Aquatic snails, passive hosts of Mycobacterium ulcerans.
Accumulative indirect evidence of the epidemiology of Mycobacterium ulcerans infections causing chronic skin ulcers (i.e., Buruli ulcer disease) suggests that the development of this pathogen and its transmission to humans are related predominantly to aquatic environments. We report that snails could transitorily harbor M. ulcerans without offering favorable conditions for its growth and replication. A novel intermediate link in the transmission chain of M. ulcerans becomes likely with predator aquatic insects in addition to phytophage insects. Water bugs, such as Naucoris cimicoides, a potential vector of M. ulcerans, were shown to be infected specifically by this bacterium after feeding on snails experimentally exposed to M. ulcerans.
Marsollier
Laurent
L
Unité de Génétique bactérienne, Institut Pasteur, 75724 Paris, France. marsol@pasteur.fr.
Sévérin
Tchibozo
T
Aubry
Jacques
J
Merritt
Richard W
RW
Saint André
Jean-Paul
JP
Legras
Pierre
P
Manceau
Anne-Lise
AL
Chauty
Annick
A
Carbonnelle
Bernard
B
Cole
Stewart T
ST
D000818:Animals; D004199:Disease Vectors; D020062:Heteroptera / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D007303:Insect Vectors; D009165:Mycobacterium Infections, Nontuberculous / Q000635:transmission; D019911:Mycobacterium ulcerans / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D012883:Skin Ulcer / Q000382:microbiology; D012908:Snails / Q000382:microbiology*