| 21. |
- Ederth, Josefine, et al.
(författare)
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Molecular characterization of HCV in a Swedish county over 8 years (2002-2009) reveals distinct transmission patterns.
- 2016
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Ingår i: Infection ecology & epidemiology. - : Informa UK Limited. - 2000-8686. ; 6
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a major public health concern and data on its molecular epidemiology in Sweden is scarce. We carried out an 8-year population-based study of newly diagnosed HCV cases in one of Sweden's centrally situated counties, Södermanland (D-county). The aim was to characterize the HCV strains circulating, analyze their genetic relatedness to detect networks, and in combination with demographic data learn more about transmission.
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| 22. |
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| 23. |
- Elmberg, Johan, et al.
(författare)
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Potential disease transmission from wild geese and swans to livestock, poultry and humans : a review of the scientific literature from a One Health perspective
- 2017
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Ingår i: Infection Ecology & Epidemiology. - : Taylor & Francis. - 2000-8686. ; 7:1, s. 1-21
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- There are more herbivorous waterfowl (swans and geese) close to humans, livestock and poultry than ever before. This creates widespread conflict with agriculture and other human interests, but also debate about the role of swans and geese as potential vectors of disease of relevance for human and animal health. Using a One Health perspective, we provide the first comprehensive review of the scientific literature about the most relevant viral, bacterial, and unicellular pathogens occurring in wild geese and swans. Research thus far suggests that these birds may play a role in transmission of avian influenza virus, Salmonella, Campylobacter, and antibiotic resistance. On the other hand, at present there is no evidence that geese and swans play a role in transmission of Newcastle disease, duck plague, West Nile virus, Vibrio, Yersinia, Clostridium, Chlamydophila, and Borrelia. Finally, based on present knowledge it is not possible to say if geese and swans play a role in transmission of Escherichia coli, Pasteurella, Helicobacter, Brachyspira, Cryptosporidium, Giardia, and Microsporidia. This is largely due to changes in classification and taxonomy, rapid development of identification methods and lack of knowledge about host specificity. Previous research tends to overrate the role of geese and swans as disease vectors; we do not find any evidence that they are significant transmitters to humans or livestock of any of the pathogens considered in this review. Nevertheless, it is wise to keep poultry and livestock separated from small volume waters used by many wild waterfowl, but there is no need to discourage livestock grazing in nature reserves or pastures where geese and swans are present. Under some circumstances it is warranted to discourage swans and geese from using wastewater ponds, drinking water reservoirs, and public beaches. Intensified screening of swans and geese for AIV, West Nile virus and anatid herpesvirus is warranted.
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| 24. |
- Eriksson, Per, et al.
(författare)
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Evaluation and optimization of microbial DNA extraction from fecal samples of wild Antarctic bird species
- 2017
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Ingår i: Infection Ecology & Epidemiology. - : Informa UK Limited. - 2000-8686. ; 7:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Introduction: Advances in the development of nucleic acid-based methods have dramatically facilitated studies of host-microbial interactions. Fecal DNA analysis can provide information about the host's microbiota and gastrointestinal pathogen burden. Numerous studies have been conducted in mammals, yet birds are less well studied. Avian fecal DNA extraction has proved challenging, partly due to the mixture of fecal and urinary excretions and the deficiency of optimized protocols. This study presents an evaluation of the performance in avian fecal DNA extraction of six commercial kits from different bird species, focusing on penguins.Material and methods: Six DNA extraction kits were first tested according to the manufacturers' instructions using mallard feces. The kit giving the highest DNA yield was selected for further optimization and evaluation using Antarctic bird feces.Results: Penguin feces constitute a challenging sample type: most of the DNA extraction kits failed to yield acceptable amounts of DNA. The QIAamp cador Pathogen kit (Qiagen) performed the best in the initial investigation. Further optimization of the protocol resulted in good yields of high-quality DNA from seven bird species of different avian orders.Conclusion: This study presents an optimized approach to DNA extraction from challenging avian fecal samples.
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| 25. |
- Esson, Carol, et al.
(författare)
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Health and zoonotic Infections of snow leopards Panthera unica in the South Gobi desert of Mongolia.
- 2019
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Ingår i: Infection Ecology & Epidemiology. - : Informa UK Limited. - 2000-8686. ; 9:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Snow leopards, Panthera uncia, are a threatened apex predator, scattered across the mountains of Central and South Asia. Disease threats to wild snow leopards have not been investigated.Methods and Results: Between 2008 and 2015, twenty snow leopards in the South Gobi desert of Mongolia were captured and immobilised for health screening and radio-collaring. Blood samples and external parasites were collected for pathogen analyses using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), microscopic agglutination test (MAT), and next-generation sequencing (NGS) techniques. The animals showed no clinical signs of disease, however, serum antibodies to significant zoonotic pathogens were detected. These pathogens included, Coxiella burnetii, (25% prevalence), Leptospira spp., (20%), and Toxoplasma gondii (20%). Ticks collected from snow leopards contained potentially zoonotic bacteria from the genera Bacillus, Bacteroides, Campylobacter, Coxiella, Rickettsia, Staphylococcus and Streptococcus.Conclusions: The zoonotic pathogens identified in this study, in the short-term did not appear to cause illness in the snow leopards, but have caused illness in other wild felids. Therefore, surveillance for pathogens should be implemented to monitor for potential longer- term disease impacts on this snow leopard population.
