Eye Infections due toListeria Monocytogenesin Three Cows and One Horse

Abstract

A retrospective study was conducted to determine case histories, microbiological characteristics, and molecular subtypes associated with Listeria monocytogenes infections of the eye in large animals. For selected cases, environmental L. monocytogenes contamination patterns on case farms were also evaluated to probe for potential sources and spread of listerial eye infections. Records of 170 L. monocytogenes isolates from animal infections were reviewed to determine the fraction of isolates associated with eye infections (conjunctivitis, keratitis, and uveitis) of animals and to gather information on the clinical history of these cases. Overall, 4 of 170 Listeria monocytogenes isolates were associated with eye infections; 3 of these had occurred in cows and 1 in a horse. Molecular subtyping (by EcoRI ribotying) showed that 4 different L. monocytogenes subtypes were isolated from these 4 cases; the same ribotypes had previously been found among invasive animal listeriosis infections. Although a variety of L. monocytogenes subtypes were isolated from environmental sources, on 1 farm, the same ribotype associated with the eye infection was also isolated from a fecal sample of a healthy animal and from a soil sample. The data reported in this study further suggest that L. monocytogenes can be a cause of eye infections in several animal species. Listerial eye infections do not seem to require specific pathogen-related virulence characteristics but rather seem to be a function of environmental or host factors, such as direct exposure of the eyes of susceptible animals to high numbers of the pathogen. Although listerial eye infections are rarely diagnosed because of its ubiquitous nature, L. monocytogenes may have to be considered more commonly as a causative agent of eye infections in ruminants and horses.

Histopathological and molecular characterization of encephalitic listeriosis in small ruminants from northern Paraná, Brazil

“…Confirmation of REL has been based on the combination of these characteristic histopathological findings associated with immuno-histochemistry (Wilkins et al , 2000; Schwab et al , 2004; Ribeiro et al , 2006; Rissi et al , 2006), bacterial isolation (Yousif et al , 1984; McLaughlin et al , 1993; Johnson et al , 1995), serology (Börkü et al , 2006), and molecular biology (Wiedmann et al , 1997; Evans et al , 2004; Langohr et al , 2006; Bundrant et al , 2011). …”

“…Although molecular investigations have been used worldwide to characterize REL (Wiedmann et al , 1997; Evans et al , 2004; Langohr et al , 2006; Bundrant et al , 2011), reports of the utilization of this diagnostic technique to identify listeriosis in domestic animals from Brazil or South America is scarce. However, REL was successfully characterized in cattle from the state of Paraná by a combination of histopathological and molecular techniques (Headley et al , 2013), and there is one unsuccessful attempt of molecular identification in goats (Rissi et al , 2006).…”

“…However, REL was successfully characterized in cattle from the state of Paraná by a combination of histopathological and molecular techniques (Headley et al , 2013), and there is one unsuccessful attempt of molecular identification in goats (Rissi et al , 2006). Molecular diagnostic strategies used to identify L. monocytogenes in domestic animals include: the PCR amplification of 174 base pairs (bp) of the listeriolysin ( hly ) O gene that is specie-specific (Deneer et al , 1991; Wesley et al , 2002); randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis (Wesley et al , 2002); PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) assay (Evans et al , 2004); PCR-serotyping of the 16S rRNA gene (Langohr et al , 2006); and multilocus sequence analysis (MLSA) (Bundrant et al , 2011). Additionally, strains of L. monocytogenes can be subtyped into four distinct evolutionary lineages: lineage I, II, and III (Rasmussen et al , 1995; Wiedmann et al , 1997; Roberts et al , 2006), and IV (Liu 2006; Roberts et al , 2006), based on the pathological potential to cause disease outbreaks in humans and domestic animals (Wiedmann et al , 1997; Liu 2006).…”

Listeriosis: The Dark Side of Refrigeration and Ensiling

“…Listerial mastitis is a rare form that usually presents with subclinical chronic interstitial mastitis resulting in parenchymal atrophy (Winter et al 2004). The ocular manifestation of listeriosis is characterised by a granulomatous to purulent keratoconjunctivitis and uveitis/ iridocyclitis (Evans et al 2004;Selbitz 2011). The so-called exposition keratitis is interpreted as a result of cranial nerve paresis and cannot be attributed to the infection itself.…”

“…Few cases of encephalitic (Rütten et al 2006), abortive (Welsh 1983), ocular (Evans et al 2004) and septicemic (Jose-Cunilleras and Hinchcliff 2001; Warner et al 2012) forms have been reported. The septicemic form is characterised by necrotizing hepatitis and typhlocolitis.…”