Ecology and Genomic Features of Infection with Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis in Egypt.. Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis

In an effort to characterize this emerging infection in Egypt, we analyzed the ecological and genomic features of recent isolates of M. paratuberculosis. In this report, we examined 26 Holstein dairy herds distributed throughout Egypt between the years 2010 and 2013. Using PCR analysis of fecal samples, we estimated an average herd level prevalence of 65.4% with animal level infection that reached an average 13.6% among animals suffering from diarrhea. Interestingly, the whole-genome sequencing of field isolates identified a disparity in the number of single nucleotide polymorphism among field isolates when compared to the genome of the standard M. paratuberculosis K-10. Interestingly, the virulence of M. paratuberculosis isolates from Egypt revealed diverse virulence phenotypes in the murine model of paratuberculosis with significant differences in tissue colonization, especially during the chronic stage of infection. Overall, our analysis indicated that Johne’s disease is an emerging animal infection in Egypt with the potential presence of diverse genotypes of M. paratuberculosis that impact its virulence. Ecological mapping and genomic analysis of M. paratuberculosis will further enhance our understanding of the dynamic of pathogen transmission and evolution under natural field conditions.