1
|
Riccio MB, García JP, Chiapparrone ML, Cantón J, Cacciato C, Origlia JA, Cadario ME, Diab SS, Uzal FA. Outbreak of Chlamydia psittaci Infection in a Commercial Psittacine Breeding Aviary in Argentina. Animals (Basel) 2024; 14:1959. [PMID: 38998071 PMCID: PMC11240451 DOI: 10.3390/ani14131959] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2024] [Revised: 06/27/2024] [Accepted: 06/28/2024] [Indexed: 07/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Chlamydiosis, caused by Chlamydia psittaci is a bacterial infection found in at least 465 species of birds worldwide. It is highly contagious among birds and can spread to humans. In birds, the disease can manifest itself in acute, subacute, and chronic forms with signs including anorexia, diarrhea, lethargy, weight loss, or, occasionally, mucopurulent or serous oculonasal discharge. This article describes an outbreak of chlamydiosis that occurred in a commercial psittacine breeding aviary in 2021 in Buenos Aires province, Argentina. In total, 16 juvenile blue-fronted parrots, more than 60 blue-fronted parrot chicks, and 2 adult macaws died during the outbreak. In all cases, clinical signs were weight loss, diarrhea, yellowish green excrement, and respiratory distress. The necropsy of four juvenile blue-fronted parrots, two blue-fronted parrot chicks, and two adult macaws revealed cachexia, hepatomegaly, splenomegaly, splenic petechial hemorrhages, ascites, pulmonary edema, and hydropericardium. Histologically, multifocal lymphoplasmacytic and heterophilic airsaculitis, multifocal lymphoplasmacytic and necrotizing hepatitis with intracytoplasmic elementary bodies, multifocal necro-heterophilic hepatitis, multifocal lymphoplasmacytic nephritis, and diffuse heterophilic pneumonia were found. A presumptive diagnosis was established based on gross and microscopic lesions, and it was confirmed using immunohistochemistry and polymerase chain reactions. The sequencing and phylogenetic analysis of the ompA gene revealed genotype A and B of Chlamydia psittaci.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- María Belén Riccio
- Servicio de Diagnóstico Veterinario FCV Tandil, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, Tandil B7000GHG, Argentina;
| | - Jorge Pablo García
- Servicio de Diagnóstico Veterinario FCV Tandil, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, Tandil B7000GHG, Argentina;
| | - María Laura Chiapparrone
- Laboratorio de Microbiología Clínica y Experimental, Centro de Investigación Veterinaria de Tandil (CIVETAN) (UNCPBA-CICPBA-CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, Tandil B7000GHG, Argentina; (M.L.C.); (J.C.); (C.C.)
| | - Juliana Cantón
- Laboratorio de Microbiología Clínica y Experimental, Centro de Investigación Veterinaria de Tandil (CIVETAN) (UNCPBA-CICPBA-CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, Tandil B7000GHG, Argentina; (M.L.C.); (J.C.); (C.C.)
| | - Claudio Cacciato
- Laboratorio de Microbiología Clínica y Experimental, Centro de Investigación Veterinaria de Tandil (CIVETAN) (UNCPBA-CICPBA-CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, Tandil B7000GHG, Argentina; (M.L.C.); (J.C.); (C.C.)
