Molecular detection of Coxiella burnetii in raw meat samples collected from different abattoirs in districts Kasur and Lahore of Punjab, Pakistan

Abstract

Coxiella burnetii is the zoonotic pathogen that causes Q fever; it is widespread globally. Livestock animals are its main reservoir, and infected animals shed C. burnetii in their birth products, feces, vaginal mucus, urine, tissues, and food obtained from them, i.e., milk and meat. There were previously very few reports on the prevalence of C. burnetii in raw meat. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of C.burnetii and its molecular characterization in raw ruminant meat from the Kasur and Lahore districts in Punjab, Pakistan, as this has not been reported so far. In this study, 200 meat samples, 50 from each species of cattle, buffalo, goat, and sheep, were collected from the slaughterhouses in each district, Kasur and Lahore in 2021 and 2022. PCR was used for the detection of the IS1111 element of C. burnetii. The data were recorded and univariate analysis was performed to determine the frequency of C. burnetii DNA in raw meat samples obtained from different ruminant species using the SAS 9.4 statistical package. Of the total of 200 raw meat samples, C. burnetii DNA was present in 40 (20%) of them, tested by PCR using the IS1111 sequence. The prevalence of C.burnetii differed among the studied species of ruminants. When species were compared pairwise, the prevalence in cattle was statistically significantly lower than in sheep (P = 0.005). The sequence alignment based on origin implied that the strains are genetically diverse in different districts of Punjab, Pakistan. The findings demonstrated that the prevalence of C. burnetii, especially in raw meat samples, deserves more attention from the health care system and professionals from Punjab, Pakistan, i.e., abattoir workers and veterinarians.

Serosurvey of Coxiella burnetii in Descendants of Former Black Slaves (Quilombola Communities) of Southern Brazil

“…Consumption of undercooked meat was associated with C. burnetii seropositivity. Although the role of raw and undercooked meat in C. burnetii remains to be described, molecular studies have detected C. burnetii in meat samples of cattle, buffalo, goats, and sheep collected from the slaughterhouses of Pakistan [ 41 ] and in raw meat destined exclusively for companion animal consumption in Australia [ 42 ].…”

Molecular identification of Coxiella burnetii in raw milk samples collected from farm animals in districts Kasur and Lahore of Punjab, Pakistan

“…Moreover, the infection remains largely undetected mainly due to limited diagnostic facilities and the lack of sufficient training to healthcare workers and clinical physicians for this contagious disease in developing countries like Pakistan. Notably, in the previous 65 years, there have been only six publications on human and animal Q fever from Pakistan in the PubMed databank [ 23 – 29 ]. Information regarding C .…”