Publications

  1. Rossouw, J., Karesh, W. B., Trataris-Rebisz, A. N., Tempia, S., Rostal, M. K., & Msimang, V. (2025). Seroprevalence and associated risk factors of human brucellosis in a farming and animal health community in South Africa. Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease. DOI: 10.3390/tropicalmed10110302
  2. Rostal, M. K., Thompson, P. N., Anyamba, A., Bett, B., Cêtre-Sossah, C., Chevalier, V., Guarido, M., Karesh, W. B., Kemp, A., LaBeaud, A. D., Lubisi, A., Matthews, L., Msimang, V., Njenga, K. M., Ross, N., Tumusiime, D., Wilson, W., Weyer, J., Paweska, J. T., & Swanepoel, R. (2025). Rift Valley fever epidemiology: Shifting the paradigm and rethinking research priorities. Lancet Planetary Health. DOI: 10.1016/j.lanplh.2025.101299
  3. Rostal, M. K., Prentice, J., Ross, N., Kemp, A., Thompson, P. N., Anyamba, A., Cleaveland, S., Cordel, C., Msimang, V., van Vuren, J. P., Haydon, D., Karesh, W. B., Paweska, J. P., & Matthews, L. (2025). Localized Rift Valley fever virus persistence explains epidemic and interepidemic dynamics and guides control strategies. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2025.0453
  4. Balasubramaniam, K. N., Navarrete-Macias, I., Islam, S., Wells, H. L., Tubbs, C., Randhawa, N., Rostal, M. K., Darpel, K. E., Horton, D., Epstein, J. H., Islam, A., & Anthony, S. J. (2025). Anthropogenic factors and social organisation drive picobirnavirus communities in wild rhesus macaques. Ecology and Evolution. DOI: 10.1002/ece3.71727
  5. 5. Mamabolo, M., Machalaba, C., Zantsi, S., Rostal, M. K., Karesh, W. B., Thompson, P. N., Weyer, J., & Chaminuka, P. (2025). One Health Economics approach to prevention and control of zoonotic diseases - considerations for South Africa. One Health Outlook, 7(30). DOI: 10.1186/s42522-025-00142-y
  6. Makhanthisa, T. I., Guarido, M. M., Kemp, A., Weyer, J., Rostal, M. K., B., K. W., & N., T. P. (2024). Characterization of mosquito host-biting networks of potential Rift Valley fever virus vectors in north-eastern KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. Parasites & Vectors, 17(341). DOI: 10.1186/s13071-024-06416-0
  7. Hughes, E. C., de Glanville, W., Kibona, T., Mmbaga, B. T., Rostal, M. K., Swai, E., Cleaveland, S., Lankester, F., Willett, B. J., & Allan, K. J. (2024). Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus seroprevalence in human and livestock populations, northern Tanzania. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 30(4). DOI: 10.3201/eid3004.231204
  8. Gibson, S., Noronha, L. E., Tubbs, H., Cohnstaedt, L. W., Wilson, W. C., Mire, C., Mitzel, D., Anyamba, A., Rostal, M., & Linthicum, K. J. (2023). The increasing threat of Rift Valley fever virus globalization: Strategic guidance for protection and preparation. Journal of Medical Entomology, 60(6), 1197–1213. DOI: 10.1093/jme/tjad113
  9. Rahman, M. K., Hassan, M. M., Islam, S., Rostal, M. K., Uddin, M. H., Hagan, E., Samad, M. A., Flora, M. S., Epstein, J. H., & Islam, A. (2023). Characterization and epidemiology of antimicrobial resistance patterns of Salmonella spp. and Staphylococcus spp. in free-ranging rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta) at high-risk interfaces with people and livestock in Bangladesh. Frontiers in Veterinary Science, 10. DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2023.1103922
  10. de Glanville, W. A., Allan, K. J., Nyarobi, J. M., Thomas, K. M., Lankester, F., Kibona, T. J., Claxton, J. R., Brennan, B., Carter, R. W., Crump, J. A., Halliday, J. E. B., Ladbury, G., Mmbaga, B. T., Mramba, F., Nyasebwa, O. M., Rubach, M. P., Rostal, M. K., Sanka, P., Swai, E. S., … Cleaveland, S. (2022). An outbreak of Rift Valley fever among peri-urban dairy cattle in northern Tanzania. Transactions of The Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 116(11), 1082–1090. DOI: 10.1093/trstmh/trac076
