{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,22]],"date-time":"2026-09-22T13:08:46Z","timestamp":1790082526619,"version":"4.0.1"},"reference-count":53,"publisher":"American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene","issue":"6","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2022,6,15]],"date-time":"2022-06-15T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1655251200000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2022,6,15]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>ABSTRACT.<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>Plague, a zoonotic disease caused by the bacterium <jats:italic>Yersinia pestis<\/jats:italic>, remains a major public health threat in Madagascar. To better understand the risk of transmission to humans and to guide targeted plague prevention and control measures, a survey of <jats:italic>Y. pestis<\/jats:italic> infection and exposure in mammals and their fleas was implemented. Small mammals were captured in five districts of Madagascar ranging in levels of plague endemicity, as measured by notified cases, from none to active foci. Blood and spleen samples and fleas were collected from small mammals for the detection of anti\u2013<jats:italic>Y. pestis<\/jats:italic> F1 antibodies by ELISA, F1 antigens by rapid diagnostic tests, and <jats:italic>pla<\/jats:italic>, <jats:italic>caf1<\/jats:italic>, and <jats:italic>inv<\/jats:italic> genes by polymerase chain reaction. Some rodent fleas were kept alive and reared in the insectary to assess susceptibility to insecticides. Blood was also collected from 15 dogs and tested for anti-F1 antibodies. A total of 557 spleens, 484 sera, and 1,539 fleas were collected from 557 rodents and shrews. Nineteen (3.4%) spleens were positive for F1 antigen, most from Toamasina (<jats:italic>N<\/jats:italic> = 13), a historical plague focus. One dog was also found seropositive in Toamasina. Twenty-two (4.5%) serologic specimens from small mammals were positive for anti-F1 antibodies. The flea index was highest in the city of Antananarivo (8.8). No flea was positive for <jats:italic>Y. pestis<\/jats:italic> DNA. Flea populations exhibited resistance to various insecticides weakening the efficacy of vector control. This study highlights the potential use of animal-based surveillance to identify the risk of plague transmission in endemic and nonendemic foci for targeted prevention and control.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.4269\/ajtmh.21-0974","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2022,4,18]],"date-time":"2022-04-18T12:27:26Z","timestamp":1650284846000},"page":"1601-1609","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":21,"title":["Tracking of Mammals and Their Fleas for Plague Surveillance in Madagascar, 2018\u20132019"],"prefix":"10.4269","volume":"106","author":[{"given":"Soanandrasana","family":"Rahelinirina","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Plague Unit, Institut Pasteur de Madagascar, Antananarivo, Madagascar;"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mireille","family":"Harimalala","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medical Entomology Unit, Institut Pasteur de Madagascar, Antananarivo, 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