Prevalence of Yersinia pestis in rodents and fleas associated with black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus) at Thunder Basin National Grassland, Wyoming

Rodents (and their fleas) that are associated with prairie dogs are considered important for the maintenance and transmission of the bacterium (Yersinia pestis) that causes plague. Our goal was to identify rodent and flea species that were potentially involved in a plague epizootic in black-tailed prairie dogs at Thunder Basin National Grassland. We collected blood samples and ectoparasites from rodents trapped at off- and on-colony grids at Thunder Basin National Grassland between 2002 and 2004. Blood samples were tested for antibodies to Y. pestis F-1 antigen by a passive hemagglutination assay, and fleas were tested by a multiplex polymerase chain reaction, for the presence of the plague bacterium. Only one of 1,421 fleas, an Oropsylla hirsuta collected in 2002 from a deer mouse, Peromyscus maniculatus, tested positive for Y. pestis. Blood samples collected in summer 2004 from two northern grasshopper mice, Onychomys leucogaster, tested positive for Y. pestis antibodies. All three positive samples were collected from on-colony grids shortly after a plague epizootic occurred. This study confirms that plague is difficult to detect in rodents and fleas associated with prairie dog colonies, unless samples are collected immediately after a prairie dog die-off.     

Serological reaction systems using enzyme-labelled immunospecific reagents

Different serological test systems, based on the use of enzyme-labeled immunospecific reagents and intended for testing the material under study for the presence of Yersinia pestis capsular antigen and antibodies to it, are described. Comparative data on the evaluation of their sensitivity to the antigen and antibodies to it in different schemes of enzyme immunoassays (EIA) are presented. As shown in this investigation, EIA systems for the detection of the antigen and antibodies to it can comprise, at the minimum, the following set of reagents: monoclonal antibodies to the capsular antigen, staphylococcal protein A, and the conjugates of the capsular antigen and monoclonal antibodies with horse-radish peroxidase. The authors have come to the conclusion that the use of the serological test systems can essentially increase the reliability of the assay of any individual sample by EIA techniques.     

Results of a trial of a plague monoclonal antibody erythrocyte diagnostic agent

Plague antibody monoclonal erythrocyte diagnosticum was studied in serological tests simultaneously with commercial plague antibody erythrocyte diagnosticum prepared on the basis of hyperimmune horse serum and with commercial plague antigenic erythrocyte diagnosticum. In this investigation the suspensions of numerous strains of Yersinia pestis, other closely related and heterologous organisms, experimentally infected wild and laboratory animals, as well as samples of materials obtained from small rodents caught in several natural foci of plague, were studied. The monoclonal diagnosticum was, practically, not inferior to the similar commercial preparation with respect to the frequency of positive results and the activity of the materials under study in serological tests, but showed greater specificity, as it reacted strictly with Y. pestis capsular antigen.     

Use of monoclonal antibodies for the production of a plague antibody erythrocyte diagnostic agent

Monoclonal antibodies to Yersinia pestis capsular antigen were fixed onto the surface of formulated sheep red blood cells. The preparation thus obtained was compared with commercial antibody erythrocyte diagnosticum in the passive hemagglutination test aimed at the search for the capsular antigen in the suspensions of Yersinia pestis museum cultures and in the antigen neutralization test aimed at the search for antibodies in the sera of wild and laboratory animals having had plague. Monoclonal erythrocyte diagnosticum proved to be suitable for the detection of both the capsular antigen and antibodies. The comparison of the results of the passive hemagglutination test and the enzyme immunoassay demonstrated the presence of very close relationship between them.     

Possible vector dissemination by swift foxes following a plague epizootic in black-tailed prairie dogs in northwestern Texas

To determine whether swift foxes (Vulpes velox) could facilitate transmission of Yersinia pestis to uninfected black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) colonies by acquiring infected fleas, ectoparasite and serologic samples were collected from swift foxes living adjacent to prairie dog towns during a 2004 plague epizootic in northwestern Texas, USA. A previous study (1999-2001) indicated that these swift foxes were infested almost exclusively with the flea Pulex irritans. Black-tailed prairie dogs examined from the study area harbored only Pulex simulans and Oropsylla hirsuta. Although P. irritans was most common, P. simulans and O. hirsuta were collected from six swift foxes and a single coyote (Canis latrans) following the plague epizootic. Thus, both of these canids could act as transport hosts (at least temporarily) of prairie dog fleas following the loss of their normal hosts during a plague die-off. All six adult swift foxes tested positive for antibodies to Y. pestis. All 107 fleas from swift foxes tested negative for Y. pestis by mouse inoculation. Although swift foxes could potentially carry Y. pestis to un-infected prairie dog colonies, we believe they play only a minor role in plague epidemiology, considering that they harbored just a few uninfected prairie dog fleas (P. simulans and O. hirsuta).     

