Enhanced passive bat rabies surveillance in indigenous bat species from Germany--a retrospective study.
In Germany, rabies in bats is a notifiable zoonotic disease, which is caused by European bat lyssaviruses type 1 and 2 (EBLV-1 and 2), and the recently discovered new lyssavirus species Bokeloh bat lyssavirus (BBLV). As the understanding of bat rabies in insectivorous bat species is limited, in addition to routine bat rabies diagnosis, an enhanced passive surveillance study, i.e. the retrospective investigation of dead bats that had not been tested for rabies, was initiated in 1998 to study the distribution, abundance and epidemiology of lyssavirus infections in bats from Germany. A total number of 5478 individuals representing 21 bat species within two families were included in this study. The Noctule bat (Nyctalus noctula) and the Common pipistrelle (Pipistrellus pipistrellus) represented the most specimens submitted. Of all investigated bats, 1.17% tested positive for lyssaviruses using the fluorescent antibody test (FAT). The vast majority of positive cases was identified as EBLV-1, predominately associated with the Serotine bat (Eptesicus serotinus). However, rabies cases in other species, i.e. Nathusius' pipistrelle bat (Pipistrellus nathusii), P. pipistrellus and Brown long-eared bat (Plecotus auritus) were also characterized as EBLV-1. In contrast, EBLV-2 was isolated from three Daubenton's bats (Myotis daubentonii). These three cases contribute significantly to the understanding of EBLV-2 infections in Germany as only one case had been reported prior to this study. This enhanced passive surveillance indicated that besides known reservoir species, further bat species are affected by lyssavirus infections. Given the increasing diversity of lyssaviruses and bats as reservoir host species worldwide, lyssavirus positive specimens, i.e. both bat and virus need to be confirmed by molecular techniques.
Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, WHO Collaborating Centre for Rabies Surveillance and Research, Greifswald - Insel Riems, Germany.
Juliane
J
Schatz
Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, WHO Collaborating Centre for Rabies Surveillance and Research, Greifswald - Insel Riems, Germany.
Conrad Martin
CM
Freuling
Arbeitskreis Fledermäuse Bodensee-Oberschwaben, Naturschutzbund Deutschland e.V., Überlingen, Germany.
Ernst
E
Auer
Wildlife Zoonoses and Vector Borne Diseases Research Group, Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA), Weybridge, Surrey, United Kingdom.
Hooman
H
Goharriz
Naturschutzbund Saarland e.V., Arbeitsgemeinschaft Fledermausschutz, Perl-Kesslingen, Germany.
Christine
C
Harbusch
Wildlife Zoonoses and Vector Borne Diseases Research Group, Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA), Weybridge, Surrey, United Kingdom.
Nicholas
N
Johnson
Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
Ingrid
I
Kaipf
Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, WHO Collaborating Centre for Rabies Surveillance and Research, Greifswald - Insel Riems, Germany.
Thomas Christoph
TC
Mettenleiter
Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
Kristin
K
Mühldorfer
University of Potsdam, Department of Animal Ecology, Potsdam, Germany.
Ralf-Udo
RU
Mühle
Biosphärenreservat Karstlandschaft Südharz, Landesreferenzstelle für Fledermausschutz Sachsen-Anhalt, Roβla, Germany.
Bernd
B
Ohlendorf
Niedersächsischer Landesbetrieb für Wasserwirtschaft, Küsten- und Naturschutz, Hannover, Germany.
Bärbel
B
Pott-Dörfer
Interessengemeinschaft für Fledermausschutz und -forschung in Thüringen e.V., Schweina, Germany.
Julia
J
Prüger
Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Institute for Novel and Emerging Infectious Diseases, Greifswald - Insel Riems, Germany.
Hanan Sheikh
HS
Ali
Staatliche Vogelschutzwarte für Hessen, Rheinland-Pfalz und Saarland, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
Dagmar
D
Stiefel
Landesamt für Umwelt, Gesundheit und Verbraucherschutz Land Brandenburg, Naturschutzstation Zippelsförde, Zippelsförde, Germany.
Jens
J
Teubner
Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Institute for Novel and Emerging Infectious Diseases, Greifswald - Insel Riems, Germany.
Rainer Günter
RG
Ulrich
Leibniz-Institute for Zoo- und Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany.
Gudrun
G
Wibbelt
Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, WHO Collaborating Centre for Rabies Surveillance and Research, Greifswald - Insel Riems, Germany.
Thomas
T
Müller
D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000821:virology; D002685:Chiroptera / Q000821:virology*; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D018114:Lyssavirus / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D062486:Public Health Surveillance / Q000379:methods*; D011818:Rabies / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary / Q000821:virology; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015047:Zoonoses / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000821:virology