Pathology of Brucella ovis infection in red deer stags (Cervus elaphus)

Abstract

AIM: To describe the pathology of the reproductive tract of red deer stags with active Brucella ovis infection and in stags in which B. ovis infection had resolved.

METHODS: Twenty-three red deer stags of varying history were slaughtered and their epididymides and accessory sex glands examined grossly and by histopathology. At the time of slaughter five of the stags had an active B. ovis infection of 24–55 days duration following exposure to infected rams, 10 stags had been experimentally infected with B. ovis by intravenous inoculation 649 days previously and had developed an active infection but the bacterial infection had resolved at least 308 days prior to slaughter, and eight stags had not been exposed to B. ovis at any time.

RESULTS: Of the five stags with an active infection, one had gross enlargement of the epididymides that could be detected by scrotal palpation. Histological lesions in all five stags included mild to severe, predominantly non-suppurative epididymitis, vesiculitis, prostatitis and ampullitis, with neutrophil exudation in associated glandular ducts. Additional lesions in the epididymides were spermatic granulomas and epithelial hyperplasia with intra-epithelial cyst formation. Of the 10 stags in which the bacterial infection had resolved, two had gross enlargement of the epididymides. The histological lesions were similar to those in stags with active infection but were generally milder, with increased periductal scar tissue in the epididymides. The lesions seen in stags resembled those seen in rams with B. ovis infection but they were usually less florid and had fewer plasma cells. No gross abnormalities or histopathological lesions were detected in the non-infected stags.

CONCLUSIONS: Only a small percentage of red deer stags infected with B. ovis develop lesions of epididymitis that can be detected by scrotal palpation. Gross and histological lesions of the genital tract of stags associated with B. ovis infection are similar to the lesions seen in rams. Lesions in stags persist for >300 days after the bacterial infection has resolved.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Brucella ovis infection should be considered when there are gross lesions of epididymitis or histological evidence of inflammation in the epididymides or accessory sex glands of red deer stags. Retrospective diagnosis of B. ovis in stags could be achieved by histological examination of the reproductive organs.     

Human brucellosis at a pig slaughterhouse

Seventeen workers in a pig slaughterhouse with signs and symptoms compatible with brucellosis were clinically examined at the outpatient service of different health institutions and studied by serological tests during the period 2005–2011. Eleven blood cultures were taken and six Brucella suis strains were isolated, three biovar 1 and three with atypical characteristics. In order to confirm that these cases had no common source, a variable number of tandem repeat (VNTR) analyses were performed on 5 of the 6 strains whose results showed substantial heterogeneity in the genotypes, thereby demonstrating that the immediate origin was not the same. Two hundred adult pigs admitted for slaughter at the plant were sampled by convenience and tested by buffered antigen plate test (BPAT), serum agglutination test (SAT) and 2-mercapto-ethanol test (MET). Seven of 62 males (11%) and 25/138 (18%) females tested positive. The study results contribute information on risk scenarios for packing plant workers and underscore the need to improve plant workers’ education on appropriate containment measures and to actively screen animals for swine brucellosis.     

Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) test for specific and rapid detection of Brucella abortus in cattle

Background: Brucella abortus, the major causative agent of abortion in cattle and a zoonotic pathogen, needs to be diagnosed at an early stage. Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) test is easy to perform and also promising to be adapted at field level.

Objective: To develop a LAMP assay for specific and rapid detection of B. abortus from clinical samples of cattle.

Methods: LAMP primers were designed targeting BruAb2_0168 region using specific software tool and LAMP was optimized. The developed LAMP was tested for its specificity with 3 Brucella spp. and 11 other non-Brucella spp. Sensitivity of the developed LAMP was also carried out with known quantity of DNA. Cattle whole blood samples and aborted fetal stomach contents were collected and used for testing with developed LAMP assay and results were compared with polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

Results: The developed LAMP assay works at 61 °C for 60 min and the detection limit was observed to be 100-fold more than the conventional PCR that is commonly used for diagnosis of B. abortus. Clinical sensitivity and specificity of the developed LAMP assay was 100% when compared with Rose Bengal plate test and standard tube agglutination test. SYB® green dye I was used to visualize the result with naked eye.

