Emily Joan Jenkins

• Doctor of Philosophy
• Professor (Full) at University of Saskatchewan

Introduction The increased burden of climate-sensitive infectious diseases (CSIDs) within the circumpolar region, one of the many impacts of climate change, is impacting human, animal and ecosystem health. An integrated One Health approach to surveillance of CSIDs has been promoted by the scientific community as a prerequisite to enhance preparedne...

Seroprevalence of Jamestown Canyon virus in free-ranging caribou in North America is high. We demonstrate serum antibodies and RNA of the virus in blood and tissues of experimentally exposed reindeer with no clinical illness and minimal histopathologic changes. Caribou and reindeer may play a role in emergence and dissemination of vectorborne zoono...

OBJECTIVE To report quantitative PCR (qPCR) detection of Echinococcus multilocularis DNA in fecal samples from 26 dogs in the US and Canada. ANIMALS 26 dogs with fecal samples submitted for parasite screening by qPCR. CLINICAL PRESENTATION Dog signalment, presenting concern, preventive care, and outcomes were obtained from the primary veterinaria...

The range of tularemia, a disease caused by the bacterium Francisella tularensis, may expand alongside climate change in the North. Transmission occurs via biting arthropods, contaminated water sources, infected animal tissues and fluids and even aerosolized bacteria. Little research has been published on F. tularensis in northern Canada. We invest...

Increasing Arctic temperatures are facilitating the northward expansion of more southerly hosts, vectors, and pathogens, exposing naïve populations to pathogens not typical at northern latitudes. To understand such rapidly changing host–pathogen dynamics, we need sensitive and robust surveillance tools. Here, we use a novel multiplexed magnetic-cap...

Foxes (Vulpes spp.) are small, solitary canids with relatively low social complexity compared to more gregarious canids, such as wolves and dogs. They are, therefore, expected to have a relatively simple vocal repertoire, with limited low-intensity sounds for close communication and many high-intensity sounds for long-distance communication. Arctic...

Zoonotic nematodes of the genus Trichinella are foodborne parasites that have a global distribution in wild carnivores and omnivores, with spillover and spillback into domestic livestock and people, with concomitant trade and health consequences. Historically, most human cases were linked to domestic pigs infected with Trichinella spiralis, but und...

Surveillance of endoparasites at the host community level is rarely reported for ungulates. Yet, changes in composition and abundance of species in ungulate assemblages, coupled with environmental and climate change, bring into focus the need for time series data on endoparasite occurrence in host species at the community level. First, we investiga...

Predators in food webs are valuable sentinel species for zoonotic and multi-host pathogens such as Toxoplasma gondii. This protozoan parasite is ubiquitous in warm-blooded vertebrates, and can have serious adverse effects in immunocompromised hosts and foetuses. In northern ecosystems, T. gondii is disproportionately prevalent in Inuit people and w...

Arctic ecosystems face increasing risks from vector-borne diseases due to climate-driven shifts in disease patterns and vector distribution. However, species identification challenges impact vector-borne disease surveillance, necessitates accurate identification. Aedes species are predominant among Arctic mosquitoes and pose health risks, with some...

Background Amplicon-based next-generation sequencing (NGS) has rapidly gained popularity as a powerful method for delineating taxa in complex communities, including helminths. Here, we applied this approach to identify species and genotypes of zoonotic nematodes of the Trichinella genus. A known limitation of the current multiplex PCR (mPCR) assay...

Coyotes (Canis latrans) rapidly expanded across North America during the 20th century and in 1987 colonized insular Newfoundland, Canada. Their arrival brought the potential for new predator-prey interactions and the potential for transmission of parasites to naïve populations. Trichinella spp. and Echinococcus spp. are zoonotic parasites not previ...

Ringed seals (Pusa hispida) (nattiq (s.), nattiit (pl.) [Inuktut]) provide an important food staple for Nunavummiut (Indigenous residents of Nunavut). We studied the health of nattiit harvested by hunters from Baffin Island, Nunavut, via Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit and veterinary science. We conducted serological surveys and polymerase chain reaction (...

