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Argentophilic filamentous bacteria forming a dense plaque-like band on the apical surface of the tracheal epithelium of a pig. Warthin Starry stain.
Source publication
Warthin Starry staining revealed filamentous bacteria colonizing the tracheal epithelium of 41 of 88 (46.6%) pigs submitted for necropsy at 2 midwestern veterinary diagnostic laboratories. The bacteria were interspersed between and oriented parallel to the cilia. In 4 of 4 colonized pig tracheas, filamentous bacteria were demonstrated by transmissi...
Context in source publication
Context 1
... autolysis resulting in the loss of the mucosal epithelium rendered 2 tracheas unsuitable for evaluation. Of the remaining 88 pig tracheas, 41 (46.6%) were colonized by argentophilic filamentous bacteria that were interspersed between and oriented parallel to the cilia (Fig. 1). In all affected tracheas, bacterial colonization was multifocal rather than diffuse. In HE- stained sections, the bacteria were lightly basophilic and faintly visible in areas of heavy bacterial coloni- zation. Bacteria could not be seen where sparsely con- centrated. In WS-stained sections, the black bacteria contrasted sharply with ...
Citations
... As well as rats [1][2][3][4], rabbits [8] and mice [2,3,9], CARB has been found in other mammals including, goats [10,11], cattle [12,13], pigs [13][14][15] and deer [16]. In cattle and calves, infection is associated with tracheitis [12,13], while in goats and kids there is an association with pneumonia [10,11]. ...
Background
Cilia-associated respiratory bacillus (CARB; now known as Filobacterium rodentium gen. nov., sp. nov.) is a primary pathogen of rodents. A CARB-like organism was reported in post-mortem lung samples of cats using light and electron microscopy. Here we explore by molecular procedures if a Filobacterium sp. is a part of the normal feline lower respiratory microbiome and whether it could in some cats contribute to the development of chronic bronchial disease.
Methodology
A Filobacterium sp. was identified in three Czech cats clinically diagnosed as having chronic neutrophilic bronchitis. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) specimens obtained from these cats were subjected to panbacterial 16S rDNA PCR followed by Sanger sequencing of the V5 to V8 region. After these cats were treated with specific antimicrobials, their clinical signs resolved promptly, without recurrence. Next, BALF specimens from 13 Australian and 11 Italian cats with lower respiratory disease and an additional 16 lung samples of Italian cats who died of various causes were examined using next generation sequencing (NGS). Subsequently, a Filobacterium -specific qPCR assay was developed and used to re-test BALF specimens from the 11 Italian cats and lung tissue homogenates from the additional 16 deceased cats.
Principal findings
An amplicon of 548 bp with 91.24% sequence agreement with Filobacterium rodentium was obtained from all three patients, suggesting the novel Filobacterium sp. was the cause of their lower respiratory disease. The novel Filobacterium sp., which we propose to call F . felis , was detected in 3/3 Czech cats with chronic neutrophilic bronchitis, 13/13 Australian cats and 6/11 Italian cats with chronic lower respiratory disease, and 14/16 necropsy lung specimens from Italian cats. NGS and qPCR results all showed identical sequences. The Filobacterium sp. was sometimes the preponderant bacterial species in BALF specimens from cats with lower airway disease. There was an association between the presence of large numbers (greater than 10 ⁵ organisms/mL) of Filobacterium and the presence of neutrophilic and/or histiocytic inflammation, although only a subset of inflammatory BALF specimens had F . felis as the preponderant organism.
Conclusion
The novel Filobacterium sp. comprises a finite part of the normal feline lower respiratory microbiome. Under certain circumstances it can increase in absolute and relative abundance and give rise to neutrophilic and/or histiocytic bronchitis, bronchiolitis and bronchopneumonia. These findings strongly suggest that F . felis could be an underdiagnosed cause of feline bronchial disease.
... Filobacterium sp., formerly cilia-associated respiratory bacillus, has only ever been isolated from lung tissue (Nietfeld et al., 1999;Nietfeld et al., 1995;Bergottini et al., 2005). Our results may therefore be due to infections in which the bacteria have penetrated the lung epithelium and entered the bloodstream, or the accumulation of inert Filobacterium DNA in the spleen. ...
