Infectious diseases epidemic threats and mass gatherings: refocusing global attention on the continuing spread of the Middle East Respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV)

Media and World Health Organization (WHO) attention on Zika virus transmission at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games and the 2015 Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa diverted the attention of global public health authorities from other lethal infectious diseases with epidemic potential. Mass gatherings such as the annual Hajj pilgrimage hosted by Kingdom of Saudi Arabia attract huge crowds from all continents, creating high-risk conditions for the rapid global spread of infectious diseases. The highly lethal Middle Eastern respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) remains in the WHO list of top emerging diseases likely to cause major epidemics. The 2015 MERS-CoV outbreak in South Korea, in which 184 MERS cases including 33 deaths occurred in 2 months, that was imported from the Middle East by a South Korean businessman was a wake-up call for the global community to refocus attention on MERS-CoV and other emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases with epidemic potential. The international donor community and Middle Eastern countries should make available resources for, and make a serious commitment to, taking forward a “One Health” global network for proactive surveillance, rapid detection, and prevention of MERS-CoV and other epidemic infectious diseases threats

Infectious diseases epidemic threats and mass gatherings: Refocusing global attention on the continuing spread of the Middle East Respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV)

Media and World Health Organization (WHO) attention on Zika virus transmission at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games and the 2015 Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa diverted the attention of global public health authorities from other lethal infectious diseases with epidemic potential. Mass gatherings such as the annual Hajj pilgrimage hosted by Kingdom of Saudi Arabia attract huge crowds from all continents, creating high-risk conditions for the rapid global spread of infectious diseases. The highly lethal Middle Eastern respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) remains in the WHO list of top emerging diseases likely to cause major epidemics. The 2015 MERS-CoV outbreak in South Korea, in which 184 MERS cases including 33 deaths occurred in 2 months, that was imported from the Middle East by a South Korean businessman was a wake-up call for the global community to refocus attention on MERS-CoV and other emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases with epidemic potential. The international donor community and Middle Eastern countries should make available resources for, and make a serious commitment to, taking forward a "One Health" global network for proactive surveillance, rapid detection, and prevention of MERS-CoV and other epidemic infectious diseases threats

Coxiella burnetii, the causative agent of Q fever in Saudi Arabia: molecular detection from camel and other domestic livestock

AbstractObjectiveTo detect Coxiella burnetii (C. burnetii) DNA in clinical specimens from camel, goats, cattle and sheep in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.MethodsA total of 367 clinical samples including blood, milk, faeces and urine were collected from different livestock and subjected to PCR amplification using primers which amplify transposon-like region and transposase gene.ResultsPositive amplification from both regions was obtained from camel, goats and cattle but not from sheep. A percentage of 10.8% samples yielded positive PCR amplification from both blood and milk, where 15 of 139 blood and 16 of 148 milk samples were positive. Faeces and urine showed higher percentages of positive samples reaching 40.8% and 23.8% respectively.ConclusionsThe preferred route of shedding in camel appeared to be the faeces followed by urine, while that of goats appeared to be the faeces and that of the cattle appeared to be the milk

An “orientation sphere” visualization for examining animal head movements

Animal behavior is elicited, in part, in response to external conditions, but understanding how animals perceive the environment and make the decisions that bring about these behavioral responses is challenging.Animal heads often move during specific behaviors and, additionally, typically have sensory systems (notably vision, smell, and hearing) sampling in defined arcs (normally to the front of their heads). As such, head‐mounted electronic sensors consisting of accelerometers and magnetometers, which can be used to determine the movement and directionality of animal heads (where head “movement” is defined here as changes in heading [azimuth] and/or pitch [elevation angle]), can potentially provide information both on behaviors in general and also clarify which parts of the environment the animals might be prioritizing (“environmental framing”).We propose a new approach to visualize the data of such head‐mounted tags that combines the instantaneous outputs of head heading and pitch in a single intuitive spherical plot. This sphere has magnetic heading denoted by “longitude” position and head pitch by “latitude” on this “orientation sphere” (O‐sphere).We construct the O‐sphere for the head rotations of a number of vertebrates with contrasting body shape and ecology (oryx, sheep, tortoises, and turtles), illustrating various behaviors, including foraging, walking, and environmental scanning. We also propose correcting head orientations for body orientations to highlight specific heading‐independent head rotation, and propose the derivation of O‐sphere‐metrics, such as angular speed across the sphere. This should help identify the functions of various head behaviors.Visualizations of the O‐sphere provide an intuitive representation of animal behavior manifest via head orientation and rotation. This has ramifications for quantifying and understanding behaviors ranging from navigation through vigilance to feeding and, when used in tandem with body movement, should provide an important link between perception of the environment and response to it in free‐ranging animals

First data on chigger mites (Acariformes: Trombiculidae) of Saudi Arabia, with a description of four new species

