Article
Ecology
Yasuyuki Choh, Arne Janssen
Summary: Many animal species protect their eggs against predators, and some species take advantage of this by adding their eggs to those of the protecting species. We studied two tiny predatory mite species that share a food source and face intraguild predation, and found that one species acts as a brood parasite by adding its eggs to the eggs of the other species. The brood parasite prefers to add its eggs to the eggs of the protecting host species rather than another non-protecting mite species, and this behavior only occurs in the presence of egg predators.
FUNCTIONAL ECOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Ecology
Bernard W. T. Coetzee, Kevin J. Gaston, Lizette L. Koekemoer, Taneshka Kruger, Megan A. Riddin, Izak P. J. Smit
Summary: Light is a fundamental cue that regulates biological responses, and the use of artificial light impacts organisms. The interactions between artificial light and disease vectors, such as mosquitoes, need further investigation.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Justine A. Smith, Kaitlyn M. Gaynor, Justin P. Suraci
Summary: Human activities have led to declines in animal populations globally through direct and indirect pathways, including numerical effects and non-lethal effects. Mismatches between the risk associated with anthropogenic stimuli and the response by wild animals amplify the lethal and non-lethal effects. Errors in detecting, assessing, and responding to different stimuli can affect individual fitness and population dynamics.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Lucie S. Monticelli, Nicolas Desneux, George E. Heimpel
Summary: Parasitoids used as biological control agents can parasitize multiple host species, with the suitability and acceptance of hosts affecting population dynamics. Presence of an unsuitable host can indirectly impact the population of a suitable host by serving as an egg sink for parasitoids. Through experimentation, it was observed that the presence of an unsuitable host led to a significant reduction in parasitoid offspring production on the suitable host.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Gaku Takimoto, Harumasa Shirakawa, Takuya Sato
Summary: Infectious diseases have significant impacts on human welfare and wildlife management. Research has examined the relationship between biodiversity and infectious disease risk, particularly in relation to vector species richness. This study utilizes an epidemiological model to explore the relationship between vector species richness and vector-borne disease risk. The model considers the role of interspecific feeding interference and recruitment competition in transmission dynamics. Results indicate three potential patterns: monotonic amplification, hump-shaped, and monotonic dilution. The findings suggest that vector richness is more likely to amplify disease risk rather than reduce it.
AMERICAN NATURALIST
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
K. E. Moseby, H. McGregor, J. L. Read
Summary: Research suggests that predator population demographic characteristics can significantly impact predation rates on different weight classes of prey, and should be included in predator-prey models for small prey populations. Targeting specific demographic groups such as large male cats and manipulating predator demographics may help reduce predation impacts on prey species weighing more than 500g.
ANIMAL CONSERVATION
(2021)
Article
Biology
Gregory M. Eckhartt, Graeme D. Ruxton
Summary: Artificial light at night may have detrimental effects on terrestrial insect populations, but the underlying mechanisms are still unclear. This study found that artificial light may contribute to insect declines by increasing predation, although greater levels of artificial light after dusk actually reduced predation.
Article
Ecology
Guha Dharmarajan, Pooja Gupta, C. K. Vishnudas, V. V. Robin
Summary: Research shows that anthropogenic disturbance reduces the prevalence of specialist parasites and increases that of generalist parasites, leading to parasite communities dominated by generalist species.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Jung Ah Choi, Kunyu Wu, Gyoung Nyoun Kim, Nasrin Saeedian, Seung Han Seon, Gayoung Park, Dae-Im Jung, Hoe Won Jeong, Na Hyung Kim, Sang Hwan Seo, Sangkyun Lee, Manki Song, C. Yong Kang
Summary: The study utilized a dual serotype recombinant VSV vaccine strategy to develop a ZIKV vaccine, with challenge studies conducted in a mouse model showing robust immune responses induced by the vaccine.
