| Full text | |
| Author(s): |
Saidenberg, Andre Becker
[1]
;
Teixeira, Rodrigo Hidalgo F.
[2]
;
Guedes, Neiva Maria R.
[3]
;
Allgayer, Mariangela da Costa
[4]
;
Melville, Priscilla Anne
[1]
;
Benites, Nilson Roberti
[1]
Total Authors: 6
|
| Affiliation: | [1] Univ Sao Paulo, FMVZ, Dept Vet Prevent Med, BR-05508270 Sao Paulo - Brazil
[2] Parque Zool Municipal, BR-18021020 Sorocaba, SP - Brazil
[3] Univ Anhanguera Uniderp, Projeto Arara Azul, Programa MDR, BR-79051660 Campo Grande, MS - Brazil
[4] Novo Hamburgo ULBRA, Criatorio Asas Brasil, BR-96501595 Canoas, RS - Brazil
Total Affiliations: 4
|
| Document type: | Journal article |
| Source: | Pesquisa Veterinária Brasileira; v. 32, n. 9, p. 922-926, SEP 2012. |
| Web of Science Citations: | 8 |
| Abstract | |
Psittaciformes are one of the most endangered groups of birds, and several Brazilian species are classified between vulnerable and critically endangered. It is thus necessary to identify agents that cause infections in captive wild animals and to assess the risks posed thereof and to design interventions to minimize the possibility of disease outbreaks, leading to the conservation of endangered species. The purpose of this study was to identify enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) cloacal isolates from asymptomatic psittacines in captivity and evaluate the distribution of the EPEC pathotype. Cloacal swabs were obtained from 46 asymptomatic birds, and resulting isolates were tested by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the presence of the attaching and effacing gene (eae) and bundle-forming pilus structural gene (bfpA) of EPEC. Samples from several species were tested, and three samples were found to be positive for the eae and bfpA genes and characterized as typical EPEC. This is the first report of this pathotype in asymptomatic psittacines. Although certain E. coli strains are more pathogenic than others, various factors should be considered when determining the potential of E. coli isolates to cause disease in captive psittacines. Birds that are positive for the EPEC (typical) strain could be zoonotic sources of infection, and may have acquired these strains through contact with humans or domestic animals. These findings may also be valuable for the long-term management of endangered species ex situ as one EPEC sample was isolated from a Red-tailed Amazon (Amazona brasiliensis). (AU) | |