Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1 Beichen West Road, Chaoyang District, 100101 Beijing, China.
Ecohealth. 2010 Aug;7(1):127-34. doi: 10.1007/s10393-010-0307-0. Epub 2010 Apr 6.
Although the chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), the etiological agent of amphibian chytridiomycosis, has been implicated in mass mortality and population declines on several continents around the world, there have been no reports on the presence of Bd infections in amphibians in China. We employed quantitative PCR and histological techniques to investigate the presence of Bd in introduced North American bullfrogs (Rana catesbeiana) (referred to hereafter as bullfrog) and native amphibians in bullfrog-invaded areas of the Yunnan Province, China. A total of 259 samples at five wild sites were collected between June and September in 2007 and 2008, including bullfrogs and four native amphibian species (Rana pleuraden, Rana chaochiaoensis, Odorrana andersonii, and Bombina maxima). In addition, 37 samples of adult bullfrogs were obtained from a food market. Bd infections were discovered in bullfrogs and three native amphibian species from all of the surveyed sites. Of the 39 Bd-positive samples, 35 were from wild-caught bullfrog tadpoles, postmetamorphic bullfrogs, R. pleuraden, R. chaochiaoensis, and O. andersonii, and four were from adult bullfrogs from the market. Our results provide the first evidence of the presence of Bd in Chinese amphibians, suggesting that native amphibian diversity in China is at risk from Bd. There is an urgent need to monitor the distribution of Bd in amphibians in China and understand the susceptibility of native amphibian species to chytridiomycosis. Strict regulations on the transportation of bullfrogs and the breeding of bullfrogs in markets and farms should be drafted in order to stop the spread of Bd by bullfrogs.
虽然两栖动物壶菌（Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis，Bd），即蛙壶菌病的病原体，已被认为是导致世界上几个大洲的大量两栖动物死亡和种群减少的原因，但在中国的两栖动物中尚未有关于 Bd 感染的报道。我们采用定量 PCR 和组织学技术，调查了中国云南省被入侵的北美的牛蛙（Rana catesbeiana）（以下简称牛蛙）和本地两栖动物中 Bd 的存在情况。在 2007 年和 2008 年 6 月至 9 月期间，在五个野生地点共采集了 259 个样本，包括牛蛙和四个本地两栖动物物种（Rana pleuraden、Rana chaochiaoensis、Odorrana andersonii 和 Bombina maxima）。此外，还从一个农贸市场获得了 37 个成年牛蛙样本。在所有调查地点的牛蛙和三个本地两栖动物物种中都发现了 Bd 感染。在 39 个 Bd 阳性样本中，有 35 个来自野生牛蛙蝌蚪、变态后的牛蛙、R. pleuraden、R. chaochiaoensis 和 O. andersonii，4 个来自农贸市场的成年牛蛙。我们的结果首次提供了中国两栖动物中存在 Bd 的证据，表明中国的本地两栖动物多样性正受到 Bd 的威胁。迫切需要监测中国两栖动物中 Bd 的分布情况，并了解本地两栖动物物种对蛙壶菌病的敏感性。应该起草有关牛蛙运输和农贸市场及养殖场牛蛙养殖的严格规定，以阻止牛蛙传播 Bd。
