al, AJVR, February 2023. | Animals; Athletes; Horse Diseases; Horses; Humans; One Health; Osteoarthritis; Sports; animal; athlete; horse; horse disease; human; One Health; osteoarthritis; sport; veterinary medicine |
| Trichinella infection in Serbia from 2011 to 2020: A success story in the field of One Health | In Serbia, modern pork production systems with implemented control measures, including the detection of Trichinella larvae in meat (ISO18743), have eliminated farmed pork from pigs slaughtered at abattoirs as a source of trichinellosis. Epidemiological data from 2011 to 2020 indicate that the number of human cases and the number of infected domestic pigs has decreased significantly. Over the years, pork was the most frequent source of human infection. Cases generally occurred in small family outbreaks, and the infection was linked to consumption of raw or undercooked pork from backyard pigs. In most of the outbreaks, T. spiralis was the aetiological agent of infection, but in 2016, a large outbreak was caused by consumption of uninspected wild boar meat containing T. britovi larvae. To achieve safe pork, it is important that consumers of pork from animals raised in backyard smallholdings and of wild game meat are properly educated about the risks associated with consumption of untested meat. Laboratories conducting Trichinella testing should have a functional quality assurance system to ensure competency of analysts and that accurate and repeatable results are achieved. Regular participation in proficiency testing is needed. Copyright © The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press. | Animals; Disease Outbreaks; Humans; Meat; One Health; Serbia; Swine; Trichinella; Trichinellosis; aged; Article; domestic pig; epidemic; European wild boar; food safety; human; major clinical study; meat consumption; nonhuman; One Health; pork; prevalence; Serbia; Trichinella; Trichinella spiralis; trichinosis; animal; meat; pig; Serbia; trichinosis | Serbia; Trichinella infection; trichinellosis |
| Comparative meta-analysis of antimicrobial resistance from different food sources along with one health approach in Italy and Thailand | Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is increasing worldwide due to overuse, misuse and incomplete treatment of antibiotics. Many countries are facing the excessive issue due to the spreading of AMR not only in humans and animals, but also in water and agri-food sector. Our main aim was to perform a competitive meta-analysis of surveillance-resistant microbes and their antimicrobial superintendence in Italy and Thailand. Data have been collected from reports published for the period 2012–2021. A total of 9507 and 11,753 food samples contained 3905 (41.07%) and 3526 (30%) AMR bacteria in Italy and Thailand, respectively. In Italy, the highest microbial prevalence was β-lactam and tetracycline, while in Thailand mostly isolates showed resistance to cephalosporin and aminoglycoside. Our findings contribute to highlighting the increment of AMR related to different microbes with tendency to become multidrug resistant. © 2022 | aminoglycoside; beta lactam; cephalosporin; tetracycline; antibiotic resistance; Article; controlled study; food; human; information processing; Italy; multidrug resistant bacterium; nonhuman; One Health; prevalence; public health surveillance; Thailand | Antibiotics; Antimicrobial resistance (AMR); Multi-drug resistant (MDR); One health; Surveillance |
| The fate of sulfonamide resistance genes and anthropogenic pollution marker intI1 after discharge of wastewater into a pristine river stream | Introduction: Currently there are sparse regulations regarding the discharge of antibiotics from wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) into river systems, making surface waters a latent reservoir for antibiotics and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). To better understand factors that influence the fate of ARGs in the environment and to foster surveillance of antibiotic resistance spreading in such habitats, several indicator genes have been proposed, including the integrase gene intI1 and the sulfonamide resistance genes sul1 and sul2. Methods: Here we used quantitative PCR and long-read nanopore sequencing to monitor the abundance of these indicator genes and ARGs present as class 1 integron gene cassettes in a river system from pristine source to WWTP-impacted water. ARG abundance was compared with the dynamics of the microbial communities determined via 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, conventional water parameters and the concentration of sulfamethoxazole (SMX), sulfamethazine (SMZ) and sulfadiazine (SDZ). Results: Our results show that WWTP effluent was the principal source of all three sulfonamides with highest concentrations for SMX (median 8.6 ng/l), and of the indicator genes sul1, sul2 and intI1 with median relative abundance to 16S rRNA gene of 0.55, 0.77 and 0.65%, respectively. Downstream from the WWTP, water quality