Role of wildlife in the epidemiology of Mycobacterium bovis

Although Mycobacterium bovis is classically thought of as a cattle disease, this name belies its diverse range of hosts. M. bovis has one of the widest known host ranges of any zoonotic pathogen, and has been isolated from multiple members of a majority of mammal orders, from rodents and insectivores, to primates and carnivores (O’Reilly and Daborn, 1995; Coleman and Cooke, 2001; Delahay et al., 2002). The presence of wildlife hosts may hinder attempts to eradicate M. bovis in livestock. However, the isolation of M. bovis from an animal population does not necessarily implicate that species as important in disease outbreaks. A host’s role in disease dynamics is dependent on a plethora of interacting factors, including the structure and location of lesions determining levels and routes of excretion, host behaviour, and likelihood of contact (direct and indirect) between infectious and susceptible individuals. Through understanding how these factors vary within and between host species, their potential role in disease maintenance and transmission can be elucidated.