title: Spatial relationships between Eurasian badgers (Meles meles) and cattle infected with Mycobacterium bovis in Northern Spain.
abstract: Recent studies suggest that badgers may be a potential reservoir of Mycobacterium bovis infection for cattle in Northern Spain. The objective of this study was to investigate potential epidemiological links between cattle and badgers. Culture and molecular typing data were available for cattle culled during the national tuberculosis (TB) eradication campaigns between 2008 and 2012, as well as from 171 necropsied badgers and 60 live animals trapped and examined over the same time period. Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex strains were isolated from pooled tissues of 14 (8.2%) necropsied badgers, of which 11 were identified as M. bovis: six different spoligotypes of M. bovis were subsequently identified. In two geographical locations where these isolates were shared between cattle and badgers, infected cattle herds and badgers lived in close contact. Although it remains unclear if badgers are a maintenance or spill-over host of M. bovis in this setting, it would appear prudent to have precautionary measures in place to reduce contact between cattle and badgers.
authors.affiliation: SERIDA, Servicio Regional de Investigación y Desarrollo Agroalimentario, Centro de Biotecnología Animal, 33394 Deva-Gijón, Asturias, Spain. Electronic address: abalseiro@serida.org.
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Balseiro
authors.forename: Pablo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: González-Quirós
authors.forename: Óscar
authors.initials: Ó
authors.lastname: Rodríguez
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Francisca Copano
authors.forename: Isabel
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Merediz
authors.forename: Lucía
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: de Juan
authors.forename: Mark A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Chambers
authors.forename: Richard J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Delahay
authors.forename: Nelson
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Marreros
authors.forename: Luis J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Royo
authors.forename: Javier
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bezos
authors.forename: José M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Prieto
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gortázar
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle; D003710:Demography; D004197:Disease Reservoirs / Q000662:veterinary; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D045969:Mustelidae / Q000502:physiology*; D009163:Mycobacterium bovis / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology; D014380:Tuberculosis, Bovine / Q000453:epidemiology*
keywords: Badger; Cattle; Meles meles; Mycobacterium bovis; Spain; Transmission; Tuberculosis