... Strains have been isolated from laboratory populations of rats (Itoh et al., 1987), mice (Jacoby and Lindsey, 1998), and rabbits (Cundiff et al., 1994), domestic pigs (Nietfeld et al., 1995), calves (Nietfeld et al., 1999)), and goats (Fernández et al., 1996), as well as wild rats in the United States (MacKenzie et al., 1981;Brogden et al., 1993) and wild red deer, chamois and row deer in Northern Italy (Bergottini et al., 2005). To our knowledge, this is the first reporting of Filobacterium sp. in a wild rodent in Europe. ...
Context In France, during cyclic population surges, water voles, Arvicola terrestri, cause extensive damage to mountain grassland. A working group consisting of researchers from the University of Franche-Comté (UFC), INRA (Centre de Biologie et de Gestion des Populations) agricultural organizations (Fédération Régionale de Défense contre les Organismes Nuisibles de Franche-Comté, FREDON) are working on systems approach in which interactions between voles, their habitat (landscape, predators) and agricultural practices are analysed hierarchically (in space and time). One of the objectives is to highlight the largest possible number of control factors on which it is possible to act, and the scale at which these actions are relevant. These studies have helped initiate a strategy, successfully tested in Franche-Comté and in Auvergne, which promotes the integrated control of water vole populations. Nevertheless, there are still grey areas in the understanding of the cycle, particularly on the determinants of the decline phase. The role of pathogen communities (some species may even be transmitted to humans) so far remains the subject of debate in the scientific literature. The understanding of the key factors determining this phase should allow farmers to better anticipate economic impacts and to adopt optimal strategies for vole population control Objectives: (1) To test the pathogens and senescence hypotheses in order to explain the population decline. (2) To look for biological indicators (diversity of pathogens and / or immune indicators) that may predict the decline phase in order to anticipate appropriate measures to restore grasslands. (3) To assess the role of the transition between high population density phase and the decline phase for the emergence of pathogens in vole populations that may cause human diseases.General Methodology Population monitoring with regular (monthly) sampling will be made on several populations (replicates) in the period that brackets the vole population declines. Methods based on Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) makes it possible to establish extensive catalogues of pathogens (viruses, bacteria, other parasites) hosted by vole populations and to measure the prevalence.
... Abubakar et al. 165 (iv) Flavo bacterium, a ciliated bacillus has been identified in the trachea of pigs. It has been recorded in cases of pneumonia and has been associated with lesions of active tracheitis (Nietfeld et al., 1995). ...
Pigs are ungulate animals of the genus Suis and family Suidae. They are globally spread but restricted in certain countries due to religious and cultural beliefs. Pork serves as an important source of protein (38% of meat consumed in the world). While pig production remains a profitable enterprise, commercial and particularly the small-scale farmers face huge constraint in this husbandry practice, one of the most important being bacterial infections and its associated with morbidity and mortality. In this work, we reviewed the prevalence of bacterial infections in pigs with particular reference to Escherichia coli, a bacterium that is regularly isolated and can lead to multiple infections in pigs. Literatures were searched on selected veterinary and biological data bases in 2016 with focus on natural infections and isolates from natural infections with epidemiological details. Pathotypes, serotypes and serogroups of E. coli, the country of origin, source, growth stage, age of pigs infected, disease outbreak, the number of samples and type of samples, numbers and percentage of positive samples and isolates were used as filters. Pathotypes reported include enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC) 66.7%, enterotoxigenic E. coli and shiga toxigenic E. coli (ETEC and STEC) 14.3%, STEC only (7.9%), enterotoxigenic E. coli/enteropathogenic E. coli/enteroaggregative E. coli (ETEC/EPEC/EAE) 31.7%. Others were enterohaemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC), diffusely adherent E. coli (DAEC) (ETEC, EPEC, STEC) and extra-intestinal pathogenic E. coli (ExPEC). Twenty-nine countries with documented records of cases of E. coli were included with the USA reporting, the highest number followed by China. About 74% of the samples were taken from farms and others were from samples submitted to research laboratories and veterinary faculties for necropsy. Serogroups O141, O149, O139, O138, O8 and O9 were most common. Piglets were most affected (52.3%) followed by weaners (39.6%) and porkers (7.9%) with age ranging from 1 to 392 days old. A total of 24,854 isolates were considered, 10477 (42.2%) were positives and the following genes were carried: STa, STb, LT, stx1, stx2, Stx-2e, F4, F5, F6, F18, F41, AIDA, EAST1, eae, paa and hlyA. The diseases produced by E. coli were neonatal diarrhoea, colibacillosis, post-weaning diarrhoea and edema disease. The associated risk factors were poor housing, management and feed changes, extensive use of antibiotics as prophylaxis, overcrowding, and high humidity and temperature changes. India, USA, Japan, Slovakia, Denmark Sweden and Poland were countries with significant reports and high detection of virulence factors (72 to 100%).
