A Review of Zoonotic Infection Risks Associated with the Wild Meat Trade in Malaysia

The overhunting of wildlife for food and commercial gain presents a major threat to biodiversity in tropical forests and poses health risks to humans from contact with wild animals. Using a recent survey of wildlife offered at wild meat markets in Malaysia as a basis, we review the literature to det...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:EcoHealth 2017-06, Vol.14 (2), p.361-388
Main Authors: Cantlay, Jennifer Caroline, Ingram, Daniel J., Meredith, Anna L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal Ecology
Animals
Animals, Wild
Assessments
Bacteria
Biodiversity
Communicable Diseases
Consumption
Ecosystems
Environmental Health
Food
Food contamination & poisoning
Food safety
Forests
Hazard assessment
Health risk assessment
Health risks
Humans
Hunting
Literature reviews
Malaysia
Markets
Meat
Medicine
Medicine & Public Health
Microbiology
Microorganisms
Overhunting
Parasites
Pathogens
Public Health
Review
Risk assessment
Swine
Tropical forests
Viruses
Water and Health
Wild animals
Wildlife
Wildlife surveys
Zoonoses
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Summary:The overhunting of wildlife for food and commercial gain presents a major threat to biodiversity in tropical forests and poses health risks to humans from contact with wild animals. Using a recent survey of wildlife offered at wild meat markets in Malaysia as a basis, we review the literature to determine the potential zoonotic infection risks from hunting, butchering and consuming the species offered. We also determine which taxa potentially host the highest number of pathogens and discuss the significant disease risks from traded wildlife, considering how cultural practices influence zoonotic transmission. We identify 51 zoonotic pathogens (16 viruses, 19 bacteria and 16 parasites) potentially hosted by wildlife and describe the human health risks. The Suidae and the Cervidae families potentially host the highest number of pathogens. We conclude that there are substantial gaps in our knowledge of zoonotic pathogens and recommend performing microbial food safety risk assessments to assess the hazards of wild meat consumption. Overall, there may be considerable zoonotic risks to people involved in the hunting, butchering or consumption of wild meat in Southeast Asia, and these should be considered in public health strategies.
ISSN:1612-9202
1612-9210
DOI:10.1007/s10393-017-1229-x