Occurrence and Monitoring of the Zoonotic Pathogen <i>Yersinia pseudotuberculosis</i> in Various Zoo Animal Species
Infections with the zoonotic pathogen <i>Yersinia</i> (<i>Y</i>.) <i>pseudotuberculosis</i> are commonly causing clinical diseases and acute deaths in various mammal and bird species in zoos. These findings prompted us to conduct a targeted study that included ani...
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2025-02-01
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| author | Lara Luisa Riede Tobias Knauf-Witzens Uta Westerhüs Rebecca Bonke Karen Schlez Kathrin Büttner Jörg Rau Dominik Fischer Lisa Grund Marco Roller Andreas Frei Stefan Hertwig Jens Andre Hammerl Claudia Jäckel Christine Osmann Martin Peters Reinhard Sting Tobias Eisenberg |
| author_facet | Lara Luisa Riede Tobias Knauf-Witzens Uta Westerhüs Rebecca Bonke Karen Schlez Kathrin Büttner Jörg Rau Dominik Fischer Lisa Grund Marco Roller Andreas Frei Stefan Hertwig Jens Andre Hammerl Claudia Jäckel Christine Osmann Martin Peters Reinhard Sting Tobias Eisenberg |
| author_sort | Lara Luisa Riede |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Infections with the zoonotic pathogen <i>Yersinia</i> (<i>Y</i>.) <i>pseudotuberculosis</i> are commonly causing clinical diseases and acute deaths in various mammal and bird species in zoos. These findings prompted us to conduct a targeted study that included animals of 18 German and 1 Swiss zoo that had been affected by the pathogen previously. This study provides a comprehensive overview of susceptible zoo animal species, clinical signs, therapies, antimicrobial resistance, pathogen monitoring, and prophylactic measures. In addition, fecal samples from species with documented infections and organ samples from deceased mammals and birds from two of the participating zoos, the urban zoo Wilhelma and the rural Opel Zoo, were examined for <i>Y. pseudotuberculosis</i> using both direct plating and enrichment. The overall prevalence of <i>Y. pseudotuberculosis</i> was 3.1% at the Opel Zoo and 1.3% at the Wilhelma. Fecal samples yielded positive results in 1.4% of the tested samples from the Opel Zoo but none from the Wilhelma. Among carcasses, 16.7% and 1.7% tested positive at the Opel Zoo and the Wilhelma, respectively (<i>p</i> = 0.006). <i>Y. pseudotuberculosis</i> was significantly more frequently isolated during the cold season (<i>p</i> = 0.002). Affected animals often died suddenly, displaying no or only non-specific clinical signs, but postmortem examinations revealed septicemia with multiple bacterial organ abscesses. Rodents, ruminants, primates, and Piciformes were the most commonly affected orders. Considering the zoonotic potential of <i>Y. pseudotuberculosis</i>, this research underscores the importance of investigations in zoos in accordance with the targets of the One Health approach. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-0e86b213da454471958252bb5d760e5a |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2076-2607 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Microorganisms |
| spelling | doaj-art-0e86b213da454471958252bb5d760e5a2025-08-20T03:43:10ZengMDPI AGMicroorganisms2076-26072025-02-0113351610.3390/microorganisms13030516Occurrence and Monitoring of the Zoonotic Pathogen <i>Yersinia pseudotuberculosis</i> in Various Zoo Animal SpeciesLara Luisa Riede0Tobias Knauf-Witzens1Uta Westerhüs2Rebecca Bonke3Karen Schlez4Kathrin Büttner5Jörg Rau6Dominik Fischer7Lisa Grund8Marco Roller9Andreas Frei10Stefan Hertwig11Jens Andre Hammerl12Claudia Jäckel13Christine Osmann14Martin Peters15Reinhard Sting16Tobias Eisenberg17Zoological-Botanical Garden Wilhelma, 70376 Stuttgart, GermanyZoological-Botanical Garden Wilhelma, 70376 Stuttgart, GermanyOpel Hessian Zoo Foundation, 61476 Kronberg/Taunus, GermanyHessian State Laboratory, 35392 Giessen, GermanyHessian State Laboratory, 35392 Giessen, GermanyUnit for Biomathematics and Data Processing, Justus Liebig University Giessen, 35392 Giessen, GermanyChemical and Veterinary Analysis Agency Stuttgart, 70736 Fellbach, GermanyZoo Wuppertal, 42117 Wuppertal, GermanyZoo