... The cilia-associated respiratory (CAR) bacillus is an extracellular, Gram-stain-negative filamentous bacterium, discovered as one of the aetiological agents of CRD, and designated after its colonization site, the ciliated respiratory epithelium, by Ganaway et al. (1985). 'CAR bacillus' was first described in rats (van Zwieten et al., 1980), and thereafter reported in mice and rabbits (MacKenzie et al., 1981), in cows (Hastie et al., 1993) and in pigs (Nietfeld et al., 1995). ...
Strain SMR-CT, which was originally isolated from rats as SMR strain, had been named as Cilia-Associated Respiratory bacillus (CAR bacillus) according to the description of Ganaway et al 1985. 'CAR bacillus' was a Gram-stain-negative filamentous argentophilic bacterium without flagella. SMR-CT grew at 37 °C under microaerobic conditions, showed gliding activity, hydrolyzed urea and induced chronic respiratory diseases in rodents. The dominant cellular fatty acids detected were iso-C15:0 and anteiso-C15:0. The DNA G+C content was 47.7 mol%. 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis revealed SMR-CT and other 'CAR bacillus' strains isolated from rodents were all belonged to the phylum Bacteroidetes. The nearest known type strain, with 86 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity, was Chitinophaga pinensis DSM 2588T in the family Chitinophagaceae. Strain SMR-CT and its closely related 'CAR bacillus' rodent-isolate strains formed a novel family-level clade in the phylum Bacteroidetes with high bootstrap support (98-100 %). Based on these results, we propose a novel family, Filobacteriaceae fam. nov., in the order Sphingobacteriales and a novel genus and species, Filobacterium rodentium gen. nov., sp. nov., for strain SMR-CT. The type strain is SMR-CT (=JCM 19453T =DSM 100392T).
... Natural infection with CAR bacillus was first recognized in laboratory rats (Van Zwieten et al., 1980), and was then described in laboratory mice (Griffith et al., 1988;Matsushita et al., 1989), laboratory and conventionally reared rabbits (Waggie et al., 1987;Kurisu et al., 1990;Cundiff et al., 1995;Caniatti et al., 1998), cattle (Hastie et al., 1993;Pravettoni et al., 2001), goats , and finally pigs (Nietfeld et al., 1995). ...
Cilia-associated respiratory (CAR) bacillus is an unclassified bacterium that colonizes the ciliated epithelium of airways in laboratory rats, laboratory mice, and laboratory and conventionally reared rabbits, cattle, goats, and pigs. Data on the prevalence of CAR bacillus infection in wild animals are lacking. The present study demonstrated the occurrence of the organism in wild red deer (Cervus elaphus hippelaphus), chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra), and roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) from the Val Fontana in northern Italy. Prevalence ranged from 26% for red deer to 56% for chamois, with a statistically significant negative correlation between CAR bacilli infection and the presence of lymphoid follicles.
... The cilium-associated respiratory (CAR) bacillus is an unclassified, extracellular, gram-negative, gliding bacterium that colonizes the ciliated respiratory epithelium of rodents and livestock (1,6,9,10,15,16,25,29,43). In rodents, CAR bacillus infection has been shown to cause respiratory disease, characterized histologically by mild peribronchiolar lymphoid infiltrates developing into a severe bronchopneumonia and bronchiectasis with persistent colonization (6). ...
