title: Seroprevalence and genotype of Chlamydia in pet parrots in China.
abstract: Parrots are one of the most popular pet birds in China, and can harbour Chlamydia which has significance for human and animal health. We investigated, by indirect haemagglutination assay, the seroprevalence of Chlamydia infection in four species of parrots, namely budgerigars (Melopsittacus undulatus), lovebirds (Agapornis sp.), cockatiels (Nymphicus hollandicus) and Alexandrine parakeets (Psittacula eupatria) that were collected from Weifang and Beijing cities, North China and explored the association between potential risk factors and chlamydial seropositivity. We further determined the genotype of Chlamydia in 21 fresh faecal samples based on the ompA sequence by reconstruction of phylogenetic relationships. Of the 311 parrots examined, 35·37% (95% confidence interval 30·06-40·68) were seropositive, and species, gender, age, season and geographical location were identified as risk factors. Two PCR-positive samples represented Chlamydia psittaci genotype A. The occurrence of C. psittaci genotype A in the droppings of two pet parrots in China suggests potential environmental contamination with Chlamydiaceae and may raise a public health concern.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology,Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute,Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, PRChina.
authors.forename: N-Z
authors.initials: NZ
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology,Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute,Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, PRChina.
authors.forename: X-X
authors.initials: XX
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology,Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute,Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, PRChina.
authors.forename: D-H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology,Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute,Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, PRChina.
authors.forename: S-Y
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology,Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute,Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, PRChina.
authors.forename: W-P
authors.initials: WP
authors.lastname: Tian
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology,Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute,Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, PRChina.
authors.forename: Y-C
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology,Jilin Agricultural University,Changchun, Jilin Province, PRChina.
authors.forename: Q
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology,Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute,Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, PRChina.
authors.forename: X-Q
authors.initials: XQ
authors.lastname: Zhu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D001715:Bird Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D002691:Chlamydophila psittaci / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D005260:Female; D005838:Genotype; D006386:Hemagglutination Tests; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010311:Parrots; D057805:Pets; D010802:Phylogeny; D009956:Psittacosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies
chemical_list: D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins; C078167:OMPA outer membrane proteins