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BMC Infectious Diseases Dec 2023Motor neuron disease (MND) is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder that leads to progressive loss of motor neurons. Chlamydia psittaci (C. psittaci) is a rare etiology of...
BACKGROUND
Motor neuron disease (MND) is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder that leads to progressive loss of motor neurons. Chlamydia psittaci (C. psittaci) is a rare etiology of community-acquired pneumonia characterized primarily by respiratory distress. We reported a case of C. psittaci pneumonia complicated with motor neuron disease (MND).
CASE PRESENTATION
A 74-year-old male was referred to the Shaoxing Second Hospital at January, 2022 complaining of fever and fatigue for 2 days. The patient was diagnosed of MND with flail arm syndrome 1 year ago. The metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) of sputum obtained through bedside fiberoptic bronchoscopy showed C. psittaci infection. Then doxycycline was administrated and bedside fiberoptic bronchoscopy was performed to assist with sputum excretion. Computed Tomography (CT) and fiberoptic bronchoscopy revealed a significant decrease in sputum production. On day 24 after admission, the patient was discharged with slight dyspnea, limited exercise tolerance. One month later after discharge, the patient reported normal respiratory function, and chest CT showed significant absorption of sputum.
CONCLUSIONS
The mNGS combined with bedside fiberoptic bronchoscopy could timely detect C. psittaci infection. Bedside fiberoptic bronchoscopy along with antibiotic therapy may be effective for C. psittaci treatment.
Topics: Male; Humans; Aged; Chlamydophila psittaci; Psittacosis; Pneumonia; Bronchi; Motor Neuron Disease; Dyspnea
PubMed: 38053032
DOI: 10.1186/s12879-023-08860-2 -
Microbes and Infection 2024The incidence of Chlamydia psittaci respiratory tract infections in humans has increased in Sweden in recent years. This study aimed to identify the transmission route...
The incidence of Chlamydia psittaci respiratory tract infections in humans has increased in Sweden in recent years. This study aimed to identify the transmission route by genotyping C. psittaci from infected humans and birds. 42 human C. psittaci samples and 5 samples from C. psittaci-infected birds were collected. Genotyping was performed using ompA sequencing, Multi-locus sequence typing, and/or SNP-based high-resolution melting-PCR. Epidemiological data was also collected, and a phylogenetic analysis was conducted. Analysis of ompA provided limited resolution, while the SNP-based PCR analysis successfully detected the Mat116 genotype in 3/5 passerine birds and in 26/29 human cases, indicating a high prevalence of this genotype in the human population. These cases were associated with contact with wild birds, mainly through bird feeding during winter or other outdoor exposure. Human cases caused by other genotypes (psittacine and pigeon) were less common and were linked to exposure to caged birds or pigeons. The SNP-genotype Mat116 is rare, but predominated in this study. The use of SNP-based PCR provided a better understanding of the C. psittaci transmission from birds to humans compared to ompA analysis. In Sweden, human psittacosis appears mainly to be transmitted from garden birds during bird feeding in the winter season.
Topics: Animals; Humans; Chlamydophila psittaci; Psittacosis; Sweden; Multilocus Sequence Typing; Phylogeny; Genotype; Columbidae
PubMed: 37952689
DOI: 10.1016/j.micinf.2023.105251 -
PloS One 2023Chlamydia psittaci is a primary zoonotic pathogen with a broad host range causing severe respiratory and reproductive system infection in animals and humans. To reduce...
Whole genome sequencing characteristics of Chlamydia psittaci caprine AMK-16 strain, a promising killed whole cell veterinary vaccine candidate against chlamydia infection.
