Burger Joanna, Jeitner Christian, Zappalorti Robert T, Bunnell John, Ng Kelly, DeVito Emile, Schneider David, Gochfeld Michael
Cell Biology and Neuroscience, Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources, Rutgers University, 604 Allison Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA.
Center for Environmental Exposures and Disease, and Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA.
J Fungi (Basel). 2025 Mar 6;11(3):206. doi: 10.3390/jof11030206.
, the fungus causing Snake Fungal Disease (SFD) or ophidiomycosis, is prevalent in North American snakes and can have deleterious population effects. Northern pine snakes () in New Jersey often test positive for ophidiomycosis. In this paper, we use qPCR to examine changes in prevalence from 2018 to 2023, and differences by age, sex, and morphological sampling locations. We swabbed ventral surfaces, head, and cloaca of snakes, and lesions and eyes if there were clinical ophidiomycosis signs. A snake was considered positive if any site was positive by qPCR. The prevalence was 47% (2018), increased to 100% (2022), but declined to 46% in 2023. The prevalence was highest in snakes with lesions (46-100%); head swabs had the lowest rates. The more lesions a snake had, the more likely it was that at least one would be positive. Males had significantly more lesions than females, but the prevalence was similar. In 2023, the prevalence of was low, but the prevalence of lesions did not decrease as markedly. We discuss the temporal changes in the positivity for and its implications for ophidiomycosis effects, suggesting that the fungus is endemic in this population.
引起蛇类真菌病（SFD）或蛇真菌病的真菌在北美蛇类中普遍存在，并可能对种群产生有害影响。新泽西州的北部松树蛇（ ）经常被检测出蛇真菌病呈阳性。在本文中，我们使用定量聚合酶链反应（qPCR）来研究2018年至2023年患病率的变化，以及年龄、性别和形态学采样位置的差异。我们擦拭了蛇的腹面、头部和泄殖腔，如果有蛇真菌病的临床症状，还擦拭了病变部位和眼睛。如果qPCR检测任何一个部位呈阳性，则该蛇被视为阳性。患病率在2018年为47%，在2022年升至100%，但在2023年降至46%。有病变的蛇患病率最高（46%-100%）；头部擦拭样本的阳性率最低。蛇身上的病变越多，至少有一个病变呈阳性的可能性就越大。雄性的病变明显多于雌性，但患病率相似。2023年， 的患病率较低，但病变的患病率下降幅度没有那么明显。我们讨论了 阳性率的时间变化及其对蛇真菌病影响的意义，表明该真菌在这一种群中呈地方性流行。
