ABSTRACT
Bats are diverse mammals that are globally distributed and ecologically critical, yet some bat species are associated with disease agents that have severe consequences for human health. Disease outbreak responses require interdisciplinary knowledge of bat-associated pathogens and microbial transmission patterns. Health promotion requires close, collaborative attention to the needs, vulnerabilities, and interests of diverse stakeholders, including the public and professionals in public health, conservation, ecology, social science, communication, and policy. This article describes a successful One Health engagement among such stakeholders and partners looking to motivate both bat-human ecology preservation and viral disease management in Uganda.
Subject(s)
Chiroptera , One Health , Animals , Humans , Uganda , Ecology , Public HealthABSTRACT
Zika virus (ZIKV), transmitted by Aedes species mosquitoes, was first isolated in Uganda in 1947. From February 2014 to October 2017, the Uganda Virus Research Institute, in collaboration with the US Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention, conducted arbovirus surveillance in acute febrile illness (AFI) patients at St Francis hospital in Nkonkonjeru. Three hundred and eighty-four serum samples were collected and tested for IgM antibodies to yellow fever virus (YFV), West Nile virus (WNV), dengue virus (DENV), chikungunya virus (CHIKV) and ZIKV. Of the 384 samples, 5 were positive for ZIKV IgM. Of these five, three were confirmed by plaque reduction neutralization test (PRNT) to be ZIKV infections. Of the remaining two, one was determined to be a non-specific flavivirus infection and one was confirmed to be alphavirus-positive by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). This study provides the first evidence of laboratory-confirmed ZIKV infection in Uganda in five decades, and emphasizes the need to enhance sentinel surveillance.
