Zoonotic Gastrointestinal Helminths in Rodent Communities in Southern Guatemala.

Rodents are reservoirs and hosts of several pathogens around the world, including zoonotic parasite species. This study aimed to determine the occurrence of zoonotic gastrointestinal helminths in rodents captured inside households in a rural community from southern Guatemala. Sixty-nine rodents were captured in 33% (49/148) of the surveyed households, including Rattus rattus, Rattus norvegicus, Mus musculus, and Sigmodon hispidus. Thirty-six percent (25/69) of these rodents (3 Rattus and 22 Mus musculus), from 45% (22/49) of the households, were parasitized with at least 1 gastrointestinal helminth species. Helminths from 6 species were identified: Hymenolepis diminuta, Moniliformis moniliformis, Heterakis spumosa, Nippostrongylus sp., Strongyloides sp., and Syphacia sp. Two zoonotic species were found in Rattus, H. diminuta in R. rattus (1/6), and M. moniliformis in R. norvegicus (1/1). Coinfection with other non-zoonotic helminth parasites, such as He. spumosa and Strongyloides sp., also was observed in the Rattus genus. Mus musculus had only non-zoonotic helminths: He. spumosa, Nippostrongylus sp., and Syphacia sp. being the most common, and He. spumosa (96%) followed by Nippostrongylus sp. (48%), with a higher presence in males than females, with a similar proportion in adult and young individuals. This is the first report of zoonotic and non-zoonotic helminths parasites in rodents from Guatemala.

Antibiotic-Resistant Salmonella, isolated from cloacal swab samples from turtles in Guatemala / Salmonella resistente a antibióticos, aislada de muestras de hisopados cloacales en tortugas de Guatemala

Salmonellosis is a relevant public health threat worldwide. Reptiles are commonly involved in human cases. A microbiological survey was conducted from August to October 2018 to isolate Salmonella bacteria and de-termine if they were resistant to regularly used antibiotics in eight species of pet turtles (Kinosternon acutum sp., K. leucostomum, K. scorpioides, Rhinoclemmys areolata sp., R. pulcherrima, Staurotypus salvinii sp., Trachemys scripta and T. venusta) in Guatemala city, San Lucas Sacatepéquez and Antigua Guatemala. Cloacal swabs were taken from 63 turtles and cultivated in the Microbiology Laboratory at the Veterinary Medicine and Animal Hus-bandry Faculty, University of San Carlos of Guatemala, in Guatemala City. Three samples were positive to the presence of Salmonella sp. One of these isolates (from Trachemys scripta) was resistant to gentamicin, penicillin and amikacin, other isolate (from T. scripta) was partially resistant to amoxicilin + clavulanic acid and penicillin, and other (from T. venusta) to penicillin. These findings highlight the need for better biosecurity practices and show the capacity of bacteria to develop survival strategies that involve resistance to harmful substances like antibiotics.

La salmonelosis es una importante enfermedad zoonótica considerada una amenaza a la salud pública a nivel mundial. Los reptiles están comúnmente involucrados en la transmisión animal-humano. Con el objetivo de determinar la presencia de Salmonella y determinar su resistencia a antibióticos de uso común, se realizó un estudio exploratorio en ocho especies de tortugas (Kinosternon acutum sp., K. leucostomum, K. scorpioides, Rhinoclem-mys areolata sp., R. pulcherrima, Staurotypus salvinii sp., Trachemys scripta y T. venusta) en Guatemala y en San Lucas Sacatepéquez. Se tomaron hisopados cloacales de 63 especímenes y se cultivaron en el Laboratorio de Microbiología de la Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia de la Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala. Tres muestras fueron positivas a la presencia de Salmonella sp. Uno de los aislados (de Trachemys scripta) fue resistente a gentamicina, penicilina y amikacina, otro aislado (de T. scripta) fue parcialmente resistente a amoxicilina + ácido clavulánico y a penicilina y un tercer aislado (de T. venusta) a penicilina. Estos hallazgos resaltan la necesidad de mejores prácticas de bioseguridad y muestran la capacidad de las bacterias para desarrollar estrategias de sobrevivencia que involucran la resistencia a sustancias que les son nocivas, como los antibióticos.

When free-ranging dogs threaten wildlife: Public attitudes toward management strategies in southern Chile.

Free-ranging dogs (Canis familiaris) significantly threaten wildlife, including endangered species. Although this problem resembles threats from other invasive animals, managing roaming dogs is even more fraught due to their close association with humans. Here we use interviews (n = 166) to document patterns of dog ownership and care and to measure public attitudes toward management strategies to control free-roaming dogs that threaten wildlife in rural areas of southern Chile. We compare attitudes toward lethal control and fines in scenarios where dogs attack livestock, children or wild animals or enter protected areas. We also test for variation in attitudes according to gender, age, education and proximity to urban areas. Most respondents (98.1%) opposed lethal control for at least one scenario and they were more likely to accept killing dogs that attacked sheep than those attacking wildlife. Similarly, support for fines was higher when dogs attacked livestock or people versus wild animals. Respondents consistently favored fining the owner over eliminating the problem dog. When asked about their management preferences, many respondents indicated that the movement of problem dogs-including to a lesser extent those threatening wildlife-should be restricted. However, in practice most dog-owners allowed one or more of their dogs to move freely at least part of the time. Finally, the wildlife species of concern mattered, e.g. 40% thought no action was necessary when dogs attack foxes, but this dropped to 12% for pudu (a small deer). In sum, participants had significantly more concern for livestock and human safety than for wildlife protection. We close by discussing management and policy implications.

