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Associations Between Mycobacterium ulcerans and Aquatic Plant Communities of West Africa: Implications for Buruli Ulcer Disease

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Abstract

Numerous studies have associated Buruli ulcer (BU) disease with disturbed aquatic habitats; however, the natural reservoir, distribution, and transmission of the pathogen, Mycobacterium ulcerans, remain unknown. To better understand the role of aquatic plants in the ecology of this disease, a large-scale survey was conducted in waterbodies of variable flow throughout three regions of Ghana, Africa. Our objectives were to characterize plant communities and identify potential relationships with M. ulcerans and other mycolactone-producing mycobacteria (MPM). Waterbodies with M. ulcerans had significantly different aquatic plant communities, with submerged terrestrial plants identified as indicators of M. ulcerans presence. Mycobacterium ulcerans and MPM were detected on 14 plant taxa in emergent zones from both lotic and lentic waterbodies in endemic regions; however, M. ulcerans was not detected in the non-endemic Volta region. These findings support the hypothesis that plants provide substrate for M. ulcerans colonization and could act as potential indicators for disease risk. These findings also suggest that M. ulcerans is a widespread environmental bacteria species, but that it is absent or reduced in regions of low disease incidence. A better understanding is needed regarding the mechanistic associations among aquatic plants and M. ulcerans for identifying the mode of transmission of BU disease.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank F. Akpabey for assistance with plant identifications; C. Yeboah, D. DeSouza, R. Kolar, and J. Schmitz for field support with site selection and sample collections; D. Beachboard for assistance with molecular analysis; and Lindsay Campbell for the site map. We would also like to thank E. Ampadu and K. Asiedu for continued support of our research activities in Ghana. This research was funded by the Fogarty International Center, through the National Institute of Health/National Science Foundation Ecology of Infectious Diseases Program, Grant Award 1 R01 TW007550. We would also like to thank the McCord Research Foundation for their additional support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, Xavier University, 3800 Victory Parkway, Cincinnati, OH, 45207-4331, USA

    Mollie McIntosh

  2. Department of Microbiology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA

    Heather Williamson & Pamela Small

  3. Department of Biology, University of Dayton, Dayton, OH, 45469, USA

    M. Eric Benbow

  4. Department of Entomology, Michigan State University East, Lansing, MI, 48824, USA

    Ryan Kimbirauskas & Richard Merritt

  5. Parasitology Department, Noguchi Memorial Institute of Medical Research, Legon, Ghana

    Charles Quaye & Daniel Boakye

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  1. Mollie McIntosh
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  2. Heather Williamson
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  3. M. Eric Benbow
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  4. Ryan Kimbirauskas
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  5. Charles Quaye
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  6. Daniel Boakye
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  8. Richard Merritt
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Correspondence to Mollie McIntosh.

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Mollie McIntosh and Heather Williamson contributed equally to this manuscript.

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McIntosh, M., Williamson, H., Benbow, M.E. et al. Associations Between Mycobacterium ulcerans and Aquatic Plant Communities of West Africa: Implications for Buruli Ulcer Disease. EcoHealth 11, 184–196 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10393-013-0898-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10393-013-0898-3

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