Use of monoclonal antibodies in immunoenzyme analysis for demonstrating antigenic monovalency

To prove the monovalence of the antigen a method has been developed consisting of ELISA with the use of monoclonal antibodies in combination with the antibody neutralization test. Yersinia pestis capsular antigen was disintegrated by heating at 100 degrees C for a short time and subsequently passed through a column packed with Sephadex G-50. The portions of the eluate, showing high activity in the antibody neutralization test and low activity in ELISA (the double antibody sandwich scheme), contained mainly the monovalent antigen. This antigen was replaced by the polyvalent antigen from the antibody complex, but if such complex had been previously fixed by treatment with glutaraldehyde, no replacement of the monovalent antigen by the polyvalent one occurred.     

Evidence of multiple zoonotic agents in a wild rodent community in the eastern Sierra Nevada

This study aimed to describe the occurrence of Yersinia pestis, Rickettsia rickettsii, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, and ectoparasites in a wild rodent community in the eastern Sierra Nevada. From May to September 2006, rodents were live-trapped, examined for ectoparasites, and blood was collected. All rodents were serologically tested for antibodies to Y. pestis, R. rickettsii, and A. phagocytophilum; in addition, blood samples and ectoparasites were tested by PCR to detect the presence of these zoonotic agents. Overall, 89 rodents, 46 fleas, and four ticks were collected. Antibody prevalence rates observed for rodents were 14% for R. rickettsii or antigenically related spotted-fever group rickettsiae, and 8% for A. phagocytophilum. No samples were positive for antibodies to Y. pestis. Positive PCR results included one yellow-pine chipmunk for Y. pestis (CT=32.8), one golden-mantled ground squirrel for R. rickettsii (CT=33), and one flea found to be co-infected with both R. rickettsii (CT=17) and A. phagocytophilum (CT=36). The results of this study provide evidence of multiple zoonoses overlapping within a single, located rodent community.     

Uniquely insidious: Yersinia pestis biofilms

Bubonic plague, one of history's deadliest infections, is transmitted by fleas infected with Yersinia pestis. The bacteria can starve fleas by blocking their digestive tracts, which stimulates the insects to bite repeatedly and thereby infect new hosts. Direct examination of infected fleas, aided by in vitro studies and experiments with the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, have established that Y. pestis forms a biofilm in the insect. The extracellular matrix of the biofilm seems to contain a homopolymer of N-acetyl-d-glucosamine, which is a constituent of many bacterial biofilms. A regulatory mechanism involved in Y. pestis biofilm formation, cyclic-di-GMP signaling, is also widespread in bacteria; yet only Y. pestis forms biofilms in fleas. Here, the historical background of bubonic plague is briefly described and recent studies investigating the mechanisms by which these unique and deadly biofilms are formed are discussed.     

Isolation of monoclonal antibodies for the identification of strains of the causative agent of plague that do not contain a capsular antigen

In most cases the immunological identification of Y. pestis strains is based on the use of capsular antigen as an immunological marker. However, there are Y. pestis strains without capsular antigen. For the immunological identification of such strains, homogeneous antigen with a molecular weight of 43 KD has been isolated and monoclonal antibodies to it have been obtained. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, carried out with the use of these monoclonal antibodies and intended for the detection of antigen with a molecular weight of 43 KD, has been developed. The sensitivity of the assay is about 10 ng/ml.     