  11. de Glanville, W. A., Nyarobi, J. M., Kibona, T., Halliday, J. E. B., Thomas, K. M., Allan, K. J., Johnson, P. C. D., Davis, A., Lankester, F., Claxton, J. R., Rostal, M. K., Carter, R. W., de Jong, R. M. F., Rubach, M. P., Crump, J. A., Mmbaga, B. T., Nyasebwa, O. M., Swai, E. S., Willett, B., & Cleaveland, S. (2022). Inter-epidemic Rift Valley fever virus infection incidence and risks for zoonotic spillover in northern Tanzania. PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 16(10), e0010871. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0010871
  12. Msimang, V., Rostal, M. K., Cordel, C., Machalaba, C., Tempia, S., Bagge, W., Burt, F. J., Karesh, W. B., Paweska, J. T., & Thompson, P. N. (2022). Factors affecting the use of biosecurity measures for the protection of ruminant livestock and farm workers against infectious diseases in central South Africa. Transboundary and Emerging Diseases, 69(5). DOI: 10.1111/tbed.14525
  13. Pandit, P. S., Anthony, S. J., Goldstein, T., Olival, K. J., Doyle, M. M., Gardner, N. R., Bird, B., Smith, W., Wolking, D., Gilardi, K., Monagin, C., Kelly, T., Uhart, M. M., Epstein, J. H., Machalaba, C., Rostal, M. K., Dawson, P., Hagan, E., Sullivan, A., … Johnson, C. K. (2022). Predicting the potential for zoonotic transmission and host associations for novel viruses. Communications Biology, 5(1). DOI: 10.1038/s42003-022-03797-9
  14. Wells, H. L., Loh, E., Nava, A., Solorio, M. R., Lee, M. H., Lee, J., Sukor, J. R. A., Navarrete-Macias, I., Liang, E., Firth, C., Epstein, J. H., Rostal, M. K., Zambrana-Torrelio, C., Murray, K., Daszak, P., Goldstein, T., Mazet, J. A. K., Lee, B., Hughes, T., … Anthony, S. J. (2022). Classification of new morbillivirus and jeilongvirus sequences from bats sampled in Brazil and Malaysia. Archives of Virology. DOI: 10.1007/s00705-022-05500-z
  15. Anyamba, A., Damoah, R., Kemp, A., Small, J. L., Rostal, M. K., Bagge, W., Cordel, C., Brand, R., Karesh, W. B., & Paweska, J. T. (2022). Climate conditions during a Rift Valley fever post-epizootic period in Free State, South Africa, 2014–2019. Frontiers in Veterinary Science, 8. DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2021.730424
  16. Shano, S., Islam, A., Hagan, E., Rostal, M. K., Martinez, S., Al Shakil, A., Hasan, M., Francisco, L., Husain, M. M., Rahman, M., Flora, M. S., Miller, M., Daszak, P., & Epstein, J. H. (2021). Environmental change and zoonotic disease risk at human-macaque interfaces in Bangladesh. EcoHealth, 18(4), 487–499. DOI: 10.1007/s10393-021-01565-5
  17. Msimang, V., Weyer, J., le Roux, C., Kemp, A., Burt, F. J., Tempia, S., Grobbelaar, A., Moolla, N., Rostal, M. K., Bagge, W., Cordel, C., Karesh, W. B., Paweska, J. T., & Thompson, P. N. (2021). Risk factors associated with exposure to Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus in animal workers and cattle, and molecular detection in ticks, South Africa. PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 15(5), e0009384. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0009384
  18. Machalaba, C., Raufman, J., Anyamba, A., Berrian, A. M., Berthe, F. C. J., Gray, G. C., Jonas, O., Karesh, W. B., Larsen, M. H., Laxminarayan, R., Madoff, L. C., Martin, K., Mazet, J. A. K., Mumford, E., Parker, T., Pintea, L., Rostal, M. K., De Castañeda, R. R., Vora, N. M., … Weiss, L. M. (2021). Applying a One Health approach in global health and medicine: Enhancing involvement of medical schools and global health centers. Annals of Global Health, 87(1), 30. DOI: 10.5334/aogh.2647
  19. Rostal, M. K., Cleaveland, S., Cordel, C., van Staden, L., Matthews, L., Anyamba, A., Karesh, W. B., Paweska, J. T., Haydon, D. T., & Ross, N. (2020). Farm-level risk factors of increased abortion and mortality in domestic ruminants during the 2010 Rift Valley fever outbreak in central South Africa. Pathogens, 9(11), 914. DOI: 10.3390/pathogens9110914
  20. Islam, A., Hossain, M. E., Rostal, M. K., Ferdous, J., Islam, A., Hasan, R., Miah, M., Rahman, M., Rahman, M. Z., Daszak, P., & Epstein, J. H. (2020). Epidemiology and molecular characterization of rotavirus A in fruit bats in Bangladesh. EcoHealth, 17(3), 398–405. DOI: 10.1007/s10393-020-01488-7
