Severe pneumonia in a street rat () caused by strain RMC2.

BACKGROUND

Rodents are one of the most dangerous reservoirs and carriers of infectious diseases. Gradually, rats have become predominant in cities, sometimes staying in close vicinity to humans, pets, and other animals. Consequently, they tend to increase the transmission risk of pathogens.

CASE DESCRIPTION

Here, we report an original case of bacterial pneumonia in a street rat (). The rat was found dead on a street in the chief town of Marseille (France) after being run over by a car. The necropsy of the corpse revealed generalized granulomatous pneumonia in almost all the pulmonary lobes. Lung lesions and predominantly multiple fibro-inflammatory areas are presumably the witness of an infectious etiology. Bacterial isolation was carried out from lung tissues. Colonies were identified by MALDI-TOF MS and confirmed by 16S rRNA sequencing. The following bacteria were identified: , , , and . Based on the histopathological diagnosis and the avoidance approach, the most likely etiological agent of pneumonia is therefore , a little-known Pasteurellales bacterium that is closely related to

CONCLUSION

These data emphasize the severity of infection in rodents. Thus, pointing out a potential risk for other animals (dogs, cats, and birds), as well as humans. The health monitoring program for rodents and rabbits pasteurellosis should now include . Therefore, the pathological effect of the species and/or strains needs to be better explored.