Učinci latentne Q-groznice na odabrane hormonske, antioksidacijske, biokemijske i hematološke pokazatelje u ovaca.

The aim of this retrospective study was to compare various endocrine, antioxidant, haematological and biochemical parameters between Coxiella (C.) burnetii positive and negative ewes in order to evaluate the possible effects of infection on selected blood parameters. For this purpose, serum leptin and haptoglobin (Hp) concentrations, whole blood glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity and haematological parameters were compared between C. burnetii positive and negative ewes that were sampled in the autumn and winter months of 2006, before the Q fever infection outbreak in the spring of 2007. C. burnetii antibodies and haptoglobin concentrations were measured by commercial ELISA kits, leptin concentrations by a commercial RIA kit and GSH-Px activity by a commercial reagent kit. Out of 26 clinically healthy ewes, 15 exhibited C. burnetii antibodies in May 2007; among them, 8 had already been C. burnetii positive in the autumn months. Rises in Hp and leptin concentrations as well as of GSH-Px activity, haematocrit and mean cell volume were observed in samples taken between September and December 2006 in positive and negative ewes. Red blood cell count and haemoglobin values remained unchanged, while a decrease in white blood cell and platelet count was detected in the same period in both groups of ewes. The majority of the selected blood parameters remained in the reference range for sheep. The observed changes of the studied parameters are most probably a result of seasonally induced fluctuations or physiological changes, such as pregnancy progression, and cannot be attributed to the influences of the infection with C. burnetii. Therefore, the subclinical form of Q fever is not a factor which should be considered when evaluating values of circulating leptin, GSH-Px or haematological parameters in sheep.Cilj ovog retrospektivnog istraživanja bio je usporediti različite endokrine, antioksidacijske, hematološke i biokemijske pokazatelje u ovaca pozitivnih i negativnih na Q-groznicu s namjerom da se procijene mogući učinci infekcije na odabrane krvne pokazatelje. U tu svrhu bile su uspoređene koncentracije serumskoga leptina i haptoglobina, aktivnost glutation peroksidaze i hematološki pokazatelji između ovaca pozitivnih na bakteriju C. burnetii i onih negativnih na tu bakteriju. Uzorci krvi bili su uzeti u jesenskim i zimskim mjesecima 2006. prije pojave Q-groznice u proljeće 2007. Protutijela specifična za bakteriju C. burnetii i koncentracije haptoglobina bile su određivane komercijalnim ELISA kompletima, koncentracije leptina komercijalnim RIA kompletima te aktivnost glutation peroksidaze također komercijalnim reagensima. U 15 od 26 klinički zdravih ovaca dokazana su protutijela za C. burnetii u svibnju 2007. Od njih je osam bilo pozitivno već u jesenskim mjesecima. Povećane koncentracije haptoglobina i leptina kao i povećana aktivnost glutation peroksidaze, vrijednost hematokrita, srednja vrijednost zapremine eritrocita bile su dokazane u uzorcima uzetima između rujna i prosinca 2006. u pozitivnih i negativnih ovaca. Broj crvenih krvnih stanica i vrijednost hemoglobina ostali su nepromijenjeni, dok je u istom razdoblju broj bijelih krvnih stanica i broj trombocita bio smanjen u obje skupine ovaca. Većina odabranih krvnih pokazatelja ostala je u granicama referentnih vrijednosti za ovce. Ustanovljene promjene istraživanih pokazatelja najvjerojatnije su rezultat sezonski uvjetovanih kolebanja ili fizioloških promjena vezanih uz bređost i ne mogu se pripisati utjecaju infekcije bakterijom C. burnetii. Stoga se supklinički oblik Q-groznice ne može uzeti kao čimbenik utjecaja kod procjene cirkulacijskog leptina, glutation peroksidaze ili hematoloških pokazatelja u ovaca

Phylogeography of Brucella suis biovar 2 with focus on Slovenian wildlife

Brucella suis commonly infects swine but occasionally also other animal species and humans. Wild boars are the most important reservoir of B. suis biovar 2, continually infecting susceptible hosts through close contact. Nevertheless, the genetic diversity of B. suis in wildlife remains understudied. Here, we typed 17 Slovenian B. suis biovar 2 isolates obtained in 2017–2019 from wild boars (n = 16) and a hare (n = 1) using whole-genome sequencing (WGS). To assess the global phylogenetic diversity of B. suis, we compared them to 126 publicly available B. suis genomes. All Slovenian isolates fell within the biovar 2 lineage, confirming the previous multiplex PCR typing results. According to MLST-21, the wild boar isolates were of sequence types (STs) ST16 (n = 8) and ST153 (n = 8)the maximum genetic distance between isolates of the same ST was 28 wgMLST alleles. The ST153 isolates were restricted to the Slovenian-Croatian border and clustered together with the Croatian ST153 isolates from swine, indicating cross-border transmission of B. suis ST153 strain. The hare isolate was of ST40 and was genetically distant (≥ 489 alleles) from the wild boar isolates. The genome-wide phylogeny clearly separated different B. suis biovars. The present study is the first report on the population structure of B. suis in wildlife in Slovenia and shows that the Slovenian B. suis population is genetically heterogeneous. At the species level, B. suis biovars are clearly separated in the WGS-based phylogenetic tree and can therefore be reliably predicted using WGS

Management of a Coxiella burnetii-infected sheep flock after an outbreak of Q fever in humans

