Survey on the occurrence ofBrachyspiraspecies andLawsonia intracellularisin children living on pig farms

Abstract

SUMMARYThe occurrence of Brachyspira species and Lawsonia intracellularis was investigated by PCR analyses of faeces from 60 children living on European pig farms. In addition, 60 other children were included as controls. Two samples were positive for B. aalborgi but B. pilosicoli and L. intracellularis were not demonstrated.Two species of the genus Brachyspira, B. aalborgi and B. pilosicoli, have been associated with human intestinal spirochaetosis (HIS) [1,2]. The clinical significance of HIS is largely unknown. In Western countries, B. aalborgi seems to be more common with reported prevalences of for example, 7 . 9 % [3] or 70 % of submitted cases of HIS [4]. Brachyspira pilosicoli is more frequent in developing countries with reported prevalences of 15-23 % [2,3,5]. Further, B. pilosicoli and the intracellular rod Lawsonia intracellularis are major causes of enteric disease in young, growing pigs with 32% and 48 %, respectively, of the herds being infected [6,7]. The infection causes similar clinical signs and the microbes often occur concomitantly. L. intracellularis have been isolated in a wide range of other animal species, e.g. pig, hamster, horse, guinea pig, dog, lamb, calf, ferret, fox, deer, rabbit, rat, mouse, ratites, wild boar, wolf, giraffe, hedgehog, and primates. The broad host range raises the question whether natural cross-species transmission might occur. L. intracellularis belongs to the Desulfovibrionaceae family and in patients with ulcerative colitis an increased carriage of closely related bacteria has been demonstrated. The microbe causes proliferative enteropathy, characterized by crypt hyperplasia of immature cells. The lesions are morphologically similar to those found in patients with coeliac disease and hypotheses regarding a similar aetiology have been proposed. However, the bacterium has never been reported in humans [8][9][10].The aim of the present study was to investigate the occurrence of Brachyspira species and L. intracellularis in faeces from children living on European pig farms and compare the findings to those in children not living on pig farms.

Rapid And Sensitive Detection Of Lawsonia Intracellularis In Pigs By Real-Time Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification

“…It was also previously suggested to be a possible agent of human ulcerative colitis. However, the etiological role of the bacterium was not established and has never been reported in humans [21]. Cross-species transmission among pigs, horses, hamsters and mice has been demonstrated experimentally.…”

Lawsonia intracellularis in the feces of wild rodents and stray cats captured around equine farms

“…Proliferative enteropathy, which is also known to be due to enteric disease induced by L. intracellularis infection, was first described in 1931 in pigs [ 2 ]. Since that time, the microbe itself or its DNA has been identified in numerous warm-blooded species [ 3 – 7 ] and in chickens [ 8 ] but never in humans [ 9 , 10 ]. L. intracellularis has also been recognized as an etiologic agent in an enteric disease in foals called equine proliferative enteropathy (EPE) [ 11 , 12 ], and an increasing number of clinical cases have been reported in horses [ 11 , 13 ].…”