  21. Verster, A. M., Liang, J. E., Rostal, M. K., Kemp, A., Brand, R. F., Anyamba, A., Cordel, C., Schall, R., Zwiegers, H., Paweska, J. T., Karesh, W. B., & van Huyssteen, C. W. (2020). Selected wetland soil properties correlate to Rift Valley fever livestock mortalities reported in 2009-10 in central South Africa. PLOS ONE, 15(5), e0232481. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0232481
  22. Ngoshe, Y. B., Avenant, A., Rostal, M. K., Karesh, W. B., Paweska, J. T., Bagge, W., Jansen van Vuren, P., Kemp, A., Cordel, C., Msimang, V., & Thompson, P. N. (2020). Patterns of Rift Valley fever virus seropositivity in domestic ruminants in central South Africa four years after a large outbreak. Scientific Reports, 10(1). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-62453-6
  23. Islam, A., Hossain, M. E., Haider, N., Rostal, M. K., Mukharjee, S. K., Ferdous, J., Miah, M., Rahman, M., Daszak, P., Rahman, M. Z., & Epstein, J. H. (2019). Molecular characterization of group A rotavirus from rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) at human–wildlife interfaces in Bangladesh. Transboundary and Emerging Diseases, 67(2), 956–966. DOI: 10.1111/tbed.13431
  24. Msimang, V., Thompson, P. N., Jansen van Vuren, P., Tempia, S., Cordel, C., Kgaladi, J., Khosa, J., Burt, F. J., Liang, J., Rostal, M. K., Karesh, W. B., & Paweska, J. T. (2019). Rift Valley fever virus exposure amongst farmers, farm workers, and veterinary professionals in central South Africa. Viruses, 11(2), 140. DOI: 10.3390/v11020140
  25. Rostal, M. K., Ross, N., Machalaba, C., Cordel, C., Paweska, J. T., & Karesh, W. B. (2018). Benefits of a one health approach: An example using Rift Valley fever. One Health, 5, 34–36. DOI: 10.1016/j.onehlt.2018.01.001
  26. Islam, A., Epstein, J. H., Rostal, M. K., Islam, S., Rahman, M. Z., Hossain, M. E., Uzzaman, M. S., Munster, V. J., Peiris, M., Flora, M. S., Rahman, M., & Daszak, P. (2018). Middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus antibodies in dromedary camels, Bangladesh, 2015. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 24(5), 926–928. DOI: 10.3201/eid2405.171192
  27. Brand, R. F., Rostal, M. K., Kemp, A., Anyamba, A., Zwiegers, H., Van Huyssteen, C. W., Karesh, W. B., & Paweska, J. T. (2018). A phytosociological analysis and description of wetland vegetation and ecological factors associated with locations of high mortality for the 2010-11 Rift Valley fever outbreak in South Africa. PLOS ONE, 13(2), e0191585. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0191585
  28. Rostal, M. K., Liang, J. E., Zimmermann, D., Bengis, R., Paweska, J., & Karesh, W. B. (2017). Rift Valley fever: Does wildlife play a role? ILAR Journal, 58(3), 359–370. DOI: 10.1093/ilar/ilx023
  29. Sotomayor-Bonilla, J., Abella-Medrano, C. A., Chaves, A., Álvarez-Mendizábal, P., Rico-Chávez, Ó., Ibáñez-Bernal, S., Rostal, M. K., Ojeda-Flores, R., Barbachano-Guerrero, A., Gutiérrez-Espeleta, G., Aguirre, A. A., Daszak, P., & Suzán, G. (2017). Potential sympatric vectors and mammalian hosts of Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus in southern Mexico. Journal of Wildlife Diseases, 53(3), 657. DOI: 10.7589/2016-11-249
  30. White, A. M., Zambrana-Torrelio, C., Allen, T., Rostal, M. K., Wright, A. K., Ball, E. C., Daszak, P., & Karesh, W. B. (2017). Hotspots of canine leptospirosis in the United States of America. The Veterinary Journal, 222, 29–35. DOI: 10.1016/j.tvjl.2017.02.009
  31. Anthony, S. J., Islam, A., Johnson, C., Navarrete-Macias, I., Liang, E., Jain, K., Hitchens, P. L., Che, X., Soloyvov, A., Hicks, A. L., Ojeda-Flores, R., Zambrana-Torrelio, C., Ulrich, W., Rostal, M. K., Petrosov, A., Garcia, J., Haider, N., Wolfe, N., Goldstein, T., … Lipkin, W. I. (2015). Non-random patterns in viral diversity. Nature Communications, 6(1). DOI: 10.1038/ncomms9147
  32. Lee, M.-H., Rostal, M. K., Hughes, T., Sitam, F., Lee, C.-Y., Japning, J., Harden, M. E., Griffiths, A., Basir, M., Wolfe, N. D., Epstein, J. H., & Daszak, P. (2015). Macacine herpesvirus 1 in long-tailed macaques, Malaysia, 2009–2011. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 21(7), 1107–1113. DOI: 10.3201/eid2107.140162
