VetSRev
Database of veterinary systematic reviews
Database of veterinary systematic reviews
Vector Borne and Zoonotic Diseases (Larchmont, N.Y.) (2013) 13: 349–359
Urban Norway and black rats (Rattus norvegicus and Rattus rattus) are the source of a number of pathogens responsible for significant human morbidity and mortality in cities around the world. These pathogens include zoonotic bacteria (Leptospira interrogans, Yersina pestis, Rickettsia typhi, Bartonella spp., Streptobacillus moniliformis), viruses (Seoul hantavirus), and parasites (Angiostrongylus cantonensis). A more complete understanding of the ecology of these pathogens in people and rats is critical for determining the public health risks associated with urban rats and for developing strategies to monitor and mitigate those risks. Although the ecology of rat-associated zoonoses is complex, due to the multiple ways in which rats, people, pathogens, vectors, and the environment may interact, common determinants of human disease can still be identified. This review summarizes the ecology of zoonoses associated with urban rats with a view to identifying similarities, critical differences, and avenues for further study.
Himsworth, C. G., Parsons, K. L., Jardine, C., & Patrick, D. M. (2013). Rats, cities, people, and pathogens: a systematic review and narrative synthesis of literature regarding the ecology of rat-associated zoonoses in urban centers. Vector Borne and Zoonotic Diseases (Larchmont, N.Y.), 13(6), 349–359. https://doi.org/10.1089/vbz.2012.1195 Animals, Male, Rats, Humans, Risk Factors, Zoonoses, Cities, Ecology, Bacterial Infections/epidemiology, Bacterial Infections/transmission, Disease Reservoirs, Parasitic Diseases/epidemiology, Parasitic Diseases/transmission, Public Health, Rodent Diseases/epidemiology, Rodent Diseases/microbiology, Rodent Diseases/parasitology, Rodent Diseases/transmission, Virus Diseases/epidemiology, Virus Diseases/transmission, Zoonoses/transmission