TY - JOUR
T1 - Leprosy in wild chimpanzees
AU - Hockings, Kimberley J.
AU - Mubemba, Benjamin
AU - Avanzi, Charlotte
AU - Pleh, Kamilla
AU - Dux, Ariane
AU - Bersacola, Elena
AU - Bessa, Joana
AU - Ramon, Marina
AU - Metzger, Sonja
AU - Patrono, Livia V.
AU - Jaffe, Jenny E.
AU - Benjak, Andrej
AU - Bonneaud, Camille
AU - Busso, Philippe
AU - Couacy-Hymann, Emmanuel
AU - Gado, Moussa
AU - Gagneux, Sebastien
AU - Johnson, Roch C.
AU - Kodio, Mamoudou
AU - Lynton-Jenkins, Joshua
AU - Morozova, Irina
AU - Matz-Rensing, Kerstin
AU - Regalla, Aissa
AU - Said, Abilio R.
AU - Schuenemann, Verena J.
AU - Sow, Samba O.
AU - Spencer, John S.
AU - Ulrich, Markus
AU - Zoubi, Hyacinthe
AU - Cole, Stewart T.
AU - Wittig, Roman M.
AU - Calvignac-Spencer, Sebastien
AU - Leendertz, Fabian H.
N1 - UIDB/04038/2020
UIDP/04038/2020
FCT EXPL/IVC-ANT/0997/2013
IF/01128/2014
PY - 2021
Y1 - 2021
N2 - Humans are considered as the main host for Mycobacterium leprae1, the aetiological agent of leprosy, but spillover has occurred to other mammals that are now maintenance hosts, such as nine-banded armadillos and red squirrels2,3. Although naturally acquired leprosy has also been described in captive nonhuman primates4–7, the exact origins of infection remain unclear. Here we describe leprosy-like lesions in two wild populations of western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) in Cantanhez National Park, Guinea-Bissau and Taï National Park, Côte d’Ivoire, West Africa. Longitudinal monitoring of both populations revealed the progression of disease symptoms compatible with advanced leprosy. Screening of faecal and necropsy samples confirmed the presence of M. leprae as the causative agent at each site and phylogenomic comparisons with other strains from humans and other animals show that the chimpanzee strains belong to different and rare genotypes (4N/O and 2F). These findings suggest that M. leprae may be circulating in more wild animals than suspected, either as a result of exposure to humans or other unknown environmental sources.
AB - Humans are considered as the main host for Mycobacterium leprae1, the aetiological agent of leprosy, but spillover has occurred to other mammals that are now maintenance hosts, such as nine-banded armadillos and red squirrels2,3. Although naturally acquired leprosy has also been described in captive nonhuman primates4–7, the exact origins of infection remain unclear. Here we describe leprosy-like lesions in two wild populations of western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) in Cantanhez National Park, Guinea-Bissau and Taï National Park, Côte d’Ivoire, West Africa. Longitudinal monitoring of both populations revealed the progression of disease symptoms compatible with advanced leprosy. Screening of faecal and necropsy samples confirmed the presence of M. leprae as the causative agent at each site and phylogenomic comparisons with other strains from humans and other animals show that the chimpanzee strains belong to different and rare genotypes (4N/O and 2F). These findings suggest that M. leprae may be circulating in more wild animals than suspected, either as a result of exposure to humans or other unknown environmental sources.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85117231948&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - https://www.webofscience.com/wos/woscc/full-record/WOS:000706973200013?AlertId=865cd244-781b-4b6c-9443-5a285761bc17&SID=E1YgAp78goG1vsMh8WZ
U2 - 10.1038/s41586-021-03968-4
DO - 10.1038/s41586-021-03968-4
M3 - Article
SN - 0028-0836
SP - 652
EP - 656
JO - Nature
JF - Nature
IS - 598
ER -