The images of these chimpanzees make many people obsessed.
Leprosy was first found in a group of primates living in the wild. The image of chimpanzees with lumps on their faces is really shocking and haunting for many people.
The images recently published by scientists have surprised not only the public but also the researchers. These cases have been recorded in two separate chimpanzee populations in Duinea Bissau and Ivory Coast. According to scientists from the University of Exeter’s Center for Ecology and Conservation, strains of leprosy are quite diverse in humans. However, the fact that they appear on chimpanzees still has no exact explanation.
This confirms that the disease is more prevalent in wildlife than previously thought. They may be caused by contact with humans or unknown sources of infection from the environment.
Humans are considered to be the main host of the bacteria that cause leprosy. However, humans have been able to control them with antibiotics since the 1980s and it was once thought to have been wiped out from the animal world.
However, in the last two decades scientists have found that they are spreading among red squirrels and now wild chimpanzees. Their symptoms in chimpanzees are the same as in humans.
Research is still ongoing and it is hoped that the chimpanzees will be freed from this threat.
