Investigations on Vector-Borne and Aerosol Transmission Potential of Kaeng Khoi Virus in Cave-Dwelling Wrinkle-Lipped Free-Tailed Bats (Chaerephon plicatus) in Thailand ...

• Main Authors: Neill, William A., Kading, Rebekah C.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: Zenodo 2021
• Subjects: Biodiversity; Mammalia; Chiroptera; Chordata; Animalia; bats; bat; Rattus rattus
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13505991; https://zenodo.org/doi/10.5281/zenodo.13505991

(Uploaded by Plazi for the Bat Literature Project) Kaeng Khoi virus (KKV; Order: Bunyavirales, Family: Peribunyaviridae, Genus: Orthobunyavirus), is an endemic viral infection of the wrinkle-lipped free-tailed bat (Chaerephon plicatus; also known as Tadarida plicata plicata). Viral isolates from bat bugs (Family: Cimicidae) suggest vector-borne transmission, but in general little is known about the ecology of KKV and seroprevalence in the local human and animal populations. Transmission studies and a serosurvey were carried out in Kaeng Khoi cave, Saraburi province, Thailand, during 1973–1974. Experimental transmission studies were performed with bat bugs captured within the cave to determine the potential for vector-borne transmission, and sentinel laboratory mice placed inside arthropod-proof cages within the cave to assess the potential for aerosolized transmission. Antibodies to KKV were detected in roof rats (Rattus rattus) inhabiting the cave, in dogs living in the valley, and in humans. Freshly ...