improved constantly, including lower sulfonamide concentrations, decreasing abundances of sul1 and sul2 and lower numbers and diversity of ARGs in the class 1 integron. The riverine microbial community partially recovered after receiving WWTP effluent, which was consolidated by a microbiome recovery model. Surprisingly, the relative abundance of intI1 increased 3-fold over 13 km of the river stretch, suggesting an internal gene multiplication. Discussion: We found no evidence that low amounts of sulfonamides in the aquatic environment stimulate the maintenance or even spread of corresponding ARGs. Nevertheless, class 1 integrons carrying various ARGs were still present 13 km downstream from the WWTP. Therefore, limiting the release of ARG-harboring microorganisms may be more crucial for restricting the environmental spread of antimicrobial resistance than attenuating ng/L concentrations of antibiotics. Copyright © 2023 Haenelt, Wang, Kasmanas, Musat, Richnow, da Rocha, Müller and Musat. | chloramphenicol; river water; RNA 16S; sulfadiazine; sulfadimidine; sulfamethoxazole; sulfonamide; Article; Caulobacteraceae; class 1 integron; Comamonadaceae; DNA extraction; Escherichia coli; high performance liquid chromatography; human impact (environment); Lachnospiraceae; microbial diversity; nonhuman; Peptostreptococcaceae; Pseudomonas putida; quantitative analysis; real time polymerase chain reaction; Rhodobacteraceae; Ruminococcaceae; sequence analysis; solid phase extraction; waste water management; waste water treatment plant; water sampling | class 1 integron; intI1; one health; river ecosystem; sul1; sul2; sulfamethoxazole; sulfonamide resistance |
| Hiding in Plain Sight: Characterization of Aeromonas Species Isolated from a Recreational Estuary Reveals the Carriage and Putative Dissemination of Resistance Genes | Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has become one of the greatest challenges worldwide, hampering the treatment of a plethora of infections. Indeed, the AMR crisis poses a threat to the achievement of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and, due to its multisectoral character, a holistic approach is needed to tackle this issue. Thus, the investigation of environments beyond the clinic is of utmost importance. Here, we investigated thirteen strains of antimicrobial-resistant Aeromonas isolated from an urban estuary in Brazil. Most strains carried at least one antimicrobial resistance gene and 11 carried at least one heavy metal resistance gene. Noteworthy, four (30.7%) strains carried the blaKPC gene, coding for a carbapenemase. In particular, the whole-genome sequence of Aeromonas hydrophila strain 34SFC-3 was determined, revealing not only the presence of antimicrobial and heavy metal resistance genes but also a versatile virulome repertoire. Mobile genetic elements, including insertion sequences, transposons, integrative conjugative elements, and an IncQ1 plasmid were also detected. Considering the ubiquity of Aeromonas species, their genetic promiscuity, pathogenicity, and intrinsic features to endure environmental stress, our findings reinforce the concept that A. hydrophila truly is a “Jack of all trades’’ that should not be overlooked under the One Health perspective. © 2023 by the authors. | aminoglycoside; beta lactam antibiotic; cadmium; carbapenemase; chloramphenicol; cobalt; colistin; glutaredoxin; glutathione transferase; macrolide; methionine sulfoxide reductase A; methionine sulfoxide reductase B; sulfonamide; tetracycline; thiopurine methyltransferase; virginiamycin; zinc; Aeromonas; Aeromonas caviae; Aeromonas hydrophila; Aeromonas salmonicida; Aeromonas veronii; antibiotic resistance; antibiotic sensitivity; Article; Escherichia coli; melanogenesis; multilocus sequence typing; nonhuman; oxidative stress; Pseudomonas syringae; sustainable development goal | Aeromonas; antimicrobial resistance; bla <sub>KPC</sub>; horizontal gene transfer; One Health; virulence; WGS |
| RNA-seq analysis of differentially expressed LncRNAs from leishmaniasis patients compared to uninfected humans | Leishmaniasis is a parasitic disease that seriously endangers human health. Furthermore, among the parasitic diseases, leishmaniasis is the third most common cause of death after malaria and schistosomiasis. However, the potential function of LncRNAs in leishmaniasis remain unclear. This study aimed to explore the differentially expressed LncRNAs in leishmaniasis. The sera of leishmaniasis patients and uninfected persons for controls were obtained and analyzed by high-throughput sequencing. Moreover, the expression of key LncRNAs was detected by qPCR. The results showed that 970 differentially expressed LncRNAs and 1692 differentially expressed mRNAs were screened compared to control groups. Then, 520 target genes were identified by using bioinformation analysis and the ENCORI database. The bioinformatics analysis revealed that the differentially expressed target genes were enriched in autophagy animal, FoxO