Rabies, host population structure, and cross-species transmission to the migratory bat Tadarida brasiliensis in Chile.

ABSTRACT: Although many bat species migrate, the consequences of migration for bat population structure and rabies virus transmission remain poorly understood. Understanding the spatiotemporal dynamics of bat rabies (Lyssavirus rabies) transmission is important to prevent rabies spillovers to dead-end hosts, including humans. Here, focusing on the long-distance migratory Brazilian free-tailed bat (Tadarida brasiliensis) in South America, we identify the extent of host population and rabies virus structure across Chile. The analysis of 112 cytochrome b sequences from T. brasiliensis individuals and 144 rabies virus sequences submitted to the Chilean national rabies surveillance showed a lack of geographic clustering by municipality or region in Chile. This lack of clustering suggests that the migrato

SUBMITTER: Rojas-Sereno ZE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12919816 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature