Serosurveillance of Coxiella burnetii in feral swine populations of Hawaiʻi and Texas identifies overlap with human Q fever incidence

Abstract

Feral swine are invasive in the United States and a reservoir for infectious diseases. The increase in feral swine population and the geographic range are a concern for the spread of zoonotic diseases to humans and livestock. Feral swine could contribute to the spread of Coxiella burnetii, the causative agent of human Q fever. In this study, we characterized the seroprevalence of C. burnetii in feral swine populations of Hawaiʻi and Texas, which have low and high rates of human Q fever, respectively. Seropositivity rates were as high as 0.19% and 6.03% in Hawaiʻi and Texas, respectively, indicating that feral swine cannot be ruled out as a potential reservoir for disease transmission and spread. In Texas, we identified the overlap between seropositivity of feral swine and human Q fever incidence. These results indicate that there is a potentially low but detectable risk of C. burnetii exposure associated with feral swine populations in Hawaiʻi and Texas.