title: Dynamics and drivers of hantavirus prevalence in rodent populations.
abstract: Human encroachment on wildlife habitats has contributed to the emergence of several zoonoses. Pathogenic hantaviruses are hosted by rodents and cause severe diseases in the Americas and Eurasia. We reviewed several factors that potentially drive prevalence (the proportion of infected rodents) in host populations. These include demography, behavior, host density, small mammal diversity, predation, and habitat and landscape characteristics. This review is the first to include a quantitative summary of the literature investigating hantavirus prevalence in rodents. Demographic structure and density were investigated the most and predation the least. Reported effects of demographic structure and small mammal diversity were consistent, whereby reproductive males were most likely to be infected and prevalence decreased with small mammal diversity. The influences of habitat and landscape properties are often complex and indirect. The relationship between density and prevalence merits more investigation. Most hantavirus hosts are habitat generalists and their control is challenging. Incorporating all potential factors and their interactions is essential to understanding and controlling infection in host populations.
authors: 1 Department of Wildlife, Fish, and Environmental Studies, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences , Umeå, Sweden .
authors: Hussein
authors: H
authors: Khalil
authors: Birger
authors: B
authors: Hörnfeldt
authors: Magnus
authors: M
authors: Evander
authors: Magnus
authors: M
authors: Magnusson
authors: Gert
authors: G
authors: Olsson
authors: Frauke
authors: F
authors: Ecke
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D044822:Biodiversity; D004197:Disease Reservoirs / Q000821:virology; D017753:Ecosystem; D005260:Female; D006476:Orthohantavirus / Q000302:isolation & purification; D018778:Hantavirus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000635:transmission; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012377:Rodentia / Q000821:virology*; D015047:Zoonoses / Q000821:virology
keywords: Biodiversity; Density dependence; Habitat; Hantavirus; Predation; Prevalence; Rodent; Transmission.