臺灣東南部野生臺灣穿山甲(Manis pentadactyla pentadactyla) 之健康監測與疾病監控

Health Monitoring and Disease Surveillance of Free-ranging Formosan Pangolins (Manis pentadactyla pentadactyla) in Southeastern Taiwan

盧帕克(Rupak K.C.)

指導教授 ： 吳弘毅 ； 裴家騏

國立屏東科技大學/農學院/獸醫學系所/博士(2016年)

摘要

穿山甲 (Pholidota: Manidae) ，有鱗片食蟻獸，在多數亞洲和非洲國家可以在夜間觀察到的食蟲哺乳動物。目前在亞洲和非洲已發現有八種穿山甲。其中中華穿山甲 (Manis pentadactyla) 是亞洲唯一一種的食蟲哺乳動物，正面臨瀕臨絕種。而亞種的福爾摩沙穿山甲僅分佈在台灣。本研究的目的是提供監測野生福爾摩沙穿山甲的健康狀況之生理數據以及調查疾病。
血液學和血清化學正常參考數值是可以用於評估動物福祉的關鍵以及臨床診斷。目前沒有任何種類之穿山甲的正常參考數值被發表。本研究建立中福爾摩沙穿山甲 之血液學、血清生化分析的參考數值及基礎臨床發現。利用母數及無母數百分位數法 (parametric and non-parametrical percentile methods) ，從100隻臨床健康之福爾摩沙穿山甲 (雄性51例，雌性49例) 的血液學、血清化學和基礎臨床發現 (體重、心率、體溫、血氧飽) 做為參考區間。同時包括季節、年齡和性別差異也進行了分析。基準值在公母之間，除了體重以外，其他無顯著差異。而心臟速率、體溫、血清丙氨酸轉胺 (ALT)、脂肪酶活性和磷酸鹽濃度隨著季節不同而有差異。成年和亞成穿山甲之間顯著差異的有心跳速率、MCH、肌酐、總蛋白、磷酸鹽、葡萄糖、鉀和澱粉酶。因此，參考使用這些參考區間時，季節性和年齡的差異是要被考慮在內的。
對於野生動物疾病診斷及調查，病理學研究是非常有幫助的，然而對於穿山甲病理研究之報告很少被記錄。本次研究提供14隻野生福爾摩沙穿山甲之病理診斷。大體檢查經常在腿部發現外部損傷和表面傷口 (6/14) ，呼吸系統病變 (78％，11/14)包括間質性肺炎、膨脹不全和肺氣腫。肝臟病變 (43％，6/14)有壞死、膽管增生、脂肪蓄積和廣泛性肝細胞變性。而57％穿山甲 (8/14)有體內及體外寄生蟲寄生。泌尿系統病變 (21％，3/14)有間質性腎炎和腎結石。腦部病變在3隻穿山甲中發現，其病變包括腦室水腫和出血。其他病理病變亦有甲狀腺增生和左心室肥厚。所呈現的病理結果提供穿山甲疾病資訊，並能幫助未來需要進行穿山甲疾病調查時的參考依據。
近幾年來，蜱媒疾病在全世界包括人類與動物逐漸蔓延。目前，經由蜱傳播至穿山甲的相關病原體資訊有限。本研究調查臺灣東南部地區福爾摩沙穿山甲之蜱和相關傳播病原體。在生態調查過程中捕獲的野生福爾摩沙穿山甲檢查蜱的存在。利用分子生物技術，從蜱提取DNA用於鑑別蜱物種，同時檢測蜱傳播的病原體。2012 - 2014年期間，捕獲的穿山甲 25% (13/52)發現有硬蜱寄生。總共21隻蜱被收集，3種蜱被確定，包括豪豬血蜱Haemaphysalis hystricis (14/21)，蓬萊血蜱Haemaphysalis formosensis（2/21）和龜形花蜱Amblyomma testudinarium (5/21)。同時發現了四種不同的蜱傳病原體，包括Anaplasma sp. strain An.H1446 、 Rickettsia conorii subsp. caspia A-167、Ehrlichia sp. TC251-2 及 Cytauxzoon spp.。本研究是第一次對於野生中華穿山甲寄生之蜱調查且發現有害之病原體存在。結果得知蜱和蜱媒疾病的多樣性，對於保育穿山甲等野生動物是非常重要的資訊。未來重要的下一步驟應該是定期監測人為馴養之野生動物的蜱和蜱媒疾病，提前檢出可能病原的存在，能幫助控制與預防人畜傳染病的爆發。本次研究結果，對於評估福爾摩沙穿山甲這一瀕危的哺乳動物健康狀況及照護提供寶貴資訊與貢獻。

