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1. Geographically widespread and novel hemotropic mycoplasmas and bartonellae in Mexican free-tailed bats and sympatric North American bat species

   https://doi.org/10.1128/msphere.00116-24  

   Becker, Daniel J; Dyer, Kristin E; Lock, Lauren R; Olbrys, Beckett L; Pladas, Shawn A; Sukhadia, Anushka A; Demory, Bret; Nunes_Batista, Juliana Maria; Pineda, Micaela; Simmons, Nancy B; et al (December 2024, mSphere)

   Spiropoulou, Christina F (Ed.)

   ABSTRACT Bacterial pathogens remain poorly characterized in bats, especially in North America. We describe novel (and in some cases panmictic) hemoplasmas (10.1% positivity) and bartonellae (25.6% positivity) across three colonies of Mexican free-tailed bats (Tadarida brasiliensis), a partially migratory species that can seasonally travel hundreds of kilometers. Molecular analyses identified three novelCandidatushemoplasma species most similar to another novelCandidatusspecies in Neotropical molossid bats. We also detected novel hemoplasmas in sympatric cave myotis (Myotis velifer) and pallid bats (Antrozous pallidus), with sequences in the latter 96.5% related toCandidatusMycoplasma haematohominis. We identified nineBartonellagenogroups, including those in cave myotis with 96.1% similarity toCandidatusBartonella mayotimonensis. We also detectedBartonella rochalimaein migratory Mexican free-tailed bats, representing the first report of this human pathogen in the Chiroptera. Monthly sampling of migratory Mexican free-tailed bats during their North American occupancy period also revealed significant seasonality in infection for both bacterial pathogens, with prevalence increasing following spring migration, peaking in the maternity season, and declining into fall migration. The substantial diversity and seasonality of hemoplasmas and bartonellae observed here suggest that additional longitudinal, genomic, and immunological studies in bats are warranted to inform One Health approaches. IMPORTANCEBats have been intensively sampled for viruses but remain mostly understudied for bacterial pathogens. However, bacterial pathogens can have significant impacts on both human health and bat morbidity and even mortality. Hemoplasmas and bartonellae are facultative intracellular bacteria of special interest in bats, given their high prevalence and substantial genetic diversity. Surveys have also supported plausible zoonotic transmission of these bacteria from bats to humans, includingCandidatusMycoplasma haematohominis andCandidatusBartonella mayotimonensis. Greater characterization of these bacteria across global bat diversity (over 1,480 species) is therefore warranted to inform infection risks for both bats and humans, although little surveillance has thus far been conducted in North American bats. We here describe novel (and in some cases panmictic) hemoplasmas and bartonellae across three colonies of Mexican free-tailed bats and sympatric bat species. We find high genetic diversity and seasonality of these pathogens, including lineages closely related to human pathogens, such asBartonella rochalimae. 

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2. Neotropical bats as sentinels for emerging zoonoses in Central America: A case study identifying Trypanosoma cruzi in bats from Belize using metagenomic next-generation sequencing

   https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0013851  

   Torgerson, Elissa G; Adams, Michele; Lock, Lauren R; Simonis, Molly C; Dyer, Kristin E; Vicente-Santos, Amanda; Fenton, M Brock; Simmons, Nancy B; Becker, Daniel J; Achee, Nicole L (July 2026, PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases)

   Liang, Song (Ed.)

   Emerging zoonoses remain a global public health concern. Surveillance of infectious and vector-borne diseases is vital for predicting and mitigating detrimental effects of zoonotic spillover events. Beyond assessing what microorganisms are circulating in specific environments, it is important to understand how potential reservoir hosts, especially animals such as bats, participate in pathogen transmission. Bats can host and potentially spread infections caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi, and protozoa. However, bats can also act as sentinels that test positive for pathogenic microorganisms without necessarily contributing to the pathogen replication cycle. Metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) provides an efficient means to broadly screen for pathogens, although microorganism selectivity can sometimes be lower than targeted approaches. Pairing mNGS results with higher-sensitivity tests such as quantitative PCR (qPCR) can validate results and together these tools provide a relatively fast and reliable method for conducting surveillance. To test this approach, we conducted an exploratory study surveying the types of microorganisms circulating in Belize by collecting 263 blood samples from 20 different bat species captured in the Orange Walk District in 2019, 2022, and 2023. We used mNGS to initially characterize the microbial communities and qPCR to confirm presence and intensity of human pathogens of interest. We detected 1,430 different microorganisms with some relevance to human or animal health, including the protozoanTrypanosoma cruzi,which was detected in the phyllostomid batsDesmodus rotundusandArtibeus jamaicensis. qPCR confirmed the presence and intensity ofTrypanosoma cruziin mNGS-positive bat samples. We documented the types of pathogenic microorganisms circulating throughout the bat community in northern Belize to demonstrate the capacity for bats to serve as sentinels. 

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3. Identifying Suspect Bat Reservoirs of Emerging Infections

   https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines8020228  

   Crowley, Daniel; Becker, Daniel; Washburne, Alex; Plowright, Raina (June 2020, Vaccines)

   Bats host a number of pathogens that cause severe disease and onward transmission in humans and domestic animals. Some of these pathogens, including henipaviruses and filoviruses, are considered a concern for future pandemics. There has been substantial effort to identify these viruses in bats. However, the reservoir hosts for Ebola virus are still unknown and henipaviruses are largely uncharacterized across their distribution. Identifying reservoir species is critical in understanding the viral ecology within these hosts and the conditions that lead to spillover. We collated surveillance data to identify taxonomic patterns in prevalence and seroprevalence and to assess sampling efforts across species. We systematically collected data on filovirus and henipavirus detections and used a machine-learning algorithm, phylofactorization, in order to search the bat phylogeny for cladistic patterns in filovirus and henipavirus infection, accounting for sampling efforts. Across sampled bat species, evidence for filovirus infection was widely dispersed across the sampled phylogeny. We found major gaps in filovirus sampling in bats, especially in Western Hemisphere species. Evidence for henipavirus infection was clustered within the Pteropodidae; however, no other clades have been as intensely sampled. The major predictor of filovirus and henipavirus exposure or infection was sampling effort. Based on these results, we recommend expanding surveillance for these pathogens across the bat phylogenetic tree. 

