Focus: Zoonotic Disease: Molecular Detection of Zoonotic Pathogens in the Blood and Tissues of Camels (Camelus dromedarius) in Central Desert of Iran

Dromedary camels (Camelus dromedarius) play a major economic role in many countries in Africa and Asia. Although they are resistant to harsh environmental conditions, they are susceptible to a wide range of zoonotic agents. This study aimed to provide an overview on the prevalence of selected zoonotic pathogens in blood and tissues of camels in central Iran. Blood, liver, portal lymph node, and brain were collected from 100 apparently healthy camels at a slaughterhouse in Qom city to assess the presence of DNA of Brucella spp., Trypanosoma spp., Coxiella burnetii, and Bartonella spp. PCR products were sequenced bidirectionally and phylogenetic analyses were performed. Eleven percent of camels tested positive for Brucella abortus (3%) and Trypanosoma evansi (8%). Coxiella burnetii and Bartonella spp. DNA was not detected. Our data demonstrate that camels from Iran contribute to the epidemiology of some zoonotic pathogens. Performing proper control strategies, such as vaccination of camels and humans in contact with them, test-and-slaughter policy, and education of the general population is necessary for minimizing the risk of zoonotic infection.     

库木塔格沙漠地区野骆驼活动节律与家域特征

野生双峰驼(Camelus ferus)生存于中亚沙漠腹地, 是国家I级重点保护野生动物。为探究野骆驼活动节律和家域状况, 了解其时间和空间尺度上的活动模式, 为其有效保护管理提供支持。本研究于2012年5月至2013年7月利用GPS跟踪项圈先后对库木塔格沙漠地区7峰野骆驼进行轨迹跟踪。利用跟踪数据对野骆驼活动节律进行分析, 并采用布朗桥模型对野骆驼家域进行分析。结果表明: (1)野骆驼日活动节律呈现明显双峰模式, 属晨昏活动类型, 活动高峰期主要出现于上午6:00-9:00及下午15:00-20:00。(2)野骆驼晨昏活动高峰存在明显的季节性变动, 双峰从暖季到冷季向中午移动, 按间隔时间长短排序为: 夏季 > 春季 > 秋季 > 冬季。(3)野骆驼日活动强度有明显的季节性差异, 大小关系为: 夏季 > 秋季 > 春季和冬季, 春季和冬季间差异不显著。(4)野骆驼为核心家域利用类型, 且存在多个核心家域, 一些野骆驼家域分布于沙漠南北两侧, 意味着其具有横跨沙漠的运动能力。(5)野骆驼个体间家域面积差异显著, 性别间家域面积差异不显著。季节间家域面积差异显著, 从大到小排序为: 夏季(1,256.27 ± 427.45 km²) > 春季(556.90 ± 259.35 km²) > 秋季(396.77 ± 82.31 km²) > 冬季(250.83 ± 99.64 km²)。     

A new sighting of the Mediterranean Monk Seal,Monachus monachus (Hermann, 1779), in the Marmara Sea (Turkey)

Rhagodes Pocock, 1897 is the most speciose genus within the family Rhagodidae and species diagnosis is often very difficult. We found Rhagodes eylandti (Walter, 1889) for the first time again since the 1930s and redescribe some morphological features of the male and compare them with the literature. The main diagnostic characters are illustrated.     

双峰驼肾重吸收机能的细胞学证据

电镜下观察了18峰双峰驼（Camelus bactrianus)肾脏细胞的超微结构,探究驼肾重吸收机能的形态学证据。结果显示,驼肾近曲小管的刷状缘高而密集,上皮细胞胞质顶端具有丰富的管泡结构,侧基底指状突起和基底质膜内褶多而明显,板状嵴线粒体发达。远曲小管和远直小管游离面微绒毛短而稀少,胞质线粒体排列密集,质膜内褶更为发达。集合小管上皮包括多量的亮细胞和少量的暗细胞两种类型,亮细胞结构简单,线粒体稀少,暗细胞线粒体密集,由皮质至髓质,暗细胞数量呈递减趋势,但内髓仍见暗细胞分布。皮质间质极少,志细血管丰富,管壁内皮菲薄有孔。髓质直小血管亦为有孔内皮。上述结构特征表明,双峰驼具有很强的重吸收能力,与其节水耐干渴特性相适应。     

