Journal
FRONTIERS IN VETERINARY SCIENCE
Volume 8, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
FRONTIERS MEDIA SA
DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2021.714758
Keywords
Acinonyx jubatus; anthrax; Bacillus anthracis; cheetah; Equus zebra hartmannae; Namib Desert; mountain zebra; wildlife
Categories
Funding
- Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism in Namibia
- WWF in Germany
- Messerli Foundation in Switzerland
- Open Access Fund of the Leibniz Association
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Anthrax is a bacterial disease caused by Bacillus anthracis that affects wildlife, livestock, and humans. Different animal species have varying susceptibility to the disease, with herbivores being more susceptible than carnivores. Most cheetahs are susceptible to anthrax, likely due to their low genetic variability.
Anthrax is a bacterial disease caused by Bacillus anthracis that affects wildlife, livestock and also humans in different parts of the world. It is endemic in some parts of Africa, including Namibia, with species differing in their susceptibility to the disease. Carnivores are typically less susceptible to anthrax than herbivores. Most carnivore species survive infection and have high seroprevalence against anthrax, whereas most herbivore species have low seroprevalence and typically die quickly when infected. Several reports have shown that cheetahs, unlike most other large carnivores, are susceptible to anthrax leading to a sudden death. This finding was suggested to be linked to the low genetic variability of cheetahs which might reduce an adequate immune response and thus explain such a high susceptibility to the disease. Here, we report an incidence of three free-ranging cheetahs that died within 24 h after feeding on a mountain zebra that tested positive for anthrax in the Namib Desert. We were able to reconstruct this incidence with the data recorded in the GPS (Global Positioning System) collar worn by one of the cheetahs and retrieved in the field. It is very likely that the cheetahs died from anthrax, although Bacillus anthracis could not be isolated from tissue and soil samples by bacterial culturing. The mountain zebra is the first described case of a wild animal that tested positive for anthrax in this arid area in southwestern of Namibia. We discuss the negative laboratory results of the cheetahs in the light of new insights of their immune system and its potential to mount a response against this bacteria.
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