The cilium-associated respiratory (CAR) bacillus is a gram-negative, extracellular bacterium that causes persistent respiratory tract infections in rodents. We have previously demonstrated that BALB/c mice are more susceptible to CAR bacillus-induced disease than resistant C57BL/6 mice, with elevations in pulmonary gamma interferon (IFN-gamma) and interleukin (IL)-4. IL-10 is a type 2 cytokine that can increase host susceptibility to bacterial diseases through its anti-inflammatory effects, including suppression of macrophage function. The purpose of this study was to further describe the cytokine profiles associated with histologic lesions in CAR bacillus-infected mice and to assess the effects of cytokine depletion on the pathogenesis of disease. Six-week-old female BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice and mice with targeted mutations in IFN-gamma and IL-4 were inoculated intratracheally with 10(5) CAR bacillus organisms, and samples were collected at 6 to 7 weeks postinoculation. Lung samples were collected for histopathologic examination and analysis of cytokine mRNA. IFN-gamma, IL-10, and IL-4 mRNA levels in the lungs of infected mice were semiquantitatively measured using a reverse transcriptase-mediated PCR assay and compared to those in uninfected control animals of each strain. BALB/c mice infected with CAR bacillus had a median lung lesion score of 6 and IL-10 and IL-4 mRNA levels were significantly elevated. The majority of C57BL/6 mice were resistant to disease characterized by lung lesions scores of 2 or less and a dominant IFN-gamma mRNA cytokine profile. A few C57BL/6 mice with lesions scores of 5 or greater had elevations in all three cytokines and were susceptible to disease. C57BL/6 IFN-gamma knockout mice had increased disease with elevations in IL-10 and IL-4 mRNA, while BALB/c IL-4 knockout mice infected with CAR bacillus had a mild decrease in lesion severity and an attenuated IL-10 mRNA expression compared to wild-type BALB/c mice. These data indicate that IL-10 and IL-4 predominate in CAR bacillus-induced histologic lesions in mice, while IFN-gamma may play a role in resistance to disease.
... The cilium-associated respiratory (CAR) bacillus is an unclassified, extracellular, gram-negative, gliding bacterium that was first characterized in an aging rat colony with chronic respiratory disease (35). Morphologically similar bacteria have since been described colonizing the respiratory epithelium of other rodent species (4,11,20), rabbits (16), and domesticated livestock (6,12,26). CAR bacillus was named based on its characteristic pattern of colonization parallel to and between the cilia of the upper respiratory tract epithelium (8). Chronic respiratory disease due to CAR bacillus exhibits characteristic histologic lesions in rodents. ...
The cilium-associated respiratory (CAR) bacillus is a gram-negative, gliding bacterium that causes persistent respiratory tract infections in rodents despite histologic and serologic evidence of a marked immune response. To assess humoral immunity and cytokine responses in CAR bacillus disease, 6-week-old female BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice were inoculated intratracheally with 10(5) CAR bacillus organisms. CAR bacillus-specific serum immunoglobulins (immunoglobulin M [IgM], IgG1, IgG2a, IgG2b, IgG3, and IgA) and local pulmonary cytokines (tumor necrosis factor alpha [TNF-alpha], gamma interferon [IFN-gamma], and interleukin-4 [IL-4]) were evaluated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay every 7 days for 49 days. BALB/c mice developed CAR bacillus-induced lesions early in the course of disease that became more severe with time. Correlating with increasing disease severity, BALB/c mice had elevations in all antibody isotypes tested, and elevations in pulmonary TNF-alpha, IFN-gamma, and IL-4. C57BL/6 mice developed mild lesions with mild increases in serum IgM, IgG1, IgG2b, and IgG3 levels and minimally detectable IgG2a and IgA. Cytokine perturbations were not detected in C57BL/6 mice. The persistence of infection in BALB/c mice with vigorous serum antibody responses and increased IFN-gamma and IL-4 responses suggests that humoral immunity and T-cell responses are ineffective at preventing CAR bacillus disease. Furthermore, the lackluster antibody responses and undetectable cytokine responses in C57BL/6 mice suggest that humoral immunity and T-cell responses are not critical in resistance to CAR bacillus-induced disease.
... Cilia-associated respiratory (CAR) bacillus is a descriptive name for filamentous, gram-negative, gliding bacteria that colonize the ciliated respiratory epithelium of rats, mice, rabbits, white tailed hamsters, cattle, goats, and pigs. 1,[6][7][8][9]11,12,17,18,25 Natural and experimental CAR bacillus infections in mice and rats cause chronic respiratory disease that clinically and pathologically resembles disease caused by Mycoplasma pulmonis. 1,2,7,8,[12][13][14][15]21,25 Lesions consist of lymphoplasmacytic tracheitis and bronchitis with loss of cilia in areas of CAR bacillus colonization. ...
... 4 Most naturally infected pigs, cattle, and goats have chronic tracheitis and bronchitis, and the numbers of cilia are decreased in areas colonized by CAR bacillus. 6,9,17 However, it is not known if lesions in livestock are caused by CAR bacillus. ...
