Abstract
Pathogens that spill over between species cause a significant human and animal health burden. Here, we describe characteristics of animal reservoirs that are required for pathogen spillover. We assembled and analyzed a database of 330 disease systems in which a pathogen spills over from a reservoir of one or more species. Three-quarters of reservoirs included wildlife, and 84% included mammals. Further, 65% of pathogens depended on a community of reservoir hosts, rather than a single species, for persistence. Among mammals, the most frequently identified reservoir hosts were rodents, artiodactyls, and carnivores. The distribution among orders of mammalian species identified as reservoirs did not differ from that expected by chance. Among disease systems with high priority pathogens and epidemic potential, we found birds, primates, and bats to be overrepresented. We also analyzed the life history traits of mammalian reservoir hosts and compared them to mammals as a whole. Reservoir species had faster life history characteristics than mammals overall, exhibiting traits associated with greater reproductive output rather than long-term survival. Thus, we find that in many respects, reservoirs of spillover pathogens are indeed special. The described patterns provide a useful resource for studying and managing emerging infectious diseases.
Highlights
Since the earliest documented epidemics of plague, leptospirosis, viral hemorrhagic fevers, and rabies, we have known that humans and our domestic animals can become ill after contact with other animals [1]
To create the high priority zoonotic pathogens (HPZPs) subsets, we found the 75th and 90th percentile H-indices of the Taylor et al list and used these thresholds to define the Top 25% (T25) and Top 10% (T10) priority subsets of our disease systems
While anecdotes and simple summaries indicate that rodents, bats, ungulates, and domestic animals are common sources of human disease, our analysis sought to include spillover pathogens affecting other animals as well
Summary
Since the earliest documented epidemics of plague, leptospirosis, viral hemorrhagic fevers, and rabies, we have known that humans and our domestic animals can become ill after contact with other animals [1]. Most animal pathogens can infect multiple host species, and pathogen spillover from one host species to another is common [2]. Pathogen spillover has been defined as scenarios in which disease occurrence in a focal population depends on a distinct reservoir source that maintains the pathogen indefinitely [3]. Controlling spillover diseases is complicated by the need to manage cases in the target population and transmission interfaces and reservoir populations.
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