Volume 24, Number 6—June 2018
Research
Widespread Treponema pallidum Infection in Nonhuman Primates, Tanzania
Table
Test results of Treponema pallidum infection in samples of free-ranging nonhuman primate species, Tanzania*
Species |
No. (%) |
Total/seropositive/skin lesion/PCR positive† |
||||||
Positive |
Negative |
|||||||
Total |
Male |
Female |
Total |
Male |
Female |
|||
Olive baboon (Papio anubis) | 137 (47.4) | 86 | 34/34/12/12 | 52/51/31/30‡ | 51 | 29/0/1‡/NA | 22/0/1‡/NA | |
Yellow baboon (Papio cynocephalus) | 75 (26.0) | 33 | 17/17/2/2 | 16/16/5/5 | 42 | 27/0/1§/NA | 15/0/0/NA | |
Vervet monkey (Chlorocebus pygerythrus) | 45 (15.6) | 35 | 21/21/10/8‡ | 14/14/1/1 | 10 | 7/0/0/NA | 3/0/0/NA | |
Blue monkey (Cercopithecus mitis) | 15 (5.2) | 2 | 1/0/1/1 | 1/1/0/0 | 13 | 8/0/0/NA | 5/0/0/NA | |
Red-tailed monkey (Cercopithecus ascanius) | 2 (0.7) | 0 | NA | NA | 2 | 2/0/0/NA | NA | |
Zanzibar red colobus (Piliocolobus kirkii) | 10 (3.5) | 0 | NA | NA | 10 | 4/0/0/NA | 6/0/0/NA | |
Udzungwa red colobus (Piliocolobus gordonorum) | 3 (1.0) | 0 | NA | NA | 3 | 2/0/0/NA | 1/0/0/NA | |
Ugandan red colobus (Piliocolobus tephrosceles) |
2 (0.7) |
0 |
0/0/0/0 |
0/0/0/0 |
2 |
2/0/0/NA |
NA |
|
Total | 289 (100.0) | 156 | 73 | 83 | 133 | 81 | 52 |
*Results are based on the consensus of detected T. pallidum antibodies (ESPLINE TP) and PCR results of 3 independent gene targets (polA, tp47, and TP_0619). NA, not applicable.
†PCR was conducted only on animals with skin lesions.
‡No skin sample was available for some positive animals.
§Skin lesion at the genitalia most likely from fight; no tissue sample available.
1Deceased.