Stopping Buruli Ulcer in Victoria

Grant number: 1196396 | Funding period: 2020 - 2024

Completed

Abstract

Buruli ulcer (BU) is a destructive skin and soft tissue infection that can cause permanent deformity. Australian native possums carry in their guts the bacteria that causes BU and mosquitoes spread BU to people from areas contaminated by possum faeces. A targeted intervention based on screening possum faeces followed by control of mosquitoes in areas where possums and mosquitoes are shown to carry the bacteria will be trialed here, giving public health officials a means to stop this disease.

Related publications (11)

Definingnew Buruli ulcer endemic areas in urban southeastern Australia using bacterial genomics-informed possum excreta surveys

AH Buultjens, K Vandelannoote, JL Porter, S Muhi, EC Hobbs, CA Antão, EEL Tay, J Lacey, N Sherry, M Globan, CJ Lavender, A Meredith, PDR Johnson, KB Gibney, TP Stinear

2025-12-01

Buruli ulcer in southeastern Australia is a zoonosis caused by infection with Mycobacterium ulcerans. Australian native possums ar..

Transmission models of Mycobacterium ulcerans: A systematic review

R Rasmussen, KB Gibney, TP Stinear, JA Flegg, PT Campbell

2025-08-01

Background: Buruli ulcer, caused by Mycobacterium ulcerans, is a neglected tropical disease affecting 33 countries worldwide. Eluc..

Detection of Mycobacterium ulcerans with IS2404 loop-mediated isothermal amplification and a fluorescent reporter probe

JYH Lee, JL Porter, M Globan, CJ Lavender, Y Zhang, NA Tanner, EC Hobbs, AH Buultjens, TP Stinear

2025-01-01

An exquisitely sensitive quantitative PCR (qPCR) assay targeting the high-copy number insertion sequence, IS2404, is the gold stan..

Buruli ulcer surveillance in south-eastern Australian possums: Infection status, lesion mapping and internal distribution of Mycobacterium ulcerans

EC Hobbs, JL Porter, JYH Lee, P Loukopoulos, P Whiteley, LF Skerratt, TP Stinear, KB Gibney, AL Meredith

2024-11-01

Buruli ulcer (BU) is a neglected tropical disease of skin and subcutaneous tissues caused by Mycobacterium ulcerans. BU-endemic ar..

Severe cases of Buruli ulcer (infection with Mycobacterium ulcerans) in common ringtail possums in Victoria adversely affect animal welfare

EC Hobbs, P Loukopoulos, TP Stinear, JL Porter, JYH Lee, P Whiteley, LF Skerratt, KB Gibney, A Meredith

2024-10-01

Buruli ulcer is a chronic ulcerative disease of the skin and subcutaneous tissues caused by infection with Mycobacterium ulcerans...

Mosquitoes provide a transmission route between possums and humans for Buruli ulcer in southeastern Australia

PT Mee, AH Buultjens, J Oliver, K Brown, JC Crowder, JL Porter, EC Hobbs, LM Judd, G Taiaroa, N Puttharak, DA Williamson, KR Blasdell, EL Tay, R Feldman, MO Muzari, C Sanders, S Larsen, SR Crouch, PDR Johnson, JR Wallace

2024-02-01

Buruli ulcer, a chronic subcutaneous infection caused by Mycobacterium ulcerans, is increasing in prevalence in southeastern Austr..

A low-cost and versatile paramagnetic bead DNA extraction method for Mycobacterium ulcerans environmental surveillance

Jean YH Lee, Jessica L Porter, Emma C Hobbs, Pam Whiteley, Andrew H Buultjens, Timothy P Stinear

2024-01-01

In Australia, native possums are a major wildlife reservoir for Mycobacterium ulcerans, the causative agent of the neglected tropi..

How often are male mosquitoes attracted to humans?

V Paris, C Hardy, AA Hoffmann, PA Ross

2023-10-25

Many mosquito species live close to humans where females feed on human blood. While male mosquitoes do not feed on blood, it has l..

Evaluation of In2Care mosquito stations for suppression of the Australian backyard mosquito, Aedes notoscriptus (Diptera: Culicidae)

V Paris, N Bell, TL Schmidt, NM Endersby-Harshman, AA Hoffmann

2023-09-01

Aedes notoscriptus (Skuse) is a container-inhabiting mosquito endemic to Australia that vectors arboviruses and is suspected to tr..

Statistical modeling based on structured surveys of Australian native possum excreta harboring Mycobacterium ulcerans predicts Buruli ulcer occurrence in humans

K Vandelannoote, AH Buultjens, JL Porter, A Velink, JR Wallace, KR Blasdell, M Dunn, V Boyd, JAM Fyfe, EL Tay, PDR Johnson, SM Windecker, N Golding, TP Stinear

2023-04-14

Background: Buruli ulcer (BU) is a neglected tropical disease caused by infection of subcutaneous tissue with Mycobacterium ulcera..

Urban population structure and dispersal of an Australian mosquito (Aedes notoscriptus) involved in disease transmission

Veronique Paris, Rahul V Rane, Peter T Mee, Stacey E Lynch, Ary A Hoffmann, Thomas L Schmidt

2023-02-01

Dispersal is a critical parameter for successful pest control measures as it determines the rate of movement across target control..

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