Potential Pathogens Reported in Species of the Family Viverridae and Their Implications for Human and Animal Health

Wicker, L. V.; Canfield, P. J.; Higgins, D. P.

While the list of known organisms for viverrids will grow as future work incorporates improved methodology and advanced molecular techniques, this review provides an important baseline inventory of organisms reported for species from the family Viverridae. A number of these have clear and serious implications for viverrid health, and as such, this information facilitates sensible health management of both wild and captive viverrids, and provides a knowledge base from which future research, surveillance programmes and disease outbreak investigations can be developed. As the vast majority of organisms listed here are also capable of infecting a wide range of hosts, including humans, many may also pose a risk to public health. This is of concern given the anthropogenic factors, including trade of viverrids for human consumption, keeping of viverrids in captivity, and land use changes which bring people and other animals into closer contact with the Viverridae than would naturally occur, facilitating transmission and spillover of organisms within and between these groups.