Abstract
The plague caused by the Yersinia pestis bacterium is primarily a flea-transmitted zoonosis of rodents that can also be conveyed to humans and other mammals. In this work, we analyzed the spatial and temporal distribution of rodent populations during epizootic and enzootic periods of the plague in the municipality of Exu, northeastern Brazil. The geospatial analyses showed that all the rodent species appeared through the whole territory of the municipality, with different occurrence hotspots for the different species. Important fluctuations in the rodent populations were observed, with a reduction in the wild rodent fauna following the end of a plague epizootic period, mostly represented by Necromys lasiurus and an increase in the commensal species Rattus rattus. A higher abundance of rats might lead to an increased exposure of human populations, favoring spillovers of plague and other rodent-borne diseases. Our analysis highlights the role of wild rodent species as amplifier hosts and of commensal rats (R. rattus) as preserver hosts in the enzootic period of a specific transmission infection area.
Highlights
The plague caused by the Yersinia pestis bacterium is primarily a flea-transmitted zoonosis of rodents, the main hosts, that can be conveyed to humans and other mammals [1]
Since the arrival of the plague in Brazil in 1899, during the third pandemic, and demographic characteristics and scientific and technological conditions has been a surveillance and control program adjusted to the epidemiological situation, ecological carried out [7,10,17]
The rodents were trapped for the detection of the rodents were discontinued in 2007 due to new evidence that the serological survey of plague bacillus and/or anti-plague antibodies [22,23,29]
Summary
The plague caused by the Yersinia pestis bacterium is primarily a flea-transmitted zoonosis of rodents, the main hosts, that can be conveyed to humans and other mammals [1]. The infection initially afflicted the brown rat population of Rattus norvegicus in seaports and the commensal species (Rattus rattus) in the rural zones of the Northeast it encountered susceptible autochthonous wild or sylvatic fauna and established several natural foci where the ecological conditions were suitable for its persistence [6,7]. These foci persisted until the present day, spreading through several mountain ranges and plateaus across the states of Ceará, Piauí, Rio Grande do Norte, Paraíba, Pernambuco, Alagoas, Bahia, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro [8,9]
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