Understanding the persistence of plague foci in Madagascar.

• Published in: PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases
• Main Authors: Andrianaivoarimanana, Voahangy, Kreppel, Katharina, Elissa, Nohal, Duplantier, Jean-Marc, Carniel, Elisabeth, Rajerison, Minoarisoa, Jambou, Ronan
• Other Authors: Unité Peste - Plague Unit Antananarivo, Madagascar, Institut Pasteur de Madagascar, Réseau International des Instituts Pasteur (RIIP)-Réseau International des Instituts Pasteur (RIIP), Unité d'immunologie des maladies infectieuses Antananarivo, Madagascar (IPM), Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, University of Liverpool, Unité d'Entomologie Médicale Antananarivo, Madagascar (IPM), Centre de Biologie pour la Gestion des Populations (UMR CBGP), Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques (Montpellier SupAgro)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD France-Sud )-Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier (Montpellier SupAgro), Yersinia, Institut Pasteur Paris (IP)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2013
• Subjects: [SDV]Life Sciences [q-bio]; Rattus rattus
• Online Access: https://hal-riip.archives-ouvertes.fr/pasteur-00946701; https://hal-riip.archives-ouvertes.fr/pasteur-00946701/document; https://hal-riip.archives-ouvertes.fr/pasteur-00946701/file/Understanding_the_Persistence_of_Plague_Foci_in_Madagascar.pdf; https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0002382

International audience Plague, a zoonosis caused by Yersinia pestis, is still found in Africa, Asia, and the Americas. Madagascar reports almost one third of the cases worldwide. Y. pestis can be encountered in three very different types of foci: urban, rural, and sylvatic. Flea vector and wild rodent host population dynamics are tightly correlated with modulation of climatic conditions, an association that could be crucial for both the maintenance of foci and human plague epidemics. The black rat Rattus rattus, the main host of Y. pestis in Madagascar, is found to exhibit high resistance to plague in endemic areas, opposing the concept of high mortality rates among rats exposed to the infection. Also, endemic fleas could play an essential role in maintenance of the foci. This review discusses recent advances in the understanding of the role of these factors as well as human behavior in the persistence of plague in Madagascar.