Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 16, 2025
09:09
Protocol for Assessing the Relative Effects of Environment and Genetics on Antler and Body Growth for a Long-lived Cervid
Published on: August 8, 2017
7.5K
Disease Risks for Restoring Endangered Sahelo-Saharan Antelope: A Literature Review
Lauren Ellis1,2, Jennifer H Yu3,4,5, Katherine Mertes6
1Global Health Program, Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, Washington, DC, USA.
Ecohealth
|July 9, 2025
Summary
Sahelo-Saharan antelope face extinction risks, with conservation efforts hampered by infectious diseases. A review found 159 agents, including zoonotic and vector-borne threats, impacting antelope, livestock, and human health.
Area of Science:
- Veterinary Medicine
- Conservation Biology
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Sahelo-Saharan antelope species are critically endangered, necessitating conservation through reintroduction and population reinforcement.
- Disease outbreaks pose significant threats to translocated antelope populations, with wildlife-livestock interfaces implicated in mortalities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify infectious diseases and parasites posing risks to Sahelo-Saharan antelope in conservation areas.
- To assess the potential for zoonotic and vector-borne disease transmission at wildlife-livestock interfaces.
Main Methods:
- A comprehensive literature review of 202 English and French publications (2000-2020).
- Analysis of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) - World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS) database.
- Focus on countries with active antelope conservation translocations: Chad, Morocco, Senegal, and Tunisia.
Main Results:
- 159 distinct infectious agents or parasites were reported.
- Key viral threats include bluetongue virus, Rift Valley fever virus, and small ruminant morbillivirus.
- Common bacterial/protozoal agents (Anaplasma spp., Theileria spp., Toxoplasma spp.) and ticks (Hyalomma, Rhipicephalus) were identified. 43% of agents were potentially zoonotic, 25% vector-borne, and 30 were WOAH-listed.
Conclusions:
- A significant number of infectious agents pose health risks to Sahelo-Saharan antelope, livestock, and human communities in the region.
- Findings underscore the need for targeted research into the complex epidemiology of diseases shared between wildlife and livestock.
- Understanding these interspecies disease dynamics is crucial for effective conservation and public health strategies.
Related Concept Videos
01:50Threats to Biodiversity
22.9K
There have been five major extinction events throughout geological history, resulting in the elimination of biodiversity, followed by a rebound of species that adapted to the new conditions. In the current geological epoch, the Holocene, there is a sixth extinction event in progress. This mass extinction has been attributed to human activities and is thus provisionally called the Anthropocene. In 2019 the human population reached 7.7 billion people and is projected to comprise 10 billion by...
22.9K
02:04Conservation of Small Populations
13.7K
Small population sizes put a species at extreme risk of extinction due to a lack of variation, and a consequent decrease in adaptability. This weakens the chances of survival under pressures such as climate change, competition from other species, or new diseases. Large populations are more likely to survive pressures such as these, as such populations are more likely to harbor individuals that have genetic variants that are adaptive under new stresses. Small populations are much less...
13.7K
02:07Conservation of Declining Populations
9.8K
Conservation of declining population focuses on ways of detecting, diagnosing, and halting a population decline. The approach uses methods to prevent populations from going extinct.
9.8K
01:38Limits to Natural Selection
32.3K
Organisms that are well-adapted to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce. However, natural selection does not lead to perfectly adapted organisms. Several factors constrain natural selection.
32.3K
00:53Migration
8.1K
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.
8.1K
01:29Pulmonary Tuberculosis I
331
Tuberculosis, often called TB, is a contagious illness primarily caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It mainly affects the lung parenchyma but can also impact other body parts.
Causative Organism
The primary infectious agent causing tuberculosis is Mycobacterium tuberculosis, a slow-growing, acid-fast, aerobic rod that exhibits sensitivity to heat and ultraviolet light. Instances of Mycobacterium bovis and Mycobacterium avium contributing to the development of TB infection are rare.
Mode of...
Causative Organism
The primary infectious agent causing tuberculosis is Mycobacterium tuberculosis, a slow-growing, acid-fast, aerobic rod that exhibits sensitivity to heat and ultraviolet light. Instances of Mycobacterium bovis and Mycobacterium avium contributing to the development of TB infection are rare.
Mode of...
331