JOURNAL OF GENERAL VIROLOGY
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Armin R. W. Elbers, Jose L. Gonzales, Miriam G. J. Koene, Evelien A. Germeraad, Renate W. van der Honing, Marleen van der Most, Henk Rodenboog, Francisca C. Velkers
Summary: The study aimed to investigate the potential pathway of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIv) transmission in poultry houses through measuring the nature and quantity of particle matter (PM) entering the houses via air-inlets. Results showed that mosquitoes and small amounts of PM entered the houses, but no wild bird feathers were detected. Regular visits of wild birds near the poultry houses were also observed. It is recommended to implement measures to limit the potential introduction of pathogens through air-inlets.
Article
Endocrinology & Metabolism
Janice K. Enos, Rebecca Ducay, Ryan T. Paitz, Michael P. Ward, Mark E. Hauber
Summary: Predation or brood parasitism risks can change the behaviors and reproductive decisions in many parental animals. Female red-winged blackbirds were exposed to playbacks of predator and brood parasite threats, but they did not avoid nesting or abandon nest attempts at these sites. Egg size and yolk hormone profiles were similar across treatment sites, but yolk steroid hormone profiles varied within the clutch.
GENERAL AND COMPARATIVE ENDOCRINOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Nelly M. Mohamed, Azza S. Zakaria, Eva A. Edward
Summary: This study investigates the prevalence and genetic characteristics of ESBLs and AmpC enzymes in multidrug-resistant E. coli isolates from urinary tract infection patients in Egypt. The results show a high percentage of MDR isolates, with a significant proportion producing ESBLs and AmpC enzymes. Whole genome sequencing reveals the presence of high-risk clones carrying multiple resistance genes on both plasmids and chromosomes. These findings emphasize the importance of surveillance and control measures for multidrug-resistant strains in the region.
Article
Ornithology
Janice K. Enos, Emma B. Smith, Michael P. Ward, John P. Swaddle, Mark E. Hauber
Summary: Through playing predator and brood parasite vocalizations, this study found that predator vocalizations and the Sonic Net could reduce the numbers of Red-winged Blackbirds in agricultural nesting habitat, particularly in the late nesting season.
ORNITHOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Zoology
Barbara A. Han, Richard S. Ostfeld
JOURNAL OF MAMMALOGY
(2019)
Review
Entomology
James C. Burtis, Joseph B. Yavitt, Timothy J. Fahey, Richard S. Ostfeld
JOURNAL OF MEDICAL ENTOMOLOGY
(2019)
Review
Infectious Diseases
Ilya R. Fischhoff, Sarah E. Bowden, Felicia Keesing, Richard S. Ostfeld
BMC INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2019)
Article
Ecology
Magnus Magnusson, Ilya R. Fischhoff, Frauke Ecke, Birger Hornfeldt, Richard S. Ostfeld
Article
Ecology
Ilya R. Fischhoff, Tao Huang, Stephen K. Hamilton, Barbara A. Han, Shannon L. LaDeau, Richard S. Ostfeld, Emma J. Rosi, Christopher T. Solomon
Editorial Material
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Richard S. Ostfeld, Felicia Keesing
Article
Biology
Montserrat Vila, Alison M. Dunn, Franz Essl, Elena Gomez-Diaz, Philip E. Hulme, Jonathan M. Jeschke, Martin A. Nunez, Richard S. Ostfeld, Anibal Pauchard, Anthony Ricciardi, Belinda Gallardo
Summary: Invasion biology focuses on the impact of species introduced through human activities on ecosystems and human health, and draws parallels between invasive species and human disease spread. By understanding the interaction between invasive species and infectious diseases, we can improve prediction, prevention, and management strategies for both. Cross-disciplinary collaboration between invasion biology and epidemiology is essential for effective surveillance and control of invasive species and disease outbreaks.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Felicia Keesing, Richard S. Ostfeld
Summary: Biodiversity can have both positive and negative impacts on human health. Certain animals are more likely to be zoonotic hosts, and they tend to proliferate in areas with high human activity, increasing the transmission of pathogens. Therefore, biodiversity loss may increase the risk of human exposure to a variety of pathogens.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Dionysios Liveris, Maria E. Aguero-Rosenfeld, Thomas J. Daniels, Sandor Karpathy, Christopher Paddock, Sahar Adish, Felicia Keesing, Richard S. Ostfeld, Gary P. Wormser, Ira Schwartz
Summary: The genetic diversity of Anaplasma phagocytophilum was examined in samples from infected patients and infected Ixodes scapularis ticks. While human strains showed no sequence differences, significantly fewer ticks had a sequence encoding SdhC that matched the human strains. This suggests that not all strains of A. phagocytophilum in nature can cause clinical illness in humans.