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4. Remarkably low host specificity in the bat fly Penicillidia fulvida (Diptera: Nycteribiidae) as assessed by mitochondrial COI and nuclear 28S sequence data

   https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-022-05516-z  

   Verrett, Taylor B.; Webala, Paul W.; Patterson, Bruce D.; Dick, Carl W. (December 2022, Parasites & Vectors)

   Abstract Background The recognition and delineation of morphologically indistinguishable cryptic species can have broad implications for wildlife conservation, disease ecology and accurate estimates of biodiversity. Parasites are intriguing in the study of cryptic speciation because unique evolutionary pressures and diversifying factors are generated by ecological characteristics of host-parasite relationships, including host specificity. Bat flies (Diptera: Nycteribiidae and Streblidae) are obligate, hematophagous ectoparasites of bats that generally exhibit high host specificity. One rare exception is Penicillidia fulvida (Diptera: Nycteribiidae), an African bat fly found in association with many phylogenetically distant hosts. One explanation for P. fulvida ’s extreme polyxeny is that it may represent a complex of host-specific yet cryptic species, an increasingly common finding in molecular genetic studies of supposed generalist parasites. Methods A total of 65 P. fulvida specimens were collected at 14 localities across Kenya, from bat species representing six bat families. Mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 ( COI ) and nuclear 28S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) sequences were obtained from 59 specimens and used to construct Bayesian and maximum likelihood phylogenies. Analysis of molecular variance was used to determine how genetic variation in P. fulvida was allocated among host taxa. Results The 28S rRNA sequences studied were invariant within P. fulvida . Some genetic structure was present in the COI sequence data, but this could be more parsimoniously explained by geography than host family. Conclusions Our results support the status of P. fulvida as a rare example of a single bat fly species with primary host associations spanning multiple bat families. Gene flow among P. fulvida utilizing different host species may be promoted by polyspecific roosting behavior in bats, and host preference may also be malleable based on bat assemblages occupying shared roosts. The proclivity of generalist parasites to switch hosts makes them more likely to vector or opportunistically transmit pathogens across host species boundaries. Consequently, the presence of polyxenous bat flies is an important consideration to disease ecology as bat flies become increasingly known to be associated with bat pathogens. Graphical Abstract 

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5. Diversity and seasonality of ectoparasite burden on two species of Madagascar fruit bat, Eidolon dupreanum and Rousettus madagascariensis

   https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-025-06805-z  

   Andrianiaina, Angelo F; Andry, Santino; Kettenburg, Gwenddolen; Ranaivoson, Hafaliana Christian; Lacoste, Vincent; Dussart, Philippe; Heraud, Jean-Michel; Laverty, Theresa M; Guth, Sarah; Young, Katherine I; et al (July 2026, Parasites & Vectors)

   Abstract BackgroundBats are important reservoir hosts for a variety of pathogens, some of which are transmitted by ectoparasite vectors including mites, fleas, lice, ticks, and bat flies (families Nycteribiidae and Streblidae). All these ectoparasite taxa are known to parasitize two endemic fruit bats of Madagascar,Eidolon dupreanumandRousettus madagascariensis. We aimed to describe the diversity of ectoparasite infestation for both bat species through morphological observation and DNA barcoding and elucidate ecological and climatic correlates of seasonal nycteribiid parasitism of these hosts. MethodsEidolon dupreanumandR. madagascariensisfruit bats were live-captured in northern and central-eastern Madagascar periodically from 2013 to 2020. Ectoparasites on all captured bats were counted and identified in the field and then collected into ethanol. Field identification of a subset of samples was confirmed via microscopy and DNA barcoding of the cytochrome C oxidase subunit 1 (COI) and18Sgenes. The seasonal abundance of nycteribiid bat flies on both host bats was analyzed using generalized additive models, and the role of climate in driving this seasonality was assessed via cross-correlation analysis combined with generalized linear models. Phylogenetic trees were generated to compareCOIand18Ssequences of Madagascar nycteribiid and streblid bat flies with available reference sequences from GenBank. ResultsEctoparasites corresponding to four broad taxa (mites, ticks, fleas, and bat flies) were recovered from 628 of 873E. dupreanum(71.9%) and 831 of 862R. madagascariensis(96.4%).Eidolon dupreanumwere most commonly parasitized byCyclopodia dubianycteribiids andR. madagascariensisbyEucampsipoda madagascariensisnycteribiids andMegastrebla wenzelistreblids. We observed significant seasonality in nycteribiid abundance on both bat hosts, which varied by bat sex and was positively correlated with lagged temperature, precipitation, and humidity variables. Barcoding sequences recovered for all three bat fly species grouped with previously reported sequences, confirming morphological species identification. Our study contributes the first DNA barcodes of any kind reported forM. wenzeliand the first18Sbarcodes forC. dubia. ConclusionsThis study explores the diversity and abundance of ectoparasite burdens in two Malagasy fruit bat species, highlighting the importance of seasonal ecology and the influence of climate variables on parasitism, which correlates with resource availability. Graphical Abstract 

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