Cheetahs have a low genetic variability. Previously, this has been used to explain the high disease susceptibility of cheetahs in captivity. However, free-ranging cheetahs do not exhibit clinical or pathological evidence for diseases and are generally in a good health status, even when tested positive for several infectious diseases. Thus, the high diseases susceptibility of captive cheetahs is unlikely to be due to the genetic monomorphism of the species, but rather by husbandry conditions. See also the sub-project “Reproduction and endocrinology in free-ranging and captive cheetahs”, which similarly shows no link between low genetic variability and reproductive performance in cheetahs. 

Our research with our collaborators revealed that free-ranging cheetahs in central Namibia were seropositive for several viruses, including feline herpesvirus, feline calicivirus, feline parvovirus, feline coronavirus, feline leukemia virus, canine distemper virus and rabies virus. Seroprevalence was low, though, not exceeding 5%. Cheetahs were also seropositive for apicomplexan parasites such as Toxoplasma gondii. This parasite was found in 52.4% of cheetahs but also in other carnivore species with high prevalence of > 90% in spotted hyenas, brown hyenas and lions. We further reported for the first time in cheetahs hemoplasmas, which are bacteria infecting red blood cells. Cheetahs were also infected with various gastrointestinal parasites. None of these animals had fever or showed clinical signs of an infectious disease when investigated, and dissections of cheetahs revealed no tissue lesions linked to chronic or infectious diseases.

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Cheetahs kept in large enclosures on Namibian farmland were mostly vaccinated against several viruses and thus seropositive for the antibodies of the respective viruses. The annual health checks of these cheetahs also revealed that they were in good health. One cheetah had a benign dermal basal cell tumor that was surgically removed.

We further investigated the gut microbiome in the faeces of cheetahs and black-backed jackals. In cheetahs, we identified 42 bacterial taxa, whereas in black-backed jackals we detected 69 bacterial taxa. The higher number of bacterial taxa in the latter might be explained by the more omnivorous feeding habits of black-backed jackals compared to cheetahs and also their higher sociality. Both these traits might increase the probability of encountering more bacterial taxa. We further demonstrated that gut microbiomes are more similar between kin than non-kin cheetahs, suggesting an underlying genetic role in shaping bacterial communities.

These result indicate that cheetahs successfully mount adequate immune responses when challenged with pathogens. For more details on this topic, see our findings in the sub-project “Immune genes and immune system of cheetahs and other carnivore species”.

Publications reporting on these topics

  • Thalwitzer S, Wachter B, Robert N, Wibbelt G, Müller T, Lonzer J, Meli ML, Bay G, Hofer H, Lutz H 2010. Seroprevalences to viral pathogens in free-ranging and captive cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) on Namibian farmland. Clinical and Vaccine Immunology 17: 232-238. Doi:10.1128/CVI.00345-09.
  • Krengel A, Meli ML, Cattori V, Wachter B, Willi B, Thalwitzer S, Melzheimer J, Hofer H, Lutz H, Hofmann-Lehmann R 2013: First evidence of hemoplasma infection in free-ranging Namibian cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus). Veterinary Microbiology 162: 972-976. Doi: 10.1016/j.vetmic.2012.10.009.
  • Menke S, Wasimuddin, Meier M, Melzheimer J, Mfune JKE, Heinrich S, Thalwitzer S, Wachter B, Sommer S 2014: Oligotyping reveals differences between gut microbiomes of free-ranging sympatric Namibian carnivores (Acinonyx jubatus, Canis mesomelas) on a bacterial species-like level. Frontier in Microbiology 5: 526. Doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2014.00526.
  • Krengel A, Cattori V, Meli ML, Wachter B, Böni J, Bisset LR, Thalwitzer S, Melzheimer J, Jago M, Hofmann-Lehmann R, Hofer H, Lutz H 2015: Gammaretrovirus-specific antibodies in free-ranging and captive Namibian cheetahs. Clinical and Vaccine Immunology 22: 611-617. Doi: 10.1128/CVI.00705-14.
  • Heinrich SK, Wachter B, Wibbelt G 2016: Benign pigmented dermal basal cell tumor in a Namibian cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus). Case Report in Veterinary Medicine 2016: 1-5. Doi: 10.1155/2016/7981765.
  • Menke S, Meier M, Mfune JKE, Melzheimer J, Wachter B, Sommer S 2017: Effects of host traits and land-use changes on the gut microbiota of the Namibian black-backed jackal (Canis mesomelas). FEMS Microbiology Ecology 93. Doi: 10.1093/femsec/fix123.
  • Wasimuddin, Menke S, Melzheimer J, Thalwitzer S, Heinrich S, Wachter B, Sommer S 2017: Gut microbiomes of free-ranging and captive Namibian cheetahs: diversity, putative functions and occurrence of potential pathogens. Molecular Ecology. Doi: 10.1111/mec.14278.
  • Seltmann A, Webster F, Martins Ferreira SC, Czirják GÁ, Wachter B 2019: Age-specific gastrointestinal parasite shedding in free-ranging cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) on Namibian farmland. Parasitology Research. Doi: 10.1007/s00436-018-6190-2.
  • Seltmann A, Schares G, Aschenborn OHK, Heinrich SK, Thalwitzer S, Wachter B*, Czirják GÁ* 2020: Species-specific differences in Toxoplasma gondii, Neospora caninum and Besnoitia besnoiti seroprevalence in Namibian wildlife. Parasites and Vectors 13:7. Doi: 10.1186/s13071-019-3871-3.