Chlamydia psittaci is a primary zoonotic pathogen with a broad host range causing severe respiratory and reproductive system infection in animals and humans. To reduce the global burden of C. psittaci-associated diseases on animal welfare and health and to control the pathogen spread in husbandry, effective vaccines based on promising vaccine candidate(s) are required. Recently, the caprine C. psittaci AMK-16 strain (AMK-16) demonstrated a high level of protection (up to 80-100%) in outbred mice and pregnant rabbits immunized with these formaldehyde-inactivated bacteria against experimental chlamydial wild-type infection. This study investigated the molecular characteristics of AMK-16 by whole-genome sequencing followed by molecular typing, phylogenetic analysis and detection of main immunodominant protein(s) eliciting the immune response in mouse model. Similarly to other C. psittaci, AMK-16 harbored an extrachromosomal plasmid. The whole-genome phylogenetic analysis proved that AMK-16 strain belonging to ST28 clustered with only C. psittaci but not with Chlamydia abortus strains. However, AMK-16 possessed the insert which resulted from the recombination event as the additional single chromosome region of a 23,100 bp size with higher homology to C. abortus (98.38-99.94%) rather than to C. psittaci (92.06-92.55%). At least six of 16 CDSs were absent in AMK-16 plasticity zone and 41 CDSs in other loci compared with the reference C. psittaci 6BC strain. Two SNPs identified in the AMK-16 ompA sequence resulted in MOMP polymorphism followed by the formation of a novel genotype/subtype including three other C. psittaci strains else. AMK-16 MOMP provided marked specific cellular and humoral immune response in 100% of mice immunized with the inactivated AMK-16 bacteria. Both DnaK and GrpE encoded by the recombination region genes were less immunoreactive, inducing only a negligible T-cell murine immune response, while homologous antibodies could be detected in 50% and 30% of immunized mice, respectively. Thus, AMK-16 could be a promising vaccine candidate for the development of a killed whole cell vaccine against chlamydiosis in livestock.
Topics: Pregnancy; Humans; Female; Animals; Mice; Rabbits; Chlamydophila psittaci; Phylogeny; Goats; Psittacosis; Chlamydia Infections; Chlamydia; Bacterial Vaccines
PubMed: 37903115
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0293612 -
Frontiers in Medicine 2023infections primarily cause damage to the lungs but may also affect the cardiovascular system, gastrointestinal tract, liver, kidney, and brain, resulting in a variety...
BACKGROUND
infections primarily cause damage to the lungs but may also affect the cardiovascular system, gastrointestinal tract, liver, kidney, and brain, resulting in a variety of extrapulmonary complications. However, reports regarding infection-associated pancreatitis are rare. In this report, a patient with pneumonia complicated by acute pancreatitis is presented.
CASE DESCRIPTION
The patient presented with acute upper abdominal pain and developed severe pyrexia and dyspnoea one day later. A chest computed tomography image revealed patchy consolidation in the left lung. The disease progressed rapidly, and the patient exhibited liver and kidney damage and type 1 respiratory failure within a short period of time. Metagenomic next-generation sequencing of alveolar lavage fluid revealed the presence of . The patient was administered doxycycline and moxifloxacin, after which the patient's abdominal pain and lung infection significantly resolved.
CONCLUSION
This case report demonstrates that extrapulmonary infections due to secondary acute pancreatitis can manifest as abdominal pain, although the exact mechanisms of caused by acute pancreatitis remain unclear. Timely diagnoses and treatments of such infections are necessary to achieve favorable clinical outcomes.
PubMed: 37886359
DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2023.1253859 -
Biomedica : Revista Del Instituto... Sep 2023Psittacosis is a zoonotic disease caused by Chlamydia psittaci, a bacterium classified as an agent with bioterrorist potential. It has caused multiple outbreaks in... (Review)
Review
INTRODUCTION
Psittacosis is a zoonotic disease caused by Chlamydia psittaci, a bacterium classified as an agent with bioterrorist potential. It has caused multiple outbreaks in exposed poultry workers around the world. Colombia has no epidemiological follow-up of the infection and a big knowledge gap.
OBJECTIVES
To determine the antibodies’ frequency against C. psittaci in workers with occupational exposure to birds and to review the literature on studies conducted in Colombia.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
We conducted a cross-sectional descriptive study with analytical intent on workers in contact with birds and reviewed the related literature in Colombia. IgM and IgG serum antibodies against C. psittaci were detected by microimmunofluorescence. The sociodemographic and exposure characteristics were expressed as frequencies and summary measures. Associated factors were explored by bivariate and multivariate analysis. The scientific and gray literature review was done with a structured search.
