It is estimated that free-roaming dogs comprise on average 75% of dog populations. Interactions between free-roaming dogs and wildlife occur across the globe but little is known about these interactions in the Lowveld region of South Africa, where wildlife areas are fenced off from surrounding communities. Even with extensive fences dogs are still entering the reserves. The study site, a private reserve in eastern Mpumalanga Province on the western boundary of the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Park, has a high density of human settlements on its boundary. These communities own dogs, many of which are free-roaming. Between January 2009 and March 2014, 170 stray dogs were destroyed inside the reserve and 65.3% of the samples returned a positive result for rabies. Dogs are not limited to the reserve edges and have been documented several kilometres into the reserve. Eleven geographical factors were used in the spatial analysis: (i) camps or lodges in the reserve, (ii) fence line of the reserve, (iii) water points within the reserve, both natural and man-made (excluding rivers but including pans, dams and waterholes which hold water for most of the year), (iv) access roads from gates to camps and lodges, (v) access gates into the reserve, (vi) pickets (field ranger accommodation) and general staff accommodation, (vii) rivers in stream order from 1 to 6, (viii) vulnerable points for erosion along the fence line, and (ix) villages bordering the reserve. GPS locations of dogs shot were used to obtain nearest distance to each factor. Generalized linear models (GLM) were then used to analyse the spatial data of distance of dogs shot to the nearest factor. Dogs were significantly more likely to be shot further away from pickets and closer to minor rivers. There was a significant interaction between these two factors (p < 0.0001). Dogs that were shot further from villages (odds ratio 1.42, 95% confidence intervals 1.18 1.71, p = 0.0002) and closer to water (odds ratio 0.41, 95% confidence intervals 0.21 0.81, p = 0.009) were more likely to test positive for rabies. A univariate GLM, with distance to fence as the only explanatory variable, showed a significant association between this and rabies test result: for every 1 km further away from the fence the odds of a dog testing rabies positive increases by 1.68 (95% confidence intervals 1.20 2.36, p = 0.002). However the fence is likely not to be the influencing factor but rather other factors close to the fence. To remove the effect of the fence an analysis of the subset of dogs found further than 200m into the reserve found a positive association between distance from a village and a positive rabies test result (odds ratio 1.58, 95% confidence intervals 1.18-2.32, p = 0.007). Temporal analysis of the data shows a higher average monthly number of dogs shot during the wet season (Oct-Mar) as well as a higher variance although the cycle is not strictly seasonal. An upgrade of the reserve fence for security reasons coincided with a decrease in number of dogs destroyed in the reserve in 2012-1014. Home range analysis of most susceptible predators was collected from daily sightings data and overlaid with rabies hotspots, which gives management an indication of the need to vaccinate predators with home ranges in close proximity to the fence. The spatial results gives management an indication to increase efforts to destroy free-roaming domestic dogs further into the reserve as the likelihood of a positive rabies result is greater. Ultimately efforts should be focused outside the reserve in the communities to eradicate rabies from the host (domestic dogs) before there is a significant transfer of rabies to wildlife. / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2015. / tm2016 / Veterinary Tropical Diseases / MSc

Q fever is a zoonotic disease caused by Coxiella burnetii which infects humans and a wide range of hosts including birds, mammals, ticks, fish and reptiles. Rift Valley fever (RVF) virus (RVFV) is a mosquito-borne pathogen of livestock, wildlife and humans and is found throughout much of sub-Saharan Africa, occasionally causing large scale abortions and mortality. There is little detailed knowledge of the distribution and level of occurrence of these two pathogens in South Africa. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of antibodies against C. burnetii and RVFV in goats in Moretele municipality, and to identify factors associated with seropositivity to the two zoonotic pathogens. Multi-stage random sampling was conducted and sera were collected from 216 goats in 32 goat herds. A questionnaire was completed for each participating goat owner to collect information on potential animal, management and environmental risk factors, as well as potential animal health consequences of the two infections. Rift Valley fever virus antibody testing was done by ID Screen® Rift Valley Fever Competition ELISA test kit (IDVet, Grabels, France) and C. burnetii antibody testing was done by LSIVETTM Ruminant Q Fever - Serum/Milk ELISA test kit (Life Technologies, Carlsbad, California, USA) with confirmation using a virus neutralisation test (VNT). 32/216 goats tested positive for C. burnetii antibodies and the overall seroprevalence, adjusted for clustering and sampling weights was 16% (95% CI: 10.6-23.5%). The intraclass correlation co-efficient (ICC) was 0.06, indicating low to moderate clustering within herds. Multiple logistic regression revealed age as the only factor that was significantly associated with seropositivity to C. burnetii, with a higher seroprevalence in animals ≥2 years of age (26%) than in animals ≤6 months of age (6%) (odds ratio (OR) = 6.6; 95% CI: 1.6-26.7; P = 0.010). Regarding potential consequences of infection, females with a history of abortion were more likely to be seropositive (OR = 4.6; 95% CI: 1.1-20.2; P = 0.043). Goats in herds that reported >2 abortions in the 12 months prior to sampling tended to have a higher odds of seropositivity than animals in herds with no reported abortions (OR = 2.5; 95% CI: 0.9-6.8; P = 0.071). 1/216 goats tested ELISA-positive for RVF virus antibodies and 3 samples were “doubtful”; however, they all tested VNT-negative. The estimated seroprevalence of RVFV was therefore 0% (95% CI: 0.0-1.4%). In this study, the herd seroprevalence of C. burnetii was high at 51% and there was possibility that C. burnetii is a likely cause of abortions in goats in Moretele municipality of South Africa. Seropositivity to RVFV could not be demonstrated in this study; but if present, the virus is likely to be circulating at very low levels. / Dissertation (MMedVet)--University of Pretoria, 2019. / Production Animal Studies / MMedVet / Unrestricted

The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence and epidemiological significance of tuberculosis (TB) in bovine and humans living at a wildlife/livestock/human interface, as well as the risk factors associated with TB transmission at that interface. The Mnisi community was chosen as it is located at the western border of the Kruger National park (KNP) and enables research at the wildlife/livestock/human interface. The first objective of the study entailed investigating the presence of bovine tuberculosis (BTB) in 10% of Mnisi?s livestock, using the comparative intradermal skin test. A low individual prevalence of 0.33 % (95% CI.0.14 ? -0.79) was detected. Further investigations into the causative agent in livestock, using genotyping techniques identified the KNP parental strain, M. bovis KNP VNTR -1 strain.1 Supporting records from the provisional Mpumalanga Veterinary Services and the physical location of dip-tanks where BTB was detected, it was established the infection was a result of spillback infection from wildlife in the neighbouring KNP. The epidemiological significance of BTB in human TB was investigated through the isolation and genetic characterisation of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) strain population in the Mnisi community. Mycobacterium bovis was not detected in the human population. However, a high genetic diversity of M. tuberculosis was observed among the 13 isolates obtained.The M. tuberculosis isolates were identified as the following eight families: T; Beijing; LAM 11_ZWE; EAI5; MANU1; X1; X2; and S families. The predominant lineage was as T family, sub-lineage ST53. Based on the high diversity (8 clusters/13isolates) and the predominance of the T family, it was concluded that the TB population structure within the Mnisi community was largely impacted by human migration from urban towns and neighbouring Mozambique. A questionnaire was administered to investigate BTB transmission risk factors at the livestock/human interface. It was established that there were low risk levels of BTB transmission at the human/livestock interface mainly based on the fact that the majority of the households in the community obtained pasteurised milk commercially, and although undercooked/raw meat and organs were preferred, the majority of respondents reported that they discarded the meat if changes in meat quality were observed. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2016. / tm2016 / Veterinary Tropical Diseases / PhD

There is a dearth of information pertaining to the occurrence and prevalence of filarial helminth infections of dogs and cats in several provinces in South Africa. In this context the dissertation is a pilot survey that was conducted to determine the occurrence and prevalence of filarial helminth infections of dogs in the greater Mahikeng Local Municipality of North West province. The incentive for the choice of this location in the North West province was a reported high overall prevalence of 18 % of canine filariosis in the town of Gaborone in neighbouring Botswana. EDTA blood samples were collected from 100 live dogs between the ages of 1-11 years (53 males and 47 females). Only dogs that had not received treatment with macrocyclic lactone actives during the previous 12 months were included in the survey. A total of 13 different dog breeds were involved in the survey and the crossbreed animals were the most abundant (59 %) followed by the Boerboel (9 %). Blood samples were screened for the presence of microfilariae by means of the membrane filtration technique. There was no evidence of filarial infections in the 100 dogs sampled. / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2018. / Veterinary Tropical Diseases / MSc / Unrestricted

Sclerosteosis is a severe autosomal recessive sclerosing skeletal dysplasia with no available treatment. It is characterised by excessive bone formation and is caused by mutations in the SOST gene that lead to loss of expression of sclerostin, a protein that acts as a negative regulator of bone formation by binding to low-density lipoprotein receptor-related proteins 5 and 6 (LRP5/6) Wnt co-receptors to inhibit the canonical Wnt/β-catenin signalling pathway. This study investigated the effectiveness of sclerostin replacement therapy in a mouse model of sclerosteosis. Recombinant wild type mouse sclerostin (mScl) and two novel mScl fusion proteins containing a C-terminal human immunoglobulin G1 (IgG1) antibody fraction crystallisable (mScl hFc), or C-terminal human Fc with a poly-aspartate motif (mScl hFc PD), to increase serum half-life and promote localisation to bone, respectively, were produced and purified using mammalian expression and standard chromatography techniques. These recombinant mScl proteins bound to LRP6 with high affinity (nM range) and completely inhibited matrix mineralisation in an in vitro bone nodule formation assay. Pharmacokinetic assessment following a single dose administered to wild type (WT) or SOST knock out (SOST-/-) mice indicated that the presence of the hFc increased protein half-life from less than 5 minutes to at least 1.5 days. The effect of a 6-week treatment with these proteins on the skeletal phenotype of young SOST-/- mice revealed that mScl hFc PD treatment resulted in a modest but significant reduction in trabecular bone volume compared with the vehicle control. There was no marked effect on cortical bone indices assessed by μCT, whole body areal bone mineral density by DXA, or terminal levels of the bone formation marker procollagen type 1 N-terminal propeptide (P1NP) in any of the SOST-/- or WT treatment groups, possibly due to insufficient exposure. Administration of recombinant mScl hFc PD protein partially corrected the high bone mass phenotype of the SOST-/- mouse, suggesting that bone-targeting of sclerostin engineered to improve half-life was able to negatively regulate bone formation in the SOST-/- mouse model of sclerosteosis. However, the modest efficacy indicates that sclerostin replacement may not be an optimal strategy to mitigate excessive bone formation in sclerosteosis, hence alternative approaches should be explored. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2020. / UCB Pharma (Slough, UK) / National Research Foundation (NRF) / University of Pretoria (Pretoria, South Africa) / Paraclinical Sciences / PhD / Unrestricted

Rationale: Viral diseases are important in the African context as they cause significant clinical disease in both wild and domestic animals, as well as in humans. Viral diseases make up a large proportion of emerging infectious diseases. The management and prevention of these diseases have proven to be challenging due to the large population of reservoir hosts consisting of African wildlife. There is no comprehensive publication investigating viruses in African ungulates. Hence, this research study will provide comprehensive analyses to add to the current global knowledge base and provide guidance about areas where there is little information. Aim of the study: Provide a scoping review of viral diseases, which occur in free-ranging African ungulates and identify knowledge gaps with regards to these diseases. Objectives: 1. List and describe viruses diagnosed in free-ranging African ungulates 2. Identify ungulates affected by viruses 3. Describe the geographical distribution of viruses 4. Identify viruses which appear to be “under-studied” Study design: This is a scoping review of peer reviewed publications pertaining to viruses and viral diseases in African ungulates. The methodology for this scoping review was based on the guidelines set out in the PRISMA extension for scoping reviews. A search string was developed and run in three major databases, namely Scopus, Web of Science and Wildlife and Ecology Worldwide, to obtain publications relevant to the research topic. Publications were screened using predetermined inclusion and exclusion criteria to obtain a final set of publications to undergo data extraction and analysis. Results: The final set of publications consisted of 145 publications. A total of 32 viruses were identified in the publications. The range of the publication dates were from 1957 to 2018. Nine out of 32 viruses accounted for 74% of the total reports of viruses detected by antigen/antibody testing in African ungulates. African elephant polyomavirus 1 was the only virus that was solely detected in captive animals according to published literature using antigen/antibody detection. A total of 50 African ungulates were reported/diagnosed with viral infections. The four most frequently mentioned African ungulates in publications reporting on viruses or viral diseases, in descending order, were the African buffalo, blue wildebeest, impala and warthog (common and desert). Of the 52 countries on the African continent, only 18 countries (35%) had viruses diagnosed in wild ungulates reported in the literature. All the publications in this study reported on viruses or viral diseases in ungulates from only sub-Saharan Africa. Foot-and-mouth disease, African swine fever, Rift Valley fever, bluetongue and rabies were frequently reported in the literature. On the contrary, lumpy skin disease, peste des petits ruminants, African horse sickness, enzootic hemorrhagic disease, bovine viral diarrhoea, infectious bovine rhinotracheitis/infectious pustular vulvovaginitis, equine influenza, equine viral arteritis, equine viral rhinopneumonitis and classical swine fever were infrequently reported on. Conclusion: There are a variety of viruses which have been diagnosed in African ungulates and all African ungulates identified have had one or more viruses or viral diseases associated with them. The findings will be valuable to policymakers, funding bodies, researchers and other stakeholders who need an understanding of viral diseases in African ungulates. Research opportunities in this field will allow them to make informed decisions about investment in future research projects and animal health policies and protocols. It is recommended that governments and research institutions offer more funding to investigate and report viral diseases of greater clinical and zoonotic significance, such as rabies and Rift Valley fever. This is especially important in the current climate of emerging diseases and the related overflow of disease from wild to domestic animals and from animals, both wild and domestic, to humans. A further recommendation is for appropriate One Health approaches to be adopted for investigating, controlling, managing and preventing diseases (Cunningham et al., 2017). This is especially true for diseases such as African swine fever and Rift Valley fever where human actions, poor biosecurity and natural weather changes play a major role in the transmission of diseases (Cunningham et al., 2017, Penrith et al., 2019a, Swanepoel and Coetzer, 2004). Diseases which may threaten the conservation of certain wildlife species also require focused attention. In order to keep track of these diseases it may be necessary to consider adding a “wildlife” category to the OIE-listed diseases. Viral diseases, as a whole, are of great significance and require extra attention in the future as they make up a large proportion of emerging infectious diseases and can often infect multiple hosts (Bengis et al., 2004, Cleaveland et al., 2001). Hence, the viruses and viral diseases diagnosed in African ungulates are of significance, particularly at the wildlife/livestock interface and many of them have the potential of becoming emerging wildlife diseases. / Dissertation (MSc (Tropical Animal Health))--University of Pretoria, 2020. / Veterinary Tropical Diseases / MSc (Tropical Animal Health) / Restricted

Background: Uganda is one the leading countries around the world which account for 60% of the total number of maternal deaths globally. Following the unsuccessful trajectory of MDG 5, no comprehensive research was conducted to determine why targets were not achieved, and maternal health priorities were reorganized under SDG 3. However, the efficacy of this approach remains uncertain. Methods: A meta-narrative review (MNR) provided insight into maternal health trajectories within Uganda prior to and during MDG 5, and informed the development of questions for key informant interviews. Interviews were conducted with 7 key informants to explore the development and implementation of maternal health policy in relation to MDG 5 and SDG 3. Thematic coding analysis was conducted using NVivo 12, in accordance with the criteria of constructivist grounded theory, to identify recurring themes. Findings: Four major themes were identified: i) the current narrative surrounding maternal health is deterring investment in SDG 3, ii) Uganda’s fragmented health care system impedes access to maternal health care, iii) empowerment issues among women, and iv) increased collaboration efforts are needed from Uganda’s government to improve maternal health outcomes. Implications & Contributions: Uganda has failed to advance women’s rights, as the government focusses on infrastructure development to drive economic development. However, Uganda will not progress if women continue to be oppressed and die as a result of its multifaceted maternal mortality crisis. Implications for maternal health policy: MDG 5 and SDG 3 were imposed on Uganda and do not necessarily reflect its best interests or its collective needs related to improving its maternal health outcomes. Striving to achieve SDG 3 would likely further oppress women and disadvantage the country overall. Thus, Uganda’s government must increase multisector collaboration to develop realistic and sustainable goals towards improving maternal health outcomes to better counteract its maternal mortality crisis. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc) / Under the lens of intersectional theory, this study aspired to determine what lessons can be learned from Uganda’s attempt to achieve Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 5, related to maternal health, from 2000-2015, and also how these lessons will inform its transition to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 between 2016-2030. The barriers and challenges surrounding Uganda’s maternal health outcomes were also investigated, and four themes were found. This study demonstrates how various aspects of women’s social identities intersect and form the basis for much of the oppression they encounter surrounding their maternal health, with implications for policy-makers, health care workers, and women. Attainment of SDG 3 seems unlikely for Uganda, and also not in its best interests. Rather than attempting to meet globally developed targets to improve its maternal outcomes, Uganda should engage in multisector collaboration to enable realistic and sustainable progress in its quest to counteract its maternal mortality crisis.

Increased prevalence of antimicrobial resistance, treatment failure, and financial losses have been reported in dairy cattle with coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (CoNS) clinical mastitis. However, studies on CoNS are limited in South Africa. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to investigate the antimicrobial resistance patterns and biofilm formation in CoNS isolated from cow milk samples submitted to the Onderstepoort Milk Laboratory. A total of 142 confirmed CoNS isolates were used for this study. Isolates were subjected to the tissue culture plate method for biofilm formation testing and antimicrobial susceptibility testing against a panel of 11 antimicrobials using the disk diffusion method. Biofilm formation was identified in 18% of CoNS tested. Staphylococcus chromogenes (11%) had the highest proportion of biofilm formation followed by S. haemolyticus 4.0% and S. epidermidis, S. hominis, S. xylosus, and S. simulans with 1% respectively. Ninety percent (90%) of CoNS isolates were resistant to at least one antimicrobial (AMR) and 51% were multidrug-resistant (MDR). Resistance among CoNS was the highest to ampicillin (90%) and penicillin (89%), with few isolates resistant to cefoxitin and vancomycin, 9% respectively. The most common resistance patterns among the CoNS was penicillin-ampicillin (16%) and penicillin-ampicillin-erythromycin (10%). Forty-two percent (42%) of biofilm positive CoNS were MDR. At the species level, MDR was common among S. epidermis (65%), S. chromogenes (52%) and S. haemolyticus (44%). In conclusion, biofilm formation was uncommon among the MDR-CoNS isolates in this study suggesting that biofilm formation is not a major contributing factor to antimicrobial resistance in this study. In addition, most CoNS isolates in this study were _-lactams resistant. This is concerning as penicillins are used commonly by dairy farmers in treatment of mastitis in South Africa. Nonetheless, the role of antimicrobial use practice in the development of resistance in subclinical mastitis in the dairy industry should be investigated. / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2019. / Paraclinical Sciences / MSc / Unrestricted

This study is a questionnaire-based, descriptive assessment of informal livestock slaughter practices by small scale farmers in Gauteng. This study aims to assess if the practice of informal slaughter poses a potential risk to public health specifically to brucellosis exposure, a disease of high seroprevalence in Gauteng and South Africa. Informal livestock slaughter from antemortem selection to carcass dressing, butchering and product preparation were descriptively assessed for potential disease exposure and resultant public health risk. This study assessed the frequency of brucellosis testing and the occurrence of livestock abortions as a possible disease indicator. Farmers were asked on the particulars of informal slaughter to ascertain if disease exposure could occur through this practice. The study made use of a questionnaire where 109 study participants were interviewed individually. Questionnaire results were compiled in Microsoft® Excel where data was analysed through descriptive statistics to identify trends and frequency data from the results. The study found that the majority of small-scale farmers participating in the study were older individuals, the majority of whom were not earning an income. It was found that study participants would slaughter livestock informally themselves or with a family member. This would occur only once or twice a year, usually for cultural or religious purposes or for a special occasion. Livestock most commonly owned and slaughtered by small-scale farmers were cattle, carriers of Brucella abortus. Participants rarely made use of adequate protective personal protective equipment (PPE) when slaughtering informally. The use of PPE and the adequacy thereof was however found to increase in frequency with participant age group. Older individuals, elders in their communities were often given the responsibility of livestock slaughter, thus providing some risk mitigation to disease exposure during the process. High risk structures such as lymph nodes and reproductive organs were handled during slaughter, the former frequently consumed with the tripe due to lack of recognition. While some organs previously found to harbour Brucella organisms were consumed raw or only exposed to short cooking times, the majority of slaughter products were exposed to prolonged cooking times, sufficient to reduce bacterial loads, reducing risk through consumption. While many participants recognised brucellosis as a zoonotic disease, the routes of transmission were poorly recognised. Exposure to Brucella spp. through informal slaughter is likely in the current environment of high brucellosis seroprevalence, poor disease control and the unreliable disease history of animals sourced for slaughter, posing a risk to public health. Should a brucella infected animal be slaughtered informally, exposure of those performing the slaughter, dressing the carcass and those involved in food preparation is likely and may lead to brucellosis. / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2018. / Veterinary Tropical Diseases / MSc / Unrestricted

Rickettsia africae is a gram-negative bacterium which causes African tick bite fever (ATBF) in humans. ATBF is a febrile disease mainly affecting travellers to Southern Africa. This bacterium is known to be transmitted by Amblyomma hebraeum and Amblyomma variegatum ticks. In Southern Africa, the principal vector is A. hebraeum. This project was performed in a rural community in Mpumalanga province and aimed at addressing knowledge gaps of R. africae infection in A. hebraeum ticks. Infection rates in adult ticks and larvae as well as transovarial transmission efficiency of R. africae from the tick to its offspring were determined. To accomplish this, 106 adult A. hebraeum ticks were collected from cattle from Utah A and 106 from Welverdiend A. Larvae (n=1060) were collected by dragging at each of the two targeted dip tanks. Engorged female A. hebraeum ticks (n=53) were also collected from cattle from each of the two dip tanks and they were incubated in a humidity tank to oviposit and egg masses were collected from each tick. DNA was extracted from the engorged ticks and the egg masses as well as from the adult ticks and the larvae. After DNA quantification, a real-time quantitative PCR targeting Rickettsia gltA gene was performed to screen all samples for Rickettsia DNA. The gltA gene is common in all Rickettsia species. Samples positive for the gltA gene were subjected to conventional PCR targeting the ompA gene, which is specific for the Spotted Fever Group to which R. africae belongs. The samples positive for amplicons of ompA gene were sequenced and all the sequenced samples were found to be 99.98% identical to R. africae sequences from GenBank. From the sampled adult ticks, 13.43% tested positive for R. africae and 13.20% of the larvae also tested positive. The infection rate for larvae and adult ticks collected from Utah A was 15.09% and those from Welverdiend A was 11.79%. From these results, there were no notable differences in the infection rates of ticks at different stages of development. R. africae infection rates for the two study sites were found to be similar which can be an indication of even distribution of R. africae in this area. Transovarial transmission was found to be 100% in engorged female ticks collected from Utah and 71.43% in ticks from Welverdiend, which indicates a high transmission rate of the pathogen to the offspring of the vector. The presence of R. africae in A. hebraeum ticks from this area is a cause of concern since there are chances of people getting ATBF after bites by these ticks. / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2019. / Veterinary Tropical Diseases / MSc / Unrestricted