Caribou are keystone species important for human harvest and of conservation concern; even so, much is unknown about the impact of parasites on caribou health and ecology. The aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence, tissue prevalence, and diversity of tissue-dwelling coccidian parasites (including Toxoplasma gondii, Neospora caninum...

The Arctic is warming at four times the global rate, changing the diversity, activity and distribution of vectors and associated pathogens. While the Arctic is not often considered a hotbed of vector-borne diseases, Jamestown Canyon virus (JCV) and Snowshoe Hare virus (SSHV) are mosquito-borne zoonotic viruses of the California serogroup endemic to...

The North has experienced unprecedented rates of warming over the past few decades, impacting the survival and development of insects and the pathogens that they carry. Since 2019, Arctic foxes from Canada (Nunavut) have been observed with fur loss inconsistent with natural shedding of fur. Adult lice were collected from Arctic foxes from Nunavut (...

OBJECTIVE To describe the novel PCR diagnosis and outcome of intestinal Echinococcus multilocularis in a dog. ANIMAL A 13-month-old female intact dog with naturally occurring intestinal E multilocularis . CLINICAL PRESENTATION, PROGRESSION, AND PROCEDURES The 13-month-old dog initially presented with a reduced appetite and weight loss and then de...

OBJECTIVE To raise veterinary awareness of a newly recognized parasitic threat to canine and human health, highlight the increasing availability of molecular parasitological diagnostics and the need to implement best practices of cestocidal use in high-risk dogs. ANIMAL A young Boxer dog with vomiting and bloody diarrhea, suspected diagnosis of in...

Alveolar echinococcosis (AE), caused by the metacestode of Echinococcus multilocularis, is emerging in both dogs and people in North America. Here, we review 27 cases of canine AE opportunistically reported since the index case was described in 2009 in Western Canada. We describe clinical presentation, diagnosis, treatment, outcome, and source of c...

Toxoplasma gondii is a zoonotic parasite globally infecting a wide range of species, including humans. Felids are the only known hosts that can excrete environmentally resistant oocysts into ecosystems. In boreal regions, Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis) are sought by hunters primarily for their fur, and they are occasionally eaten. We examined carcas...

Northern Canada is warming at 3 times the global rate. Thus, changing diversity and distribution of vectors and pathogens is an increasing health concern. California serogroup (CSG) viruses are mosquitoborne arboviruses; wildlife reservoirs in northern ecosystems have not been identified. We detected CSG virus antibodies in 63% (95% CI 58%-67%) of...

Tularemia is a zoonotic disease found throughout most of the northern hemisphere that may experience range expansion with warming temperatures. Rodents and lagomorphs are reservoirs for the disease, and outbreaks of tularemia often follow peaks in their abundance. As small mammals dominate the diet of arctic foxes (Vulpes lagopus), we determined wh...

Abstract Background Bartonella are intracellular bacteria that are transmitted via animal scratches, bites and hematophagous arthropods. Rodents and their associated fleas play a key role in the maintenance of Bartonella worldwide, with > 22 species identified in rodent hosts. No studies have addressed the occurrence and diversity of Bartonella spe...

We conducted a review focusing on the knowledge on epidemiology of Trichinella parasites in the Arctic and subarctic regions, with the aim to inform discussions on challenges and solutions for their control.

Within the terrestrial Arctic ecosystem at Karrak Lake, Nunavut, Bartonella bacteria (B. vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii and B. henselae) have been detected in avian nest fleas (Ceratophyllus vagabundus vagabundus) and the blood of Arctic foxes (Vulpes lagopus (Linnaeus, 1758)). We further investigate the transmission dynamics at Karrak Lake by identify...

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the COVID19-causing virus, is a zoonotic pathogen. There is concern that it may spillover into wildlife species which may then serve as reservoirs for future infection of humans, domestic animals, or other wildlife species. Furthermore, impacts of the virus on potentially susceptible wil...

