Abstract:A polymerase chain reaction was used to identify Brucella species isolated from humans in Denmark. Consecutive analysis of referred bacteria and re-examination of historical isolates identified all as Brucella melitensis. Multiple-locus variable number tandem repeat analysis (MLVA) placed the isolates in the previously defined 'East Mediterranean' B. melitensis group.
“…MLVA has been used to confirm the source of a LAB [ 19 ] as well as to demonstrate the endemicity or distinct clusters of disease [ 15 ]. The genetic fingerprints found demonstrate that the 16 B. melitensis isolates reported in this study are linked to Middle East and African areas, in agreement with a previous publication [ 20 ]. Unfortunately, case information is not available for our isolates, but recent immigration or travel from countries with endemic brucellosis might be a common feature for all patients as corroborated by patient nationalities (Table 1 ).…”
BackgroundHuman brucellosis cases are still reported each year in Sweden despite eradication of the disease in animals. Epidemiological investigation has never been conducted to trace back the source of human infection in the country. The purpose of the study was to identify the source of infection for 16 human brucellosis cases that occurred in Sweden, during the period 2008–2012.ResultsThe isolates were identified as Brucella melitensis and MLVA-16 genotyping revealed 14 different genotypes of East Mediterranean and Africa lineages. We also reported one case of laboratory-acquired brucellosis (LAB) that was shown to be epidemiological linked to one of the cases in the current study.ConclusionsBrucella melitensis was the only species diagnosed, confirming its highest zoonotic potential in the genus Brucella, and MLVA-16 results demonstrated that the cases of brucellosis in Sweden herein investigated, are imported and linked to travel in the Middle East and Africa. Due to its zoonotic concerns, any acute febrile illness linked to recent travel within those regions should be investigated for brucellosis and samples should be processed according to biosafety level 3 regulations.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13104-016-2074-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
“…MLVA has been used to confirm the source of a LAB [ 19 ] as well as to demonstrate the endemicity or distinct clusters of disease [ 15 ]. The genetic fingerprints found demonstrate that the 16 B. melitensis isolates reported in this study are linked to Middle East and African areas, in agreement with a previous publication [ 20 ]. Unfortunately, case information is not available for our isolates, but recent immigration or travel from countries with endemic brucellosis might be a common feature for all patients as corroborated by patient nationalities (Table 1 ).…”
BackgroundHuman brucellosis cases are still reported each year in Sweden despite eradication of the disease in animals. Epidemiological investigation has never been conducted to trace back the source of human infection in the country. The purpose of the study was to identify the source of infection for 16 human brucellosis cases that occurred in Sweden, during the period 2008–2012.ResultsThe isolates were identified as Brucella melitensis and MLVA-16 genotyping revealed 14 different genotypes of East Mediterranean and Africa lineages. We also reported one case of laboratory-acquired brucellosis (LAB) that was shown to be epidemiological linked to one of the cases in the current study.ConclusionsBrucella melitensis was the only species diagnosed, confirming its highest zoonotic potential in the genus Brucella, and MLVA-16 results demonstrated that the cases of brucellosis in Sweden herein investigated, are imported and linked to travel in the Middle East and Africa. Due to its zoonotic concerns, any acute febrile illness linked to recent travel within those regions should be investigated for brucellosis and samples should be processed according to biosafety level 3 regulations.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13104-016-2074-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
“…Only two strains belonged to genotype 43, which is mainly found in the Mediterranean region (Greece, Spain, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, France, and Italy). In addition, genotype 43 was reported in Germany and China and is widespread in Middle Eastern countries (Lebanon and Turkey) (Aftab et al, 2011;Al Dahouk et al, 2007; genotype 63 is less common, represented by only 19 strains, 12 of which were from China with the remainder from Turkey, Spain, and France (Aftab et al, 2011;Al Dahouk et al, 2007;Jiang et al, 2011Jiang et al, , 2013Kilic et al, 2011;Valdezate et al, 2010). In the current study 19 strains of B. melitensis were identified as genotype 63.…”
“…In this instance, the findings gave confidence to the authorities in Malta that brucellosis surveillance and control measures have been, and still are, effective in maintaining disease freedom. [6,[8][9][10]. The green labels represent profiles from strains known to originate in the Horn of Africa.…”
mentioning
confidence: 99%
“… Fig. 1. Dendrogram illustrating MLVA-16 profiles of over 700 Brucella melitensis isolates from different parts of the world [6, 8–10]. The green labels represent profiles from strains known to originate in the Horn of Africa.…”
Although Malta is historically linked with the zoonosis brucellosis, there had not been a case of the disease in either the human or livestock population for several years. However, in July 2013 a case of human brucellosis was identified on the island. To determine whether this recent case originated in Malta, four isolates from this case were subjected to molecular analysis. Molecular profiles generated using multilocus sequence analysis and multilocus variable number tandem repeat for the recent human case isolates and 11 Brucella melitensis strains of known Maltese origin were compared with others held on in-house and global databases. While the 11 isolates of Maltese origin formed a distinct cluster, the recent human isolation was not associated with these strains but instead clustered with isolates originating from the Horn of Africa. These data was congruent with epidemiological trace-back showed that the individual had travelled to Malta from Eritrea. This work highlights the potential of using molecular typing data to aid in epidemiological trace-back of Brucella isolations and assist in monitoring of the effectiveness of brucellosis control schemes.
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