(1) Background: Bartonella spp. are zoonotic bacteria with small mammals as main reservoirs. Bartonella spp. prevalence in small mammals from Myanmar and Sri Lanka are yet unknown. (2) Methods: Small mammals were snap trapped in Sri Lanka and Myanmar in urban surroundings. Spleens-derived DNA was screened for Bartonella spp. using conventional PCR based on three target genes. Positive samples were sequenced. (3) Results: 994 small mammals were collected comprising 6 species: Bandicota bengalensis, Bandicota indica, Rattus exulans, Rattus rattus, Mus booduga, and Suncus murinus. In Myanmar, the Bartonella prevalence in Bandicoot rats (68.47%) was higher than in Rattus rattus (41.67%), Rattus exulans (21.33%), and Suncus murinus (3.64%). Furthermore the prevalence in Myanmar (34%, n = 495) was twice as high as in Sri Lanka (16%, n = 499). In Sri Lanka, Bartonella spp. occurred almost exclusively in R. rattus. In Myanmar, Bartonella kosoyi was mainly detected (56%), followed by Bartonella sp. KM2529 (15%), Bartonella sp. SE-Bart D (12%) and Bartonella henselae (1%). In Sri Lanka, B. phoceensis (60%) and Bartonella sp. KM2581 (33%) were predominant. (4) Conclusions: Bartonella spp. were detected in all investigated small mammal species from Myanmar and Sri Lanka for the first time. Bartonella kosoyi and B. henselae are zoonotic. As these small mammals originated from urban settlements, human bartonellosis seems likely to occur.
Leptospirosis is a neglected zoonotic disease and one of the leading causes of zoonotic morbidity and mortality, particularly in resource-poor settings. Sri Lanka has one of the highest disease burdens worldwide, with occasional endemic leptospirosis outbreaks (2008, 2011). Rodents are considered the main wildlife reservoir, but due to a scarcity of studies it is unclear which particular species contributes to bacterial transmission and reservoir maintenance in this multi-host multi-parasite system. Several rodent species act as agricultural pests both in rice fields and in food storage facilities. To unravel the interactions among the small mammal communities, pathogenic Leptospira spp. and human transmission pathways, we collected animals from smallholder food storage facilities, where contact between humans and small mammals is most likely, and screened kidney tissue samples for Leptospira spp. using PCR. Samples were collected in three climatic zones along a rainfall gradient. Pathogenic Leptospira spp. were detected in small mammal communities in 37 (74%) out of 50 sampled farms and 61 (12%) out of 500 collected individuals were infected. The small mammal community was comprised of Rattus rattus (87.6%), Suncus shrews (8.8%), Bandicota spp. (2.8%) and Mus booduga (0.8%). Three pathogenic Leptospira spp. were identified, L. borgpetersenii (n = 34), L. interrogans (n = 15), and L. kirschneri (n = 1). Suncus shrews were commonly infected (32%), followed by B. indica (23%) and R. rattus (10%). L. borgpetersenii strains similar to strains previously extracted from human clinal samples in Sri Lanka were detected in R. rattus and Suncus shrews. L. interrogans was observed in R. rattus only. A single L. kirschneri infection was found in M. booduga. The presence of human pathogenic Leptospira species in an agricultural pest rodent (R. rattus) and in commensal shrews (Suncus) calls for management of these species in commensal settings. Further investigation of the interplay between pathogen and reservoir population dynamics, overlap in geographic range and the extent of spill-over to humans in and around rural settlements is required to identify optimal management approaches.
Brown planthopper, (Nilaparvata lugens Stal) is the devastating pest of rice and distributed throughout the rice growing areas in worldwide. Though the resistant rice varieties have frequently been released globally, the seriousness of N.lugens is innumerable due to the coevolution strategy of N.lugens. It is also common to the Batticaloa district of Sri Lanka where the problem of N.lugens is recorded repeatedly. Thus the regular reevaluation of improved rice varieties is mandate for the proper management of N.lugens. Screening of sixty rice varieties including the varieties highly growing in the Batticaloa district was carried out at Rice Research and Development Institute, Batalagoda, Sri Lanka during yala 2017. The BPH resistance of different 60 rice varieties was assessed using conventional seed box test along with the resistant (Ptb 33) and susceptible check (Bg 380). The results showed that the rice varieties viz., Bg 94-1, Bg 366, Bg 357, Bg 374 and Bg 300 were mainly cultivated by the farmers at the Batticaloa district whereas almost all the varieties lost the unique characteristics in resisting the N.lugens. However Bg 357 and Bg 366 can fairly be recommended for the Batticaloa district as showed Moderately Resistant. Among the tested 60 rice varieties, 21 varieties viz.
Rice is the staple food in Sri Lanka, where significant grain losses in storage are one of the key factors affecting food security. Rodents cause the highest losses in rice, mainly by Bandicota bengalensis and Rattus rattus in the Sri Lankan context. Rodent damage depends on factors mainly on storage management and the type of rice varieties. However, there is no information on varietal and grain preference by rodents. Hence the experiment was conducted to determine the grain preference of rodents for available 45 rice varieties. The study was conducted in the screen house (1.5m x 9m x 1.5m), modified by providing hiding places to rodents. Three trays filled with 250g of paddy seeds of each variety were placed inside the screen house. One day starved 100 rats were released into the experimental setup and allowed to feed. The remaining grain quantities were measured at 3, 5, and 7 days after release. The same procedure was followed separately for both species. The study revealed that grain losses were dependent not only on the rice variety but also on the rat species. At311, Bg409, and Bg250 were the most preferred varieties, whereas At307, Bw312, At303, Bg379/2, and Bw351 were the least preferred by B. bengalensis. Meanwhile, Bw367 and Bw453 were the highest preference of R. rattus, whereas the lowest were At373,
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