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      A comparative assessment of track plates to quantify fine scale variations in the relative abundance of Norway rats in urban slums

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          Abstract

          Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus) living in urban environments are a critical public health and economic problem, particularly in urban slums where residents are at a higher risk for rat borne diseases, yet convenient methods to quantitatively assess population sizes are lacking. We evaluated track plates as a method to determine rat distribution and relative abundance in a complex urban slum environment by correlating the presence and intensity of rat-specific marks on track plates with findings from rat infestation surveys and trapping of rats to population exhaustion. To integrate the zero-inflated track plate data we developed a two-component mixture model with one binary and one censored continuous component. Track plate mark-intensity was highly correlated with signs of rodent infestation (all coefficients between 0.61 and 0.79 and all p-values < 0.05). Moreover, the mean level of pre-trapping rat-mark intensity on plates was significantly associated with the number of rats captured subsequently (Odds ratio1.38; 95% CI 1.19-1.61) and declined significantly following trapping (Odds ratio 0.86; 95% CI 0.78-0.95). Track plates provided robust proxy measurements of rat abundance and distribution and detected rat presence even when populations appeared 'trapped out'. Tracking plates are relatively easy and inexpensive methods that can be used to intensively sample settings such as urban slums, where traditional trapping or mark-recapture studies are impossible to implement, and therefore the results can inform and assess the impact of targeted urban rodent control campaigns.

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          Most cited references54

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          The Measurement of Observer Agreement for Categorical Data

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            Zero-Inflated Poisson Regression, with an Application to Defects in Manufacturing

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              Leptospira: the dawn of the molecular genetics era for an emerging zoonotic pathogen.

              Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease that has emerged as an important cause of morbidity and mortality among impoverished populations. One hundred years after the discovery of the causative spirochaetal agent, little is understood about Leptospira spp. pathogenesis, which in turn has hampered the development of new intervention strategies to address this neglected disease. However, the recent availability of complete genome sequences for Leptospira spp. and the discovery of genetic tools for their transformation have led to important insights into the biology of these pathogens and their pathogenesis. We discuss the life cycle of the bacterium, the recent advances in our understanding and the implications for the future prevention of leptospirosis.
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                Author and article information

                Journal
                Urban Ecosystems
                Urban Ecosyst
                Springer Science and Business Media LLC
                1083-8155
                1573-1642
                June 2016
                January 6 2016
                June 2016
                : 19
                : 2
                : 561-575
                Article
                10.1007/s11252-015-0519-8
                4955619
                27453682
                38d2fadf-70c1-498c-b9b7-9a0b94cb0790
                © 2016

                http://www.springer.com/tdm

                http://www.springer.com/tdm

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