Human-bat Competition on Cultivated Fruit Resources Promotes Bat-borne Pathogens Spillover to Humans and Domestic Animals in Bangladesh: An Exploratory Qualitative Study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Nipah virus (NiV) outbreaks have recurred nearly annually in Bangladesh since 2001, with a fatality >70%. These outbreaks are primarily linked to the consumption of raw date palm sap (RDPS), which is contaminated by Indian flying fox bats. Due to the rapidly changing ecology, bats increasingly depend on cultivated fruits. To address this, we observed how humans and domestic animals compete and interact with bats for cultivated fruits facilitate pathogen transmission to humans and animals.

Methods

We conducted an exploratory qualitative study in 4 NiV outbreak districts of Bangladesh spanning both the summer (April-June) and winter (December-February) of 2021 and 2022, including 60 ethnographic interviews and 24 observations with fruit orchard owners and RDPS harve

SUBMITTER: Khan AKMD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12531628 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature