Judy Williamson Kacy R. Cobble Joseph D. Busch Michael F. Antolin David M. Wagner Tonie E. Rocke 2012 <p>In some rodent species frequently exposed to plague outbreaks caused by <i>Yersinia pestis</i>, resistance to the disease has evolved as a population trait. As a first step in determining if plague resistance has developed in black-tailed prairie dogs (<i>Cynomys ludovicianus</i>), animals captured from colonies in a plague-free region (South Dakota) and two plague-endemic regions (Colorado and Texas) were challenged with <i>Y. pestis</i> at one of three doses (2.5, 250, or 2500 mouse LD50s). South Dakota prairie dogs were far more susceptible to plague than Colorado and Texas prairie dogs (<i>p</i>&lt;0.001), with a mortality rate of nearly 100% over all doses. Colorado and Texas prairie dogs were quite similar in their response, with overall survival rates of 50% and 60%, respectively. Prairie dogs from these states were heterogenous in their response, with some animals dying at the lowest dose (37% and 20%, respectively) and some surviving even at the highest dose (29% and 40%, respectively). Microsatellite analysis revealed that all three groups were distinct genetically, but further studies are needed to establish a genetic basis for the observed differences in plague resistance.</p> application/pdf 10.1089/vbz.2011.0602 en Society for Zoonotic Ecology and Epidemiology Resistance to plague among black-tailed prairie dog populations article