Abstract
The impacts of hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) Salmonella infection on public health and on animal welfare and conservation are unknown. We isolated Salmonella Enteritidis multi-locus sequence-type (ST)183 from 46/170 (27%) hedgehog carcasses (27 S. Enteritidis phage type (PT)11, 18 of a novel PT66 biotype and one with co-infection of these PTs) and from 6/208 (3%) hedgehog faecal samples (4 PT11, 2 PT66) from across Great Britain, 2012–2015. Whole genome phylogenetic analysis of the hedgehog isolates and ST183 from people in England and Wales found that PT11 and PT66 form two divergent clades. Hedgehog and human isolates were interspersed throughout the phylogeny indicating that infections in both species originate from a common population. PT11 was recovered from hedgehogs across England and Scotland, consistent with endemic infection. PT66 was isolated from Scotland only, possibly indicating a recent emergence event. People infected with ST183 were four times more likely to be aged 0–4 years than people infected by the more common ST11 S. Enteritidis. Evidence for human ST183 infection being non-foodborne included stronger correlation between geographic and genetic distance, and significantly increased likelihood of infection in rural areas, than for ST11. These results are consistent with hedgehogs acting as a source of zoonotic infection.
Highlights
IntroductionEnteritidis) is one of the commonest types of Salmonella to infect people and animals[1,2]
Post-mortem examinations (PMEs) were conducted on 170 hedgehogs from across Great Britain (GB), August 2012-December 2015 inclusive: 151 from the scanning surveillance programme and 19 from the National Wildlife Rescue Centre (NWRC)
The PT11 and PT66 phage types only differ in their reaction with one phage
Summary
Enteritidis) is one of the commonest types of Salmonella to infect people and animals[1,2]. There have been no recent studies exploring Salmonella biotypes in free-living hedgehogs in GB, and there is a paucity of data to inform the wildlife and public health implications of these infections. Elsewhere, infection of both hedgehogs and people with S. We explore the demography of human infections with these matched biotypes and use this to appraise public health implications
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