Zoonotic and Environmental Sources of Infant Enteric Pathogen Infections Identified with Longitudinal Sampling

Area of Science:

• Environmental microbiology
• Zoonotic disease epidemiology
• Pediatric infectious diseases

Background:

• Zoonotic enteric pathogens pose significant risks to young children, particularly in close-contact domestic settings.
• Understanding animal-to-child pathogen transmission is crucial for public health interventions in pastoralist communities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the longitudinal exposure risk and transmission dynamics of enteric pathogens between domestic animals and children under two years old.
• To identify key transmission routes and environmental reservoirs for enteric pathogens in rural Kenyan households.

Main Methods:

• Longitudinal monitoring of 33 enteric pathogens in child stool, animal feces, and household environments (soil, hands).
• Statistical analysis, including regression modeling, to assess pathogen detection correlations and transmission pathways.
• Study conducted in pastoralist communities in rural Northern Kenya with 28,743 pathogen-sample observations.

Main Results:

• Children were frequently infected with enteric pathogens by 3 months of age, with increasing burden over time.
• 85% of enteric pathogens found in children were also present in animal feces, indicating significant animal-to-child overlap.
• Pathogen detection in household soil and on child hands preceded new infections in children, highlighting environmental and hygiene-related transmission.

Conclusions:

• Domestic animals are a significant source of early-life enteric pathogen exposure for children in these settings.
• Household soil and child hand contamination serve as critical intermediaries in animal-to-child pathogen transmission.
• Enhanced child hand hygiene practices show potential for substantially mitigating zoonotic enteric pathogen transmission.