Orin Courtenay, José F Marinho-Júnior, Maria Edileuza F Brito, Juliana FCLS Monteiro, Jeffrey J Shaw, Sinval P. Brandão-Filho

Human and wild rodent infection rates with Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis are needed to differentiate transmission pathways in anthropogenically altered habitats.  In this study, human participants in northeast Brazil were tested by the leishmanin skin test (LST) and inspected for lesions/scars characteristic of American clinical leishmaniasis (ACL). Molecular (PCR/qPCR) test records of free-ranging rodents were available from a concurrent capture–mark–recapture study. Force of Infection (λ) and recovery (ρ) rates were estimated from cross-sectional and longitudinal datasets. The results show human exposure to L. (V.) braziliensis continues to be high despite the substantial drop in reported ACL cases in recent years. Spill-over transmission risk to humans from rodents in peridomestic habitats is likely supported by a rodent infection/transmission corridor linking houses, plantations, and the Atlantic Forest.

Pathogens. December 2023