The COVID‐19 pandemic highlights the urgency and importance of monitoring, managing and addressing zoonotic diseases, and the acute challenges of doing so with sufficient inter‐jurisdictional coordination in a dynamic global context. Although wildlife pathogens are well‐studied clinically and ecologically, there is very little systematic scholarshi...

In the early stages of response to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, it was imperative for researchers to rapidly determine what animal species may be susceptible to the virus, under low knowledge and high uncertainty conditions. In this scoping review, the animal species being evaluated for SARS-CoV-2 susceptibility, the methods used to evaluate susceptibi...

The finding of Trichinella in the Arctic was foreseen because captive polar bears and arctic foxes had been found infected during the first decades of the 20th century. Human trichinellosis outbreaks were reported to have taken place in 1944 in Franz Josef Archipelago and 1947 in Greenland, and previous outbreaks in Greenland also appeared to have...

Background In changing northern ecosystems, understanding the mechanisms of transmission of zoonotic pathogens, including the coccidian parasite Toxoplasma gondii , is essential to protect the health of vulnerable animals and humans. As high-level predators and scavengers, foxes represent a potentially sensitive indicator of the circulation of T. g...

The world is experiencing an unprecedented change in environmental conditions, and global warming is at the forefront of these changes, especially in the Arctic. Like many other disease-causing agents, parasitic tapeworms in the genus Echinococcus are climate-sensitive and environmentally transmitted pathogens that may be emerging and re-emerging i...

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors flagged the following to us: “On pages 3 and 5 of the PDF, the following can be seen: Sachs Harbour, and Ulukhaktok, NT, USA), Nunavut (Cambridge Bay, NU, USA) and the National Reference Centre for Parasitology (Montréal, QC, USA) for Inuit communities and the National Microbiology Labo...

Trichinellosis is an important foodborne human disease. The genus Trichinella was considered monospecific until 1972, and currently, there are 13 taxa of Trichinella classified into two major clades: encapsulated and non-encapsulated. Sylvatic life cycle (where wild animals are involved) plays a pivotal role in the Arctic, where domestic animal hos...

The apicomplexan parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, has a worldwide distribution, and it can infect virtually all warm-blooded animals, including wildlife, domestic animals, and humans. Toxoplasma gondii can cause disease, toxoplasmosis, in both humans and animals. It is a parasite of importance for public health, veterinary medicine (food safety, animal...

The arctic fox variant of the rabies virus (RABV) is enzootic in the circumpolar north. Reports of abortive RABV exposures motivated a retrospective analysis of sera from 41 arctic foxes captured at Karrak Lake in Nunavut, Canada, during 2011-2015. Estimated RABV antibody prevalence among foxes was 14% (95% confidence interval, 7-28%).

Echinococcus spp. tapeworms can cause serious diseases in mammals, including humans. Within the E. granulosus species complex, metacestodes produce unilocular cysts that are responsible for cystic echinococcosis in animal intermediate hosts. Canids are definitive hosts, harbouring adult cestodes in their intestines. Adult E. canadensis were recover...

Climate warming is occurring most rapidly in the Arctic, which is both a sentinel and a driver of further global change. Ecosystems and human societies are already affected by warming. Permafrost thaws and species are on the move, bringing pathogens and vectors to virgin areas. During a five-year project, the CLINF – a Nordic Center of Excellence,...

Wild canids are hosts to a wide range of parasites and can play a role in transmission of zoonoses. As many parasites are transmitted through food webs, and wild canids are at high trophic levels, parasite prevalence and diversity in wild canids can serve as excellent indicators of ecosystem health. Our main objectives were to update knowledge on t...

An expected consequence of climate warming is an expansion of the geographical distribution of biting insects and associated arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses). Emerging and re-emerging arboviruses that can affect human and animal health are likely to pose significant consequences for Northern communities where access to health resources is limi...

