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What animals are considered to be maintenance hosts to the Ebolavirus?

A few monkey and bat individuals serologically positive to EBV antigen represent the only exceptions . Today, African bats are considered by many as the best candidates for acting as maintenance hosts for EBOV. Partial vRNA was sequenced from living specimens of three different bat species in Central Africa , and antibodies against ebolavirus antigen have been detected in 9 bat species 8 frugivorous and 1 insectivorous 3, 23, .

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

What animals are considered to be maintenance hosts to the Ebolavirus?

A few monkey and bat individuals serologically positive to EBV antigen represent the only exceptions . Today, African bats are considered by many as the best candidates for acting as maintenance hosts for EBOV. Partial vRNA was sequenced from living specimens of three different bat species in Central Africa , and antibodies against ebolavirus antigen have been detected in 9 bat species 8 frugivorous and 1 insectivorous 3, 23, .

The maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in African forest ecosystems are still unknown, but indirect evidences point at the involvement of some bat species. Despite intense research, the main bat-maintenance hypothesis has not been confirmed yet. The alternative hypotheses of a non-bat maintenance host or a maintenance community including, or not, several bat and other species, deserves more investigation.

What animals are considered to be maintenance hosts to the Ebolavirus?

A few monkey and bat individuals serologically positive to EBV antigen represent the only exceptions . Today, African bats are considered by many as the best candidates for acting as maintenance hosts for EBOV. Partial vRNA was sequenced from living specimens of three different bat species in Central Africa , and antibodies against ebolavirus antigen have been detected in 9 bat species 8 frugivorous and 1 insectivorous 3, 23, .

As warned above, the EBOV multi-host maintenance system could include a complex network of interacting bat species Figure 1A2 and to proceed by elimination of alternative hypotheses may be a way to zoom-in on the maintenance community. The hypothesis of human playing a role in ebolavirus maintenance has not been addressed here, even if persistence of EBOV in previously infected humans has been recently proven . This scenario would be more indicating of a change in the evolutionary trajectory of the pathogen as moving from Step 4 to 5 in Figure 1 of Wolfe et al.

What animals are considered to be maintenance hosts to the Ebolavirus?

A few monkey and bat individuals serologically positive to EBV antigen represent the only exceptions . Today, African bats are considered by many as the best candidates for acting as maintenance hosts for EBOV. Partial vRNA was sequenced from living specimens of three different bat species in Central Africa , and antibodies against ebolavirus antigen have been detected in 9 bat species 8 frugivorous and 1 insectivorous 3, 23, .

B Alternate non-bat maintenance host hypothesis: if it exists, it is known that it can transmit ebolaviruses to some bat species. In this article, we review the potential hosts and associated transmission pathways that link this host to bat species red arrow . C The maintenance community hypothesis, in which several hosts are needed to maintain ebolaviruses ellipses represent different scenarios of community maintenance .

What animals are considered to be maintenance hosts to the Ebolavirus?

A few monkey and bat individuals serologically positive to EBV antigen represent the only exceptions . Today, African bats are considered by many as the best candidates for acting as maintenance hosts for EBOV. Partial vRNA was sequenced from living specimens of three different bat species in Central Africa , and antibodies against ebolavirus antigen have been detected in 9 bat species 8 frugivorous and 1 insectivorous 3, 23, .

This does not mean that they can automatically inform on "what maintains ebolaviruses". When looking for the maintenance host, investigations should also target the same and other alternative hosts during inter-outbreak periods with ecologically driven hypotheses. This is what is currently done for bats following the main maintenance hypothesis e.g., , but not often for alternative hosts.

What animals are considered to be maintenance hosts to the Ebolavirus?

A few monkey and bat individuals serologically positive to EBV antigen represent the only exceptions . Today, African bats are considered by many as the best candidates for acting as maintenance hosts for EBOV. Partial vRNA was sequenced from living specimens of three different bat species in Central Africa , and antibodies against ebolavirus antigen have been detected in 9 bat species 8 frugivorous and 1 insectivorous 3, 23, .

It would be tedious to quantitatively estimate probabilities in the case of ebolavirus maintenance given the current lack of information, but trying to define the components of this probability could help. Hence, instead of proving that bats are the maintenance host for EBOV, what if we consider that "bats are not the only maintenance host for EBOV"? Here, we consider the scenario presented in Figure 1B ,C, namely, that bats are not the maintenance host for EBOV or that bat species are involved with alternative host s in the EBOV maintenance community.

