01896nas a2200217   4500000000100000008004100001653000900042653002700051653002700078653001700105100001400122700001500136700001400151700001500165700001500180700001500195245008900210856004000299300001000339520132900349       2016                            d10aqPCR10aMycobacterium ulcerans10aEnvironmental sampling10aBuruli ulcer1 aTobias NJ1 aAmmisah NA1 aAhortor E1 aWallace JR1 aAblordey A1 aStinear TP00aSnapshot fecal survey of domestic animals in rural Ghana for Mycobacterium ulcerans.  uhttps://peerj.com/articles/2065.pdf  ae20653 a<p>Identifying the source reservoirs of <em>Mycobacterium ulcerans</em> is key to understanding the mode of transmission of this pathogen and controlling the spread of Buruli ulcer (BU). In Australia, the native possum can harbor <em>M. ulcerans</em> in its gastrointestinal tract and shed high concentrations of the bacteria in its feces. To date, an analogous animal reservoir in Africa has not been identified. Here we tested the hypothesis that common domestic animals in BU endemic villages of Ghana are reservoir species analogous to the Australian possum. Using linear-transects at 10-meter intervals, we performed systematic fecal surveys across four BU endemic villages and one non-endemic village in the Asante Akim North District of Ghana. One hundred and eighty fecal specimens from a single survey event were collected and analyzed by qPCR for the <em>M. ulcerans</em> diagnostic DNA targets IS<em>2404</em> and KR-B. Positive and negative controls performed as expected but all 180 test samples were negative. This structured snapshot survey suggests that common domestic animals living in and around humans do not shed <em>M. ulcerans</em> in their feces. We conclude that, unlike the Australian native possum, domestic animals in rural Ghana are unlikely to be major reservoirs of <em>M. ulcerans.</em></p>