... Prior damage to the ciliated respiratory epithelium may be necessary for extensive colonization by pig CAR bacillus because all pigs from which CAR bacillus was isolated and all CAR bacillus-infected pigs in an earlier study 17 had tracheitis with loss of cilia, squamous metaplasia, and chronic inflammation. However, most pigs from which isolation of CAR bacillus was attempted and the pigs in the earlier study 17 that were not infected with CAR bacillus also had chronic inflammatory lesions that were indistinguishable from those of pigs naturally infected with CAR bacillus. ...
Filamentous, gram-negative bacteria morphologically similar to cilia-associated respiratory (CAR) bacillus of rodents and rabbits were isolated from the tracheas of 5 pigs and 4 calves. All pigs but none of the calves had histologic lesions of chronic tracheitis. In silver-stained histologic sections, CAR bacilli were adhered to the tracheal epithelium of each pig but were not found in the calves. Like CAR bacillus of rats, the bacteria displayed gliding motility and grew only in cell culture or cell culture medium supplemented with fetal serum. Initially, all isolates were contaminated by Mycoplasma spp. This contamination was eliminated from 4 pig isolates by limiting dilutions, and mycoplasma-free isolates were used to intranasally inoculate gnotobiotic pigs and CAR bacillus-free mice and rats and to immunize guinea pigs. The gnotobiotic pigs remained healthy, and when they were necropsied 4 and 7 weeks after infection no macroscopic or microscopic lesions were found in the respiratory tract. However, CAR bacillus was isolated at both times from the nasal cavities and tracheas of inoculated pigs, and the ciliated tracheal epithelium of infected pigs necropsied 7 weeks after infection was colonized by low numbers of CAR bacillus-like bacteria. The rats and mice remained healthy through week 12 postinoculation, and evidence of short- or long-term colonization was not detected by histologic examination or culture. When used as primary antibody for immunohistochemical staining, sera from guinea pigs immunized with pig CAR bacillus specifically stained CAR bacilli colonizing the respiratory epithelium of naturally infected pigs, whereas sera collected prior to immunization failed to react with the bacteria. These results indicate that CAR bacilli are unlikely to be primary pathogens of pigs or cattle and that rodents do not act as reservoirs.
... Natural infections with a heterogeneous group of gramnegative, filamentous bacteria collectively known as ciliaassociated respiratory (CAR) bacilli have been noted in rats, mice, rabbits, African white-tailed hamsters, goats, cattle, and pigs. [3][4][5][6][7]10 Infections with CAR bacillus alone are known to produce significant respiratory disease in rats, 8,10 but usually in rats, goats, and mice there are concurrent infections with Mycoplasma. 3,10 Descriptions of CAR bacilli in cattle and pigs have demonstrated that these bacteria exist only in tracheal epithelium. ...
... 3,10 Descriptions of CAR bacilli in cattle and pigs have demonstrated that these bacteria exist only in tracheal epithelium. 5,7 There was no significant associated disease in pigs 7 and a mild loss of cilia in cattle. 5 A 6-month-old pig was presented for slaughter at a federally inspected slaughter plant in Hawaii. ...
... The location of these bacteria in the cilial layer and their ultrastructural appearance resembled previous descriptions of CAR bacilli in pig tracheae. 7 The appearance and ultrastructural characteristics of CAR bacilli vary among animal species. The CAR bacilli described in rats and goats are longer than the 3-5 m bacteria seen in rabbits. ...
Deviations from a core airway microbiota have been associated with the development and progression of asthma as well as disease severity. Pet cats represent a large animal model for allergic asthma, as they spontaneously develop a disease similar to atopic childhood asthma. This study aimed to describe the lower airway microbiota of asthmatic pet cats and compare it to healthy cats to document respiratory dysbiosis occurring with airway inflammation. We hypothesized that asthmatic cats would have lower airway dysbiosis characterized by a decrease in richness, diversity, and alterations in microbial community composition including identification of possible pathobionts. In the current study, a significant difference in airway microbiota composition was documented between spontaneously asthmatic pet cats and healthy research cats mirroring the finding of dysbiosis in asthmatic humans. Filobacterium and Acinetobacter spp. were identified as predominant taxa in asthmatic cats without documented infection based on standard culture and could represent pathobionts in the lower airways of cats. Mycoplasma felis, a known lower airway pathogen of cats, was identified in 35% of asthmatic but not healthy cats. This article has been published alongside “Temporal changes of the respiratory microbiota as cats transition from health to experimental acute and chronic allergic asthma” (1).
