Researchers are using fruit bats in the Republic of the Congo to test for Ebola and other viruses to learn more about the risk of spreading the disease to humans.
life
January 25, 2023
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Fruit bats in the Republic of the Congo are being tested for zoonotic diseases, including Ebola. This is an effort to help conservationists and medical researchers better understand the risks posed by the live fruit bat trade and consumption of bat meat in the country.
Researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and Congo Medical Research Foundation collected blood samples and nose and throat swabs from about 100 flying foxes near Brazzaville, the capital of Congo, this month.
The research team sourced the bats from hunters who typically sell their catch at bushmeat markets around cities. Fruit bats carry the Ebola virus and are known to have antibodies against the disease, but so far no Ebola virus-positive bats have been found.
Multiple outbreaks of Ebola have been confirmed in western and central Africa over the past two decades, with Uganda, Gabon, the Republic of the Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo most severely affected.
Ebola is a zoonotic disease, meaning it can be transmitted from animals to a human host. The route of transmission is not yet clear, but scientists suspect that the initial outbreaks may occur after humans come into contact with infected animals such as monkeys and fruit bats.
Researchers hope the fruit bat testing program will help identify how Ebola is spreading, including whether the bushmeat trade is involved.Since 2012, WCS has tested more than 1,200 fruit bats across the Congo for potentially zoonotic pathogens.
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