signaling pathway, mTOR signaling pathway, and apoptosis, et al. Among those differentially expressed LncRNAs, nine key LncRNAs were selected (MALAT1, NUTM2A-AS1, and LINC00963 had high expression; LINC00622, MAPKAPK5-AS1, LINC02289, XPC-AS1, ZFAS1 and SNHG5 had low expression) by qPCR. This study suggests that different expressions of LncRNAs may involve in the potential function in leishmaniasis and provide a novel insight for diagnosis of this zoonotic disease. © 2022 The Author(s) | Animals; Gene Expression Profiling; Gene Regulatory Networks; Humans; Leishmaniasis; RNA, Long Noncoding; Sequence Analysis, RNA; Signal Transduction; long untranslated RNA; mammalian target of rapamycin; messenger RNA; transcription factor FOXO; long untranslated RNA; bioinformatics; gene expression; parasitic disease; RNA; apoptosis; Article; bioinformatics; controlled study; data base; gene expression; gene targeting; high throughput sequencing; human; leishmaniasis; One Health; polymerase chain reaction; RNA sequence; sequence analysis; signal transduction; animal; gene expression profiling; gene regulatory network; genetics; metabolism; sequence analysis | Leishmaniasis; Long non-coding RNA; One health; Zoonotic diseases |
| Detection of carbapenemase- and ESBL-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae from bovine bulk milk and comparison with clinical human isolates in Italy | Klebsiella pneumoniae is the most common Klebsiella species infecting animals and is one of the causing agents of mastitis in cows. The rise of antimicrobial resistance in K. pneumoniae, particularly in strains producing extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs) and/or carbapenemases, is of concern worldwide. Recently (Regulation UE No 2022/1255), carbapenems and cephalosporins in combination with β-lactamase inhibitors have been reserved only to human treatments in the European Union. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of cattle as carrier of human pathogenic carbapenem-resistant (CR) and ESBL-producing K. pneumoniae. On this purpose, a study involving 150 dairy farms in Parma province (Northern Italy) and 14 non replicate K. pneumoniae isolates from patients admitted at Parma University-Hospital was planned. Four multidrug resistant (MDR) K. pneumoniae strains were detected from 258 milk filters collected between 2019 and 2021. One carbapenemase KPC-3-positive K. pneumoniae ST307 (0.4 %; 95 % CI – 0.07 – 2.2) was detected in milk filters. The isolate also harboured OXA-9, CTX-M-15 and SHV-106 determinants, together with genes conferring resistance to aminoglycosides (aac(3′)-IIa, aph (3″)-Ib, aph (6)-Id), fluoroquinolones (oqxA, oqxB, qnrB1), phosphonic acids (fosA6), sulphonamides (sul2), tetracyclines (tet(A)6) and trimethoprim (dfrA14). One KPC-3-producing K. pneumoniae ST307 was identified also among the human isolates, thus suggesting a possible circulation of pathogens out of the clinical settings. The remaining three bovine isolates were MDR ESBL-producing K. pneumoniae characterized by different genomic profiles: CTX-M-15, TEM-1B and SHV-187 genes (ST513); CTX-M-15 and SHV-145 (ST307); SHV-187 and DHA-1 (ST307). Occurrence of ESBL-producing K. pneumoniae in milk filters was 1.2 % (95 % CI 0.4–3.4). All the isolates showed resistance to aminoglycosides, 3rd-generation cephalosporins, and fluoroquinolones. Among the human isolates, two multidrug resistant ESBL-producing K. pneumoniae ST307 were found, thus confirming the circulation of this high-risk lineage between humans and cattle. Our findings suggest that food-producing animals can carry human pathogenic microorganisms harboring resistance genes against carbapenems and 3rd-generation cephalosporins, even if not treated with such antimicrobials. Moreover, on the MDR K. pneumoniae farms, the antimicrobial use was much higher than the Italian median value, thus highlighting the importance of a more prudent use of antibiotics in animal productions. © 2022 | Aminoglycosides; Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents; beta-Lactamases; Carbapenems; Cattle; Cephalosporins; Female; Fluoroquinolones; Humans; Klebsiella Infections; Klebsiella pneumoniae; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Milk; aminoglycoside; beta lactamase CTX M; beta lactamase inhibitor; beta lactamase SHV; beta lactamase TEM 1; carbapenemase; cephalosporin derivative; chloramphenicol; fosfomycin; macrolide; phosphonic acid derivative; quinolone derivative; sulfonamide; tetracycline derivative; trimethoprim; antiinfective agent; beta lactamase; carbapenem derivative; carbapenemase; adult; antibiotic resistome; antibiotic sensitivity; Article; bacterial genome; bacterium isolate; consanguinity; controlled study; cow milk; dairy cattle; extended spectrum beta lactamase producing Klebsiella pneumoniae; food safety; genetic profile; human; Italy; minimum inhibitory concentration; multidrug resistance; nonhuman; One Health; phylogenetic tree; public health; whole genome sequencing; animal; bovine; female; genetics; Klebsiella infection; Klebsiella pneumoniae; microbial sensitivity test; milk; veterinary medicine | Dairy cattle; KPC-3 Klebsiella pneumoniae; One Health; Sequence type 307 |
