Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute (RVSRI), Karaj, Iran.
Zoonoses Public Health. 2021 Aug;68(5):376-383. doi: 10.1111/zph.12796. Epub 2020 Dec 19.
Brucellosis is a neglected zoonotic infection with a worldwide distribution and high levels of endemism in some regions, including the Middle East. In Iran, sheep and goats constitute a major part of the livestock population, often kept by small-scale farmers for their own consumption and economic purposes. This investigation aimed at characterizing the Brucella spp. and biovars circulating in sheep and goats under smallholder farming and their potential spillover across farms. For this purpose, from two randomly selected pastoral districts of Alborz and Fars provinces in Iran, a total of 54 aborted foetuses (38 from sheep and 16 from goats) and 528 blood samples were collected from sheep (n = 435), goats (n = 77), farmers (n = 11) and dogs (n = 5). Then, serological, bacteriological and molecular characterization of Brucella isolates was performed using standard methods. Our results showed the high seroprevalence of brucellosis in pastoral districts of Fars and Alborz provinces reaching 16.3%, 11.7% and 12.7% by using the Rose Bengal plate test (RBPT), serum agglutination test (SAT) and indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (iELISA) test, respectively. Furthermore, the results of bacterial culture, conventional biotyping and PCR analyses showed the presence of Brucella melitensis biovar 1 and 2 infections among goat, farmers and dog of the Alborz farms and B. melitensis biovars 1, 2 and 3 among sheep of the Fars farms. Among nine seropositive farmer and dog blood samples (four farmers and five dogs), only three (two farmers and one dog) were positive in both culture and PCR tests. These results stress the need to strengthen screening and control measures in small flocks of small ruminants in Iran that could be the starting point of new outbreaks at the livestock/human interface. The present study also suggests that infected dogs may further maintain the risk of exposure to Brucella pathogens in small farms and beyond.
布鲁氏菌病是一种被忽视的人畜共患传染病，分布广泛，在一些地区（包括中东地区）地方性流行程度很高。在伊朗，绵羊和山羊是畜牧业的主要组成部分，通常由小规模的农民饲养，用于自己消费和经济目的。本研究旨在描述在小规模农民饲养的绵羊和山羊中循环的布鲁氏菌属和生物型，并研究其在农场之间的潜在溢出。为此，从伊朗阿尔博兹省和法尔斯省的两个随机选择的牧区共采集了 54 例流产胎儿（绵羊 38 例，山羊 16 例）和 528 份绵羊（n=435）、山羊（n=77）、农民（n=11）和狗（n=5）血液样本。然后，采用标准方法对布鲁氏菌分离株进行血清学、细菌学和分子特征分析。我们的结果显示，法尔斯省和阿尔博兹省的牧区布鲁氏菌病血清阳性率很高，分别用虎红平板试验（RBPT）、血清凝集试验（SAT）和间接酶联免疫吸附试验（iELISA）检测到 16.3%、11.7%和 12.7%。此外，细菌培养、常规生物型鉴定和 PCR 分析结果显示，阿尔博兹省的山羊、农民和狗中存在布鲁氏菌 melitensis 生物型 1 和 2 感染，法尔斯省的绵羊中存在布鲁氏菌 melitensis 生物型 1、2 和 3 感染。在 9 份血清阳性的农民和狗血液样本（4 份农民和 5 份狗）中，只有 3 份（2 份农民和 1 份狗）在培养和 PCR 检测中均为阳性。这些结果强调了在伊朗的小反刍动物小群中加强筛选和控制措施的必要性，这可能是畜群/人群界面出现新疫情的起点。本研究还表明，受感染的狗可能会进一步维持在小农场内外接触布鲁氏菌病原体的风险。