What animals are considered to be maintenance hosts to the Ebolavirus?

A few monkey and bat individuals serologically positive to EBV antigen represent the only exceptions . Today, African bats are considered by many as the best candidates for acting as maintenance hosts for EBOV. Partial vRNA was sequenced from living specimens of three different bat species in Central Africa , and antibodies against ebolavirus antigen have been detected in 9 bat species 8 frugivorous and 1 insectivorous 3, 23, .

A list of these pathways is provided, along with protocols to prioritise and investigate these alternative hypotheses. In conclusion, taking into account the ecology of bats and their known involvement in ebolaviruses ecology drastically reduces the list of potential alternative maintenance hosts for ebolaviruses. Understanding the natural history of ebolaviruses is a health priority, and investigating these alternative hypotheses could complete the current effort focused on the role of bats.

What animals are considered to be maintenance hosts to the Ebolavirus?

A few monkey and bat individuals serologically positive to EBV antigen represent the only exceptions . Today, African bats are considered by many as the best candidates for acting as maintenance hosts for EBOV. Partial vRNA was sequenced from living specimens of three different bat species in Central Africa , and antibodies against ebolavirus antigen have been detected in 9 bat species 8 frugivorous and 1 insectivorous 3, 23, .

There is a possibility that prey-insects are the maintenance host for EBOV . Insect vectors, such as blood feeding insects e.g., mosquitos could also, in theory, transport viruses in their blood meal after a bite on an infected host. They have been suspected in other filovirus outbreaks in the past .

What animals are considered to be maintenance hosts to the Ebolavirus?

A few monkey and bat individuals serologically positive to EBV antigen represent the only exceptions . Today, African bats are considered by many as the best candidates for acting as maintenance hosts for EBOV. Partial vRNA was sequenced from living specimens of three different bat species in Central Africa , and antibodies against ebolavirus antigen have been detected in 9 bat species 8 frugivorous and 1 insectivorous 3, 23, .

Partial vRNA was sequenced from living specimens of three different bat species in Central Africa , and antibodies against ebolavirus antigen have been detected in 9 bat species 8 frugivorous and 1 insectivorous 3, 23, . Recently, a new ebolavirus species with an unknown pathogenic risk has also been isolated from two insectivorous bat species roosting inside a house . Moreover, Swanepoel et al.

What do circles indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

C The maintenance community hypothesis, in which several hosts are needed to maintain ebolaviruses ellipses represent different scenarios of community maintenance . This could be one or more alternative hosts involving possibly bat species. By definition, if such an alternative host exists, there are infectious transmission pathways from this host towards bats that are reviewed here red arrows .

What do circles indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

From the biodiversity of African forest and the full web of interactions between species, a set of secondary hypotheses indicated in Table 1 can be tested through protocols presented to further investigate the role of different maintenance host candidates for EBOV. The observation of this limited number of hosts calls for testing them, even if only to exclude them from the list of hypotheses and strengthen the main hypothesis. As warned above, the EBOV multi-host maintenance system could include a complex network of interacting bat species Figure 1A2 and to proceed by elimination of alternative hypotheses may be a way to zoom-in on the maintenance community.

What do circles indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

Here, we consider the scenario presented in Figure 1B ,C, namely, that bats are not the maintenance host for EBOV or that bat species are involved with alternative host s in the EBOV maintenance community. Current data and knowledge support both scenarios. Some bats are sometimes in contact with the virus and experience waves of exposure during outbreaks .

What do circles indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

B Alternate non-bat maintenance host hypothesis: if it exists, it is known that it can transmit ebolaviruses to some bat species. In this article, we review the potential hosts and associated transmission pathways that link this host to bat species red arrow . C The maintenance community hypothesis, in which several hosts are needed to maintain ebolaviruses ellipses represent different scenarios of community maintenance .

What do circles indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

This means that if bats are not the maintenance hosts for EBOV, then there is only a limited number of candidate species to play the role of alternative maintenance hosts. This limited number of alternative maintenance hosts is defined by the ecology of bats that imposes on those alternative maintenance hosts only a few possible EBOV transmission pathways towards bats. From the biodiversity of African forest and the full web of interactions between species, a set of secondary hypotheses indicated in Table 1 can be tested through protocols presented to further investigate the role of different maintenance host candidates for EBOV.