RESULTS
We analyzed 54 workers in contact with birds. Antibody prevalence was 31.5%. Slaughtering and evisceration by non-veterinarians was a risk factor for antibody presence. There are only four previous studies on C. psittaci in Colombia.
CONCLUSIONS
Here, we present the first evidence of C. psittaci circulation among workers exposed to birds in Antioquia and the second report in the country. These findings contribute to the “One Health” public health strategy.
Topics: Animals; Humans; Chlamydophila psittaci; Psittacosis; Cross-Sectional Studies; Birds; Antibodies, Bacterial
PubMed: 37871570
DOI: 10.7705/biomedica.6832 -
Heliyon Oct 2023Veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) was successfully performed for the rescue of an adult patient with severe acute respiratory distress syndrome...
Successful treatment of near-fatal pulmonary embolism and cardiac arrest in an adult patient with fulminant psittacosis-induced severe acute respiratory distress syndrome after veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation rescue: A case report and follow-up.
BACKGROUND
Veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) was successfully performed for the rescue of an adult patient with severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) induced by fulminant psittacosis, and then a near-fatal pulmonary embolism (PE) and cardiac arrest (CA) of the same patient was cured through catheter-directed thrombolysis.
CASE PRESENTATION
A 51-year-old female patient was admitted to the hospital on September 10, 2021 due to slurred speech, weakness in lower limbs, dizziness, and nausea. Subsequently, she developed confusion and was transferred to the intensive care unit (ICU), where she received anti-shock, antibiotics, invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV), and veno-venous ECMO due to the diagnosis of severe pneumonia, severe ARDS, and septic shock based on comprehensive physical examination, laboratory tests, and imaging findings. The metagenomic next-gengeration sequencing (-NGS) in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) suggested that the pathogen was chlamydia psittaci, so the antibiotics were adjusted to doxycycline combined with azithromycin. After withdrawal from ECMO, ultrasound (US) re-examination of the left lower limb revealed inter-muscular vein thrombosis, following which heparin was replaced by subcutaneous injection of 0.4ml enoxaparin sodium twice daily for anti-coagulation therapy. After withdrawal from IMV, the patient suffered sudden CA and successful cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and emergency pulmonary angiography (PA) was performed to show bilateral main pulmonary artery embolism. After immediate catheter-directed thrombolysis and placement of an inferior vena cava filter, the patient's condition gradually stabilized.
CONCLUSIONS
Veno-venous ECMO can be successfully performed as an emergency life-saving treatment for patients with severe ARDS induced by fulminant psittacosis, and during ECMO regular examinations should be conducted to detect and manage thrombosis in time, thereby avoiding the occurrence of near-fatal PE and CA.
PubMed: 37842616
DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e20562 -
Frontiers in Cellular and Infection... 2023is the causative agent of psittacosis in humans, while its rapid identification is hampered due to the lack of specificity of laboratory testing methods.
BACKGROUND
is the causative agent of psittacosis in humans, while its rapid identification is hampered due to the lack of specificity of laboratory testing methods.
CASE PRESENTATION
This study reports four cases of infection after contact with a domestic parrot, all belonging to the same family. Common manifestations like fever, cough, headache, nausea, and hypodynamia appeared in the patients. Metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) aided the etiological diagnosis of psittacosis, revealing 58318 and 7 sequence reads corresponding to in two cases. The detected was typed as ST100001 in the Multilocus-sequence typing (MLST) system, a novel strain initially reported. Based on the results of pathogenic identification by mNGS, the four patients were individually, treated with different antibiotics, and discharged with favorable outcomes.
CONCLUSION
In diagnosing psittacosis caused by a rare agent, mNGS provides rapid etiological identification, contributing to targeted antibiotic therapy and favorable outcomes. This study also reminds clinicians to raise awareness of psittacosis when encountering family members with a fever of unknown origin.