Following an outbreak of Q fever in a group of students who contracted the infection during a training course on a sheep farm, a detailed investigation of the sheep flock involved was conducted. Of 478 flock animals, 60 Coxiella burnetii ELISA-positive and 60 ELISA-negative ewes were selected for the trial and divided into four groups. A month after the initial ELISA screening, all ewes in the flock (except the control group) were vaccinated. Sequentially collected blood samples were tested with ELISA and PCRfeces, milk, manure, bedding, and soil were tested with PCR. The immune response to the vaccination was 92.7%, while the overall C. burnetiiseroprevalence in the flock after the human outbreak was 64.9%. PCR was positive for 0.2% of milk samples and 34.4% of fecal samples of animals from all four trial groups. C. burnetii DNA was not detected in any of the blood samples. Manure was PCR-positive for about 35 monthsbedding from the stable was also positive while samples of pasture soil were negative. It appears that extensive cleaning and disinfection combined with vaccination could be regarded as an appropriate approach to control/prevent Q fever in farm settings even in the short ter

High seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in Slovenian wild boars (Sus scrofa)

Toxoplasma gondii is a zoonotic parasite of great public health concern. Wild boars could be considered an emerging source of toxoplasmosis in humans due to the popularity of venison and their increasing population. The aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence of T. gondii in the Slovenian wild boar population and evaluate risk factors for human infection. Of 353 samples, 62% were positive for T. gondii using ELISA tests. This is the highest T. gondii seroprevalence reported to date in wild boar worldwide. The increase in prevalence with increasing age (p = 0.003) and weight (p = 0.002) were statistically significant, whereas gender was not (p = 0.781). Odds for being T. gondii-positive increased with age with the largest difference being between 2–3-year-old and 1–2-year-old animals (OR = 2.66, 95%CI: 1.03–6.85). Animals weighing 20–40 kg had a higher risk than animals weighing 0–20 kg (OR = 2.74, 95%CI: 1.21–6.20), whereas a further increase in the weight was not associated with increasing the odds. Due to the high Toxoplasma prevalence, the study concluded that the risk of exposure to T. gondii from handling raw or undercooked wild boar meat is high. Surveillance protocols should be established at the national level together with increased awareness within the hunting community

Modeling paratuberculosis transmission in a small dairy herd typical of Slovenia suggests that different models should be used to study disease spread in herds of different sizes

This study aimed to investigate the possible dynamics of paratuberculosis or Johne’s disease in a typical Slovenian dairy herd of about 17 cows. Paratuberculosis is a worldwide endemic disease of cattle caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) and is associated with significant economic losses. We developed a stochastic compartmental model with two pathways of disease progression, infections of adult cows and infections of young animals through horizontal and vertical transmission, and transmission through animal movements. The average proportions of subclinically and clinically infected cows were 4% and 0.47%, respectively. The prevalence within the herd, which included latently infected animals, averaged 7.13% and ranged from 0% to 70.59%. Under the given circumstances, the results showed a relatively high rate of spontaneous elimination (0.22 per herd per year) of the disease and a high rate of reinfection (0.18 per herd per year) facilitated by active animal trade. To our knowledge, this stochastic compartmental model is the first to be developed specifically to represent a small dairy herd and could apply to other countries with a similar structure of dairy farms. The results suggest that different models should be used to study MAP spread in herds of various sizes

Quantitative risk assessment of exposure to Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) via different types of milk for the Slovenian consumer

This study aimed to assess the risk of exposure to Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) via milk for the Slovenian consumer. MAP is suspected to be associated with several diseases in humans, therefore the risk of exposure should be better understood. The primary source of MAP for humans is thought to be cattle, in which MAP causes paratuberculosis or Johne’s disease. We developed a stochastic quantitative risk assessment model using Monte Carlo simulations. Considering the assumptions and uncertainties, we estimated the overall risk of exposure to MAP via milk to be low. For people consuming raw milk from MAP positive farms, the risk was high. On-farm pasteurisation reduced the risk considerably, but not completely. The risk of exposure via pasteurised retail milk was most likely insignificant. However, with a higher paratuberculosis prevalence the risk would also increase. Given the popularity of raw milk vending machines and homemade dairy products, this risk should not be ignored. To reduce the risk, consumers should heat raw milk before consumption. To prevent a potential public health scare and safeguard farmers’ livelihoods, a reduction in paratuberculosis prevalence should be sought. Our results show that culling clinically infected cows was insufficient to reduce milk contamination with MAP

Canine leishmaniasis prevalence in the Slovenian dog population

Abstract Introduction: Leishmaniasis is a life-threatening zoonosis of which dogs are the major reservoir and sandflies are the vectors. Until now, the prevalence of canine leishmaniasis (CanL) in the Slovenian dog population was unknown. Material and Methods: Epidemiological data, eye swabs and blood samples were taken from 465 dogs born in Slovenia and older than one year. Commercial ELISA kits and real-time PCR were used. For ELISA-positive samples, an immunofluorescence antibody test (IFAT) was performed. Descriptive statistics were used to characterise the samples. The one-sample nonparametric chi-square test was used to test whether the categories of a variable were equally distributed. Results: A 59.9% proportion of the recruited dogs had travelled to endemic regions and 62.1% of them had not been protected by insect repellents. Skin symptoms that might be CanL-related were described in 109 of the dogs’ histories (23.4%), inappetence and/or weight loss in 25 (5.4%), and anaemia, intermittent fever, and/or lymphadenopathy in 19 (4.1%). At the time of recruitment, all dogs were asymptomatic. All samples were PCR negative, nine (1.9%) were ELISA positive, but none were IFAT positive. Five of the nine ELISA-positive dogs were non-travellers. Conclusion: We conclude that the seroprevalence of canine leishmaniasis of 1.9 % in the autochthonous Slovenian dog population may pose a risk of endemic spread of the disease