Since 2005 , at least 56 western chimpanzee have fallen sick with a mysterious lethal disease in the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary in Sierra Leone . After being inert with a lack of coordination , the chimps go on to develop puking and even seizures . Even after receive extensive medical discussion by veterinarians , the consuming number of chimps eventually pall .
The causa of the disease – dub “ epizootic neurological and gastroenteric syndrome ” ( ENGS ) – had long stay mysterious , but thanks to eld of veterinary sleuthing , a squad of scientist believe they have found the perpetrator : a freshly find species of bacteria namedCandidatusSarcina troglodytae .
The team reported their finding in the journalNature Communicationsthis week .
The bacteria was pin down by searching for viruses , sponge , and bacterium within all manner of samples taken from western Pan troglodytes – a critically endangered subspecies – at Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary with ENGS , equate them to ones taken from goodish individuals .
finally , they noticed that up to 68 percent of the sick chimps carried a sealed bacteria that was n’t found in any of the healthy chimp , which was afterwards namedCa . S. troglodytae . Most remarkably , this bacterium was n’t just discovered in the gastrointestinal tracts of infected individuals , but also embedded in their internal organs include the brain .
While this bacteria is a newly identified metal money , other members of theSarcinagenus are fairly well - known and are known to be common in soil . Other species have beendetected in the human microbiometoo . S. ventriculi , for exemplar , has been in the stomach contents of humans hurt from recurrent vomiting and has been connect to a range of mountains of symptoms , such as abdominal pain , nausea , regurgitation , diarrhea , and weakness . In these cases , the patient are often treated with antibiotics successfully . NowCa . S. troglodytae has been identified within the sick chimps , the team skip they can launch the door to treatment for this grim disease .
Rest assured , however , the cases of ENGS in Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary are unlikely to spark a globalplague that ravages chimpsor humans . The study authors write that “ human cases have not been account , even among personnel with close day-to-day contact with dissemble individual . ”It ’s still unclear how the chimpanzee became infected with the bacteria , but it ’s apparent the bacterium could be living in their palisade environment since member of theSarcinagenera are find in water and soil across the world .
" Many questions regarding ENGS and ' Ca . S. troglodytae’remain unexplained , " the study concludes .
Although mystery stay on , a deeper understanding of this freshly discover bacterium serve to uncover more information about the wider genus Sarcina and how it affects humans . SinceCa . S. troglodytae can be found in the brain of chimp , perhapsS. ventriculican also affect the key nervous system of humanity . The field adds:“We advocate that prior and succeeding human and animal compositor’s case of severe disease associated withsarcinae , in particular those cases without absolved predisposing factor , be revisited . "