The influence of climate change on wildlife disease dynamics is a burgeoning conservation and human health issue, but few long-term studies empirically link climate to pathogen prevalence. Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) are vulnerable to the negative impacts of sea ice loss as a result of accelerated Arctic warming. While studies have associated cha...

As temperatures in the circumpolar north continue to warm, shifts in species distribution and the breakdown of environmental barriers for arthropods may impact the diversity and distribution of ectoparasites in Arctic ecosystems. In May 2019, fur loss over the neck and shoulders was observed on Arctic foxes in a terrestrial Arctic ecosystem (Karrak...

An expected consequence of climate warming is an expansion of the geographic distribution of biting insects and associated arthropod-borne diseases (arboviruses). Emerging and reemerging arboviruses that can affect human health are likely to pose significant consequences for Northern communities where access to health resources is limited. In the N...

Abstract Background Species of Trichinella are globally important foodborne parasites infecting a number of domestic and wild vertebrates, including humans. Free-ranging carnivores can act as sentinel species for detection of Trichinella spp. Knowledge of the epidemiology of these parasites may help prevent Trichinella spp. infections in northern C...

Prompt and reliable diagnostic tests for taeniid infection in canids are important due to the risk of zoonoses like Echinococcus spp. Current diagnostic methods relying on fecal flotation lack sensitivity and specificity, but this has rarely been quantified due to the challenges in performing adult cestode recovery (the gold standard) in domestic d...

A 2-year-old spayed female terrier mix was presented to the 24 HR Animal Care Centre (Regina, Saskatchewan) for shaking, lethargy, and rapid shallow breathing with a significant abdominal component. The dog had been recently adopted in Peru and was brought to Canada a few weeks prior to presentation. On physical examination, the dog was bright, ale...

Horses are ubiquitously infected by a diversity of gastro-intestinal parasitic helminths. Of particular importance are nematodes of the family Strongylidae, which can significantly impact horse health and performance. However, knowledge about equine strongyles remains limited due to our inability to identify most species non-invasively using tradit...

The population of grey seals Halichoerus grypus in Canadian waters is currently used as a commercial source of meat for human consumption. As with domestic livestock, it is important to understand the occurrence in these seals of infectious agents that may be of public health significance and thus ensure appropriate measures are in place to avoid z...

Parasitic zoonotic nematodes of the genus Trichinella circulate in wildlife and domestic hosts worldwide through the ingestion of infected meat. Due to their role as scavengers and predators in terrestrial and marine arctic ecosystems, Arctic foxes (Vulpes lagopus) are ideal sentinels for the detection of Trichinella spp. In this study, we determin...

Parasites are fundamental components within all ecosystems, shaping interaction webs, host population dynamics and behaviour. Despite this, baseline data is lacking to understand the parasite ecology of many Arctic species, including the wolverine (Gulo gulo), a top Arctic predator and scavenger. Here, we combined traditional count methods (i.e. ad...

Background: Lyme disease is an emerging vector-borne zoonotic disease of increasing public health importance in Canada. As part of its mandate, the Canadian Lyme Disease Research Network (CLyDRN) launched a pan-Canadian sentinel surveillance initiative, the Canadian Lyme Sentinel Network (CaLSeN), in 2019. Objectives: To create a standardized, n...

Background: In a warmer and more globally connected Arctic, vector-borne pathogens of zoonotic importance may be increasing in prevalence in native wildlife. Recently, Bartonella henselae, the causative agent of cat scratch fever, was detected in blood collected from arctic foxes (Vulpes lagopus) that were captured and released in the large goose...

Alveolar echinococcosis (AE) is a life-threatening parasitic disease caused by the zoonotic cestode Echinococcus multilocularis. Our goals were to confirm infection, identify species and analyze biogeographical origin of metacestode tissues from a suspected human AE case in Saskatchewan, Canada. We conducted PCR targeting the nad1 mitochondrial gen...

