Universidade de São Paulo, Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, São Paulo, SP, Brasil.
Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho", Instituto de Biotecnologia, Botucatu, Brasil.
Braz J Biol. 2022 Jun 6;84:e262851. doi: 10.1590/1519-6984.262851. eCollection 2022.
Nontuberculous mycobacteria infection is one of the most common chronic bacterial diseases in ornamental aquarium fish and appears to be directly related to stressful husbandry practices. Furthermore, it also represents zoonotic potential. Here we present the isolation and characterization of non-tuberculous mycobacteria from diseased freshwater angelfish (Pterophyllum scalare) in São Paulo, Brazil. Nine discarded breeding females with signs of disease were evaluated. The fish exhibited lethargy, loss of appetite, cachexia, skin ulcers, and exophthalmia. At necropsy, four fishes presented macroscopic granulomas in the spleen. Mycobacterium chelonae, M. fortuitum, M. gordonae, M. intracellulare and M. peregrinum were isolated and identified by hsp65 PCR restriction analysis. Histopathological analysis revealed microscopic lesions compatible with mycobacteriosis, and Mycobacterium bacillus were observed by Ziehl-Neelsen stain. Notably, all Mycobacterium species identified in this study have already been reported in human patients; therefore, diseased animals may be a source of infection for people who handle fish and aquariums.
非结核分枝杆菌感染是观赏鱼缸鱼类最常见的慢性细菌性疾病之一，似乎与应激性养殖实践直接相关。此外，它还具有潜在的人畜共患性。在这里，我们从巴西圣保罗患病的淡水神仙鱼（Pterophyllum scalare）中分离和鉴定了非结核分枝杆菌。评估了 9 条有疾病迹象的废弃繁殖雌鱼。这些鱼表现出昏睡、食欲不振、消瘦、皮肤溃疡和眼球突出。在剖检时，4 条鱼的脾脏有肉眼可见的肉芽肿。通过 hsp65 PCR 限制分析，分离和鉴定了嗜肺军团菌、脓肿分枝杆菌、戈登分枝杆菌、胞内分枝杆菌和偶发分枝杆菌。组织病理学分析显示出与分枝杆菌病相符的微观病变，并且通过齐尔-尼尔森染色观察到分枝杆菌杆菌。值得注意的是，本研究中鉴定的所有分枝杆菌物种都已在人类患者中报告过；因此，患病动物可能是接触鱼类和水族馆的人的感染源。
