Research overview: Trypanosoma infections in African lions and other wild felids

African lions and other wild felids can be infected with Trypanosoma, tsetse-transmitted protozoan parasites better known for causing sleeping sickness in humans and nagana in livestock. This overview surveys the occurrence of trypanosomes in wild cats, usually as subclinical infections, the vectors and transmission routes involved, and the rare circumstances under which they may contribute to disease or interact with other stressors. It examines molecular surveys detecting trypanosome diversity in felids and the place of wild cats within the broader epidemiology of African trypanosomiasis. The synthesis connects felid parasitology to a disease complex of major veterinary and medical importance. It aims to give readers a view of wild cats as part of the wider host community for these vector-borne parasites across the African landscape.