關鍵詞：福爾摩沙穿山甲、參考區間、病理、蜱和蜱媒疾病

關鍵字

福爾摩沙穿山甲 ； 參考區間 ； 病理 ； 蜱和蜱媒疾病

並列摘要

Pangolins (Pholidota:Manidae), also known as scaly anteaters, are nocturnal, insectivorous mammals found in several Asian and African countries. There are eight species of pangolins found in Asia and Africa. Among them, the Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) is an endangered insectivorous mammal found only in Asia. Formosan pangolin (Manis pentadactyla pentadactyla) is sub-species and distributes only in Taiwan. The present study was conducted to monitor the health status and survey the diseases of free-ranging Formosan pangolins.
Hematology and serum chemistry reference intervals are critical for evaluating an animal’s well-being and can be useful for clinical diagnostic purposes. Currently, there are no such reference intervals available for any pangolin species. The purpose of the present study was to establish reference intervals for hematology and serum biochemical analytes, and some basic clinical findings, in Formosan pangolins. Reference intervals for the hematology, serum chemistry and basic clinical findings (body weight, heart rate, body temperature, blood oxygen saturation) were calculated from 100 clinically healthy Formosan pangolins (51 males and 49 females) using parametric and non-parametrical percentile methods. In addition, seasonal, age group and sexual differences for all the analytes were analyzed. No significant differences in the reference values were found between males and females, except for body weight. However, significant seasonal differences were observed in heart rate, body temperature, serum alanine aminotransferase and lipase activities, and phosphate concentrations. The variables, which were significantly different between adult and sub-adult Pangolins, were heart rate, MCH, creatinine, total protein, phosphate, glucose, potassium, and amylase. Seasonal and age group differences should be taken into consideration while using these reference intervals.
Pathological studies are helpful in the diagnosis and investigation of wildlife diseases. Pathological findings in pangolins have not been well documented. The present article reports the pathological findings of 14 free-ranging Formosan pangolins. External injuries and superficial wounds (43%, 6/14) were common finding in gross examination and were mostly found in the legs. Respiratory system (78%, 11/14) lesions included interstitial pneumonia, atelectasis and emphysema. Hepatic lesions (43%, 6/14) included necrosis, bile duct hyperplasia, lipidosis and extensive hepatocyte degeneration. Parasites were detected in 57% of pangolins (8/14) studied and included both endoparasites and ectoparasites. Urinary system (21%, 3/14) lesions were interstitial nephritis and nephrolithiasis. Brain lesions were found in 3 pangolins and included cerebral edema and hemorrhage, and ventriculitis. Additional pathological lesions included thyroid gland hyperplasia and left ventricular hypertrophy. The presented pathological findings can aid in the understanding of diseases of pangolins and will contribute knowledge to future investigations on diseases of pangolins
In recent years, there has been an increase in spread of tick-borne diseases in both humans and animals worldwide. Currently, limited information is available on ticks and associated pathogens infesting pangolins. The objective of the present study was to survey the ticks and associated pathogens in the Formosan pangolin population in Southeastern Taiwan. Free-ranging Formosan pangolins captured during ecological survey were examined for the presence of ticks. DNA extracted from these ticks was used to identify the tick species and also to detect the tick-borne pathogens, by molecular methods. We found 25% (13/52) of the pangolins captured during 2012-2014 infested with ixodid ticks. A total of 21 ticks were collected and 3 tick species were identified: Haemaphysalis hystricis (14/21), Haemaphysalis formosensis (2/21) and Amblyomma testudinarium (5/21). We detected four different tick-borne pathogens, where one was identical to Anaplasma sp. strain An.H1446 while others showed close resemblance to Rickettsia conorii subsp. caspia A-167, Ehrlichia sp. TC251-2 and Cytauxzoon spp. respectively. The present study is the first survey of the ticks infesting the free-ranging Chinese pangolins and pathogens harboured by these ticks. This information is important to know the diversity of ticks and tick-borne pathogens, and its conservation significance to pangolins and other sympatric wildlife. Important future step should be regular surveillance of ticks and tick-borne diseases at human-domestic animals-wildlife interface, which can provide a useful insight into the dynamics of these pathogens and can help control and prevent outbreak of such zoonoses. The findings from the present study represent a valuable resource for assessing the health of Formosan pangolins, and contribute towards the conservation of this endangered mammal.
Keywords: Formosan pangolin, reference intervals, pathology, ticks and tick-borne pathogens

並列關鍵字

Formosan pangolin ； reference intervals ； pathology ； ticks and tick-borne pathogens

參考文獻

Chao, J. 1989. General biology and current status, In: Studies on the Conservation of the Formosan pangolin (Manis pentadactyla pentadactyla) I. Taiwan Forestry Research Institute. Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan, Taiwan.

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(Manis pentadactyla pentadactyla) at Luanshan, Taitung. Masters’ Thesis. National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Taiwan.

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