DOI: 10.5061/dryad.c866t1gcx
title: Robust evidence for bats as reservoir hosts is lacking in most African virus studies – a review and call to optimize sampling and conserve bats

description: Africa experiences frequent emerging disease outbreaks among humans, with
 bats often proposed as zoonotic pathogen hosts. We comprehensively
 reviewed virus-bat findings from papers published between 1978 and 2020 to
 evaluate the evidence that African bats are reservoirs and/or bridging
 hosts for viruses that cause human disease. We present data from 162
 papers (of 1322) with original findings on (1) numbers and species of bats
 sampled across bat families and the continent, (2) how bats were selected
 for study inclusion, (3) if bats were terminally sampled, (4) what types
 of ecological data, if any, were recorded, and (5) which viruses were
 detected and with what methodology. We propose a scheme for evaluating
 presumed virus-host relationships by evidence type and quality, using the
 contrasting available evidence for Orthoebolavirus (formerly Ebolavirus)
 versus Orthomarburgvirus (formerly Marburgvirus) as an example. We review
 the wording in abstracts and discussions of all 162 papers, identifying
 key framing terms, how these refer to findings, and how they might
 contribute to people’s beliefs about bats. We discuss the impact of
 scientific research communication on public perception and emphasize the
 need for strategies that minimize human-bat conflict and support bat
 conservation. Finally, we make recommendations for best practices that
 will improve virological study metadata.
description: We analyzed data from peer-reviewed primary
 research articles published through 2020 for which bats were captured in
 Africa for viral surveillance. We used the search terms “bat OR bats OR
 Chiroptera” AND “virus OR viral OR virological” AND “Africa OR ‘each
 African country name in English or country name variant’” (Fig. S1) in a
 Web of Science (all database) search, repeated in French, yielding a total
 of 1322 papers (two from French search). We also included older primary
 data from seven studies used in 11 modeling papers from this period. In
 total 162 papers met our study inclusion criteria, published between 1978
 and 2020 (Text S1). This dataset, analyzed alongside our current
 understanding of African bat systematics and ecology, provided a snapshot
 in time of African bat viral research from which we were able to describe
 the nature of these studies in detail (Fig. 1). Data on (1) numbers of
 species and individuals sampled across bat families and the continent; (2)
 how bats were selected for study; (3) whether they were terminally
 sampled; (4) whether ecological data were recorded; and (5) which viruses
 were detected and with what methodology, were manually extracted. We focus
 on four viral families most relevant to humans:
 <em>Coronaviridae</em>,<em> Paramyxoviridae</em>,
 <em>Rhabdoviridae</em> and <em>Filoviridae</em>,
 list other viral findings, and propose a schematic approach to evaluating
 the quality of the evidence underlying putative bat-virus relationships,
 using the contrasting available evidence base for
 <em>Orthoebolavirus</em> versus
 <em>Orthomarburgvirus</em> as an example. Our findings are
 placed in the context of numbers of known and suspected human infections
 and fatalities from African zoonoses associated with bats. Finally, we
 review the wording in abstracts and discussions of all 162 papers. We
 identify several key framing terms, how these refer to findings, and how
 they might contribute to people’s beliefs about bats. In light of the
 growing fear of bats as sources of viral spillovers, we discuss the impact
 of scientific research communication on public perception and emphasize
 the need for strategies that minimize human-bat conflict.
description: ## Title Extracted data from 162 papers analyzed (**NB:** compiled by a
 variety of authors) ## Description of the data and file structure Year -
 Year of the study Authors - Authors of the study Title - Title of the
 study Country - Location where study was conducted Virus - Viruses studied
 in the paper Antibodies - Information on whether serological studies were
 conducted and where applicable information on serological methods used
 Virus RNA - Information on whether molecular studies were conducted and
 where applicable information on molecular methods used Sampling methods -
 Sample type used to sample bats for viruses Virus/antibody prevalence [%]
 - Prevelance of virus findings in studied bats Zoonotic transmission
 assumed - Was zoonotic transmission from bats assumed by the authors of
 the study? \# bats captured \- Number of bats captured \# bats examined \-
 Number of bats examined \# bats killed \- Number of bats terminally
 sampled Bat species (taxon, number) - Bat species sampled and number of
 bats per species, as reported Bat identification - Methods used to
 identify bat species Habitat - Was information on the habitat of sampled
 bats provided in the study? Ecological data - Was information on bat
 ecology provided in the study? Additional remarks - Additional remarks
 "...": quote from original paper ?: value or information
 provided not clear -: absence of value or information for respective
 category X: presence or affirmation of value or information for respective
 category X text / (text): text providing additional details on value or
 information (as applicable) ## Sharing/Access information All other
 information relating to this dataset given in the Dryad descriptions