Spatial Effects of Livestock Farming on Human Infections With Shiga Toxin‐Producing <i>Escherichia coli</i> O157 in Small but Densely Populated Regions: The Case of the Netherlands

Mulder, Annemieke Christine; Kassteele, Jan van de; Heederik, Dick; Pijnacker, Roan; Mughini‐Gras, Lapo; Franz, Eelco

doi:10.1029/2020gh000276

Cited by 10 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…This could be related to the aforementioned points regarding the contact of BPS with commercial plants, considering that the latter tend to present higher prevalence values for several pathogens of importance to public and animal health [48,[82][83][84]. These results highlight the importance of surveillance in this neglected animal and human population, as evidence suggests that direct contact with farm animals could act as a predictor of progression to HUS in human cases of STEC infection [85,86].…”

Section: Risk Factors Associated With Stec and S Enterica Presentation In Bpsmentioning

confidence: 79%

Risk Factors for Positivity to Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli and Salmonella enterica in Backyard Production Systems Animals from Metropolitana Region, Chile: A Threat to Public Health?

Pavez-Muñoz

Fernández-Sanhueza

Urzúa-Encina

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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In the Metropolitana region of Chile there are 3836 backyard production systems (BPS), characterized as small-scale systems. They act as a source of zoonotic pathogens, such as Salmonella enterica and Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC), whose prevalence in BPS has not been fully described. The objective of this study was to determine the positivity for both agents in BPS and to establish the risk factors related to their presence. In each BPS, an epidemiological survey was undertaken, and stool samples were collected to detect these pathogens via bacteriological culture and conventional PCR techniques. Subsequently, multivariable logistic regression models were applied to establish the risk factors associated with their presence. BPS positivity rates of 11.76% for STEC and 4.7% for S. enterica were observed. The systems showed poor welfare standards and a lack of biosecurity measures. The risk factor analysis concluded that the Gini–Simpson index (p = 0.030; OR = 1.717) and the presence of neighboring intensive poultry or swine production systems (p = 0.019; OR = 20.645) act as factors that increased the risk of positivity with respect to STEC. In the case of S. enterica, exchanging embryonated eggs (p = 0.021; OR = 39) and the presence of debeaked chickens (p = 0.001; OR = 156) were determined as factors that increased the risk of positivity for this agent. For positivity with respect to both pathogens, the Gini–Simpson index (p = 0.030; OR = 1.544) and being INDAP/PRODESAL users (p = 0.023; OR = 15.026) were determined as factors that increased the risk, whereas the type of confinement (p = 0.002; OR = 0.019) decreased it. Epidemiological surveillance of these neglected populations is lacking, highlighting the fact that STEC and S. enterica maintenance on BPS represents a potential threat to public health.

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Section: Risk Factors Associated With Stec and S Enterica Presentation In Bpsmentioning

confidence: 79%

Risk Factors for Positivity to Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli and Salmonella enterica in Backyard Production Systems Animals from Metropolitana Region, Chile: A Threat to Public Health?

Pavez-Muñoz

Fernández-Sanhueza

Urzúa-Encina

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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“…Living near cattle and other domesticated ruminants has been linked to STEC incidence, particularly for E. coli O157:H7. 2,11–15 These studies suggest an important role for local reservoirs in STEC epidemiology. A comprehensive understanding of STEC’s disease ecology would enable more effective investigations into potential local transmission systems and ultimately their control.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 80%

“…Our analysis was limited to only cattle and humans. However, small ruminants (e.g., sheep, goats) have also been identified as important STEC reservoirs, 12,15,25 and Alberta has experienced outbreaks linked to swine. 7 Had isolates from a wider range of potential reservoirs been available, we would have been able to elucidate more clearly the roles that various hosts and common sources of infection play in local transmission.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Our estimates are consistent with prior work that established an increased risk of STEC associated with living near cattle. 2,11–15 We showed that 77% of strains infecting humans arose from cattle lineages. These transitions can be seen as a combination of the historic evolution of E. coli O157:H7 from cattle in the rare clades and the infection of humans from local cattle or cattle-related reservoirs in clade G(vi).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Persistent cross-species transmission systems dominate Shiga toxin-producingEscherichia coliO157:H7 epidemiology in a high incidence region: a genomic epidemiology study