  33. Olival, K. J., Dittmar, K., Bai, Y., Rostal, M. K., Lei, B. R., Daszak, P., & Kosoy, M. (2015). Bartonella spp. in a Puerto Rican bat community. Journal of Wildlife Diseases, 51(1), 274–278. DOI: 10.7589/2014-04-113
  34. Sotomayor-Bonilla, J., Chaves, A., Rico-Chávez, O., Rostal, M. K., Ojeda-Flores, R., Salas-Rojas, M., Aguilar-Setien, Á., Ibáñez-Bernal, S., Barbachano-Guerrero, A., Gutiérrez-Espeleta, G., Aguilar-Faisal, J. L., Aguirre, A. A., Daszak, P., & Suzán, G. (2014). Dengue virus in bats from southeastern Mexico. The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 91(1), 129–131. DOI: 10.4269/ajtmh.13-0524
  35. Loh, E. H., Murray, K. A., Zambrana-Torrelio, C., Hosseini, P. R., Rostal, M. K., Karesh, W. B., & Daszak, P. (2013). Ecological approaches to studying zoonoses. Microbiology Spectrum, 1(2). DOI: 10.1128/microbiolspec.oh-0009-2012
  36. Smith, K. M., Loh, E. H., Rostal, M. K., Zambrana-Torrelio, C. M., Mendiola, L., & Daszak, P. (2013). Pathogens, pests, and economics: Drivers of honey bee colony declines and losses. EcoHealth, 10(4), 434–445. DOI: 10.1007/s10393-013-0870-2
  37. Quan, P.-L., Firth, C., Conte, J. M., Williams, S. H., Zambrana-Torrelio, C. M., Anthony, S. J., Ellison, J. A., Gilbert, A. T., Kuzmin, I. V., Niezgoda, M., Osinubi, M. O. V., Recuenco, S., Markotter, W., Breiman, R. F., Kalemba, L., Malekani, J., Lindblade, K. A., Rostal, M. K., Ojeda-Flores, R., … Lipkin, W. I. (2013). Bats are a major natural reservoir for hepaciviruses and pegiviruses. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 110(20), 8194–8199. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1303037110
  38. Anthony, S. J., Ojeda-Flores, R., Rico-Chávez, O., Navarrete-Macias, I., Zambrana-Torrelio, C. M., Rostal, M. K., Epstein, J. H., Tipps, T., Liang, E., Sanchez-Leon, M., Sotomayor-Bonilla, J., Aguirre, A. A., Ávila-Flores, R., Medellín, R. A., Goldstein, T., Suzán, G., Daszak, P., & Lipkin, W. I. (2013). Coronaviruses in bats from Mexico. Journal of General Virology, 94(5), 1028–1038. DOI: 10.1099/vir.0.049759-0
  39. Rostal, M. K., Evans, A. L., Solberg, E. J., & Arnemo, J. M. (2012). Hematology and serum chemistry reference ranges of free-ranging moose (Alces alces in Norway. Journal of Wildlife Diseases, 48(3), 548–559. DOI: 10.7589/0090-3558-48.3.548
  40. Rostal, M. K., Olival, K. J., Loh, E. H., & Karesh, W. B. (2012). Wildlife: The need to better understand the linkages. Current Topics in Microbiology and Immunology, 365, 101–125. DOI: 10.1007/82_2012_271
  41. Aguirre, A., Rostal, M. K., Zimmerman, B., & Keefe, T. (2012). Epidemiologic investigations of infectious pathogens in marine mammals: The importance of serum banks and statistical analysis. In New Directions in Conservation Medicine: Applied Cases of Ecological Health (pp. 563–575). Oxford University Press.
  42. Epstein, J. H., Zambriski, J. A., Rostal, M. K., Heard, D. J., & Daszak, P. (2011). Comparison of intravenous medetomidine and medetomidine/ketamine for immobilization of free-ranging variable flying foxes (Pteropus hypomelanus). PLoS ONE, 6(10), e25361. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0025361
  43. Rostal, M. K., Evans, A. L., Sang, R., Gikundi, S., Wakhule, L., Munyua, P., Macharia, J., Feikin, D. R., Breiman, R. F., & Njenga, M. K. (2010). Identification of potential vectors of and detection of antibodies against Rift Valley fever virus in livestock during interepizootic periods. American Journal of Veterinary Research, 71(5), 522–526. DOI: 10.2460/ajvr.71.5.522
  44. Evans, A., Gakuya, F., Paweska, J. T., Rostal, M., Akoolo, L., van Vuren, P. J., Manyibe, T., Macharia, J. M., Ksiazek, T. G., Feikin, D. R., Breiman, R. F., & Njenga, K. M. (2007). Prevalence of antibodies against Rift Valley fever virus in Kenyan wildlife. Epidemiology and Infection, 136(9), 1261–1269. DOI: 10.1017/s0950268807009806