Conclusion: The novelty of the developed LAMP assay for specifically detecting B. abortus infection in cattle along with its inherent rapidness and high sensitivity can be employed for detecting this economically important pathogen of cattle at field level as well be exploited for screening of human infections.     

外周血中CD4+、CD8+T、CD4+CD25+Treg在绵羊接种布鲁氏菌M5-90弱毒疫苗后的动态变化

为研究绵羊接种布鲁氏菌弱毒M5-90株后外周血中CD4+、CD8+T、CD4+CD25+Treg细胞的动态变化规律,本研究选择11只健康绵羊,每10 d免疫一次,共免疫3次,分别在免疫前、免疫后10d、20 d、30 d利用流式细胞术检测外周血中CD4+、CD8+T、CD4+CD25+Treg淋巴细胞亚群.在免疫后的第20 d,CD4+T、CD8+T细胞百分含量达到最高水平(P＜0.05)后均缓慢下降;在第10d,CD4+CD25+Treg细胞缓慢升高,至20 d、30 d均显著升高(p＜0.05);在布鲁氏菌M5-90疫苗免疫应答过程中CD4+CD25+Treg细胞参与了机体的免疫反应调控,对CD4+T、CD8+T淋巴细胞的比例进行调节,并且维持CD4+/CD8+比值稳定,起到平衡Th1/Th2细胞间反应的作用.     

对免疫布鲁氏菌A19株疫苗奶牛的检测

通过虎红平板凝集试验（RBPT）和标准试管凝集试验（SAT）,对免疫布鲁氏菌A19株疫苗后的奶牛进行抽检,阳性头数分别为3头和2头。同时,在SAT检测阳性奶牛的奶样中,培养分离到疑似布鲁氏菌,经染色,在显微镜下观察到布鲁氏菌。     

小尾寒羊溶菌酶基因的克隆与差异表达分析

本试验从猪种布鲁氏菌S2疫苗株免疫雄性小尾寒羊构建的白细胞层SSH cDNA文库中筛选1段cDNA序列,经测序和BLAST同源性搜索比对发现其为溶菌酶重组片段,该片段大小为770 bp,编码148个氨基酸残基,编码的蛋白质是一种天然抗感染物质,已提交GenBank,登录号为JX263305。经荧光定量PCR分析,与正常组羊相比,在S2免疫14和30 d的羊白细胞层中该溶菌酶基因表达轻微上调,但差异不显著(P>0.05);在免疫40 d时恢复到正常水平。这也进一步说明溶菌酶是一种存在机体内必不可少的天然免疫因子,为布鲁氏菌病有效防控方面的研究奠定了基础。     

新疆畜间布病分子流行病学特征分析

【目的】新疆畜间布病流行株的流行病学特征,为新疆制定布病综合性防控措施提供科学依据和技术支撑。【方法】应用AMOS-PCR和MLVA-16方法对新疆畜间30株布鲁菌进行分析鉴定,将测定结果与http://mlva.u-psud.fr数据库提供的国内布鲁菌分离株的数据进行比较,结合软件Bionumerics进行聚类分析。【结果】30株布鲁菌中4株为牛种布鲁菌,26株为羊种布鲁菌。MLVA-16聚类分析结果表明,新疆地区30株布鲁菌可被分为10大基因群(A～J群)22个基因型,新疆地区流行的布鲁菌存在丰富的基因多态性。【结论】MLVA方法可对布鲁菌生物型和株间差异有很高的鉴别力,为布病疫情传染源的追踪和流行株的溯源进化关系提供科学依据。     

