title: Myxomatosis in wild rabbit: design of control programs in Mediterranean ecosystems.
abstract: A cross-sectional study was carried out in natural wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) populations from southern Spain to identify risk factors associated to myxoma virus infection. Blood samples from 619 wild rabbits were collected, and questionnaires which included variables related to host, disease, game management and environment were completed. A logistic regression analysis was conducted to investigate the associations between myxomatosis seropositivity (dependent variable) across 7 hunting estates and an extensive set of explanatory variables obtained from the questionnaires. The prevalence of antibodies against myxomatosis virus was 56.4% (95% CI: 52.5-60.3) and ranged between 21.4% (95% CI: 9.0-33.8) and 70.2% (95% CI: 58.3-82.1) among the different sampling areas. The logistic regression analysis showed that autumn (OR 9.0), high abundance of mosquitoes (OR 8.2), reproductive activity (OR 4.1), warren's insecticide treatment (OR 3.7), rabbit haemorrhagic disease (RHD) seropositivity (OR 2.6), high hunting pressure (OR 6.3) and sheep presence (OR 6.4) were associated with seropositivity to myxomatosis. Based on the results, diverse management measures for myxomatosis control are proposed.
authors.affiliation: Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA), UAB-IRTA, Campus de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Apdo. 08193, Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Ignacio
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: García-Bocanegra
authors.forename: Rafael Jesús
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Astorga
authors.forename: Sebastián
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Napp
authors.forename: Jordi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Casal
authors.forename: Belén
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Huerta
authors.forename: Carmen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Borge
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Arenas
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000835:Animals, Wild / Q000821:virology*; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D019083:Mediterranean Region / Q000453:epidemiology; D009233:Myxoma virus / Q000276:immunology*; D009234:Myxomatosis, Infectious / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011817:Rabbits / Q000821:virology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D012621:Seasons; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral