HOUSTON — Some mosquitoes buzzing around parts of Australia could be carrying dangerous flesh-eating bacteria from possums to humans.
It’s not just humans who can get the disease. In Australia, native possums, including the common ringtail (Pseudocheirus peregrinus), can also develop ulcers and shed the bacteria in their feces. It is believed that mosquitoes interacting with infected possums may play a role in transmitting the bacteria to humans.
Understanding which animals may harbor the bacteria and how they come into contact with humans could help in controlling the disease. However, until now, a connection between possums, mosquitoes, and humans had not been established.
Recent surveys of mosquitoes in southeastern Australia have finally provided that connection. Analysis of captured mosquitoes revealed that a small number of these insects had recently fed on both possums and humans, as reported by molecular microbiologist Timothy Stinear at the ASM Microbe 2023 meeting on June 18.
2023-07-03 08:00:00
Original from www.sciencenews.org