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Interactions between landscape changes and host communities can regulate Echinococcus multilocularis transmission

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 March 2004

P. GIRAUDOUX
Affiliation:
ISTE (EA 3184 MRT – UC INRA; EA 2276), Université de Franche-Comté 25030 Besançon Cedex, France
P. S. CRAIG
Affiliation:
Biosciences Research Institute & School of Environment & Life Sciences, University of Salford, M5 4WT, Salford, U.K.
P. DELATTRE
Affiliation:
UMR 1062, Centre de Biologie et Gestion Populations, CS0016 34988, Montferrier Cedex, France
G. BAO
Affiliation:
Department of Parasitology, Lanzhou Medical College, 85 Dun Gang Xi Road, 730000 Lanzhou, P.R. of China
B. BARTHOLOMOT
Affiliation:
ISTE (EA 3184 MRT – UC INRA; EA 2276), Université de Franche-Comté 25030 Besançon Cedex, France
S. HARRAGA
Affiliation:
ISTE (EA 3184 MRT – UC INRA; EA 2276), Université de Franche-Comté 25030 Besançon Cedex, France
J.-P. QUÉRÉ
Affiliation:
UMR 1062, Centre de Biologie et Gestion Populations, CS0016 34988, Montferrier Cedex, France
F. RAOUL
Affiliation:
ISTE (EA 3184 MRT – UC INRA; EA 2276), Université de Franche-Comté 25030 Besançon Cedex, France
Y. WANG
Affiliation:
Xinjiang Medical College, 1 Li Yu Shan Road, 830000 Urumqi, P.R. of China
D. SHI
Affiliation:
Department of Parasitology, Lanzhou Medical College, 85 Dun Gang Xi Road, 730000 Lanzhou, P.R. of China
D.-A. VUITTON
Affiliation:
ISTE (EA 3184 MRT – UC INRA; EA 2276), Université de Franche-Comté 25030 Besançon Cedex, France
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Abstract

An area close to the Qinghai-Tibet plateau region and subject to intensive deforestation contains a large focus of human alveolar echinococcosis while sporadic human cases occur in the Doubs region of eastern France. The current review analyses and compares epidemiological and ecological results obtained in both regions. Analysis of rodent species assemblages within quantified rural landscapes in central China and eastern France shows a significant association between host species for the pathogenic helminth Echinococcus multilocularis, with prevalences of human alveolar echinococcosis and with land area under shrubland or grassland. This suggests that at the regional scale landscape can affect human disease distribution through interaction with small mammal communities and their population dynamics. Lidicker's ROMPA hypothesis helps to explain this association and provides a novel explanation of how landscape changes may result in increased risk of a rodent-borne zoonotic disease.

Information

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© 2003 Cambridge University Press
Figure 0

Fig. 1. Human AE prevalence rates and land use in Zhang and Puma Xian area, China. Circles are villages, and their size is proportional to prevalence rates (average 4·1%). Black circles – prevalence rates significantly higher than the average (alpha[les ]0·05); white circles or s. – prevalence rates significantly lower; grey circles or n.s. – prevalence rates not significantly different from the average (data fitted with a Poisson distribution); Pv1, Pv2, Pv3, overall prevalence rate in the three landscape areas; n1, n2, n3, number of people screened. Prevalence rates appear to be highly variable within each landscape area, but were three times lower in sectors with lower ratio of scrub-, shrub-, grassland (χ2 with correction for continuity, P<0·0003; permutation test between villages, P=0·003; villages which were on the border between two areas were pooled conservatively, e.g. if a prevalence rate was higher than the average, data were pooled with the villages of the sector of lower prevalence rates, or conversely).

Figure 1

Fig. 2. Human AE prevalence rates and land use in the Doubs department, France. Circles in each canton are proportional to prevalence rates (average 1·74[ratio ]10,000). Black circles – prevalence rates significantly higher than the average (alpha[les ]0·05); white circles or s. – prevalence rates significantly lower; grey circles or n.s. – prevalence rates not significantly different from the average (data fitted with a Poisson distribution). Urban cantons (bold) were removed for further analysis. Even considering rural cantons only, human AE prevalence was highly variable within each land use area as in China. It is almost three times higher in areas with higher ratios of permanent grassland (see table, χ2 with correction for continuity, P<0·0001; permutation test between cantons, P=0·05).

Figure 2

Fig. 3. Distribution of the dominant species in each landscape element in the Zhang and Puma Xian area (China), and in the Doubs department (France). Bold species – potential hosts for Echinococcus multilocularis; non-bold name – species for which susceptibility to E. multilocularis is still unknown; bold, thin, dotted lines indicate the relative population density of each species between habitats. In France, potential and actual good physiological hosts (developing alveolar cystic masses with protoscoleces) are present in every habitat. A similar pattern was recorded in China in every key-habitat, even though the susceptibility of some hosts remains variable (e.g. Mus musculus) or unknown (e.g. Cricetulus longicaudatus) and the presence in forest of other very susceptible arvicolids likely.

Figure 3

Fig. 4. Range of factors influencing Echinococcus multilocularis transmission in Western Europe (see text for comments).

Figure 4

Fig. 5. Global variables and model of Echinoccocus multilocularis transmission. A. behaviour, animal behaviour; H. behaviour, human behaviour.