China Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine ›› 2023, Vol. 50 ›› Issue (8): 3294-3302.doi: 10.16431/j.cnki.1671-7236.2023.08.027

• Preventive Veterinary Medicine • Previous Articles    

Epidemiological Investigation of Chlamydia in Pets in Hangzhou

ZHENG Yonghui1, ZHENG Zhijie1, LIANG Xiaoben1, XUE Guanhong1, WU Haichong1,2   

  1. 1. College of Animal Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China;
    2. Fujian University Engineering Research Center for the Prevention and Control of Zoonoses, Longyan 364000, China
  • Received:2023-02-14 Published:2023-07-27

Abstract: 【Objective】 The aim of this study was to understand the prevalence of Chlamydia in pets in Hangzhou.【Method】 238 pet dog conjunctival samples,556 pet cat conjunctival samples,98 pet bird serum samples and 264 parrot serum samples from a flower and bird market in Hangzhou were tested for Chlamydia using PCR and indirect hemagglutination assay (IHA),and the positive samples were sequenced.SPSS 25.0 software was used to analyze whether the age and gender of animals had statistical significance for Chlamydia infection.The similarity and evolutionary relationship between the main virulence genes of the epidemic strains and the published reference sequences were analyzed by Clustal W and Mega 11.0 softwares.【Result】 The results showed that pet dogs and birds were less susceptible to Chlamydia infection in animal hospitals compared to pet cats,and 13 positive samples were detected for pet cats, with a positive rate of 2.34%.The infection rate (3.57%) was highest in young cats (<1 year old) and slightly higher in male cats (2.70%) than in female cats (2.02%),all differences were not significant (P>0.05).Sequencing analysis of 13 positive cat samples revealed that all were Chlamydia felis,with genetic similarity to Chlamydia felis Fe/C-56 ompA gene ranging from 99.2% to 99.7%.14 positive samples were detected in parrots from flower and bird markets,with a positive rate of 5.30%.The infection rate (9.78%) was highest among infected parrots in young birds (<1 year old) and higher in females (6.25%) than in males (4.41%),all differences were not statistically significant (P>0.05).The prevalence of infection in parrots from flower and bird markets (5.30%) was higher than that in birds from animal hospitals (0),and 14 positive samples from parrots were sequenced and analyzed and found to be Chlamydia psittaci,with genetic similarity to Chlamydia psittaci 6BC ompA gene ranging from 99.4% to 99.5%.【Conclusion】 In this study,the prevalence of Chlamydia in pets in Hangzhou was investigated for the first time,and the results showed that Chlamydia infection existed in pet cats and parrots in flower and bird markets in Hangzhou,posing a potential threat to human health.Therefore,the importance of Chlamydia infection in pets should be raised and appropriate feeding management measures should be taken to prevent and control Chlamydia infection and avoid human-animal co-infection.

Key words: Chlamydia; pets; epidemiology

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