We identified mixed infections of pathogenic Leptospira in small mammals across a landscape-scale study area in Madagascar by using primers targeting different Leptospira spp. Using targeted primers increased prevalence estimates and evidence for transmission between endemic and invasive hosts. Future studies should assess rodentborne transmission of Leptospira to humans.
Keywords: Leptospira; Madagascar; bacteria; co-infections; disease ecology; introduced species; invasive; maintenance hosts; molecular epidemiology; neglected tropical diseases; public health; reservoir hosts; spillover; zoonoses.