Specific Identification of Fraction I-Positive Pasteurella pestis Colonies on Antiserum-Agar Plates

A method is described for the use of antiplague serum in Blood Agar Base plating media to detect fraction I-positive Pasteurella pestis. The antiserum was produced conveniently and in large volume in rabbits by use of Cutter plague vaccine combined with Freund's complete adjuvant. P. pestis colonies were specifically identified within 48 hr after plating by the presence of a precipitin ring surrounding each colony. The basis of the test was shown to be a precipitin reaction between fraction I antigen released from P. pestis colonies after chloroform vapor treatment and fraction I antibody present in the antiserum-agar medium.     

Neuramininase activity of the representatives of the genus Yersinia]

The authors demonstrated the presence of neuraminidase in Past. pestis. Optimal conditions for its formation and detection were chosen. Extracellular form of neuraminidase was revealed. An increase of cultivation temperature led to the elevation of the neuraminidase activity in Past. pestis cells. Neuraminidase was revealed in bacteria affiliated to Past. pestis (causative agents of pseudotuberculosis and Y. enterocolitica).     

The potential role of swift foxes (Vulpes velox) and their fleas in plague outbreaks in prairie dogs

Swift foxes (Vulpes velox) have been proposed as potential carriers of fleas infected with the bacterium Yersinia pestis between areas of epizootics in black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus). We examined antibody prevalence rates of a population of swift foxes in Colorado, USA, and used polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays to examine their flea biota for evidence of Y. pestis. Fifteen of 61 (24%) captured foxes were seropositive, and antibody prevalence was spatially correlated with epizootic plague activity in prairie dog colonies in the year of, and previous to, the study. Foxes commonly harbored the flea Pulex simulans, though none of the fleas was positive for Y. pestis.     

No evidence of persistent Yersina pestis infection at prairie dog colonies in north-central Montana

Sylvatic plague is a flea-borne zoonotic disease caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, which can cause extensive mortality among prairie dogs (Cynomys) in western North America. It is unclear whether the plague organism persists locally among resistant host species or elsewhere following epizootics. From June to August 2002 and 2003 we collected blood and flea samples from small mammals at prairie dog colonies with a history of plague, at prairie dog colonies with no history of plague, and from off-colony sites where plague history was unknown. Blood was screened for antibody to Y. pestis by means of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay or passive hemagglutination assay and fleas were screened for Y. pestis DNA by polymerase chain reaction. All material was negative for Y. pestis including 156 blood samples and 553 fleas from colonies with a known history of plague. This and other studies provide evidence that Y. pestis may not persist at prairie dog colonies following an epizootic.     

Evaluation of a standardized F1 capsular antigen capture ELISA test kit for the rapid diagnosis of plague

Rapid detection of soluble F1 capsular antigen in serum, bubo fluid or urine of patients proved to be a valuable tool in the presumptive diagnosis of plague. We evaluated a F1 capsular antigen capture ELISA resembling a commercially available test kit. The minimal detectable concentration was 4 ng/ml. The specificity was 100% when investigating 47 sera from healthy Malagasy subjects and 98.4% when 365 sera from German blood donors were studied. Sensitivity was determined on sera (n=11) and buboes (n=18) from bacteriologically confirmed Malagasy plague patients. Sensitivity was 90.1% for serum and 100% for buboes. A standardized F1 capsular antigen capture ELISA test kit might be well suited for the early detection of plague particularly in non-endemic areas where clinical microbiological laboratories have only limited access to alternative techniques for rapid identification of Yersinia pestis.     

Broader investigation into the external environment of the specific antigen of the infectious agent in epizootiological observation and study of the structure of natural foci of plague.

The possibilities of detection of the infectious agent in natural foci of plague can be expanded to some extent by using the method of search for the specific FI capsular antigen of the plague microbe in such objects of the external environment which have not yet been subjected to laboratory analysis and serological analysis in particular. Such objects include soil from the burrow and the substrate of the nest of the rodent as well as the fleas of rodents and regurgitations of birds of prey.The effectivity and suitability of examination of these objects using immuno-adsorption reactions with standard erythrocyte diagnostics (passive haemagglutination reaction, antibody neutralization reaction) were demonstrated experimentally and confirmed under field conditions in various geographical and ecological zones of the Caucasus. Thus in 1971, an earlier unknown natural focus of plague was found in the Mount Elbrus massif by means of serological analysis of the substrate of the nest and of the soil from the burrows of rodents. It can be expected that broadened serological search for the FI antigen of plague will prove useful in the study of the structure of natural foci of plague, in the reconnaissance or retrospective investigation of poorly explored territories and in the solution of some questions concerning the epizootiology of plague, such as the survival of the infectious agent in the inter-epizootic period, telluric plague, etc.     

The formation of proventriculus block, alimentary activity and mortality of flea Amphipsylla primaris primaris infected with Yersinia pestis

The results of experiments held in 1982-1983 in Tuva plague natural focus with flea Amphipsylla primaris primaris (Jordan et Rothschild, 1915) from natural populations, whish were inflected and fed on specific host--flat-headed vole (Alticola strelzovi), are analyzed. The initial infectivity of the insects in autumn was higher than in spring: 90 and 50 % respectively. Accumulation of the agent in aggregated form in the organism of A. p. primaris, estimated by the quantity of fleas with and partial blocks, was more active in imago of both sexes in autumn than in spring, while sucking flea were observed in spring more often than in autumn. Irrespective of season, the part of males with visible accumulations of Y. pestis was more, and their alimentary activity was higher than that of females. Fleas died much more quickly in spring. Part of the males with proventriculus block exceeded that of females in spring experiment. Females with alimentary canal obstruction prevailed in autumn. Thus, sex of the insect and season of the experiment conducting influenced on all studied indices. Besides that, Y pestis ability for the proventriculus block formation in fleas during different seasons can change by the opposite way depending on sex of the ectoparasites.     

Heterogeneity of monoclonal antibody affinity

In experiments with Pasteurella pestis monovalent capsular antigen and hybridoma monoclonal antibodies obtained after cloning and recloning the heterogeneity of the active centers of antibodies with respect to their affinity was revealed. In ascitic fluids obtained from the animals inoculated with different hybridoma clones 5 groups of antibodies, differing in their affinity, were determined in each fluid sample.     

基于可见光测定的山羊支原体山羊肺炎亚种抗原定量

山羊支原体山羊肺炎亚种(Mycoplasma capricolum subsp. capripneumoniae, Mccp)是山羊传染性胸膜肺炎(contagious caprine pleuropneumonia, CCPP)的病原,可用灭活疫苗和荚膜多糖(capsular polysaccharide, CPS)间接血凝试剂进行预防和血清学检测,但高昂的培养成本和复杂的抗原定量一直困扰着生产人员。为解决生产实际中出现的这些问题,本研究基于Mccp代谢组学的前期理论基础,通过改变初始pH值的方法,初步筛选出初始pH值为7.8的可以同时提高2种抗原产量的糖发酵培养基。利用紫外可吸收光谱可识别酚红,以及十六烷基三甲基溴化铵(cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, CTAB)可与阴离子荚膜多糖结合的理论依据,建立了利用紫外光谱分析Mccp达到的培养阶段,以及利用CTAB沉淀法相对定量发酵液荚膜多糖抗原产量的方法。通过紫外图谱观察的方法可对应Mccp生长曲线进行指导生产,大大节省传统颜色变化单位(color change unit, CCU)法的监测时间,提高了原肉眼观察方法的精确度。建立的CTAB沉淀法可在5 h内完成对CPS含量的监测,与传统的差值法相比大大缩短了时间,并且其准确度得到苯酚-硫酸法的验证。本研究优化的一种培养基和建立的两种相关性比较方法,可有效降低Mccp生产成本,提高生产效率,这些方法已在本实验室的研究阶段得到应用,为进一步改进CCPP灭活疫苗和荚膜多糖的生产工艺以及快速定量提供了实验数据。     

Antigenuria in plague-infected great gerbils

In the urine of plague-infected great gerbils Yersinia pestis capsular antigen was detected by means of diagnostic preparations, both commercial and experimental (based on monoclonal antibodies). The antigen was detected in many urine samples taken from the animals over a prolonged period. The incidence and duration of antigenuria were found to be related to the survival time of great gerbils after infection and the level of antibodies in their blood. The number of animals with antigenuria markedly exceeded the number of animals from which Y. pestis was isolated, especially at a later period after infection. Examinations of urine samples from live great gerbils trapped in natural foci appears to be a method more effective in epizootiological survey than the bacteriological analysis of the animals.