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| 26. |
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| 27. |
- Gherasim, Alin, et al.
(författare)
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Risk factors and potential preventive measures for nephropatia epidemica in Sweden 2011-2012 : a case-control study
- 2015
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Ingår i: Infection Ecology & Epidemiology. - : Informa UK Limited. - 2000-8686. ; 5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- INTRODUCTION: Nephropatia epidemica (NE), a relatively mild form of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome caused by the Puumala virus (PUUV), is endemic in northern Sweden. We aim to study the risk factors associated with NE in this region.METHODS: We conducted a matched case-control study between June 2011 and July 2012. We compared confirmed NE cases with randomly selected controls, matched by age, sex, and place of infection or residence. We analyzed the association between NE and several occupational, environmental, and behavioral exposures using conditional logistic regression.RESULTS: We included in the final analysis 114 cases and 300 controls, forming 246 case-control pairs. Living in a house with an open space beneath, making house repairs, living less than 50 m from the forest, seeing rodents, and smoking were significantly associated with NE.CONCLUSION: Our results could orient public health policies targeting these risk factors and subsequently reduce the NE burden in the region.
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| 28. |
- Griekspoor, Petra, et al.
(författare)
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Campylobacter jejuni sequence types show remarkable spatial and temporal stability in Blackbirds
- 2015
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Ingår i: Infection Ecology & Epidemiology. - : Informa UK Limited. - 2000-8686. ; 5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: The zoonotic bacterium Campylobacter jejuni has a broad host range but is especially associated with birds, both domestic and wild. Earlier studies have indicated thrushes of the genus Turdus in Europe to be frequently colonized with C. jejuni, and predominately with host-associated specific genotypes. The European Blackbird Turdus merula has a large distribution in Europe, including some oceanic islands, and was also introduced to Australia by European immigrants in the 1850s.METHODS: The host specificity and temporal stability of European Blackbird C. jejuni was investigated with multilocus sequence typing in a set of isolates collected from Sweden, Australia, and The Azores.RESULTS: Remarkably, we found that the Swedish, Australian, and Azorean isolates were genetically highly similar, despite extensive spatial and temporal isolation. This indicates adaptation, exquisite specificity, and stability in time for European Blackbirds, which is in sharp contrast with the high levels of recombination and mutation found in poultry-related C. jejuni genotypes.CONCLUSION: The maintenance of host-specific signals in spatially and temporally separated C. jejuni populations suggests the existence of strong purifying selection for this bacterium in European Blackbirds.
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| 29. |
- Gullsby, Karolina, et al.
(författare)
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No detection of macrolide-resistant Mycoplasma pneumoniae from Swedish patients, 1996-2013.
- 2016
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Ingår i: Infection Ecology & Epidemiology. - : Informa UK Limited. - 2000-8686. ; 6:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Mycoplasma pneumoniae is a common cause of respiratory infections which can cause life-threatening pneumonia and serious extrapulmonary manifestations. Since the year 2000, the emergence of macrolide-resistant M. pneumoniae strains has increased with varying incidences across countries. In China more than 90% of the strains are resistant. M. pneumoniae diagnostics is mostly done with molecular methods, and in Sweden antibiotic resistance surveillance is not routinely performed. The prevalence of macrolide-resistant M. pneumoniae has not previously been studied in Sweden.MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 563 M. pneumoniae-positive respiratory samples, collected from four counties in Sweden between 1996 and 2013, were screened for mutations associated with macrolide resistance using a duplex FRET real-time PCR method. The real-time PCR targets the 23S rRNA gene, and differentiation between wild-type and resistant strains was achieved with a melting curve analysis.RESULTS: Of the 563 samples included, 548 were analyzed for mutations associated with macrolide resistance. No mutations were found. The detection rate of macrolide-resistant M. pneumoniae in this study was 0% [0.00-0.84%].CONCLUSION: No macrolide-resistant M. pneumoniae has been detected in Sweden. However, the emergence and spread of macrolide-resistant M. pneumoniae strains in many countries commands continuous epidemiological surveillance.
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| 30. |
- Günther, Göran, et al.
(författare)
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Ticke-borne encephalitis is associated with low levels of interleukin-10 in cerebrospinal fluid
- 2011
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Ingår i: Infection Ecology & Epidemiology. - : Informa UK Limited. - 2000-8686. ; 1, s. 6029-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is associated with higher morbidity and induces a stronger intrathecal immune activation than most other viral induced meningo-encephalitis. The aim of this study was to investigate cytokine concentrations in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum in relation to aetiology and clinical course. Cytokines were analysed by Enzyme-linked Immuno Assay (ELISA) from 44 patients with TBE and from 36 patients with aseptic meningo-encephalitis of other aetiology (non-TBE). Significantly increased CSF levels of Interferon-γ (IFN-γ), Interleukin-10 (IL-10), Interleukin-6 (IL-6), Interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL- 1ra), and soluble CD8 receptor (sCD8) were detected in both cohorts. Tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α showed low levels or was not detected in CSF in any group in the acute stage. However, the CSF levels of IL- 10 were significantly lower in TBE than in non-TBE cases 06 days after onset of encephalitis. The TBE patients with encephalitis had significantly lower IL-10 CSF levels later in the clinical course (day 718) than TBE patients with meningeal disease. Increased IFN-γ production, but low IL-10 secretion, may be of pathophysiological significance in TBE.
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