A collection of chigger mites from three species of rodents in the ꞌAsir Region of Saudi Arabia resulted in the finding of 19 species. Four new species are described: Schoutedenichia asirensis sp. nov., Schoutedenichia saudi sp. nov., Microtrombicula microscuta sp. nov., and Microtrombicula muhaylensis sp. nov. Fifteen species – Gahrliepia lawrencei Jadin and Vercammen-Grandjean, 1952, Schoengastiella wansoni Wolfs and Vercammen-Grandjean, Walchia parvula Schluger, Ascoschoengastia browni Taufflieb, Mouchet and Courtois, Helenicula lukshumiae Nadchatram and Traub, Schoutedenichia thracica Kolebinova, Schoutedenichia zarudnyi Kudryashova, Ericotrombidium caucasicum (Schluger), Ericotrombidium galliardi (Vercammen-Grandjean and Taufflieb), Ericotrombidium kazeruni (Kudryashova), Microtrombicula centropi (Vercammen-Grandjean), Microtrombicula hoogstraali (Radford), Microtrombicula hyracis (Vercammen-Grandjean), Microtrombicula traubi (Muljarskaja and Verdieva), and Pentidionis agamae (André) – are for the first time recorded in Saudi Arabia and on new host species. Six of them are for the first time recorded outside their type localities and five were only known previously from the African continent.</jats:p

Ectoparasite fauna of rodents collected from two wildlife research centres in Saudi Arabia with discussion on the implications for disease transmission

The majority of human pathogens are zoonotic and rodents play an important role as reservoirs of manyof these infectious agents. In the case of vector-borne pathogens, rodent reservoirs not only act as a sourceof infection for vectors but also serve as hosts for the vectors themselves, supporting their populations.Current data on rodent-ectoparasite relationships is limited in Saudi Arabia, however, this is needed toassess disease risk and the relative importance of different hosts for the maintenance of vector-bornepathogen cycles. In order to provide baseline data for the region that could be used to assess zoonoticdisease risk, we collected and identified 771 ectoparasite specimens (ticks, fleas and mites) from 161rodents at two wildlife research centres in Saudi Arabia and discuss our results in the context of possiblezoonotic disease risk based on the hosts and vectors present.Deanship of Scientific Research at the King Saud University through the research group project number RGP_VPP_020, a University of Pretoria Postdoctoral Fellowship awarded to A. Harrison and by the DST-NRF South African Research Chair of Behavioural Ecology and Physiology awarded to N.C. Bennett.http://www.elsevier.com/locate/actatropica2016-07-31hb201

Additions to the chigger mite fauna (Acariformes: Trombiculidae) of Saudi Arabia, with the description of a new species

Collections of chigger mites from murid rodents were performed in two bordering provinces of southwestern Saudi Arabia, Al Bahah and ‘Asir. A total of 561 chiggers belonging to 19 species were collected in 2020 and 2021 from 54 rodents of two species, Acomys dimidiatus (Cretzchmar) and Mus musculus L. One new species is described: Odontacarus thesigeri n. sp. Five species are recorded in Saudi Arabia for the first time: Microtrombicula abyssinica (Radford, 1947), Microtrombicula felis (Vercammen-Grandjean, 1965), Microtrombicula saperoi (Radford, 1954), Schoengastiella hypoderma Vercammen-Grandjean, 1956, and Schoutedenichia originalis Kudryashova, 1976. Among them, M. abyssinica and M. saperoi, are re-described based on type specimens and new materials.</jats:p

Taking forward a 'One Health' approach for turning the tide against the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus and other zoonotic pathogens with epidemic potential.

The appearance of novel pathogens of humans with epidemic potential and high mortality rates have threatened global health security for centuries. Over the past few decades new zoonotic infectious diseases of humans caused by pathogens arising from animal reservoirs have included West Nile virus, Yellow fever virus, Ebola virus, Nipah virus, Lassa Fever virus, Hanta virus, Dengue fever virus, Rift Valley fever virus, Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus, highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus, and Zika virus. The recent Ebola Virus Disease epidemic in West Africa and the ongoing Zika Virus outbreak in South America highlight the urgent need for local, regional and international public health systems to be be more coordinated and better prepared. The One Health concept focuses on the relationship and interconnectedness between Humans, Animals and the Environment, and recognizes that the health and wellbeing of humans is intimately connected to the health of animals and their environment (and vice versa). Critical to the establishment of a One Health platform is the creation of a multidisciplinary team with a range of expertise including public health officers, physicians, veterinarians, animal husbandry specialists, agriculturalists, ecologists, vector biologists, viral phylogeneticists, and researchers to co-operate, collaborate to learn more about zoonotic spread between animals, humans and the environment and to monitor, respond to and prevent major outbreaks. We discuss the unique opportunities for Middle Eastern and African stakeholders to take leadership in building equitable and effective partnerships with all stakeholders involved in human and health systems to take forward a 'One Health' approach to control such zoonotic pathogens with epidemic potential