转铁蛋白结构与功能的研究——骆驼血清转铁蛋自的分离纯化及其含单一铁结合部位的结构域的制备和鉴定

分离纯化获得的骆驼血清转铁蛋白由分子量为73,000和63,000两个组分组成。两者至少N-端五肽顺序相同(Met-Pro-Asp-Lys-Thr)。骆驼血清转铁蛋白在生理pH下不能与人胎盘转铁蛋白受体结合。用胰蛋白酶酶解骆驼转铁蛋白可以同时得到两个合单一铁结合部位的结构域,分别来自转铁蛋白分子的N-端称N-端结构域(分子量34,700和40,700)和C-端称C-端结构域(分子量35,100)。在上述结果的基础上指出并讨论了反刍动物转铁蛋白在结构和功能上存在更多的共同性,而与其它哺乳动物的转铁蛋白有着明显的区别。     

内蒙古阿拉善骆驼生活环境水生双翅目昆虫种类调查

【目的】通过对内蒙古阿拉善骆驼生活环境中水生双翅目昆虫的调查研究,以明确其种类的组成和分布。【方法】于2014年5-9月利用网捕法,调查了阿拉善骆驼生活环境水生双翅目昆虫。对鉴定的吸血种类的COI基因序列进行了测序和分析。【结果】共发现水生双翅目昆虫21科41属47种,其中有16种为内蒙古地区新记录,12种为吸血种类,长角亚目、芒角亚目和短角亚目个体数量分别占水生双翅目昆虫总数的49.3%,43.5%和7.2%。分子数据分析显示,12种吸血水生双翅目昆虫的COI基因序列一致性在75.9%~97.3%之间,不同科之间大部分水生双翅目昆虫差异显著,科内不同属间差异也较明显。【结论】本研究基本上掌握了内蒙古骆驼生活环境水生双翅目昆虫的种类,特别是吸血种类,为后期骆驼福斯盘尾丝虫病传播媒介种属的确定提供了基础数据。     

Seed viability and germination success of Acacia tortilis along land‐use and aridity gradients in the Eastern Sahara

Our study focuses on the keystone species Acacia tortilis and is the first to investigate the effect of domestic ungulates and aridity on seed viability and germination over an extensive part of the Eastern Sahara. Bruchids infest its seeds and reduce their viability and germination, but ingestion by ruminant herbivores diminishes infestation levels and enhances/promotes seed viability and germination. The degree of these effects seems to be correlated with animal body mass. Significantly reduced numbers of wild ruminant ungulates have increased the potential importance of domestic animals and pastoral nomadism for the functionality of arid North African and Middle Eastern ecosystems. We sampled seeds (16,543) from A. tortilis in eight areas in three regions with different aridity and land use. We tested the effect of geography and sampling context on seed infestation using random effects logistic regressions. We did a randomized and balanced germination experiment including 1193 seeds, treated with different manure. Germination time and rates across geography, sampling context, and infestation status were analyzed using time‐to‐event analyses, Kaplan–Meier curves and proportional hazards Cox regressions. Bruchid infestation is very high (80%), and the effects of context are significant. Neither partial infestation nor adding manure had a positive effect on germination. There is a strong indication that intact, uningested seeds from acacia populations in the extremely arid Western Desert germinate more slowly and have a higher fraction of hard seeds than in the Eastern Desert and the Red Sea Hills. For ingested seeds in the pastoralist areas we find that intact seeds from goat dung germinate significantly better than those from camel dung. This is contrary to the expected body‐mass effect. There is no effect of site or variation in tribal management.     