Tarr,

Chui,

Stanford

et al. 2024

Preprint

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BackgroundSeveral areas of the world suffer notably high incidence of Shiga toxin-producingEscherichia coli, among them Alberta, Canada. We assessed the role of persistent cross-species transmission systems in Alberta’sE. coliO157:H7 epidemiology.MethodsWe sequenced and assembled 229E. coliO157:H7 isolates originating from collocated cattle (n=108) and human (n=121) populations from 2007-2015 in Alberta. We constructed a timed phylogeny using BEAST2 using a structured coalescent model. We then extended the tree with human isolates through 2019 (n=432) to assess the long-term disease impact of local persistent lineages. Shiga toxin gene (stx) profile was determined for all isolates.ResultsDuring 2007 to 2015, we estimated 107 (95% HPD 101, 111) human lineages arose from cattle lineages, and 31 (95% HPD 22, 43) from other human lineages; i.e., 77.5% of human lineages arose from cattle lineages. We identified 11 persistent lineages local to Alberta, which were associated with 36.4% (95% CI 27.8%, 45.6%) of human isolates. Of 115 isolates in local persistent lineages, 6.1% carried onlystx2aand the reststx1a/stx2a. During the later period, six local persistent lineages continued to be associated with human illness, including 74.7% (95% CI 68.3%, 80.3%) of reported cases in 2018 and 2019. Thestxprofile of isolates in local persistent lineages shifted from the earlier period, with 51.2% encoding onlystx2a.ConclusionsOur study identified multiple locally evolving lineages transmitted between cattle and humans persistently associated withE. coliO157:H7 illnesses for up to 13 years. Of concern, there was a dramatic shift in the local persistent lineages toward strains with the more virulentstx2a-only profile. We hypothesize that the large proportion of disease associated with local transmission systems is a principal cause of Alberta’s highE. coliO157:H7 incidence.

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“…For STEC O157, a relatively large contribution of the environmental pathway was estimated (15%). A study on the spatial epidemiology of STEC O157 in the Netherlands (Mulder et al., 2021) found that living in areas with high levels of exposure to small ruminants is associated with increased incidence of human STEC O157 infections, suggesting that environmental exposure to small ruminants is a significant risk factor for STEC O157. Also, for Campylobacter , a relatively large attribution to the environmental transmission pathway was estimated (15%).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A statistical modelling approach for source attribution meta‐analysis of sporadic infection with foodborne pathogens

Mughini‐Gras

Benincà

McDonald

et al. 2022

Zoonoses and Public Health

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Numerous source attribution studies for foodborne pathogens based on epidemiological and microbiological methods are available. These studies provide empirical data for modelling frameworks that synthetize the quantitative evidence at our disposal and reduce reliance on expert elicitations. Here, we develop a statistical model within a Bayesian estimation framework to integrate attribution estimates from expert elicitations with estimates from microbial subtyping and case‐control studies for sporadic infections with four major bacterial zoonotic pathogens in the Netherlands (Campylobacter, Salmonella, Shiga toxin‐producing E. coli [STEC] O157 and Listeria). For each pathogen, we pooled the published fractions of human cases attributable to each animal reservoir from the microbial subtyping studies, accounting for the uncertainty arising from the different typing methods, attribution models, and year(s) of data collection. We then combined the population attributable fractions (PAFs) from the case‐control studies according to five transmission pathways (domestic food, environment, direct animal contact, human–human transmission and travel) and 11 groups within the foodborne pathway (beef/lamb, pork, poultry meat, eggs, dairy, fish/shellfish, fruit/vegetables, beverages, grains, composite foods and food handlers/vermin). The attribution estimates were biologically plausible, allowing the human cases to be attributed in several ways according to reservoirs, transmission pathways and food groups. All pathogens were predominantly foodborne, with Campylobacter being mostly attributable to the chicken reservoir, Salmonella to pigs (albeit closely followed by layers), and Listeria and STEC O157 to cattle. Food‐wise, the attributions reflected those at the reservoir level in terms of ranking. We provided a modelling solution to reach consensus attribution estimates reflecting the empirical evidence in the literature that is particularly useful for policy‐making and is extensible to other pathogens and domains.

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Spatial Effects of Livestock Farming on Human Infections With Shiga Toxin‐Producing Escherichia coli O157 in Small but Densely Populated Regions: The Case of the Netherlands

Cited by 10 publications

References 39 publications

Risk Factors for Positivity to Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli and Salmonella enterica in Backyard Production Systems Animals from Metropolitana Region, Chile: A Threat to Public Health?

Risk Factors for Positivity to Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli and Salmonella enterica in Backyard Production Systems Animals from Metropolitana Region, Chile: A Threat to Public Health?

Persistent cross-species transmission systems dominate Shiga toxin-producingEscherichia coliO157:H7 epidemiology in a high incidence region: a genomic epidemiology study

A statistical modelling approach for source attribution meta‐analysis of sporadic infection with foodborne pathogens

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