The Serological Prevalence of Rabies Virus-Neutralizing Antibodies in the Bat Population on the Caribbean Island of Trinidad

Details

• Alternative Title:
  Viruses
• Personal Author:
  Seetahal, Janine F. R. ; Greenberg, Lauren ; Satheshkumar, Panayampalli Subbian ; Sanchez-Vazquez, Manuel J. ; Legall, George ; Singh, Shamjeet ; Ramkissoon, Vernie ; Schountz, Tony ; Munster, Vincent ; Oura, Christopher A. L. ; Carrington, Christine V. F.
• Description:
  Rabies virus (RABV) is the only lyssavirus known to be present within the Caribbean. The island of Trinidad, is richly diverse in chiropteran fauna and endemic for bat-transmitted rabies with low RABV isolation rates observed in this population. We aimed to determine the seroprevalence of rabies virus neutralizing antibodies (RVNA) in light of spatio-temporal and bat demographic factors to infer the extent of natural exposure to RABV in the Trinidadian bat population. RVNA titers were determined by the RABV micro-neutralization test on 383 bat samples representing 21 species, comprising 30.9% of local bat diversity, from 31 locations across the island over 5 years. RVNA was positively detected in 33 samples (8.6%) representing 6 bat species (mainly frugivorous) with titers ranging from 0.1 to 19 IU/mL (mean 1.66 IU/mL). The analyses based on a multivariable binomial generalised linear mixed-effects model showed that bat age and year of capture were significant predictors of seropositivity. Thus, juvenile bats were more likely to be seropositive when compared to adults (estimate 1.13; | = 0.04) which may suggest early exposure to the RABV with possible implications for viral amplification in this population. Temporal variation in rabies seropositivity, 2012-2014 versus 2015-2017 (estimate 1.07; | = 0.03) may have been related to the prevailing rabies epizootic situation. Regarding other factors investigated, RVNA was found in bats from both rural and non-rural areas, as well as in both hematophagous and non-hematophagous bat species. The most common seropositive species, | is ubiquitous throughout the island which may potentially facilitate human exposure. The findings of this study should be factored into public health assessments on the potential for rabies transmission by non-hematophagous bats in Trinidad.
• Subjects:
  Animals Antibodies, Neutralizing Antibodies, Viral Chiroptera Female Male Rabies Rabies Virus Seroepidemiologic Studies
• Source:
  Viruses. 2020; 12(2)
• Pubmed ID:
  32033370
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC7077287
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Trinidad and Tobago
• Volume:
  12
• Issue:
  2
• Collection(s):
  CDC Public Access
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:07e97998cd4eab9360e8d23fe5433c87fe61a49404620e82558e7212df1fe0f5
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/92514/cdc_92514_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 5.06 MB ]