Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 10, 2026
15:31
Tissue Collection of Bats for -Omics Analyses and Primary Cell Culture
Published on: October 23, 2019
Alopecia in bats from Tabasco, Mexico
Joaquín Bello-Gutiérrez1, Gerardo Suzán, Mircea G Hidalgo-Mihart
1Ecología y Conservación de Fauna Silvestre Neotropical, División Académica de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Juárez Autónoma de Tabasco, Carretera Villahermosa-Cárdenas Km. 0.5 entronque Bosques de Saloya, C. P. 86039 Villahermosa, Tabasco, México. joaquin.bello.gutierrez@gmail.com
Journal of Wildlife Diseases
|August 7, 2010
Summary
Alopecic syndrome, or hair loss, was found in wild bats in Mexico. The condition was more common in urban areas and during the dry season, possibly due to nutritional issues.
Area of Science:
- Veterinary Medicine
- Wildlife Ecology
- Mammalogy
Background:
- Alopecic syndrome, characterized by hair loss, has been observed in various animal species.
- Sylvatic bats, particularly frugivorous species, are important components of urban and periurban ecosystems.
- Understanding health issues in bat populations is crucial for ecological monitoring.
Purpose of the Study:
- To report the occurrence and prevalence of alopecic syndrome in frugivorous bats in Villahermosa, Tabasco, Mexico.
- To investigate potential seasonal and spatial patterns of the syndrome.
- To explore possible etiological factors for alopecia in bats.
Main Methods:
- Field surveys were conducted in urban and periurban areas of Villahermosa from 2007 to 2008.
- Bats were captured, and the presence and extent of alopecia were recorded.
- Histopathological examinations were performed on affected individuals to rule out infectious causes.
Main Results:
- The overall prevalence of alopecic syndrome was 5.25% across four frugivorous bat species.
- A higher prevalence was observed in Artibeus lituratus and Artibeus jamaicensis.
- Alopecia was more frequent during the dry season and in urban areas, with no infectious agents identified.
Conclusions:
- The study identifies alopecic syndrome in wild frugivorous bats, with higher prevalence in urban settings and during the dry season.
- Nutritional or endocrinal deficiencies are suspected causes, potentially linked to anthropogenic activities.
- Further research is needed to determine the exact etiology and population-level impacts of this syndrome.
Related Concept Videos
00:53Migration
Migration is long-range, seasonal movement from one region or habitat to another. This common strategy, carried out by many different organisms around the world, is an adaptive response that typically corresponds to changes in an organism’s environment, like resource availability or climate. Migrations can involve huge groups of thousands of animals as well as single individuals traveling alone and can range from thousands of kilometers to just a few hundred meters.
01:54Convergent Evolution
Evolution shapes the features of organisms over time, ensuring that they are suited for the environments in which they live. Sometimes, selection pressure leads to the rise of similar but unrelated adaptations in organisms with no recent common ancestors, a process known as convergent evolution.The structures that arise from convergent evolution are called analogous structures. They are similar in function even if they are dissimilar in structure. Further, structures can be analogous while also...
01:22American Trypanosomiasis
Chagas disease, or American trypanosomiasis, is a vector-borne parasitic infection caused by Trypanosoma cruzi, a flagellated protozoan (kinetoplastid) of the family Trypanosomatidae. The disease is endemic in Latin America, although cases are increasingly reported worldwide due to human migration. Transmission most commonly occurs when feces of infected triatomine bugs contaminate bite wounds or mucosal surfaces; additional routes include congenital, transfusional, transplant-related, and oral...
01:28Toxoplasmosis
Toxoplasmosis, a zoonotic disease caused by the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii, poses significant public health challenges globally due to its high seroprevalence and varied clinical manifestations. As an obligate intracellular parasite, T. gondii can infect all warm-blooded vertebrates, but felids are its only definitive hosts, shedding unsporulated oocysts into the environment. Humans typically acquire the infection through ingestion of tissue cysts in undercooked meat or oocysts from...
01:28Rabies
Rabies is a lethal zoonotic disease caused by a single-stranded, negative-sense RNA virus of the Lyssavirus genus, within the family Rhabdoviridae. Its primary mode of transmission to humans is through bites or saliva-contaminated scratches from infected mammals such as dogs, bats, raccoons, or foxes. Transmission can also occur if infectious saliva contacts abraded skin or intact mucous membranes, including the conjunctiva.Viral Entry and Early ReplicationOnce introduced at the bite or scratch...
01:30Leishmaniasis
Leishmaniasis is a protozoal disease caused by species of the genus Leishmania and transmitted through the bite of infected female sandflies. The parasite exists in two principal morphological forms during its life cycle. A sandfly acquires intracellular amastigotes from an infected reservoir host, such as a dog. Within the sandfly, these forms differentiate into motile, flagellated promastigotes. During a subsequent blood meal, promastigotes are injected into the human host, where they...