What do circles indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

These experimental approaches should consider the specific environmental conditions occurring in the tree canopy and cave roofs in terms of substrate, temperature, humidity and light properties. One particular mechanism that has been put forward in the literature is the fruit-borne route concerning frugivorous bats in the tree canopy. The availability of fruits attracts fruit-eating animals, including birds, tree-dwelling mammals, and invertebrates.

What do circles indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

They are unique mammal species regrouping such peculiar life history traits as their aerial life mode, their longevity, their gregarious and migration patterns, as well as their immune system. bridging the maintenance host with human populations during a spillover event Figure 1 . The EBOV susceptibility and exposure tested by virology, serology and/or PCR of many other potential forest hosts, including invertebrates, birds, bats, monkeys, rodents, and other small mammals, have been tested in the field or experimentally with an interestingly large amount of negative results e.g., 12, .

What do circles indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

Failed predation on bats could also be a rare opportunity for infectious transmission . Considering the scenario B and C in Figure 1 , that bats are not the maintenance hosts of EBOV or that they are not the only host involved in the maintenance of EBOV, helps in focusing EBOV research protocols on a reduced range of potential transmission routes and potential alternative hosts interacting with bats in their specific and limited habitats. This means that if bats are not the maintenance hosts for EBOV, then there is only a limited number of candidate species to play the role of alternative maintenance hosts.

What do circles indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

The transmission routes towards bats represent interhost contacts of unknown intensity and frequency, and it would be difficult to compare their relative importance. However, one can prioritize some transmission routes based on the current knowledge. The insect food-borne and vector-borne routes of transmission need, surely, to be further investigated, as they can expose bats to numerous other hosts.

What do circles indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

It would be tedious to quantitatively estimate probabilities in the case of ebolavirus maintenance given the current lack of information, but trying to define the components of this probability could help. Hence, instead of proving that bats are the maintenance host for EBOV, what if we consider that "bats are not the only maintenance host for EBOV"? Here, we consider the scenario presented in Figure 1B ,C, namely, that bats are not the maintenance host for EBOV or that bat species are involved with alternative host s in the EBOV maintenance community.

What do circles indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

Understanding which feeding resources attract bats at a specific season requires a good understanding of indigenous and domesticated tree phenology e.g., . Prior to this work, a guano-based dietary analysis of the feeding behaviour of bats could help to map locally where and when bats will be present. Then, simultaneous protocols on bats and sympatric alternative hosts can be implemented, and a biological search for antibodies or antigens can be implemented.

What do circles indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

The alternative hypotheses of a non-bat maintenance host or a maintenance community including, or not, several bat and other species, deserves more investigation. However, African forest ecosystems host a large biodiversity and abound in potential maintenance hosts. How does one puzzle out?

What do circles indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

However, the range of potential transmission pathways available for the maintenance or bridge host under scenario B and C in Figure 1 to infect bats seems to be much more limited. For example, bats seldom use the ground floor: transmission routes requiring direct contact or environmental transmission on the ground do not expose bats. In other terms, direct contacts with strictly ground-dwelling animals would be very unlikely.

What do arrows indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

C The maintenance community hypothesis, in which several hosts are needed to maintain ebolaviruses ellipses represent different scenarios of community maintenance . This could be one or more alternative hosts involving possibly bat species. By definition, if such an alternative host exists, there are infectious transmission pathways from this host towards bats that are reviewed here red arrows .

What do arrows indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

B Alternate non-bat maintenance host hypothesis: if it exists, it is known that it can transmit ebolaviruses to some bat species. In this article, we review the potential hosts and associated transmission pathways that link this host to bat species red arrow . C The maintenance community hypothesis, in which several hosts are needed to maintain ebolaviruses ellipses represent different scenarios of community maintenance .

What do arrows indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

From the biodiversity of African forest and the full web of interactions between species, a set of secondary hypotheses indicated in Table 1 can be tested through protocols presented to further investigate the role of different maintenance host candidates for EBOV. The observation of this limited number of hosts calls for testing them, even if only to exclude them from the list of hypotheses and strengthen the main hypothesis. As warned above, the EBOV multi-host maintenance system could include a complex network of interacting bat species Figure 1A2 and to proceed by elimination of alternative hypotheses may be a way to zoom-in on the maintenance community.