羊种布鲁氏菌dhbC基因的克隆、原核表达及生物信息学分析

试验旨在对羊种布鲁氏菌dhbC基因进行克隆及原核表达,并对其表达蛋白进行生物信息学分析。参照GenBank中布鲁氏菌M5-90株dhbC基因序列信息设计1对引物,通过PCR反应扩增获得dhbC基因片段。将得到的dhbC基因连接到pMD20-T载体,构建pMD20-T-dhbC重组质粒并转化大肠杆菌（E.coli） DH5α感受态细胞,提取质粒进行酶切鉴定。鉴定正确后构建pET28a-dhbC重组质粒,转化E.coli BL21（DE3）感受态细胞。经IPTG诱导表达,表达产物用SDS-PAGE和Western blotting进行分析。运用生物信息学软件DNAMAN及相关在线网站ProtParam、SOPMA及Protscale对dhbC基因编码的氨基酸序列进行生物信息学分析。结果表明,试验成功克隆了大小约为1 093 bp的dhbC基因并进行了蛋白表达,表达的融合蛋白大小约为47 ku,且主要以包涵体形式存在。dhbC蛋白的分子式为C₁₈₆₆H₂₉₆₈N₅₄₄O₅₆₂S₁₅,分子质量为42 496.3 u,理论等电点（pI）为5.81,消光系数为33 835,不稳定系数为36.76,疏水指数为86.19,总平均疏水性（GRAVY）为-0.215。预测在哺乳动物网织红细胞的半衰期为30 h,其二级结构以α-螺旋（41.94%）和无规则卷曲（31.46%）为主。     

流产型布鲁菌Omp10、Omp25蛋白的表达纯化与鉴定

获得高纯度具有生物学活性的重组布鲁菌Omp10、Omp25融合蛋白,并进行抗原性的分析。将用PCR扩增出的布鲁菌Omp10、Omp25基因片段分别克隆到原核表达载体pET-32α中,构建pET-32α-Omp10/Omp25原核表达质粒。将其转入大肠杆菌BL21（DE3）PlysS中,用IPTG诱导表达,经HisTrap HP亲和层析柱分离纯化,分别用Western-blot和间接ELISA检测产物的抗原性。基因测序及酶切鉴定证明pET-32α-Omp10/Omp25原核表达载体构建成功。SDS-PAGE表明,Omp10、Omp25融合蛋白均以包涵体的形式在大肠杆菌中高效表达。经过包涵体的变性、复性及亲和层析纯化,成功获得了大小分别为34 000和44 000的融合蛋白,与预测的相对蛋白分子质量一致。Western和间接ELISA试验证明纯化的Omp10、Omp25融合蛋白能被免疫的牛布鲁菌阳性血清所识别。结果表明,成功获得了布鲁菌Omp10、Omp25融合蛋白,且均具有一定的免疫原性,通过血清学反应证实,Omp10、Omp25蛋白为布鲁菌病临床诊断试剂盒的研制奠定了基础。     

布鲁菌外膜蛋白基因Omp22克隆测序及生物信息学分析

根据GenBank中的布鲁菌属特异性基因序列Omp22设计1对引物,以牛布鲁菌（Brucella）通辽市分离菌株染色体DNA作为模板,进行PCR扩增。将其定向插入克隆载体PGEM-7Zf,综合利用生物信息学软件（Danman和Vector NTI）、数据库（Prosite和PDB）和网络服务器对外膜蛋白Omp22进行基本性质分析、三维结构预测和功能预测。结果显示,用PCR方法扩增的Omp22基因长度为639bp,编码212个氨基酸,预测其蛋白质的相对分子质量约为22 000,同时用于预测B细胞线性表位的柔韧性和亲水性参数得到综合阐释,生物信息学预测和分析结果可为研究在布氏菌致病及机体免疫应答中外膜蛋白Omp22的结构与功能的关系提供丰富资料。