High Local Diversity of Trypanosoma in a Common Bat Species, and Implications for the Biogeography and Taxonomy of the T. cruzi Clade

The Trypanosoma cruzi clade is a group of parasites that comprises T. cruzi sensu lato and its closest relatives. Although several species have been confirmed phylogenetically to belong to this clade, it is uncertain how many more species can be expected to belong into this group. Here, we present the results of a survey of trypanosome parasites of the bat Artibeus jamaicensis from the Panama´ Canal Zone, an important seed disperser. Using a genealogical species delimitation approach, the Poisson tree processes (PTP), we tentatively identified five species of trypanosomes – all belonging to the T. cruzi clade. A small monophyletic group of three putative Trypanosoma species places at the base of the clade phylogeny, providing evidence for at least five independent colonization events of these parasites into the New World. Artibeus jamaicensis presents a high diversity of these blood parasites and is the vertebrate with the highest number of putative trypanosome species reported from a single locality. Our results emphasize the need for continued efforts to survey mammalian trypanosomes

Serological evidence of influenza a viruses in frugivorous bats from Africa

Bats are likely natural hosts for a range of zoonotic viruses such as Marburg, Ebola, Rabies, as well as for various Corona- and Paramyxoviruses. In 2009/10, researchers discovered RNA of two novel influenza virus subtypes - H17N10 and H18N11 - in Central and South American fruit bats. The identification of bats as possible additional reservoir for influenza A viruses raises questions about the role of this mammalian taxon in influenza A virus ecology and possible public health relevance. As molecular testing can be limited by a short time window in which the virus is present, serological testing provides information about past infections and virus spread in populations after the virus has been cleared. This study aimed at screening available sera from 100 free-ranging, frugivorous bats (Eidolon helvum) sampled in 2009/10 in Ghana, for the presence of antibodies against the complete panel of influenza A haemagglutinin (HA) types ranging from H1 to H18 by means of a protein microarray platform. This technique enables simultaneous serological testing against multiple recombinant HA-types in 5μl of serum. Preliminary results indicate serological evidence against avian influenza subtype H9 in about 30% of the animals screened, with low-level cross-reactivity to phylogenetically closely related subtypes H8 and H12. To our knowledge, this is the first report of serological evidence of influenza A viruses other than H17 and H18 in bats. As avian influenza subtype H9 is associated with human infections, the implications of our findings from

Two Novel Parvoviruses in Frugivorous New and Old World Bats

Bats, a globally distributed group of mammals with high ecological importance, are increasingly recognized as natural reservoir hosts for viral agents of significance to human and animal health. In the present study, we evaluated pools of blood samples obtained from two phylogenetically distant bat families, in particular from flying foxes (Pteropodidae), Eidolon helvum in West Africa, and from two species of New World leaf-nosed fruit bats (Phyllostomidae), Artibeus jamaicensis and Artibeus lituratus in Central America. A sequence-independent virus discovery technique (VIDISCA) was used in combination with high throughput sequencing to detect two novel parvoviruses: a PARV4-like virus named Eh-BtPV-1 in Eidolon helvum from Ghana and the first member of a putative new genus in Artibeus jamaicensis from Panama (Aj-BtPV-1). Those viruses were circulating in the corresponding bat colony at rates of 7–8%. Aj-BtPV-1 was also found in Artibeus lituratus (5.5%). Both viruses were detected in the blood of infected animals at high concentrations: up to 10E8 and to 10E10 copies/ml for Aj-BtPV-1 and Eh-BtPV-1 respectively. Eh-BtPV-1 was additionally detected in all organs collected from bats (brain, lungs, liver, spleen, kidneys and intestine) and spleen and kidneys were identified as the most likely sites where viral replication takes place. Our study shows that bat parvoviruses share common ancestors with known parvoviruses of humans and livestock. We also provide evidence that a variety of Parvovirinae are able to cause active infection in bats and that they are widely distributed in these animals with different geographic origin, ecologies and climatic ranges

Evidence for Novel Hepaciviruses in Rodents

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is among the most relevant causes of liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Research is complicated by a lack of accessible small animal models. The systematic investigation of viruses of small mammals could guide efforts to establish such models, while providing insight into viral evolutionary biology. We have assembled the so-far largest collection of small-mammal samples from around the world, qualified to be screened for bloodborne viruses, including sera and organs from 4,770 roden

Seasonal Fluctuations of Astrovirus, But Not Coronavirus Shedding in Bats Inhabiting Human-Modified Tropical Forests

Emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) are considered a major threat to global health. Most EIDs appear to result from increased contact between wildlife and humans, especially when humans encroach into formerly pristine habitats. Habitat deterioration may also negatively affect the physiology and health of wildlife species, which may eventually lead to a higher susceptibility to infectious agents and/or increased shedding of the pathogens causing EIDs. Bats are known to host viruses closely related to important EIDs. Here, we tested in a paleotropical forest with ongoing logging and fragmentation, whether habitat disturbance influences the occurrence of astro- and coronaviruses in eight bat species. In contrast to our hypothesis, anthropogenic habitat disturbance was not associated with corona- and astrovirus detection rates in fecal samples. However, we found that bats infected with either astro- or coronaviruses were likely to be coinfected with the respective other virus. Additionally, we identified two more risk factors influencing astrovirus shedding. First, the detection rate of astroviruses was higher at the beginning of the rainy compared to the dry season. Second, there was a trend that individuals with a poor body condition had a higher probability of shedding astroviruses in their feces. The identification of risk factors for increased viral shedding that may potentially result in increased interspecies transmission is important to prevent viral spillovers from bats to other animals, including humans

High Local Diversity of <i>Trypanosoma</i> in a Common Bat Species, and Implications for the Biogeography and Taxonomy of the <i>T. cruzi</i> Clade

<div><p>The <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i> clade is a group of parasites that comprises <i>T. cruzi</i> sensu lato and its closest relatives. Although several species have been confirmed phylogenetically to belong to this clade, it is uncertain how many more species can be expected to belong into this group. Here, we present the results of a survey of trypanosome parasites of the bat <i>Artibeus jamaicensis</i> from the Panamá Canal Zone, an important seed disperser. Using a genealogical species delimitation approach, the Poisson tree processes (PTP), we tentatively identified five species of trypanosomes – all belonging to the <i>T. cruzi</i> clade. A small monophyletic group of three putative <i>Trypanosoma</i> species places at the base of the clade phylogeny, providing evidence for at least five independent colonization events of these parasites into the New World. <i>Artibeus jamaicensis</i> presents a high diversity of these blood parasites and is the vertebrate with the highest number of putative trypanosome species reported from a single locality. Our results emphasize the need for continued efforts to survey mammalian trypanosomes.</p></div

Phylogeny of the <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i> clade.

<p>Maximum likelihood tree constructed with concatenated 18S rRNA and gGAPDH genes. Numbers on the branches represent support values corresponding to bootstrap replicates (right) and Bayesian posterior probabilities (left). Clades highlighted with colored boxes correspond to trypanosomes detected in Panamá. Collapsed branches at the base of the phylogeny indicate low support for the placement of the three Panamian lineages. The symbol//on the branch to the outgroup indicates a shortened branch. GenBank accession numbers of the samples used in this phylogeny are provided in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0108603#pone.0108603.s001" target="_blank">Table S1</a>.</p

Putative species delimitation of members of the <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i> clade.

<p>Maximum likelihood phylogeny with Bayesian support values presented for all 18 lineages recognized as species for the PTP analyses. Monophyletic groups in red indicate a single putative species as well as terminal branches in blue. Names of terminals indicate codes of the samples. Names in bold after a | symbol are taxonomic or geographic identifiers of the putative species. Arrows indicate the 5 putative species found in <i>Artibeus jamaicensis</i> in Panamá.</p

Five independent colonization events of <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i> clade members to the New World.

<p>Cladogram of species belonging to the <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i> clade, depicting in red are the branches that indicate dispersal events to the Americas with grey branches denoting the species that are not present in the New World. Note that <i>T. dionisii</i> 2 and <i>T. conorhini</i> are distributed in the New and Old Worlds <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0108603#pone.0108603-Hamilton3" target="_blank">[20]</a>, <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0108603#pone.0108603-Hamilton4" target="_blank">[43]</a>. Branch lengths in the cladogram are not proportional to divergence; for branch length estimates refer to <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0108603#pone-0108603-g001" target="_blank">Figures 1</a> and <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0108603#pone-0108603-g002" target="_blank">2</a>.</p

Host Biology and Anthropogenic Factors Affect Hepadnavirus Infection in a Neotropical Bat

The tent-making bat hepatitis B virus (TBHBV) is a hepadnavirus closely related to human hepatitis B virus. The ecology of TBHBV is unclear. We show that it is widespread and highly diversified in Peters' tent-making bats (Uroderma bilobatum) within Panama, while local prevalence varied significantly between sample sites, ranging from 0 to 14.3%. Females showed significantly higher prevalence than males, and pregnant females were more often acutely infected than non-reproductive ones. The distribution of TBHBV in bats was significantly affected by forest cover, with higher infection rates in areas with lower forest cover. Our data indicate that loss of natural habitat may lead to positive feedback on the biotic factors driving infection possibility. These results underline the necessity of multidisciplinary studies for a better understanding of mechanisms in pathogen-host relationships and for predictions in disease ecology