Bohr U R M, Selgrad M, Ochmann C, Backert S, König W, Fenske A, Wex T, Malfertheiner P
Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Infectious Diseases, Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg, Leipziger Strasse 44, D-39120 Magdeburg, Germany.
J Clin Microbiol. 2006 Mar;44(3):738-42. doi: 10.1128/JCM.44.3.738-742.2006.
Infections with enterohepatic Helicobacter species (EHS) can change the results of animal experiments. However, there is little information about the prevalence of EHS in noncommercial animal facilities. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence and the spread of EHS in specific-pathogen-free (SPF) mice. Fecal samples of 40 mouse lines were analyzed for members of the family Helicobacteraceae using a group-specific PCR targeting the 16S rRNA gene. Additional experiments were carried out to evaluate the spread of EHS among mice harbored in different caging systems. Helicobacter species were detected in 87.5% of the mouse lines tested. Five different Helicobacter species were identified: H. ganmani, H. hepaticus, H. typhlonicus, and the putative Helicobacter species represented by the isolates hamster B and MIT 98-5357. Helicobacter infection did not spread between animals in neighboring cages when individually ventilated cages were used; in contrast, when the mice were reared in open-air cages, EHS were found to spread from cage to cage. However, the spread was prevented by adding polycarbonate filter tops to the cages. When Helicobacter-negative and infected mice shared the same cage, transmission of the infection occurred in 100% within 2 weeks. Furthermore, we found that mice from commercial breeding facilities may carry undetected Helicobacter infections. Taken together, we show that infection with EHS may frequently occur and spread easily in mice reared under SPF conditions despite extensive safety precautions. Moreover, there is a high prevalence of rather uncommon Helicobacter species that may be a consequence of the current routine procedures used for health screening of SPF mice.
肝肠螺杆菌属（EHS）感染会改变动物实验结果。然而，关于非商业性动物设施中EHS的流行情况，相关信息较少。本研究的目的是调查无特定病原体（SPF）小鼠中EHS的流行情况及传播情况。使用针对16S rRNA基因的组特异性PCR，对40个小鼠品系的粪便样本进行了螺杆菌科成员分析。还进行了额外实验，以评估EHS在不同饲养系统中的小鼠之间的传播情况。在所检测的小鼠品系中，87.5%检测到了螺杆菌属。鉴定出了五种不同的螺杆菌：甘氏螺杆菌、肝螺杆菌、盲肠螺杆菌，以及由仓鼠B和MIT 98 - 5357分离株代表的假定螺杆菌。当使用独立通风笼时，相邻笼中的动物之间未发生螺杆菌感染传播；相反，当小鼠饲养在开放式笼中时，发现EHS会在笼间传播。然而，在笼子上添加聚碳酸酯滤盖可防止传播。当螺杆菌阴性和感染小鼠共用一个笼子时，100%在2周内发生了感染传播。此外，我们发现来自商业繁殖设施的小鼠可能携带未被检测到的螺杆菌感染。综上所述，我们表明，尽管采取了广泛的安全预防措施，但在SPF条件下饲养的小鼠中，EHS感染可能经常发生且易于传播。此外，相当罕见的螺杆菌种类流行率很高，这可能是当前用于SPF小鼠健康筛查的常规程序导致的结果。