An 8-y-old Labrador Retriever was presented to a small animal practice in northern Virginia with a history of recent lethargy. Physical examination findings were unremarkable. Ultrasound revealed several large hepatic masses and multiple smaller masses involving the pancreas. Cytologic findings on fine-needle aspirates of the hepatic masses include...

Sable Island, Nova Scotia, Canada hosts one of few natural populations of feral horses (Equus caballus) never exposed to anthelmintics. Coproculture revealed cyathostomes, Strongylus equinus, S. edentatus, and S. vulgaris, with S. equinus (unusually) dominating in adult horses and cyathostomes dominating in young horses (<3 years of age). We examin...

Understanding parasite diversity and distribution is essential in managing the potential impact of parasitic diseases in animals and people. Imperfect diagnostic methods, however, may conceal cryptic species. Here, we report the discovery and phylogeography of a previously unrecognized species of Trichinella in wolverine (Gulo gulo) from northweste...

Toxocara spp. (T. canis and T. cati) are the dominant ascarids of domestic dogs and cats, respectively, in populated regions of southern Canada, where they pose animal and public health concerns. A review of the published literature indicated that prevalence of both parasites is declining in more recent studies (post 2000), likely due to changes in...

Species of Trichinella are a globally distributed assemblage of nematodes, often with distinct host ranges, which include people, domestic, and wild animals. Trichinella spp. are important in northern Canada, where dietary habits of people and methods of meat preparation (drying, smoking, fermenting as well as raw) increase the risk posed by these...

This FAWPAR Special Issue is dedicated to zoonotic Echinococcus species. It is a compilation of invited papers that spans important aspects from molecular markers of emergence, diagnostics in both definitive and intermediate hosts, treatment of human alveolar echinococcosis, to control strategies in definitive hosts. Keywords: Echinococcus granulos...

Background Toxoplasma gondii, a zoonotic protozoan parasite, infects mammals and birds worldwide. Infection in humans is often asymptomatic, though illnesses can occur in immunocompromised hosts and the fetuses of susceptible women infected during pregnancy. In Nunavik, Canada, 60% of the Inuit population has measurable antibodies against T. gondii...

Toxoplasma gondii, a zoonotic food borne parasite that can infect almost all warm-blooded animals including people, and ranks 4th among 24 most significant global foodborne parasites listed by the World Health Organization/United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO/WHO, 2014). Exposure to T. gondii has been reported in wildlife and peopl...

Toxoplasmosis is an important parasitic zoonosis worldwide. Many human and animal surveys use serological assays based on Toxoplasma gondii antibody detection in serum, a matrix that is not routinely available from wildlife. Commonly used serological assays have rarely been validated for use with fluids other than serum, nor validated for their per...

Transmission dynamics of Toxoplasma gondii, a parasite of importance for wildlife and human health, are enigmatic in the Arctic tundra, where free-ranging wild and domestic felid definitive hosts are absent and rarely observed, respectively. Through a multiyear mark-recapture study (2011-2017), serosurveillance was conducted to investigate transmis...

Outbreaks of Toxoplasma gondii and Trichinella spp. have been recurring for decades among Inuit of Nunavik, northeastern Canada. Contact with wildlife has been identified as a risk factor for Inuit exposure to T. gondii, but reservoirs have yet to be confirmed based on direct detection of DNA or organism. Similarly, little is known about the occurr...

In recent years, the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii has increasingly been recognized in Arctic fauna, including beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) in the Eastern Beaufort Sea (EBS), Northwest Territories. We qualitatively assessed the risks of T. gondii to the health of EBS beluga because of their importance in livelihood of Arctic communi...

Zoonotic Echinococcus spp. cestodes (E. canadensis and E. multilocularis) infect domestic animals, wildlife, and people in regions of Canada and the USA. We recovered and quantified Echinococcus spp. cestodes from 22 of 307 intestinal tracts of wild canids (23 wolves, 100 coyotes, 184 red and arctic foxes) in the state of Maine and the province of...

