Characterisation of Mycoplasma gallisepticum strains involved in respiratory disease in pheasants and peafowl

Abstract

Two cases of Mycoplasma gallisepticum infection in different avian species in backyard gamebird operations in Slovenia were investigated. In the first case, M gallisepticum was associated with severe respiratory disease with almost 20 per cent mortality in pheasants, whereas the infection was less pathogenic for chickens and turkeys reared at the same site. The M gallisepticum isolates from pheasants had a unique pMGA gene sequence containing a repeat of 12 nucleotides, and they contained only small amounts of the cytadhesins MGC1 and MGC3 and no PvpA protein. However, they expressed some typical M gallisepticum proteins and several proteins which were immunogenic for pheasants, chickens and turkeys. A strain of M gallisepticum isolated from the sinus of a pheasant was highly pathogenic for chicken embryos. In the second case, the M gallisepticum strain that was associated with respiratory disease and mortality in peafowl also affected chickens. M gallisepticum strain ULB 992 was isolated from the infraorbital sinus of a dead peafowl. The ULB 992 strain synthesised a small amount of MGC3, a truncated form of MGC1 and lacked PvpA. However, it expressed several proteins which were immunogenic for the birds infected with M gallisepticum at both gamebird operations.

Identification ofRickettsia africaeandWolbachiasp. inCeratophyllus gareiFleas from Passerine Birds Migrated from Africa

“…Screening related to bacterial (Bencina et al 2003, Laukova et al 2003 or viral infections (Ernek et al 1973, Cernik et al 1985 in territories of lakes is highly beneficial. Lakes are regions characterized by a high prevalence of migratory birds; thus, they represent a natural biotope of risky zones with possibilities to introduce various infections.…”

Use of polymerase chain reactions to detectMycoplasma gallisepticum,Mycoplasma imitans,Mycoplasma iowae,Mycoplasma meleagridisandMycoplasma synoviaein birds of prey

“…gallisepticum has been isolated from a variety of different avian species, including galliformes (Benčina et al, 2003), anseriformes (Ibrahim et al, 2000), psittaciformes (Bozeman et al, 1984), columbiformes (Benčina et al, 1987), passeriformes Hartup et al, 1998;Mikaelian et al, 2001) and birds of prey (Poveda et al, 1990a,b;Morishita et al, 1997). M. iowae, usually found in turkeys, has been isolated from a range of free-flying birds (Amin, 1977), geese (Lin et al, 1995), a yellow napped amazon (Amazona ochrocephala auropalliata) (Bozeman et al, 1984) and even an apple seed (Grau et al, 1991).…”

Poultry infected with Mycoplasma gallisepticum or Mycoplasma synoviae produce antibo dies to their cysteine proteas e CysP

“…natural infections of chickens and turkeys with M. gallisepticum induced the production of antibodies to its CysP protease (table 3). This seems to be true also for pheasants and peafowl in which infections with M. gallisepticum can be fatal (Benčina et al, 2003). M. gallisepticum induced in poultry antibodies to rCysP less frequently than M. synoviae, but it should be considered that the target antigen used represents CysP of uLB 925 M. synoviae .…”

“…we also examined sera of pheasants and peafowl in which infections with well characterized M. gallisepticum strains uLB 971 and uLB 992 caused severe disease with a considerable mortality (Benčina et al, 2003). Pheasant sera contained IgG antibodies that reacted with both, rCysP and CysP peptide.…”