| Nurturing by nutrition: On the future of gut microbiota management strategies for autoimmune disease | The incidence of autoimmune disease continues to rise, which urges for new prevention and treatment modalities. The composition of the gut microbiota is associated with both susceptibility and progression of disease. Nutrition significantly shapes the gut microbial composition, and poses as such a modality for both prevention and treatment/adjuvant therapy. At very young age, nutritional intervention targeting the gut microbiota is still possible within a one-size-fits all regime, accompanied by a relatively high effect size. As ageing results in higher interindividual variation induced by cumulative exposome factors, a more personalized approach is needed, having a higher effect size than that of current nutritional intervention. As such, supplementation of microbial consortia consisting of keystone taxa and microbial guilds that are involved in the pathophysiology seem a promising direction to lower the burden of autoimmune disease. Copyright © 2023 Larsen. | autoimmune; fecal microbiota transfer (FMT); gut microbiota; nutrition; old friends; One Health; probiotics |
| MBPD: A multiple bacterial pathogen detection pipeline for One Health practices | Bacterial pathogens are one of the major threats to biosafety and environmental health, and advanced assessment is a prerequisite to combating bacterial pathogens. Currently, 16S rRNA gene sequencing is efficient in the open-view detection of bacterial pathogens. However, the taxonomic resolution and applicability of this method are limited by the domain-specific pathogen database, taxonomic profiling method, and sequencing target of 16S variable regions. Here, we present a pipeline of multiple bacterial pathogen detection (MBPD) to identify the animal, plant, and zoonotic pathogens. MBPD is based on a large, curated database of the full-length 16S genes of 1986 reported bacterial pathogen species covering 72,685 sequences. In silico comparison allowed MBPD to provide the appropriate similarity threshold for both full-length and variable-region sequencing platforms, while the subregion of V3−V4 (mean: 88.37%, accuracy rate compared to V1−V9) outperformed other variable regions in pathogen identification compared to full-length sequencing. Benchmarking on real data sets suggested the superiority of MBPD in a broader range of pathogen detections compared with other methods, including 16SPIP and MIP. Beyond detecting the known causal agent of animal, human, and plant diseases, MBPD is capable of identifying cocontaminating pathogens from biological and environmental samples. Overall, we provide a MBPD pipeline for agricultural, veterinary, medical, and environmental monitoring to achieve One Health. © 2023 The Authors. iMeta published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of iMeta Science. | 16S rRNA gene sequencing; bacterial pathogen detection; One Health |
| The menace of colistin resistance across globe: Obstacles and opportunities in curbing its spread | Colistin-resistance in bacteria is a big concern for public health, since it is a last resort antibiotic to treat infectious diseases of multidrug resistant and carbapenem resistant Gram-negative pathogens in clinical settings. The emergence of colistin resistance in aquaculture and poultry settings has escalated the risks associated with colistin resistance in environment as well. The staggering number of reports pertaining to the rise of colistin resistance in bacteria from clinical and non-clinical settings is disconcerting. The co-existence of colistin resistant genes with other antibiotic resistant genes introduces new challenges in combatting antimicrobial resistance. Some countries have banned the manufacture, sale and distribution of colistin and its formulations for food producing animals. However, to tackle the issue of antimicrobial resistance, a one health approach initiative, inclusive of human, animal, and environmental health needs to be developed. Herein, we review the recent reports in colistin resistance in bacteria of clinical and non-clinical settings, deliberating on the new findings obtained regarding the development of colistin resistance. This review also discusses the initiatives implemented globally in mitigating colistin resistance, their strength and weakness. © 2023 Elsevier GmbH | Animals; Antibiotics; Genes; Antimicrobial resistances; Colistin; Colistin resistance; Drug-resistance; Mcr; Non-clinical settings; One health; Pan drug resistance; Residual colistin; bacterium; disease spread; drug resistance; emergence; infectious disease; poultry; Bacteria | Colistin resistance; Mcr; One health; Pan drug resistance; Residual colistin |
