Neglected rodent-borne zoonoses in the African continent and Madagascar, the case of Angiostrongylus cantonensis and Trichinella spp.

Rodents are cosmopolitan micromammals inhabiting a vast variety of ecosystems worldwide, also acting as relevant reservoirs of many zoonotic pathogens. This study aimed to review the knowledge about zoonotic A. cantonensis and Trichinella spp. in synanthropic rodents from the African continent and Madagascar. Our results revealed a quantitatively limited (n = 17) and geographically restricted (9 countries) publications evaluating the epidemiology of A. cantonensis and Trichinella spp. A total of five genera and nine rodent species were reported in the reviewed publications. Although genus Rattus was present in many of the selected articles and harboured the highest pathogen prevalence (3.2-100% for A. cantonensis and 12.2-13.3% for Trichinella spp.), our findings suggest that minor rodents (e.g., Arvichanthis spp. and Mastomys spp.) could act as local reservoirs of these zoonoses in Africa. The reviewed publications also evidenced a limited use of sensitive methodological procedures to evaluate pathogen circulation, so the promotion of artificial digestion for the isolation of Trichinella spp. larvae, and molecular-based assays to detect and characterise both A. cantonensis and Trichinella spp. are recommended. Our findings suggest that promoting rodent-based surveillance programs in African countries and implementing control strategies on synanthropic rodents could positively reduce the human exposure to A. cantonensis and Trichinella spp. Given global interconnectedness and the effective spread of pathogens across boundaries, cooperation between African health authorities and the international community is encouraged to develop epidemiological surveys in Africa in search of global health.