Disentangling social, environmental, and zoonotic transmission pathways of a gastrointestinal protozoan (<i>Blastocystis</i> spp.) in northeast Madagascar
Our findings suggest that Blastocystis is most likely spread through environmental pathways within villages, rather than through social or animal contact. The most likely mechanisms involve fecal contamination of the environment by infected individuals or shared food and water sources. These findings shed new light on human-pathogen ecology and mechanisms for reducing disease transmission in rural, low-income settings.
Authors
- Michelle Pender (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1078-7623)
- Tyler M. Barrett (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8166-8704)
- Randall A. Kramer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1325-7425)
- James Moody (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3311-4173)
- Alma Solis (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1736-3767)
- Hillary S. Young (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0449-8582)
- Georgia Titcomb (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2206-1125)
- Kayla Kauffman (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4897-9428)
- Peter J. Mucha (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0648-7230)
- Mark Janko (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4099-3081)
- Charles L. Nunn (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9330-2873)
- Voahangy Soarimalala (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2455-2956)
- Maheriniaina Toky Randriamoria
Institutions
- Dartmouth College (US)
- University of Antananarivo (MG)
- University of California, Santa Barbara (US)
- Duke University (US)
- Université de Fianarantsoa (MG)
- Association Vahatra (MG)
- Duke Institute for Health Innovation (US)
- Colorado State University (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- American Journal of Biological Anthropology
- Published
- 2024-09-17
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.25030
- Citations
- 5
- Primary Topic
- Parasitic Infections and Diagnostics
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 2.58
Funders
- National Science Foundation
- National Institutes of Health
- National Institute of Food and Agriculture
- Division of Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences