title: Non-tuberculous mycobacteria in wild boar (Sus scrofa) from Southern Spain: epidemiological, clinical and diagnostic concerns.
abstract: Non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are widely distributed in the environment, particularly in wet soil, marshland, rivers or streams, but also are causative agents of a wide variety of infections in animals and humans. Little information is available regarding the NTM prevalence in wildlife and their effects or significance in the bovine tuberculosis (bTB) epidemiology and diagnosis. This research shows the most frequently NTM isolated in lymph nodes of wild boar (Sus scrofa) from southern Spain, relating the NTM presence with the individual characteristics, the management of animals and the possible misdiagnosis of Mycobacterium bovis in concurrent infections. A total of 219 NTM isolates were obtained from 1249 wild boar mandibular lymph nodes sampled between 2007 and 2011. All but 75 isolates were identified by the PCR-restriction analysis-hsp65, and a partial sequencing of the 16S rDNA was carried out to identify the rest of the isolates. Results showed that Mycobacterium chelonae was the most frequently isolated NTM specie (133 isolates, 60.7%), followed by Mycobacterium avium (24 isolates, 11%). No relation was found regarding sex, body condition and management, but M. chelonae was more frequently detected in adults, whereas M. avium was more prevalent in subadults. The high NTM prevalence observed in the studied wild boar populations could make difficult the bTB diagnostic.
authors.affiliation: Red de Grupos de Investigación Recursos Faunísticos, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de Extremadura, Cáceres, Spain.
authors.forename: W L
authors.initials: WL
authors.lastname: García-Jiménez
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Benítez-Medina
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Martínez
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Carranza
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cerrato
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: García-Sánchez
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Risco
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Moreno
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sequeda
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gómez
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Fernández-Llario
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hermoso-de-Mendoza
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000382:microbiology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009165:Mycobacterium Infections, Nontuberculous / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D009163:Mycobacterium bovis / Q000235:genetics; D009170:Nontuberculous Mycobacteria / Q000235:genetics*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000662:veterinary; D012150:Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length; D015995:Prevalence; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology; D013045:Species Specificity; D034421:Sus scrofa / Q000382:microbiology*; D013552:Swine; D013553:Swine Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology*
keywords: Mycobacterium avium; Mycobacterium bovis; Mycobacterium chelonae; non-tuberculous mycobacteria; wild boar