Characterization of Streptococcus bovis from the rumen of the dromedary camel and Rusa deer

AIMS: Isolation and characterization of Streptococcus bovis from the dromedary camel and Rusa deer. METHODS AND RESULTS: Bacteria were isolated from the rumen contents of four camels and two deer fed lucerne hay by culturing on the semi-selective medium MRS agar. Based on Gram morphology and RFLP analysis seven isolates, MPR1, MPR2, MPR3, MPR4, MPR5, RD09 and RD11 were selected and putatively identified as Streptococcus. The identity of these isolates was later confirmed by comparative DNA sequence analysis of the 16S rRNA gene with the homologous sequence from S. bovis strains, JB1, C14b1, NCFB2476, SbR1, SbR7 and Sb5, from cattle and sheep, and the Streptococcus equinus strain NCD01037T. The percentage similarity amongst all strains was >99%, confirming the identification of the camel isolates as S. bovis. The strains were further characterized by their ability to utilize a range of carbohydrates, the production of volatile fatty acids (VFA) and lactate and the determination of the doubling time in basal medium 10 supplemented with glucose. All the isolates produced l-lactate as a major fermentation end product, while four of five camel isolates produced VFA. The range of carbohydrates utilized by all the strains tested, including those from cattle and sheep were identical, except that all camel isolates and the deer isolate RD11 were additionally able to utilize arabinose. CONCLUSIONS: Streptococcus bovis was successfully isolated from the rumen of camels and deer, and shown by molecular and biochemical characterization to be almost identical to S. bovis isolates from cattle and sheep. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: Streptococcus bovis is considered a key lactic acid producing bacterium from the gastrointestinal tract of ruminants, and has been implicated as a causative agent of lactic acidosis. This study is the first report of the isolation and characterization of S. bovis from the dromedary camel and Rusa deer, and suggests a major contributive role of this bacterium to fermentative acidosis.     

Heterogeneous nuclear transfer embryos reconstructed by bovine oocytes and camel (Camelus bactrianus) skin fibroblasts and their subsequent development

Summary This study reconstructed heterogeneous embryos using camel skin fibroblast cells as donor karyoplasts and the bovine oocytes as recipient cytoplasts to investigate the reprogramming of camel somatic cell nuclei in bovine oocyte cytoplasm and the developmental potential of the reconstructed embryos. Serum-starved skin fibroblast cells, obtained from adult camel, were electrically fused into enucleated bovine metaphase II (MII) oocytes that were matured in vitro. The fused eggs were activated by Inomycin with 2 mM/ml 6-dimethylaminopurine. The activated reconstructed embryos were cocultured with bovine cumulus cells in synthetic oviduct fluid supplemented with amino acid (SOFaa) and 10% fetal calf serum for 168 h. Results showed that 53% of the injected oocytes were successfully fused, 34% of the fused eggs underwent the first egg cleavage, and 100% of them developed to four- or 16-cell embryo stages. The first completed cleavage of xenonuclear transfer camel embryos occurred between 22 and 48 h following activation. This study demonstrated that the reconstructed embryos underwent the first embryonic division and that the reprogramming of camel fibroblast nuclei can be initiated in enucleated bovine MII oocytes.     

In vitro culture of the strobilar stage of Echinococcus granulosus from protoscoleces of human, camel, cattle, sheep and goat origin from Kenya and buffalo origin from India

Protoscoleces from human, camel, cattle, sheep, goat (all from Kenya) and buffalo (from India) hydatid cysts were cultured under identical conditions in vitro using the diphasic culture system of Smyth (1979b). Organisms from all sources grew and segmented in culture. Genital anlagen developed in all cultured worms but further genital differentiation occurred only in cultures of cattle (testes) and camel (testes and genital pore) material. The possible significance of these results is discussed in relation to the general epidemiology of hydatid disease and the potential infectivity of the different strains to man.