Molecular detection of Bartonella, Ehrlichia and Mycoplasma in feral dogs of El Pedregal de San Angel Ecological Reserve in Mexico City

Abstract Free-ranging and feral dogs represent a group of unattended companion animals. They impact wild animal populations by predating native species, displacing predators and introducing exotic pathogens. The aim of this work was to describe the molecular occurrence of Rickettsia, Ehrlichia, Anaplasma, Mycoplasma and Bartonella in feral dogs. The study was carried out in the last relict of a protected area in Mexico City. Blood clots samples from 19 dogs were obtained and analyzed for detection of specific fragments of the 16S-rRNA gene for Anaplasma, Ehrlichia and Mycoplasma and citrate synthase (gltA) for Bartonella and Rickettsia. Our results showed that DNA from three bacteria species (Bartonella vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii, Ehrlichia canis and Mycoplasma haemocanis) was present with frequencies ranging from 5.3 to 15.8%. This is the first record of B. vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii and M. haemocanis in dogs from México, and also the first finding of Ehrlichia canis in Mexico City. It is important to perform surveillance of feral dog populations in order to identify the impact of these pathogens on wild animal populations and Public Health in order to establish prevention and protection programs.摘要：散养及流浪犬属于无人照护的伴侣动物类群。它们通过捕食本土物种、排挤本地捕食者以及引入外来病原体，对野生动物种群造成负面影响。本研究旨在明确流浪犬体内立克次体属（Rickettsia）、埃立克体属（Ehrlichia）、无形体属（Anaplasma）、支原体属（Mycoplasma）以及巴尔通体属（Bartonella）的分子检出情况。研究在墨西哥城最后一处受保护区域的残存地块中开展，研究人员采集了19只犬的血凝块样本，针对无形体属、埃立克体属与支原体属的16S核糖体RNA（16S-rRNA）基因特异性片段，以及巴尔通体属与立克次体属的柠檬酸合酶（citrate synthase, gltA）基因片段开展检测分析。结果显示，3种细菌的脱氧核糖核酸（DNA）——文氏巴尔通体伯克霍夫亚种（Bartonella vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii）、犬埃立克体（Ehrlichia canis）以及犬嗜血支原体（Mycoplasma haemocanis）——的检出率介于5.3%至15.8%之间。本研究为墨西哥境内犬只感染文氏巴尔通体伯克霍夫亚种与犬嗜血支原体的首次报道，同时也是墨西哥城首次检出犬埃立克体。有必要对流浪犬种群开展监测，以明确此类病原体对野生动物种群及公共卫生的影响，进而制定相应的预防与保护方案。