Risk of maritime introduction of plague from Madagascar to Mayotte

• Published in: Acta Tropica
• Main Authors: Rahelinirina, Soanandrasana, Harimalala, Mireille Aurélie, Margueron, Thomas, Ramihangihajason, Tojo, Rindra, Mansotte, François, Rajerison, Minoarisoa, Pages, Frédéric, Boyer, Sébastien
• Other Authors: Laboratoire Central de la Peste (CNR), Institut Pasteur de Madagascar, Réseau International des Instituts Pasteur (RIIP)-Réseau International des Instituts Pasteur (RIIP), Unité d'Entomologie Médicale Antananarivo, Madagascar (IPM), Agence Régionale de Santé Océan Indien, Agence Régionale de la Santé (ARS), Unité Peste - Plague Unit Antananarivo, Madagascar, Institut de Veille Sanitaire (INVS), Institut Pasteur du Cambodge, Réseau International des Instituts Pasteur (RIIP), This study was supported by the Agence Régionale de Santé Ocean Indien (ARSOI), convention No.2/DSP/2013, We are grateful to the staff of the Plague Unit and the Medical Entomology Unit at the Institut Pasteur de Madagascar for technical assistance during this study. We would like to thank the “association des naturalistes de Mayotte” for their cooperation. The authors thank S. Telfer to help improve the English writing of the revised manuscript.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2018
• Subjects: Fleas; Indian Ocean; Rats; Seaport; Shrew; Yersinia pestis; [SDV.SPEE]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Santé publique et épidémiologie; Indian; Rattus rattus
• Online Access: https://riip.hal.science/pasteur-01920188; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actatropica.2018.07.029

International audience Plague is a rodent-borne disease caused by Yersinia pestis. Most human infections are bubonic plague, as a result of being bitten by infected rodent fleas. Madagascar, Democratic Republic of Congo and Peru are the three most affected countries. Plague was introduced into eastern Madagascar in 1898 by boat from India. It is estimated that the risk of introduction of plague from Madagascar to neighboring islands is very high due to the maritime links. We conducted a study of plague reservoirs and vectors in Longoni Port in Mayotte and Mahajanga Port in Madagascar during two seasons to highlight a non-negligible risk of introduction of Y. pestis to Mayotte. The results showed that two main reservoirs of plague in Madagascar Suncus murinus and Rattus rattus and the main flea vector Xenopsylla cheopis exists in and surrounding the port of Longoni. Y. pestis was isolated from Rattus norvegicus captured close to the port of Mahajanga during this study. Plague bacteria circulate within populations of rodent without causing rodent die-off in Mahajanga. The risk of introduction of plague from Madagascar to Mayotte exists due to the regular exchanges. Continuous surveillance of rat, shrew and flea populations is therefore necessary in all the surrounding countries that have regular exchanges with Madagascar to prevent the spread of the plague.