Abstract
Despite the widespread recognition of the risks of diseases transmission associated with international trade in domestic animals and movement of exotic animals, little is known about the role of rats in carrying pathogens between continents. The genus Bartonella, a highly prevalent and extremely diverse group of bacteria, includes species that are excellent sentinel organisms for evaluating the transoceanic and intra-continental movement of the pathogens carried by rats of the genus Rattus. The patterns of prevalence and diversity of Bartonella species infecting rats and their ectoparasites depend on the geographic locations within metropolitan areas of the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Europe. One of the points addressed in this review is a comparison of the diversity of Bartonella species carried by rats in their original habitats in Southeast Asia and in the cities occupied by rats recently. The establishment of rats in urban areas and their invasion of new territories can have significant implications for human health.
Highlights
IntroductionThis is especially evident in urban settings, which may favor some mammalian species that might become “synanthropic.” A number of factors contribute to the public health threat presented by synanthropic animals
Commensal Rats and Infectious Agents Carried by Rats in Urban AreasPeople create dramatically new environments
We examine prevalence and diversity of Bartonella in rats belonging to the genus Rattus
Summary
This is especially evident in urban settings, which may favor some mammalian species that might become “synanthropic.” A number of factors contribute to the public health threat presented by synanthropic animals. According to the calculations provided by McFarlane et al (2012), human cases of zoonotic infectious diseases caused by synanthropic animals happen 15 times more frequently compared to wild animals. Urban territories may provide suitable conditions for reproduction of arthropods serving as vectors for vector-borne diseases because of some specific environmental changes, such as attenuation of the temperature range and humidity (Shochat et al, 2006; Bradley and Altizer, 2007). The urban heat islands represent an example of the numerous potential environmental changes caused by urbanization that can affect distribution and prevalence of zoonotic and vector-borne diseases in cities and suburban areas
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