Manenti Raoul, Mercurio Silvia, Melotto Andrea, Barzaghi Benedetta, Epis Sara, Tecilla Marco, Pennati Roberta, Scarì Giorgio Ulisse, Ficetola Gentile Francesco
Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of Milano, 20133 Milano, Italy.
Centre of Excellence for Invasion Biology, Department of Botany and Zoology, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch 7602, South Africa.
Animals (Basel). 2022 Mar 10;12(6):696. doi: 10.3390/ani12060696.
New pathologies are causing dramatic declines and extinctions of multiple amphibian species. In 2013, in one fire salamander population of Northern Italy, we found individuals with undescribed cysts at the throat level, a malady whose existence has not previously been reported in amphibians. With the aim of describing this novel disease, we performed repeated field surveys to assess the frequency of affected salamanders from 2014 to 2020, and integrated morphological, histological, and molecular analyses to identify the pathogen. The novel disease affected up to 22% of salamanders of the study population and started spreading to nearby populations. Cysts are formed by mucus surrounding protist-like cells about 30 µm long, characterized by numerous cilia/undulipodia. Morphological and genetic analyses did not yield a clear match with described organisms. The existence of this pathogen calls for the implementation of biosecurity protocols and more studies on the dynamics of transmission and the impact on wild populations.
新出现的病变正在导致多种两栖动物物种急剧减少和灭绝。2013年，在意大利北部的一个火蝾螈种群中，我们发现个体在喉部有未描述过的囊肿，这种疾病此前在两栖动物中尚未有过报道。为了描述这种新疾病，我们从2014年到2020年进行了多次野外调查，以评估受影响蝾螈的频率，并综合形态学、组织学和分子分析来鉴定病原体。这种新疾病影响了研究种群中高达22%的蝾螈，并开始蔓延到附近的种群。囊肿由围绕着约30微米长的原生生物样细胞的黏液形成，这些细胞的特征是有许多纤毛/波动足。形态学和遗传学分析并未与已描述的生物明确匹配。这种病原体的存在要求实施生物安全协议，并对传播动态及其对野生种群的影响进行更多研究。
