Characterising Eastern Grey Kangaroos (Macropus giganteus) as Hosts of Coxiella burnetii

Autor: Anita Tolpinrud, Elizabeth Dobson, Catherine A. Herbert, Rachael Gray, John Stenos, Anne-Lise Chaber, Joanne M. Devlin, Mark A. Stevenson
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2024
Předmět:
Zdroj: Microorganisms, Vol 12, Iss 7, p 1477 (2024)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2076-2607
DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms12071477
Popis: Macropods are often implicated as the main native Australian reservoir hosts of Coxiella burnetii (Q fever); however, the maintenance and transmission capacity of these species are poorly understood. The objective of this cross-sectional study was to describe the epidemiology of C. burnetii in a high-density population of eastern grey kangaroos (Macropus giganteus) in a peri-urban coastal nature reserve in New South Wales, Australia. Blood, faeces and swabs were collected from forty kangaroos as part of a population health assessment. Frozen and formalin-fixed tissues were also collected from 12 kangaroos euthanised on welfare grounds. Specimens were tested for C. burnetii using PCR, serology, histopathology and immunohistochemistry. A total of 33/40 kangaroos were seropositive by immunofluorescence assay (estimated true seroprevalence 84%, 95% confidence interval [CI] 69% to 93%), with evidence of rising titres in two animals that had been tested four years earlier. The PCR prevalence was 65% (95% CI 48% to 79%), with positive detection in most sample types. There was no evidence of pathology consistent with C. burnetii, and immunohistochemistry of PCR-positive tissues was negative. These findings indicate that kangaroos are competent maintenance hosts of C. burnetii, likely forming a significant part of its animal reservoir at the study site.
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