Urban dogs in rural areas: Human-mediated movement defines dog populations in southern Chile.

Management strategies for dog populations and their diseases include reproductive control, euthanasia and vaccination, among others. However, the effectiveness of these strategies can be severely affected by human-mediated dog movement. If immigration is important, then the location of origin of dogs imported by humans will be fundamental to define the spatial scales over which population management and research should apply. In this context, the main objective of our study was to determine the spatial extent of dog demographic processes in rural areas and the proportion of dogs that could be labeled as immigrants at multiple spatial scales. To address our objective we conducted surveys in households located in a rural landscape in southern Chile. Interviews allowed us to obtain information on the demographic characteristics of dogs in these rural settings, human influence on dog mortality and births, the localities of origin of dogs living in rural areas, and the spatial extent of human-mediated dog movement. We found that most rural dogs (64.1%) were either urban dogs that had been brought to rural areas (40.0%), or adopted dogs that had been previously abandoned in rural roads (24.1%). Some dogs were brought from areas located as far as ∼700km away from the study area. Human-mediated movement of dogs, especially from urban areas, seems to play a fundamental role in the population dynamics of dogs in rural areas. Consequently, local scale efforts to manage dog populations or their diseases are unlikely to succeed if implemented in isolation, simply because dogs can be brought from surrounding urban areas or even distant locations. We suggest that efforts to manage or study dog populations and related diseases should be implemented using a multi-scale approach.

Exploratory serosurvey for antibodies to avian pathogens in backyard chickens from a satellite community of Jalapa City, Guatemala

An exploratory serosurvey was conducted to determine the presence of circulating antibodies to avian patho-gens in backyard chickens from Los Achiotes (LAC), a satellite community of Jalapa City, located in eastern Guatemala. Blood samples from 51 adult chickens belonging to 51 households were taken and investigated for the presence of antibodies to Avian Influenza (AI), Newcastle Disease (ND), Infectious Bronchitis (IB), Infectious Bursal Disease (IBD), Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG) and M. synoviae (MS). Antibodies for AI, ND, were investigated by Hemagglutination Inhibition, for IB and IBD by ELISA (BioChek®) and for MG and MS by a rapid serum plate agglutination test. The cut-off point for positive titers was 1:4 for AI and ND and a 0.2 S/P ratio for IB and IBD. All sampled chickens were positive for concomitant antibodies to various pathogens. Over half of the chickens were positive reactors to antibodies to all six tested pathogens; about a third carried antibodies to five and the rest to four or three. The frequencies of positive reactors were: AI = 27 (53%); ND = 49 (96.1%); IB = 50 (98%); IBD = 51 (100%); MG = 45 (88%) and MS = 48 (94%). The results show that the dynamic population of backyard chickens in LAC could be a potential threat to backyard poultry, farm poultry, wild birds and human population. The need to develop interventions and policies following the One Health approach (animal health to achieve human health) is stressed.

Se realizó un estudio serológico exploratorio buscando anticuerpos contra patógenos aviares en gallinas de traspatio de la comunidad Los Achiotes –una comunidad satélite de la Ciudad de Jalapa, en el oriente de Guatemala−. Se tomaron muestras de sangre de 51 gallinas provenientes de sendas casas. Se buscaron anticuerpos contra influenza aviar (IA), enfermedad de Newcastle (ENC), bronquitis infecciosa (BI), enfermedad de Gumboro (EG), Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG) y M. synoviae (MS). Para investigar la presencia de anticuerpos contra IA y ENC se utilizó la prueba de inhibición de hemoaglutinación; para los anticuerpos contra BI la prueba de ELISA BioChek® y para los anticuerpos contra MG y MS la prueba rápida en placa. El punto de corte para títulos positivos fue de 1:4 para IA y ENC y de una razón S/P de 0.2 para BI y EG. Todas las gallinas muestreadas portaban concomitantemente anticuerpos contra varios patógenos aviares. Más de la mitad de las gallinas portaban anticuerpos contra los seis patógenos estudiados. Las frecuencias de reactores positivos a anticuerpos fueron: IA = 27 (53%); ENC = 49 (96.1%); BI = 50 (98%); EG = 51 (100%); MG = 45 (88%) y MS = 48 (94%). Se concluye que la población dinámica de gallinas de traspatio de Los Achiotes podría ser una potencial amenaza para la avicultura artesanal, la avicultura tecnificada, las aves silvestres y la población humana. Se señala la necesidad de generar intervenciones y políticas desde la corriente denominada Una salud (salud animal para lograr la salud humana).