Yeasts and filamentous fungi in psittacidae and birds of prey droppings in midwest region of Brazil: a potential hazard to human health

Abstract Birds of prey and from Psittacidae family are host to fungal microbiota and play an important role in the epidemiology of zoonoses. Few studies in the literature have characterized mycelial and yeast fungi in the droppings of these birds and correlated the isolates with the zoonotic potential of the microorganisms. Droppings from 149 birds were evaluated and divided into two groups: captive: Rhea americana araneipes, Primolius maracana, Ara ararauna, Ara chloropterus, Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus, Amazona aestiva, Ara macao macao, Ramphastos toco, Sarcoramphus papa, Busarellus nigricollis, Bubo virginianus nacurutu, Buteogallus coronatus, Buteogallus urubitinga urubitinga, Spizaetus melanoleucus, Spizaetus ornatus ornatus, Buteo albonotatus, Geranoaetus albicaudatus albicaudatus, Rupornis magnirostris magnirostris and Harpia harpyja, and quarantined birds: Amazona aestiva and Eupsitulla aurea. The fungal isolates were identified according to macroscopic (gross colony appearance), micromorphological and biochemical characteristics. Among birds displayed in enclosures, Aspergillus niger (41.1%) and Candida kefyr (63.8%) were the fungi most frequently isolated in Harpia harpyja and Ramphastos toco, respectively. For quarantined birds, the following percentages were observed in Eupsittula aurea , (76.6%) C. krusei, (84.4%) C. kefyr and (15.2%) C. famata, while in Amazona aestiva, (76.2%) C. krusei was observed. These findings indicate potentially pathogenic species in the bird droppings assessed, which constitute a risk of exposure for keepers and individuals who visit the zoo. Birds of the Cerrado and Pantanal of Mato Grosso (Central Western region of Brazil) could act in the epidemiological chain of important zoonoses.

摘要 猛禽与鹦鹉科（Psittacidae）鸟类均为真菌菌群的宿主，且在人畜共患病（zoonoses）的流行病学过程中发挥重要作用。目前学界鲜有研究对这类鸟类粪便中的菌丝真菌与酵母真菌开展分类鉴定，并将分离得到的菌株与相关微生物的人畜共患病潜力进行关联分析。

本研究共收集149只鸟类的粪便样本，将其分为两组：圈养组涉及的鸟类包括：大美洲鸵（Rhea americana araneipes）、蓝头金刚鹦鹉（Primolius maracana）、琉璃金刚鹦鹉（Ara ararauna）、红金刚鹦鹉（Ara chloropterus）、风信子金刚鹦鹉（Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus）、蓝顶亚马逊鹦鹉（Amazona aestiva）、绯红金刚鹦鹉（Ara macao macao）、巨嘴鵎鵼（Ramphastos toco）、王鹫（Sarcoramphus papa）、黑颈鹫（Busarellus nigricollis）、美洲雕鸮（Bubo virginianus nacurutu）、冕雕（Buteogallus coronatus）、灰背南美鵟（Buteogallus urubitinga urubitinga）、黑白鹰雕（Spizaetus melanoleucus）、饰冠鹰雕（Spizaetus ornatus ornatus）、斑尾鵟（Buteo albonotatus）、白尾鵟雕（Geranoaetus albicaudatus albicaudatus）、大嘴鵟雕（Rupornis magnirostris magnirostris）以及角雕（Harpia harpyja）；检疫组鸟类则为蓝顶亚马逊鹦鹉（Amazona aestiva）与金黄锥尾鹦鹉（Eupsittula aurea）。

研究人员通过宏观形态（菌落外观）、微观形态及生化特征对真菌分离株进行鉴定。在圈养鸟类中，烟曲霉（Aspergillus niger，41.1%）与克菲尔假丝酵母（Candida kefyr，63.8%）分别为角雕与巨嘴鵎鵼中检出率最高的真菌。对于检疫组鸟类，金黄锥尾鹦鹉中检出克鲁西假丝酵母（Candida krusei，76.6%）、克菲尔假丝酵母（84.4%）及法马塔假丝酵母（Candida famata，15.2%）；而蓝顶亚马逊鹦鹉中则检出76.2%的克鲁西假丝酵母。

本研究结果表明，所评估的鸟类粪便中存在潜在致病真菌物种，对饲养人员及动物园访客构成接触感染风险。栖息于巴西中西部马托格罗索州塞拉多（Cerrado）与潘塔纳尔（Pantanal）湿地的这类鸟类，可能在重要人畜共患病的流行病学传播链中发挥关键作用。