Wuppertal, 42117 Wuppertal, GermanyZoo Karlsruhe, 76137 Karlsruhe, GermanyZoological-Botanical Garden Wilhelma, 70376 Stuttgart, GermanyDepartment Biological Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, 10589 Berlin, GermanyDepartment Biological Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, 10589 Berlin, GermanyDepartment Biological Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, 10589 Berlin, GermanyZoo Dortmund, 44225 Dortmund, GermanyChemical and Veterinary Investigations Office Westphalia, 59821 Arnsberg, GermanyChemical and Veterinary Analysis Agency Stuttgart, 70736 Fellbach, GermanyHessian State Laboratory, 35392 Giessen, GermanyInfections with the zoonotic pathogen <i>Yersinia</i> (<i>Y</i>.) <i>pseudotuberculosis</i> are commonly causing clinical diseases and acute deaths in various mammal and bird species in zoos. These findings prompted us to conduct a targeted study that included animals of 18 German and 1 Swiss zoo that had been affected by the pathogen previously. This study provides a comprehensive overview of susceptible zoo animal species, clinical signs, therapies, antimicrobial resistance, pathogen monitoring, and prophylactic measures. In addition, fecal samples from species with documented infections and organ samples from deceased mammals and birds from two of the participating zoos, the urban zoo Wilhelma and the rural Opel Zoo, were examined for <i>Y. pseudotuberculosis</i> using both direct plating and enrichment. The overall prevalence of <i>Y. pseudotuberculosis</i> was 3.1% at the Opel Zoo and 1.3% at the Wilhelma. Fecal samples yielded positive results in 1.4% of the tested samples from the Opel Zoo but none from the Wilhelma. Among carcasses, 16.7% and 1.7% tested positive at the Opel Zoo and the Wilhelma, respectively (<i>p</i> = 0.006). <i>Y. pseudotuberculosis</i> was significantly more frequently isolated during the cold season (<i>p</i> = 0.002). Affected animals often died suddenly, displaying no or only non-specific clinical signs, but postmortem examinations revealed septicemia with multiple bacterial organ abscesses. Rodents, ruminants, primates, and Piciformes were the most commonly affected orders. Considering the zoonotic potential of <i>Y. pseudotuberculosis</i>, this research underscores the importance of investigations in zoos in accordance with the targets of the One Health approach.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/13/3/516<i>Yersinia pseudotuberculosis</i>zoonosismammals and birdsprevalenceclinical and pathological signsprevention |
| spellingShingle | Lara Luisa Riede Tobias Knauf-Witzens Uta Westerhüs Rebecca Bonke Karen Schlez Kathrin Büttner Jörg Rau Dominik Fischer Lisa Grund Marco Roller Andreas Frei Stefan Hertwig Jens Andre Hammerl Claudia Jäckel Christine Osmann Martin Peters Reinhard Sting Tobias Eisenberg Occurrence and Monitoring of the Zoonotic Pathogen <i>Yersinia pseudotuberculosis</i> in Various Zoo Animal Species Microorganisms <i>Yersinia pseudotuberculosis</i> zoonosis mammals and birds prevalence clinical and pathological signs prevention |
| title | Occurrence and Monitoring of the Zoonotic Pathogen <i>Yersinia pseudotuberculosis</i> in Various Zoo Animal Species |
| title_full | Occurrence and Monitoring of the Zoonotic Pathogen <i>Yersinia pseudotuberculosis</i> in Various Zoo Animal Species |
| title_fullStr | Occurrence and Monitoring of the Zoonotic Pathogen <i>Yersinia pseudotuberculosis</i> in Various Zoo Animal Species |
| title_full_unstemmed | Occurrence and Monitoring of the Zoonotic Pathogen <i>Yersinia pseudotuberculosis</i> in Various Zoo Animal Species |
| title_short | Occurrence and Monitoring of the Zoonotic Pathogen <i>Yersinia pseudotuberculosis</i> in Various Zoo Animal Species |
| title_sort | occurrence and monitoring of the zoonotic pathogen i yersinia pseudotuberculosis i in various zoo animal species |
| topic | <i>Yersinia pseudotuberculosis</i> zoonosis mammals and birds prevalence clinical and pathological signs prevention |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/13/3/516 |
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