TICKS AND TICK-BORNE DISEASES
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Frauke Ecke, Barbara A. Han, Birger Hornfeldt, Hussein Khalil, Magnus Magnusson, Navinder J. Singh, Richard S. Ostfeld
Summary: Through a global empirical analysis of the linkages between habitat use, population fluctuations, and zoonotic reservoir status in rodents, we found that the magnitude of population fluctuations, along with species' synanthropy and degree of human exploitation, consistently distinguish most rodent reservoirs at a global scale, regardless of pathogen types and transmission modes. Our spatial analyses also identified hotspots of high transmission risk, which are dominated by reservoir species in the rodent community. These findings inform our understanding of how natural and anthropogenic factors interact to increase the risk of zoonotic spillover in a rapidly changing world.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Richard S. Ostfeld, Sahar Adish, Stacy Mowry, William Bremer, Shannon Duerr, Andrew S. Evans Jr, Ilya R. Fischhoff, Fiona Keating, Jennifer Pendleton, Ashley Pfister, Marissa Teator, Felicia Keesing
Summary: Acaricides are thought to reduce human risk of exposure to tick-borne pathogens by decreasing tick abundance and infection prevalence. However, the use of acaricides targeted at small-mammal hosts showed no reduction in infection prevalence, while spraying a fungal biocide on vegetation led to lower infection prevalence with one pathogen. Although there were significant differences in infection prevalence between years, only one pathogen showed a cumulative reduction. Therefore, reservoir-targeted and broadcast acaricides might not effectively disrupt pathogen transmission or reduce human risk of exposure to tick-borne pathogens.
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Richard S. Ostfeld, Stacy Mowry, William Bremer, Shannon Duerr, Andrew S. Evans, Ilya R. Fischhoff, Alison F. Hinckley, Sarah A. Hook, Fiona Keating, Jennifer Pendleton, Ashley Pfister, Marissa Teator, Felicia Keesing
Summary: Controlling tick populations is believed to reduce human exposure to tick-borne diseases. However, this study found that two methods of tick control, tick control system (TCS) bait boxes and Met52 spray, did not significantly reduce tick abundance, tick encounters, or tick-borne disease cases over several years.
VECTOR-BORNE AND ZOONOTIC DISEASES
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Richard S. Ostfeld, Felicia Keesing
Summary: Controlling the abundance of blacklegged ticks through acaricides has been found to be effective, but studies with randomization, placebo controls, and blinding show lower efficacy. Studies measuring human-tick encounters and tickborne disease cases have not shown impacts of acaricidal treatments. This literature review explores possible causes for discrepancies in study outcomes and discusses potential mechanisms for the diminished efficacy of tick control in reducing tickborne disease cases in people.
Review
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Jason R. Rohr, Christopher B. Barrett, David J. Civitello, Meggan E. Craft, Bryan Delius, Giulio A. DeLeo, Peter J. Hudson, Nicolas Jouanard, Karena H. Nguyen, Richard S. Ostfeld, Justin Remais, Gilles Riveau, Susanne H. Sokolow, David Tilman
NATURE SUSTAINABILITY
(2019)
Article
Immunology
Kurt J. Vandegrift, Arvind Kumar, Himanshu Sharma, Satyapramod Murthy, Laura D. Kramer, Richard Ostfeld, Peter J. Hudson, Amit Kapoor
EMERGING INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2020)