What do arrows indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

Understanding which feeding resources attract bats at a specific season requires a good understanding of indigenous and domesticated tree phenology e.g., . Prior to this work, a guano-based dietary analysis of the feeding behaviour of bats could help to map locally where and when bats will be present. Then, simultaneous protocols on bats and sympatric alternative hosts can be implemented, and a biological search for antibodies or antigens can be implemented.

What do arrows indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

These experimental approaches should consider the specific environmental conditions occurring in the tree canopy and cave roofs in terms of substrate, temperature, humidity and light properties. One particular mechanism that has been put forward in the literature is the fruit-borne route concerning frugivorous bats in the tree canopy. The availability of fruits attracts fruit-eating animals, including birds, tree-dwelling mammals, and invertebrates.

What do arrows indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

This means that if bats are not the maintenance hosts for EBOV, then there is only a limited number of candidate species to play the role of alternative maintenance hosts. This limited number of alternative maintenance hosts is defined by the ecology of bats that imposes on those alternative maintenance hosts only a few possible EBOV transmission pathways towards bats. From the biodiversity of African forest and the full web of interactions between species, a set of secondary hypotheses indicated in Table 1 can be tested through protocols presented to further investigate the role of different maintenance host candidates for EBOV.

What do arrows indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

Here, we consider the scenario presented in Figure 1B ,C, namely, that bats are not the maintenance host for EBOV or that bat species are involved with alternative host s in the EBOV maintenance community. Current data and knowledge support both scenarios. Some bats are sometimes in contact with the virus and experience waves of exposure during outbreaks .

What do arrows indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

The hypothesis of fruits soiled with infected body fluids falling on the ground and opening a transmission pathway towards other ground-level foraging hosts e.g., duikers does not expose bats to the alternative maintenance hosts e.g., . A relation between river systems and EBOV outbreaks has been suggested in Central Africa, with tributaries influencing the spatial distribution of cases . If river systems can harbour specific biotic communities with potential alternative hosts, such as water-dependent vectors , they can also represent, in remote forest ecosystems, the main transport pathways for people, providing a means for pathogens to spread through infected people or their hunted animals.

What do arrows indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

Data recorders, such as vector or camera traps, will need to be deployed where bats are currently roosting or feeding. This can be a difficult task. Understanding which feeding resources attract bats at a specific season requires a good understanding of indigenous and domesticated tree phenology e.g., .

What do arrows indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

Failed predation on bats could also be a rare opportunity for infectious transmission . Considering the scenario B and C in Figure 1 , that bats are not the maintenance hosts of EBOV or that they are not the only host involved in the maintenance of EBOV, helps in focusing EBOV research protocols on a reduced range of potential transmission routes and potential alternative hosts interacting with bats in their specific and limited habitats. This means that if bats are not the maintenance hosts for EBOV, then there is only a limited number of candidate species to play the role of alternative maintenance hosts.

What do arrows indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

Predation is also a less known but potential transmission pathway from bats to predators . The range of potential species at risk of infection from bats is thus large . However, the range of potential transmission pathways available for the maintenance or bridge host under scenario B and C in Figure 1 to infect bats seems to be much more limited.

What do arrows indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

It would be tedious to quantitatively estimate probabilities in the case of ebolavirus maintenance given the current lack of information, but trying to define the components of this probability could help. Hence, instead of proving that bats are the maintenance host for EBOV, what if we consider that "bats are not the only maintenance host for EBOV"? Here, we consider the scenario presented in Figure 1B ,C, namely, that bats are not the maintenance host for EBOV or that bat species are involved with alternative host s in the EBOV maintenance community.

What do arrows indicate in Figure 1?

Potential maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in wildlife, according to current knowledge. Circles plain or dotted indicate a maintenance function play by the host s ; arrows represent infectious transmission pathways between hosts. Humans, non-human primates, and duikers are examples of known non-maintenance hosts, exposed occasionally to ebolavirus directly or indirectly through the main maintenance host.

This scenario would be more indicating of a change in the evolutionary trajectory of the pathogen as moving from Step 4 to 5 in Figure 1 of Wolfe et al. than of the natural maintenance of ebolaviruses that is considered here. In order for these protocols to be efficient and well designed, insights from behavioural ecology, plant phenology, and molecular biology amongst other disciplines will be necessary.