Yao Lan, Li He, Hu Xinyu, Li Zhen, Dong Haowen, Jiang Yanyan, Cao Jianping
Department of Parasitology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, 150081, Heilongjiang, China.
National Institute of Parasitic Diseases, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese Center for Tropical Diseases Research), National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, NHC Key Laboratory of Parasite and Vector Biology, National Center for International Research on Tropical Diseases, WHO Collaborating Centre for Tropical Diseases, 200025, Shanghai, China.
Acta Trop. 2025 Apr;264:107585. doi: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2025.107585. Epub 2025 Mar 15.
Enterocytozoon bieneusi is a common zoonotic pathogen in wild, farmed and pet rodents worldwide. Recently, one study reported E. bieneusi infection in laboratory mice. To investigate the positive rate and genotype distribution of E. bieneusi in laboratory mice and assess the zoonotic potential of E. bieneusi isolates, 390 mixed mouse fecal specimens were collected from two medical experimental animal centers in Heilongjiang Province, China. E. bieneusi was identified and genotyped by nested PCR amplification and sequence analysis of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of the ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene. Seventy-one specimens (18.2%) were positive for E. bieneusi, and 38 genotypes were identified, including eight known genotypes (EbpC, D, Peru8, CS-4, Henan-III, CHC5, ETMK4 and SHWR14) and 30 novel genotypes (HLJLM1 to HLJLM30). Genotypes CHC5 and ETMK4 were firstly detected in rodents. Genotype EbpC showed a dominance (50.7%, 36/71) in positive specimens. Zoonotic genotypes (EbpC, D, Peru8, Henan-III and CS-4) accounted for 64.8% (46/71) of E. bieneusi-positive specimens. In phylogenetic analysis, the novel genotypes fell into three subgroups (1a, 1d, 1e) of Group 1. The identification of known zoonotic genotypes and the phylogenetic result of novel genotypes indicate the potential of laboratory mice in the transmission of E. bieneusi to humans. The routine detection of E. bieneusi should be a recommended practice in laboratory animals to ensure the accuracy of the experimental results. Meanwhile, health education of the potential zoonotic transmission of E. bieneusi should be provided to those people having close contact with laboratory mice and their feces.
微小隐孢子虫是一种在全球野生、养殖及宠物啮齿动物中常见的人畜共患病原体。最近，一项研究报告了实验室小鼠感染微小隐孢子虫的情况。为调查实验室小鼠中微小隐孢子虫的阳性率和基因型分布，并评估微小隐孢子虫分离株的人畜共患病潜力，从中国黑龙江省的两个医学实验动物中心收集了390份混合小鼠粪便标本。通过对核糖体RNA（rRNA）基因的内部转录间隔区（ITS）进行巢式PCR扩增和序列分析，对微小隐孢子虫进行鉴定和基因分型。71份标本（18.2%）微小隐孢子虫检测呈阳性，鉴定出38种基因型，包括8种已知基因型（EbpC、D、Peru8、CS - 4、河南III型、CHC5、ETMK4和SHWR14）和30种新基因型（HLJLM1至HLJLM30）。基因型CHC5和ETMK4首次在啮齿动物中检测到。基因型EbpC在阳性标本中占主导地位（50.7%，36/71）。人畜共患基因型（EbpC、D、Peru8）占微小隐孢子虫阳性标本的64.8%（46/71）。在系统发育分析中，新基因型分为第1组的三个亚组（1a、1d、1e）。已知人畜共患基因型的鉴定和新基因型的系统发育结果表明实验室小鼠具有将微小隐孢子虫传播给人类的潜力。对微小隐孢子虫进行常规检测应成为实验动物中的推荐做法，以确保实验结果的准确性。同时，应向那些与实验室小鼠及其粪便有密切接触的人提供关于微小隐孢子虫潜在人畜共患传播的健康教育。
