Multi-locus sequence typing as a tool to investigate environmental sources of infection for cryptococcosis in captive birds

Bodley, Kate; Meyer, Wieland; Malík, Richard; Krockenberger, Mark

doi:10.1093/mmy/myy098

Cited by 3 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…A mixed population of the C. neoformans and C. gattii species complexes within the same environmental site appears to be a relatively uncommon finding, but several reports of this exist in the literature, 3 including in koala enclosures and aviaries. 17,33 Our findings are similar to a study in which a likely environmental source of infection for C. gattii VGI (a hollow eucalypt) was identified in a large flight aviary. 33 In addition, our study provides comparable findings to another publication, 27 in which an environmental source of infection for C. gattii VGI in a domestic ferret was identified (nearby carob trees), although amplified fragment-length polymorphism (AFLP) typing was used to establish the connection.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

“…17,33 Our findings are similar to a study in which a likely environmental source of infection for C. gattii VGI (a hollow eucalypt) was identified in a large flight aviary. 33 In addition, our study provides comparable findings to another publication, 27 in which an environmental source of infection for C. gattii VGI in a domestic ferret was identified (nearby carob trees), although amplified fragment-length polymorphism (AFLP) typing was used to establish the connection. Another study reported 2 sibling ferrets residing in the same environment developing cryptococcosis, but separated temporally, caused by disease isolates shown to be identical using PCR fingerprinting.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…22 In the avian case mentioned previously, a high-stress period was considered the likely cause of increased susceptibility. 33 In one ferret case, concurrent lymphoma was reported as a likely cause of immunosuppression, leading to cryptococcosis. 6 It is also possible that more of the in-contact asymptomatic ferrets were colonized but this remained unidentified because of either transient colonization or the poor performance of the relatively superficial swabs able to be collected safely while under manual restraint.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Identification of the environmental source of infection for a domestic ferret with cryptococcosis

et al. 2019

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Cryptococcosis, caused by the Cryptococcus gattii and C. neoformans species complexes, is an environmentally acquired mycosis affecting a broad range of host species. Among 9 communally housed ferrets, a 5-y-old castrated male ferret domiciled in an outdoor enclosure in Sydney, Australia was diagnosed with sinonasal cryptococcosis. Clinical signs resolved during 18 mo of itraconazole therapy, but the ferret was eventually euthanized because of splenic hemangiosarcoma. At postmortem, microscopic foci of persistent cryptococcosis were detected. The diagnosis raised concerns that the owners and other ferrets were exposed to a common environmental source of infection, thus prompting an investigation. Soil samples, swabs of a hollow eucalypt log (used for behavioral enrichment), and nasal swabs from 8 asymptomatic ferrets were collected. Nasal exudate (obtained at diagnosis) and tissues (collected at postmortem) were available from the clinical case. Bird seed agar culture resulted in a heavy growth of Cryptococcus spp. from one environmental site (the log), one nasal swab, and nasal exudate and tissues from the clinical case. All other samples were culture-negative. Sub-cultured isolates from the log were a mixture of C. gattii molecular type VGI and C. neoformans molecular type VNI. Ferret isolates were a similar mixture of C. gattii VGI (all disease isolates) and C. neoformans VNI (nasal-colonizing isolate). Multilocus sequence typing further revealed the ferret isolates as identical to environmental isolates collected from the log, confirming the log as the source of clinical disease and nasal colonization. The log was removed to prevent further exposure to a high environmental load of Cryptococcus spp.

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