Emerging and well-characterised chlamydial infections detected in a wide range of wild Australian birds

Vasilli Kasimov; Yalun Dong; Renfu Shao; Aaron Brunton; Susan I Anstey; Clancy Hall; Gareth Chalmers; Gabriel Conroy; Rosemary Booth; Peter Timms; Martina Jelocnik

doi:10.1111/tbed.14457

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Emerging and well-characterised chlamydial infections detected in a wide range of wild Australian birds

Journal article

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Emerging and well-characterised chlamydial infections detected in a wide range of wild Australian birds

Vasilli Kasimov, Yalun Dong, Renfu Shao, Aaron Brunton, Susan I Anstey, Clancy Hall, Gareth Chalmers, Gabriel Conroy, Rosemary Booth, Peter Timms, …

Transboundary and Emerging Diseases, Vol.69(5), pp.e3154-e3170

2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/tbed.14457

PMCID: PMC9786873

PMID: 35041298

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Abstract

wild birds

beak and feather disease virus

infections

genetic diversity

chlamydia psittaci

chlamydia

Birds can act as successful long-distance vectors and reservoirs for numerous zoonotic bacterial, parasitic and viral pathogens, which can be a concern given the interconnectedness of animal, human and environmental health. Examples of such avian pathogens are members of the genus Chlamydia. Presently, there is a lack of research investigating chlamydial infections in Australian wild and captive birds and the subsequent risks to humans and other animals. In our current study, we investigated the prevalence and genetic diversity of chlamydial organisms infecting wild birds from Queensland and the rate of co-infections with beak and feather disease virus (BFDV). We screened 1114 samples collected from 564 different birds from 16 orders admitted to the Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital from May 2019 to February 2021 for Chlamydia and BFDV. Utilising species-specific qPCR assays, we revealed an overall Chlamydiaceae prevalence of 29.26% (165/564; CI 25.65 - 33.14), including 3.19% (18/564; CI 2.03 - 4.99) prevalence of the zoonotic C. psittaci. Chlamydiaceae co-infection with BFDV was detected in 9.75% (55/564; CI 7.57 - 12.48) of the birds. Molecular characterisation of the chlamydial 16S rRNA and ompA genes identified C. psittaci, in addition to novel and other genetically diverse Chlamydia species: avian C. abortus, Ca. Chlamydia ibidis and C. pneumoniae, all detected for the first time in Australia within a novel avian host range (crows, figbirds, herons, kookaburras, lapwings and shearwaters). This study shows that C. psittaci and other emerging Chlamydia species are prevalent in a wider range of avian hosts than previously anticipated, potentially increasing the risk of spill-over to Australian wildlife, livestock, and humans. Going forward, we need to further characterise C. psittaci and other emerging Chlamydia species to determine their exact genetic identity, potential reservoirs, and factors influencing infection spill-over. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Details

Title: Emerging and well-characterised chlamydial infections detected in a wide range of wild Australian birds
Authors: Vasilli Kasimov (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Yalun Dong (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Renfu Shao (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Aaron Brunton (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Susan I Anstey (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Clancy Hall (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Gareth Chalmers (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Gabriel Conroy (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Rosemary Booth (Author) - Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital (Australia)
Peter Timms (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, GeneCology Research Centre - Legacy
Martina Jelocnik (Corresponding Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, GeneCology Research Centre - Legacy
Publication details: Transboundary and Emerging Diseases, Vol.69(5), pp.e3154-e3170
Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell Verlag GmbH
Date published: 2022
DOI: 10.1111/tbed.14457
ISSN: 1865-1682
PMID: 35041298; PMC9786873
Copyright note: © 2022 The Authors. Transboundary and Emerging Diseases published by Wiley-VCH GmbH. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes.
Grants: On the brink of infectious disease spill-over: From parrots to horses to humans, DE190100238, Australian Research Council (Australia, Canberra) - ARC
Organisation Unit: GeneCology Research Centre - Legacy; Academic Support Unit; Forest Industries Research Centre; School of Science, Technology and Engineering; Centre for Bioinnovation
Language: English
Record Identifier: 99602208902621
Output Type: Journal article

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