| Sentience, Harmony and the Value of Nature | Concern for nature and for animal sentience are important public and political moral concerns. Using frameworks such as Harmony for Nature and One Health and the recent IPBES report on the Diverse Values of Nature, this paper considers how the two issues interrelate, in terms of our concepts of sentience and nature, and sentience-based values’ importance in relation to nature-based values. Animals’ sentience is part of nature, and part of its diversity, harmony, health and value. Sentient animals’ feelings represent animals’ evaluations of nature that go beyond valuing nature for solely for market-based and anthropocentric interests. Sentience is therefore relevant for measurement, leveraging and embedding sentience-based values in environmental concerns, including in environmental impact assessments, science-based UN policy-making, interdisciplinary and interagency collaboration, and to strengthen transformative and system-based action for nature. © 2022 by the author. | article; biodiversity; embedding; environmental impact assessment; management; One Health; United Nations | biodiversity; harmony with nature; sentience; United Nations; value of nature |
| Understanding the distribution of antibiotic resistance genes in an urban community using wastewater-based epidemiological approach | The study aimed to evaluate the community-wide antimicrobial resistance (AMR) profile of an urban setting using the culture-independent wastewater-based epidemiological surveillance (WBE) approach. The domestic wastewater sample was collected at the converging point of the drain connecting the Sewage Treatment Plant (STP). The collected water sample was evaluated for the presence of 125 antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and 13 mobile genetic elements (MGEs, 5 integrons and 8 transposons). Antibiotic residues and the composition of bacterial communities were also examined. Community’s sewage showed a diverse resistance pattern, with the positive detection of targeted ARGs, notably aph, aadA1, and strB being particularly abundant. Resistance to aminoglycoside and trimethoprim classes was prevalent, followed by chloramphenicol, sulfonamide, and β-lactams. According to the microbial diversity assessment, Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, and Chloroflexi were abundant phyla observed, while Helicobacteraceae, Pseudomonadaceae, and Moraxellaceae were prevalent families. The study provided comprehensive baseline information of ARGs on a community scale and will be of use for ARG prevention and management. © 2023 Elsevier B.V. | Anti-Bacterial Agents; Drug Resistance, Microbial; Genes, Bacterial; Humans; Sewage; Wastewater; Amides; Antibiotics; Gene transfer; Genes; Pattern recognition; Sewage treatment plants; Sulfur compounds; Wastewater treatment; antiinfective agent; Anthropogenic pollution; Antibiotic resistance genes; Antibiotics resistance; Antimicrobial resistances; Domestic wastewater; One health; Resistance profiles; Urban community; Urban settings; Wastewater samples; anthropogenic source; antibiotic resistance; epidemiology; gene transfer; spatial distribution; urban population; wastewater; water quality; antibiotic resistance; bacterial gene; genetics; human; microbiology; sewage; wastewater; Water quality | Anthropogenic pollution; Antibiotic resistance; Gene transfer; One Health; Water quality |
| Gender gap reduction and the one health benefits | Several factors including gender, age groups, cultures and social conditions may affect significantly the risk of diseases and their clinical evolution. Unfortunately, little research has been carried out on these aspects and, consequently few guidelines or interventions have been implemented. In particular, gender is considered a main determinant of inequalities in living conditions, access to health services and, thus, in health protection. Focusing on the gender gap, we propose an ecological approach to find relationships between quantitative indicators of the gender gap dimension, the environmental performance index and the life expectancy at birth as summary of human health index in 155 countries. We speculated on the consequences of wider gender gaps to the population and environmental health. We further explore these relationships considering gender gap and environmental aspect subindexes, to identify determinants that should be addressed to maximize the One Health effect. We found that the gender gap in educational attainment followed by the political empowerment were strongly correlated with life expectancy, environmental health, and ecosystem vitality. Addressing gender issues, particularly the education attainment and political empowerment, can provide positive impact beyond the social dimension and the population health, and gender should be component of the One Health approach. We recommend gender targeted interventions that integrate these aspects into One Health national policies. © 2023 The Authors | Eco health; Education; Empowerment; Gender gap; Gender-specific roles; One health |
