Antimicrobial Resistance Creates Threat to Chimpanzee Health and Conservation in the Wild

doi:10.3390/pathogens10040477

. 2021 Apr 14;10(4):477.

doi: 10.3390/pathogens10040477.

Antimicrobial Resistance Creates Threat to Chimpanzee Health and Conservation in the Wild

Michele B Parsons^{1

2

3}, Dominic A Travis⁴, Elizabeth V Lonsdorf⁵, Iddi Lipende⁶, Deema Elchoufi¹, Baraka Gilagiza⁶, Anthony Collins⁶, Shadrack Kamenya⁶, Robert V Tauxe³, Thomas R Gillespie^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Environmental Sciences and Program in Population Biology, Ecology, and Evolutionary Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
² Department of Environmental Health, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
³ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.
⁴ College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55108, USA.
⁵ Department of Psychology, Franklin and Marshall College, Lancaster, PA 17603, USA.
⁶ The Jane Goodall Institute, Kigoma, Tanzania.

PMID: 33920028
PMCID: PMC8071057
DOI: 10.3390/pathogens10040477

Antimicrobial Resistance Creates Threat to Chimpanzee Health and Conservation in the Wild

Michele B Parsons et al. Pathogens. 2021.

. 2021 Apr 14;10(4):477.

doi: 10.3390/pathogens10040477.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Environmental Sciences and Program in Population Biology, Ecology, and Evolutionary Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
² Department of Environmental Health, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
³ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.
⁴ College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55108, USA.
⁵ Department of Psychology, Franklin and Marshall College, Lancaster, PA 17603, USA.
⁶ The Jane Goodall Institute, Kigoma, Tanzania.

PMID: 33920028
PMCID: PMC8071057
DOI: 10.3390/pathogens10040477

Abstract

Infectious disease is recognized as the greatest threat to the endangered chimpanzees made famous by the groundbreaking work of Dr. Jane Goodall at Gombe National Park (GNP), Tanzania. The permeable boundary of this small protected area allows for regular wildlife-human and wildlife-domestic animal overlap, which may facilitate cross-species transmission of pathogens and antimicrobial resistance. Few studies have examined the prevalence of antimicrobial resistance in wild ape populations. We used molecular techniques to investigate the presence of genes conferring resistance to sulfonamides (often used to treat diarrheal illness in human settings in this region) and tetracycline (used in the past-though much less so now) in fecal specimens from humans, domestic animals, chimpanzees, and baboons in and around GNP. We also tested stream water used by these groups. Sulfonamide resistance was common in humans (74%), non-human primates (43%), and domestic animals (17%). Tetracycline resistance was less common in all groups: humans (14%), non-human primates (3%), and domestic animals (6%). Sul resistance genes were detected from 4/22 (18%) of streams sampled. Differences in sul gene frequencies did not vary by location in humans nor in chimpanzees.

Keywords: AMR; Gombe; Tanzania; one health; primate; sulfonamides; tetracycline; zoonoses.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results. The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Figures

**Figure 1**
The study site. (A) Location of Gombe National Park in Tanzania. (B) Home ranges for the chimpanzee (*Pan troglodytes*) groups studied; Mitumba and Kasekela and water sampling locations of park and village streams. Yellow squares are individual households (Mwamgongo) or the camp.

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[1] Byarugaba D.K. Antimicrobial resistance in developing countries and responsible risk factors. Int. J. Antimicrob. Agents. 2004;24:105–110. doi: 10.1016/j.ijantimicag.2004.02.015. - DOI - PubMed

[2] Byarugaba D.K. Antimicrobial resistance in developing countries and responsible risk factors. Int. J. Antimicrob. Agents. 2004;24:105–110. doi: 10.1016/j.ijantimicag.2004.02.015. - DOI - PubMed

[3] Ayukekbong J.A., Ntemgwa M., Atabe A.N. The threat of antimicrobial resistance in developing countries: Causes and control strategies. Antimicrob. Resist. Infect. Control. 2017;6:47. doi: 10.1186/s13756-017-0208-x. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[4] Ayukekbong J.A., Ntemgwa M., Atabe A.N. The threat of antimicrobial resistance in developing countries: Causes and control strategies. Antimicrob. Resist. Infect. Control. 2017;6:47. doi: 10.1186/s13756-017-0208-x. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[5] Byarugaba D.K., Kisame R., Olet S. Multi-drug resistance in commensal bacteria of food of animal origin in Uganda. Afr. J. Microbiol. Res. 2011;5:1539–1548.

[6] Byarugaba D.K., Kisame R., Olet S. Multi-drug resistance in commensal bacteria of food of animal origin in Uganda. Afr. J. Microbiol. Res. 2011;5:1539–1548.

[7] Bartoloni A., Benedetti M., Pallecchi L., Larsson M., Mantella A., Strohmeyer M., Bartalesi F., Fernandez C., Guzman E., Vallejos Y., et al. Evaluation of a rapid screening method for detection of antimicrobial resistance in the commensal microbiota of the gut. Trans. R. Soc. Trop. Med. Hyg. 2006;100:119–125. doi: 10.1016/j.trstmh.2005.06.027. - DOI - PubMed

[8] Bartoloni A., Benedetti M., Pallecchi L., Larsson M., Mantella A., Strohmeyer M., Bartalesi F., Fernandez C., Guzman E., Vallejos Y., et al. Evaluation of a rapid screening method for detection of antimicrobial resistance in the commensal microbiota of the gut. Trans. R. Soc. Trop. Med. Hyg. 2006;100:119–125. doi: 10.1016/j.trstmh.2005.06.027. - DOI - PubMed

[9] Souza V., Rocha M., Valera A., Eguiarte L.E. Genetic structure of natural populations of Escherichia coli in wild hosts on different continents. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 1999;65:3373. doi: 10.1128/AEM.65.8.3373-3385.1999. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[10] Souza V., Rocha M., Valera A., Eguiarte L.E. Genetic structure of natural populations of Escherichia coli in wild hosts on different continents. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 1999;65:3373. doi: 10.1128/AEM.65.8.3373-3385.1999. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

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Antimicrobial Resistance Creates Threat to Chimpanzee Health and Conservation in the Wild

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Antimicrobial Resistance Creates Threat to Chimpanzee Health and Conservation in the Wild

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract

Conflict of interest statement

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References

Grants and funding

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