The goals of this study were to report the seasonal shedding patterns of strongyle andParascarisspp. eggs in repeated fecal samples for mares (n= 38) and foals (n= 39), and to evaluate the efficacy of ivermectin treatment in mares from 2 selected horse breeding farms in central Saskatchewan. Median strongyle fecal egg counts (FEC) peaked in July an...

Dogs play valuable roles in human society. In addition to serving as pets and companions, dogs have also been important in hunting and, in recent times, as therapy animals. In India, the number of pet dogs is estimated to be around 5 million. The stray dog population in India is estimated to be 19 million and still increasing, due to ineffective co...

Dogs play valuable roles in human society. In addition to serving as pets and companions, dogs have also been important in hunting and, in recent times, as therapy animals. In India, the number of pet dogs is estimated to be around 5 million. The stray dog population in India is estimated to be 19 million and still increasing, due to ineffective co...

Toxoplasma gondii is a zoonotic parasite found in vertebrates worldwide for which felids serve as definitive hosts. Despite low densities of felids in northern Canada, Inuit people in some regions show unexpectedly high levels of exposure, possibly through handling and consumption of Arctic wildlife. Free-ranging caribou (Rangifer tarandus) are wid...

Alveolar echinococcosis (AE) and cystic echinococcosis (CE) are severe helminthic zoonoses. Echinococcus multilocularis (causative agent of AE) is widely distributed in the northern hemisphere where it is typically maintained in a wild animal cycle including canids as definitive hosts and rodents as intermediate hosts. The species Echinococcus gran...

Zoonotic Echinococcus spp. cestodes are present in almost all circumpolar nations, and have historically posed a risk to health of indigenous as well as other northern residents. However, surveillance data on both alveolar (AE) and cystic (CE) echinococcosis remains incomplete throughout the circumpolar region: Russia, Fennoscandia, Iceland, Greenl...

Gray wolves (Canis lupus L., 1758) are mobile opportunistic predators that can be infected by a wide range of parasites, with many acquired via predator–prey relationships. Historically, many of these parasites were identified only to genus or family, but genetic tools now enable identification of parasite fauna to species and beyond. We examined 1...

Toxoplasma gondii and Toxocara spp. are zoonotic parasites with potentially severe long-term consequences for those infected. We estimated incidence and investigated distribution, risk factors, and costs associated with these parasites by examining hospital discharge abstracts submitted to the Canadian Institute for Health Information (2002-2011)....

Increasingly, birds are recognized as important hosts for the ubiquitous parasite Toxoplasma gondii, although little experimental evidence exists to determine which tissues should be tested to maximize the detection probability of T. gondii. Also, Arctic-nesting geese are suspected to be important sources of T. gondii in terrestrial Arctic ecosyste...

In wild and domestic animals, gastrointestinal parasites can have significant impacts on host development, condition, health, reproduction and longevity. Improving our understanding of the causes and consequences of individual-level variation in parasite load is therefore of prime interest. Here we investigated the relationship between strongyle fe...

Although the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii is ubiquitous in birds and mammals worldwide, the full suite of hosts and transmission routes is not completely understood, especially in the Arctic. Toxoplasma gondii occurrence in humans and wildlife can be high in Arctic regions, despite apparently limited opportunities for transmission of oocyst...

Animal shelters have limited resources and must accommodate large numbers of animals at unpredictable intake rates. These dogs and cats are often parasitized, which can adversely affect the health of animals and expose shelter workers and adoptive owners to zoonoses. We analyzed survey responses from rural (n = 32) and urban (n = 50) companion anim...

Dog-related human injuries affect public safety and animal welfare, and occur more frequently in rural, remote, and Indigenous communities than in urban centres in Canada. Little work has been done to identify the perspectives of those people most heavily affected by this issue or to report successful dog management programs. This project was under...

Echinococcosis is a rare but endemic condition in people in Canada, caused by a zoonotic cestode for which the source of human infection is ingestion of parasite eggs shed by canids. The objectives of this study were to identify risk factors associated with infection and to measure the cost-utility of introducing an echinococcosis prevention progra...