ASSESSMENT OF RISK FROM SMALL MAMMALIAN-BORNE PATHOGENS IN SINGAPORE THROUGH HOST-PATHOGEN DYNAMICS

Abstract

Small mammals, mostly rodents, are involved in the transmission or maintenance of a number of organisms with human pathogenic potential. Here I investigated the ecology of small mammal populations in Singapore and the burden of two pathogens (Bartonella and Astrovirus) detected in them. The community composition revealed a restricted community confined to Bukit Timah and Central Catchment Nature Reserves, and a generalist community spread across the island. The pathogens screening results brings critical information on the parasites carried by small mammal species, demonstrating the importance of diseases surveillance and risk assessment studies. The majority of infected individuals were species known to do well in human-modified environments, agreeing with the status quo that highly urbanized areas, like Singapore, favors synanthropic species. The combination of host ecology and pathogen prevalence results, contributes to a better understanding of host-parasite dynamics, and is essential for effective biodiversity conservation, environmental managing strategies and disease surveillance.