Veterinary Biosciences - Research Publications
Permanent URI for this collection
Search Results
1 - 5 of 5
-
ItemA cross-sectional survey of risk factors for the presence of Coxiella burnetii in Australian commercial dairy goat farms(WILEY, 2022-07)The largest Australian farm-based outbreak of Q fever originated from a dairy goat herd. We surveyed commercial dairy goat farms across Australia by testing bulk tank milk (BTM) samples using a commercial indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and two quantitative polymerase chain reactions (PCRs). Of the 66 commercial dairy goat herds on record, managers from 61 herds were contacted and 49 provided BTM samples. Five of the surveyed herds were positive on at least one of the diagnostic tests, thus herd-level apparent prevalence was 10% (95% confidence interval [CI] 4 to 22). True prevalence was estimated to be 3% (95% credible interval: 0 to 18). Herd managers completed a questionnaire on herd management, biosecurity and hygiene practices and risk factors were investigated using multivariable logistic regression. Herds with >900 milking does (the upper quartile) were more likely to be Coxiella burnetii positive (odds ratio = 6.75; 95% CI 1.65 to 27.7) compared with farms with ≤900 milking does. The odds of BTM positivity increased by a factor of 2.53 (95% CI 1.51 to 4.22) for each order of magnitude increase in the number of goats per acre. C. burnetii was not detected in samples from the majority of the Australian dairy goat herds suggesting there is an opportunity to protect the industry and contain this disease with strengthened biosecurity practices. Intensification appeared associated with an increased risk of positivity. Further investigation is required to discriminate the practices associated with an increased risk of introduction to disease-free herds, from practices associated with maintenance of C. burnetii infection in infected dairy goat herds.
-
ItemValidation of an Indirect Immunofluorescence Assay and Commercial Q Fever Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay for Use in Macropods(AMER SOC MICROBIOLOGY, 2022-07-20)Kangaroos are considered to be an important reservoir of Q fever in Australia, although there is limited knowledge on the true prevalence and distribution of coxiellosis in Australian macropod populations. Serological tests serve as useful surveillance tools, but formal test validation is needed to be able to estimate true seroprevalence rates, and few tests have been validated to screen wildlife species for Q fever. In this study, we modified and optimized a phase-specific indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA) for the detection of IgG antibodies against Coxiella burnetii in macropod sera. The assay was validated against the commercially available ID Screen Q fever indirect multispecies enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit (IDVet, Grabels, France) to estimate the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of each assay, using Bayesian latent class analysis. A direct comparison of the two tests was performed by testing 303 serum samples from 10 macropod populations from the east coast of Australia and New Zealand. The analysis indicated that the IFA had relatively high diagnostic sensitivity (97.6% [95% credible interval [CrI], 88.0 to 99.9]) and diagnostic specificity (98.5% [95% CrI, 94.4 to 99.9]). In comparison, the ELISA had relatively poor diagnostic sensitivity (42.1% [95% CrI, 33.7 to 50.8]) and similar diagnostic specificity (99.2% [95% CrI, 96.4 to 100]) using the cutoff values recommended by the manufacturer. The estimated true seroprevalence of C. burnetii exposure in the macropod populations included in this study ranged from 0% in New Zealand and Victoria, Australia, up to 94.2% in one population from New South Wales, Australia.
-
ItemNo Preview AvailableThe prevalence and risk factors for Coxiella burnetii on commercial dairy goat farms in Australia(OXFORD UNIV PRESS, 2021-09-01)Abstract Background Despite the potentially important role that intensively managed dairy goats play in the spread of Q fever, the prevalence of Coxiella burnetii among dairy goat herds in Australia is largely unknown. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to estimate the prevalence of coxiellosis-positive dairy goat herds in Australia and to identify risk factors associated with coxiellosis positivity. Methods Owners or managers of commercial dairy goat herds were contacted and asked to complete a questionnaire about risk factors for coxiellosis and to provide a bulk tank milk (BTM) sample. BTM samples were tested using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) targeting the Com1 and IS1111 sections of the C. burnetii genome. Questionnaire responses from coxiellosis positive and coxiellosis negative herds were compared using frequency cross-tabulations and multivariable logistic regression. Results Herd managers from 49 of the 61 commercial dairy goat herds in Australia took part in the study. Of this group, three BTM samples were found to be both ELISA and RT-PCR positive. Two BTM samples were ELISA positive but RT-PCR negative. There were 10 (95% CI 4.4 to 22) C. burnetii positive herds per 100 herds at risk. Conclusions The prevalence of coxiellosis among commercial dairy goat farms in Australia is relatively low. Key messages The Australian dairy goat industry should focus on biosecurity measures and risk management plans to reduce the probability of C. burnetii introduction.
-
ItemMolecular Evidence of Novel Spotted Fever Group Rickettsia Species in Amblyomma albolimbatum Ticks from the Shingleback Skink (Tiliqua rugosa) in Southern Western Australia(MDPI, 2021-01)Tick-borne infectious diseases caused by obligate intracellular bacteria of the genus Rickettsia are a growing global problem to human and animal health. Surveillance of these pathogens at the wildlife interface is critical to informing public health strategies to limit their impact. In Australia, reptile-associated ticks such as Bothriocroton hydrosauri are the reservoirs for Rickettsia honei, the causative agent of Flinders Island spotted fever. In an effort to gain further insight into the potential for reptile-associated ticks to act as reservoirs for rickettsial infection, Rickettsia-specific PCR screening was performed on 64 Ambylomma albolimbatum ticks taken from shingleback skinks (Tiliqua rugosa) located in southern Western Australia. PCR screening revealed 92% positivity for rickettsial DNA. PCR amplification and sequencing of phylogenetically informative rickettsial genes (ompA, ompB, gltA, sca4, and 17kda) suggested that the single rickettsial genotype detected represented a novel rickettsial species, genetically distinct from but closely related to Rickettsia gravesii and within the rickettsia spotted fever group (SFG). On the basis of this study and previous investigations, it would appear that Rickettsia spp. are endemic to reptile-associated tick species in Australia, with geographically distinct populations of the same tick species harboring genetically distinct SFG Rickettsia species. Further molecular epidemiology studies are required to understand the relationship between these diverse Rickettsiae and their tick hosts and the risk that they may pose to human and animal health.
-
ItemDomestic dogs are mammalian reservoirs for the emerging zoonosis flea-borne spotted fever, caused by Rickettsia felis(NATURE PORTFOLIO, 2020-03-05)Rickettsia felis is an obligate intracellular bacterium that is being increasingly recognized as an etiological agent of human rickettsial disease globally. The agent is transmitted through the bite of an infected vector, the cat flea, Ctenocephalides felis, however there is to date, no consensus on the pathogen's vertebrate reservoir, required for the maintenance of this agent in nature. This study for the first time, demonstrates the role of the domestic dog (Canis familiaris) as a vertebrate reservoir of R. felis. The ability of dogs to sustain prolonged periods of rickettsemia, ability to remain asymptomatically infected with normal haematological parameters and ability to act as biological vehicles for the horizontal transmission of R. felis between infected and uninfected fleas provides indication of their status as a mammalian reservoir of this emerging zoonosis.