Topics: Humans; Psittacosis; Chlamydophila psittaci; Multilocus Sequence Typing; Anti-Bacterial Agents; High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing
PubMed: 37799338
DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2023.1249225 -
Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland) Sep 2023The bacterial agent , and the resulting disease of psittacosis, is a little-known and underappreciated infectious disease by healthcare practitioners and in public... (Review)
Review
The bacterial agent , and the resulting disease of psittacosis, is a little-known and underappreciated infectious disease by healthcare practitioners and in public health in general. infections can cause significant psittacosis outbreaks, with person-to-person transmission documented in the last decade. In this publication, we review the pathogen and its disease, as well as examine the potential for genetic manipulation in this organism to create a more deadly pathogen. Recent disease surveys indicate that currently, the highest incidences of human disease exist in Australia, Germany and the UK. We recommend the universal public health reporting of and psittacosis disease and increasing the promotion of public health awareness.
PubMed: 37764973
DOI: 10.3390/pathogens12091165 -
Scientific Reports Sep 2023Chlamydiosis is a significant disease affecting Eastern Australian koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) populations, impacting individual animal welfare and fecundity and...
Chlamydiosis is a significant disease affecting Eastern Australian koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) populations, impacting individual animal welfare and fecundity and therefore influencing population dynamics. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of a synthetic peptide vaccine based on 4 components of the Chlamydia pecorum major outer membrane protein (MOMP), over an 18-month period in a koala population severely impacted by chlamydiosis. Wild koalas were recruited into a vaccination or a placebo treatment group on a random allocation, then followed through a period of 18 months, with recapture at 6 monthly intervals. Vaccination did not alter clinical disease expression or chlamydial shedding from the ocular or urogenital sites. Vaccination did not stimulate a significant plasma anti-MOMP IgG response, when compared to the placebo group. There was no significant effect of vaccination on IFN-γ and IL-17A mRNA expression of peripheral blood lymphocytes when stimulated with rMOMP. We have demonstrated that a synthetic peptide vaccination against chlamydiosis is not an effective management tool in a koala population with a high prevalence of C. pecorum infection and related disease. The lack of antigenic response found in this study suggests that further research utilising a larger, full-length antigen is an avenue worth investigation if we are to consider vaccination as a part of a management strategy in diseased koala populations.
Topics: Animals; Australia; Cancer Vaccines; Membrane Proteins; Peptides; Phascolarctidae; Psittacosis; Vaccines, Subunit; Vaccines, Synthetic
PubMed: 37699951
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-42296-7 -
Annals of Clinical Microbiology and... Sep 2023Chlamydia psittaci (C. psittaci) causes parrot fever in humans. Development of metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) enables the identification of C. psittaci. (Observational Study)
Observational Study
Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of psittacosis among cases with complicated or atypical pulmonary infection using metagenomic next-generation sequencing: a multi-center observational study in China.
BACKGROUND
Chlamydia psittaci (C. psittaci) causes parrot fever in humans. Development of metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) enables the identification of C. psittaci.
METHODS
This study aimed to determine the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of parrot fever cases in China. A multi-center observational study was conducted in 44 tertiary and secondary hospitals across 14 provinces and municipalities between April 2019 and October 2021.
RESULTS
A total of 4545 patients with complicated or atypical pulmonary infection were included in the study, among which the prevalence of C. psittaci was determined to be 2.1% using mNGS. The prevalence of C. psittaci was further determined across demographic groups and types of specimens. It was significantly higher in patients with senior age (2.6% in those > 50 years), winter-spring (3.6%; particularly in December, January, and February), and southwestern (3.4%) and central and southern China (2.7%) (each P < 0.001). Moreover, the prevalence was the highest in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) (2.9%), compared with sputum (1.1%) and peripheral blood specimens (0.9%). Additionally, co-infection of principal microorganisms was compared. Certain microorganisms were more likely to co-infect in parrot fever cases, such as Candida albicans in BALF (26.7%) and peripheral blood (6.3%), compared with non-parrot fever cases (19.7% and 1.3%); however, they did not significantly differ (each P > 0.05).
CONCLUSION
Parrot fever remains low in patients with complicated or atypical pulmonary infection. It is likely to occur in winter-spring and southwestern region in China. BALF may be the optimal specimen in the application of mNGS. Co-infection of multiple microorganisms should be further considered.
Topics: Humans; Middle Aged; Psittacosis; Coinfection; High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing; Candida albicans; China; Pneumonia
PubMed: 37679777
DOI: 10.1186/s12941-023-00631-w