Data from: Forecasting potential emergence of zoonotic diseases in Southeast Asia: network analysis identifies key rodent hosts

1. Within complex ecological systems, identifying animal species likely to play a key role in the emergence of infectious zoonotic diseases remains a major challenge. One approach consists of using information on current ecological and parasitological similarities among host species in order to predict the most likely pathways for future pathogen spillover. 2. Using field data acquired from 15 sympatric rodent species in various habitats in Thailand, Cambodia and Laos, we built networks based on shared parasites (17 helminth and 15 microparasite species) and shared habitats among rodent species and humans. We investigated the architectures of bipartite and unipartite networks using modularity, subgroups partitioning or node centrality, to assess the relative epidemiological importance of particular rodent species. 3. Our results showed that Rattus tanezumi, Bandicota savilei and R. exulans were consistently found to be members of subgroups that included humans in unipartite and bipartite networks on zoonotic agents and shared habitats. High values of centrality in shared zoonotic agents were found for the same three rodent species, whereas high values of shared habitats were observed for two of them. Although phylogenetically related rodent species likely shared both habitats and parasites, a lack of habitat specialisation was associated with increased zoonotic parasite sharing. 4. Our results emphasize the disproportionate importance of these three rodent species, through their high degree of connectivity with humans, which may represent a high risk for direct zoonotic spillover. Moreover, due to its high centrality in habitats, R. tanezumi may also play a key role as a bridge host. 5. The recent discovery of new arenaviruses in rodents in Southeast Asia, with associated disease in humans in Cambodia, provides an opportunity to test this empirically. The three rodent species identified using our network approach are some of the potential maintenance hosts for these new emerging arenaviruses. 6. Synthesis and applications. Our results on rodents and their pathogens in Southeast Asia show that network analysis has a high potential to improve the surveillance of emerging zoonotic pathogens by targeting key host species and potential “emerging’ pathogen–rodent interactions in complex and heterogeneous landscapes.1. 在复杂生态系统中，甄别可能在传染性人畜共患病（zoonotic diseases）暴发进程中发挥核心作用的动物物种，仍是学界面临的重大挑战。当前一类研究思路通过分析宿主物种间现存的生态学与寄生虫学相似性特征，来预测病原体未来跨种溢出（pathogen spillover）的潜在通路。 2. 我们依托在泰国、柬埔寨与老挝不同生境中采集的15种同域啮齿动物野外数据，基于啮齿动物与人类共享的寄生虫（共包含17种蠕虫（helminth）与15种微寄生虫（microparasite））以及共享生境构建了网络。我们采用模块化度（modularity）、亚群划分或节点中心性（node centrality）等方法分析二分网络（bipartite network）与单分网络（unipartite network）的结构，以评估特定啮齿动物物种的相对流行病学重要性。 3. 研究结果显示，在针对人畜共患病原体与共享生境构建的单分网络与二分网络中，Rattus tanezumi、Bandicota savilei与R. exulans始终被归入包含人类的亚群。在共享人畜共患病原体的网络中，这三种啮齿动物展现出较高的节点中心性；而在共享生境的网络中，其中两种啮齿动物的中心性得分较高。尽管系统发育亲缘关系较近的啮齿动物往往共享相似生境与寄生虫，但缺乏生境特化（habitat specialisation）的类群更易发生人畜共患寄生虫的跨种传播事件。 4. 本研究结果凸显了上述三种啮齿动物的不成比例的重要性——它们与人类存在高度的连通性，这可能构成直接人畜共患病原体溢出的高风险。此外，由于在生境网络中拥有较高的中心性，Rattus tanezumi或可作为关键的桥梁宿主（bridge host）发挥作用。 5. 近期在东南亚啮齿动物中发现新型沙粒病毒（arenaviruses），且柬埔寨已出现与之相关的人类感染病例，这为我们的研究假说提供了实证检验的契机。通过本研究的网络分析方法鉴定出的三种啮齿动物，正是这些新型新发沙粒病毒的潜在储存宿主（maintenance hosts）之一。 6. 总结与应用：我们针对东南亚啮齿动物及其病原体的研究表明，网络分析方法具备巨大应用潜力，可通过锁定关键宿主物种与复杂异质景观中潜在的"新发"病原体-啮齿动物互作关系，来提升对新发人畜共患病原体的监测效率。