Called “Viral circulation and sharing in sympatric bat and rodent species living at the interface with humans and potentials risks of zoonotic spillover in southern Africa” (VICTORIA), the innovative project is funded by the French National Research Agency (ANR).

To be implemented in South Africa and Zimbabwe, the initiative aims to better understand cross-species viral transmission and risks of emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) in the southern African region by exploring the circulation of three families of viruses within, but also between bats and rodents, two orders of small mammals known to play an important role in disease emergence, and zoonotic spillover in surrounding communities.

Project leads are Dr Florian Liégeois (project coordinator) Researcher, IRD, Dr Helene De Nys, Researcher, CIRAD, Prof Gift Matope, Professor and Dean, University of Zimbabwe  Faculty of Veterinary Sciences,  Dr Elizabeth Gori, Researcher and Head of biomolecular platform, University of Zimbabwe, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, Prof Billy Mukamuri,  Lecturer and Researcher, University of Zimbabwe, Centre for Applied Social Sciences,  Joconiah Chirenda, Clinical Deputy Dean, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Zimbabwe, Prof Wanda Markotter, Professor and director of Centre for Viral Zoonoses, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, South Africa.

The project hypothesizes that viruses which could lead to EIDs naturally circulate within and between bat and rodent communities in Southern Africa, that viral cross-species transmissions between bats and rodents sharing the same ecological environment are more likely from bats to rodent, and that human populations living in close contact with these animals are exposed to these potential pathogens.

To achieve its objectives, the project has chosen as models three families of RNA viruses involved in interspecies transmission events from animals to humans with a major impact on human health. These viruses belong to the Astroviridae, Coronaviridae and Paramyxoviridae families. They are easily detectable in animal excrement and their prevalence is important in bats and rodents. The project advances the One Health concept, which recognises the interconnection between people, animals, plants, and their shared environment. COVID-19 and its origins as a zoonotic pathogen is a particularly pertinent example. But One Health concerns many of the other major threats of today, such as climate change and disease emergence, anti-microbial resistance, ecosystem destruction with loss of biodiversity and the fragility of food and feed systems. The specific objectives will be to investigate communities of bat and rodent species living in sympatry as well as human populations living at a close interface to:

• Characterize diversity and prevalence of potentially zoonotic Corona-, Astro- and Paramyxoviruses in bat and rodent species sharing the same habitat,
•  Investigate viral sharing and transmission dynamics between these sympatric bats and rodents, and
• assess exposure of humans, and risks of spillover

VICTORIA addresses the issue of EID risks related to small mammals in Southern Africa, a region that remains little investigated so far regarding this issue. Most importantly, to have a comprehensive understanding of EID, the project is based on an innovative strategy of multispecies investigation which focuses on viral circulation and sharing within and between two small mammal orders recognized to be of main importance for EID, but also on the link with human populations.

The project will cover four geographical locations in the region representative of different ecological systems and types of contacts with human populations and will be investigated longitudinally over two years. Preliminary viral studies have already been conducted at these sites.  The project will operate in two study sites in South Africa and two in Zimbabwe,

For more information, contact helene.de_nys@cirad.fr, florian.liegeois@ird.fr