| | - Javier Anibal Origlia
- Cátedra de Patología de Aves y Pilíferos, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata B1900BVB, Argentina;
| | - María Estela Cadario
- INEI-ANLIS «Dr. Carlos G. Malbrán», Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires B1282AFF, Argentina;
| | - Santiago Sain Diab
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA;
| | - Francisco Alejandro Uzal
- California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California Davis, San Bernardino, CA 92408, USA;
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Loehrer S, Hagenbuch F, Marti H, Pesch T, Hässig M, Borel N. Longitudinal study of Chlamydia pecorum in a healthy Swiss cattle population. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0292509. [PMID: 38079424 PMCID: PMC10712897 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0292509] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Accepted: 11/26/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Chlamydia pecorum is a globally endemic livestock pathogen but prevalence data from Switzerland has so far been limited. The present longitudinal study aimed to get an insight into the C. pecorum prevalence in Swiss cattle and investigated infection dynamics. The study population consisted of a bovine herd (n = 308) located on a farm in the north-eastern part of Switzerland. The herd comprised dairy cows, beef cattle and calves all sampled up to five times over a one-year period. At each sampling timepoint, rectal and conjunctival swabs were collected resulting in 782 samples per sampled area (total n = 1564). Chlamydiaceae screening was performed initially, followed by C. pecorum-specific real-time qPCR on all samples. For C. pecorum-positive samples, bacterial loads were determined. In this study, C. pecorum was the only chlamydial species found. Animal prevalences were determined to be 5.2-11.4%, 38.1-61.5% and 55-100% in dairy cows, beef cattle and calves, respectively. In all categories, the number of C. pecorum-positive samples was higher in conjunctival (n = 151) compared to rectal samples (n = 65), however, the average rectal load was higher. At a younger age, the chlamydial prevalence and the mean bacterial loads were significantly higher. Of all sampled bovines, only 9.4% (29/308) were high shedders (number of copies per μl >1,000). Calves, which tested positive multiple times, either failed to eliminate the pathogen between sampling timepoints or were reinfected, whereas dairy cows were mostly only positive at one timepoint. In conclusion, C. pecorum was found in healthy Swiss cattle. Our observations suggested that infection takes place at an early age and immunity might develop over time. Although the gastrointestinal tract is supposed to be the main infection site, C. pecorum was not present in rectal samples from dairy cows.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Samuel Loehrer
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Fabian Hagenbuch
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Hanna Marti
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Theresa Pesch
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Michael Hässig
- Department for Farm Animals, Section for Herd Health, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Nicole Borel
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Jelocnik M, White RT, Clune T, O'Connell J, Foxwell J, Hair S, Besier S, Tom L, Phillips N, Robbins A, Bogema D, Vaz PK, Legione AR, Jenkins C, Jacobson C. Molecular characterisation of the Australian and New Zealand livestock Chlamydia pecorum strains confirms novel but clonal ST23 in association with ovine foetal loss. Vet Microbiol 2023; 283:109774. [PMID: 37216721 DOI: 10.1016/j.vetmic.2023.109774] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2022] [Revised: 05/07/2023] [Accepted: 05/09/2023] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Chlamydia pecorum is a veterinary pathogen associated with abortions and perinatal mortality in sheep. Recent studies investigating foetal and perinatal lamb mortality in sheep from Australia and New Zealand identified C. pecorum clonal sequence type (ST)23 strains in aborted and stillborn lambs. Presently, there is limited genotypic information on C. pecorum strains associated with reproductive disease, although whole genome sequencing (WGS) of one abortigenic ST23 C. pecorum strain identified unique features, including a deletion in the CDS1 locus of the chlamydial plasmid. We applied WGS on two ST23 strains detected in aborted and stillborn lambs from Australia and used phylogenetic and comparative analyses to compare these to the other available C. pecorum genomes. To re-evaluate the genetic diversity of contemporary strains, we applied C. pecorum genotyping, and chlamydial plasmid sequencing to a range of C. pecorum positive samples and isolates from ewes, aborted foetuses and stillborn lambs, cattle and a goat from diverse geographical regions across Australia and New Zealand.The two new C. pecorum genomes are nearly identical to the genome of the Australian abortigenic strain including the unique deletion in the chlamydial plasmid. Genotyping revealed that these novel C. pecorum ST23 strains are widespread and associated with sheep abortions on Australian and New Zealand farms. In addition, a goat C. pecorum strain (denoted ST 304) from New Zealand was also characterised. This study expands the C. pecorum genome catalogue and describes a comprehensive molecular characterisation of the novel livestock ST23 strains associated with foetal and lamb mortality.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Martina Jelocnik
- University of the Sunshine Coast, Centre for Bioinnovation, Sippy Downs, Sunshine Coast, Queensland 4557, Australia.
| | - Rhys T White
- University of the Sunshine Coast, Centre for Bioinnovation, Sippy Downs, Sunshine Coast, Queensland 4557, Australia; The University of Queensland, School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, Australian Infectious Disease Research Centre, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia; The University of Queensland, Australian Centre for Ecogenomics, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia.
| | - Tom Clune
- Murdoch University, Centre for Animal Production and Health, Perth, Western Australia 6150, Australia.
| | - John O'Connell
- Ministry for Primary Industries, Diagnostic and Surveillance Services Directorate, Upper Hutt 5140, New Zealand. john.o'
| | - Jonathan Foxwell
- Animal Health Laboratory, Ministry for Primary Industries, 66 Ward Street, Upper Hutt 5018, New Zealand.
| | - Sam Hair
- Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, South Perth, WA 6151, Australia.
| | - Shane Besier
- Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, South Perth, WA 6151, Australia.
| | - La Tom
- Murdoch University, Centre for Animal Production and Health, Perth, Western Australia 6150, Australia.
| | - Nyree Phillips
- Murdoch University, Centre for Animal Production and Health, Perth, Western Australia 6150, Australia.
| | - Amy Robbins
- University of the Sunshine Coast, Centre for Bioinnovation, Sippy Downs, Sunshine Coast, Queensland 4557, Australia.
| | - Daniel Bogema
- NSW Department of Primary Industries, Elizabeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute, Menangle, New South Wales 2568, Australia.
| | - Paola K Vaz
- The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Veterinary School, Asia Pacific Centre for Animal Health, Parkville, Victoria 3010, Australia.
| | - Alistair R Legione
- The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Veterinary School, Asia Pacific Centre for Animal Health, Parkville, Victoria 3010, Australia.
| | - Cheryl Jenkins
- NSW Department of Primary Industries, Elizabeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute, Menangle, New South Wales 2568, Australia.
| | - Caroline Jacobson
- Murdoch University, Centre for Animal Production and Health, Perth, Western Australia 6150, Australia.
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Marti H, Jelocnik M. Animal Chlamydiae: A Concern for Human and Veterinary Medicine. Pathogens 2022; 11:pathogens11030364. [PMID: 35335688 PMCID: PMC8951289 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens11030364] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2022] [Accepted: 03/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Hanna Marti
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Vetsuisse-Faculty University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
- Correspondence: (H.M.); (M.J.)
| | - Martina Jelocnik
- Centre for Bioinnovation, University of the Sunshine Coast, Sippy Downs 4556, Australia
- Correspondence: (H.M.); (M.J.)
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
White RT, Legione AR, Taylor-Brown A, Fernandez CM, Higgins DP, Timms P, Jelocnik M. Completing the Genome Sequence of Chlamydia pecorum Strains MC/MarsBar and DBDeUG: New Insights into This Enigmatic Koala ( Phascolarctos cinereus) Pathogen. Pathogens 2021; 10:1543. [PMID: 34959498 PMCID: PMC8703710 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens10121543] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2021] [Revised: 11/17/2021] [Accepted: 11/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Chlamydia pecorum, an obligate intracellular pathogen, causes significant morbidity and mortality in livestock and the koala (Phascolarctos cinereus). A variety of C. pecorum gene-centric molecular studies have revealed important observations about infection dynamics and genetic diversity in both koala and livestock hosts. In contrast to a variety of C. pecorum molecular studies, to date, only four complete and 16 draft genomes have been published. Of those, only five draft genomes are from koalas. Here, using whole-genome sequencing and a comparative genomics approach, we describe the first two complete C. pecorum genomes collected from diseased koalas. A de novo assembly of DBDeUG_2018 and MC/MarsBar_2018 resolved the chromosomes and chlamydial plasmids each as single, circular contigs. Robust phylogenomic analyses indicate biogeographical separation between strains from northern and southern koala populations, and between strains infecting koala and livestock hosts. Comparative genomics between koala strains identified new, unique, and shared loci that accumulate single-nucleotide polymorphisms and separate between northern and southern, and within northern koala strains. Furthermore, we predicted novel type III secretion system effectors. This investigation constitutes a comprehensive genome-wide comparison between C. pecorum from koalas and provides improvements to annotations of a C. pecorum reference genome. These findings lay the foundations for identifying and understanding host specificity and adaptation behind chlamydial infections affecting koalas.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rhys T. White
- Genecology Research Centre, University of the Sunshine Coast, Sippy Downs, Sunshine Coast, QLD 4557, Australia; (R.T.W.); (A.T.-B.); (P.T.)
| | - Alistair R. Legione
- Asia Pacific Centre for Animal Health, Melbourne Veterinary School, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia;
| | - Alyce Taylor-Brown
- Genecology Research Centre, University of the Sunshine Coast, Sippy Downs, Sunshine Coast, QLD 4557, Australia; (R.T.W.); (A.T.-B.); (P.T.)
- Parasites and Microbes Programme, Wellcome Sanger Institute, Hinxton, Cambridgeshire CB10 1SA, UK
| | - Cristina M. Fernandez
- Sydney School of Veterinary Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia; (C.M.F.); (D.P.H.)
| | - Damien P. Higgins
- Sydney School of Veterinary Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia; (C.M.F.); (D.P.H.)
| | - Peter Timms
- Genecology Research Centre, University of the Sunshine Coast, Sippy Downs, Sunshine Coast, QLD 4557, Australia; (R.T.W.); (A.T.-B.); (P.T.)
| | - Martina Jelocnik
- Genecology Research Centre, University of the Sunshine Coast, Sippy Downs, Sunshine Coast, QLD 4557, Australia; (R.T.W.); (A.T.-B.); (P.T.)
| |
Collapse
|