Open Access

Investigation of the prevalence of Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae in Southern Xinjiang, China

Jin-yu Zhao

Jin-yu Zhao

College of Animal Science, Tarim UniversityXinjiang, People’s Republic of China
Search for this author on
Sciendo|Google Scholar
Zhao, Jin-yu
, 
Yi-zhou Du

Yi-zhou Du

College of Animal Science, Tarim UniversityXinjiang, People’s Republic of China
Search for this author on
Sciendo|Google Scholar
Du, Yi-zhou
, 
Ya-ping Song

Ya-ping Song

College of Animal Science, Tarim UniversityXinjiang, People’s Republic of China
Search for this author on
Sciendo|Google Scholar
Song, Ya-ping
, 
Peng Zhou

Peng Zhou

College of Animal Science, Tarim UniversityXinjiang, People’s Republic of China
Search for this author on
Sciendo|Google Scholar
Zhou, Peng
, 
Yue-feng Chu

Yue-feng Chu

State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural SciencesLanzhou, People’s Republic of China
Search for this author on
Sciendo|Google Scholar
Chu, Yue-feng
 and 
Jun-yuan Wu

Jun-yuan Wu

  • College of Animal Science, Tarim UniversityXinjiang, People’s Republic of China
  • Key Laboratory of Tarim Animal Husbandry Science and Technology of Xinjiang Production & Construction CorpsXinjiang, People’s Republic of China
Search for this author on
Sciendo|Google Scholar
Wu, Jun-yuan
  
Apr 23, 2021
Investigation of the prevalence of Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae in Southern Xinjiang, China's Cover Image
About this article
Previous Article
Next Article
Cite
Download Cover
Published Online: Apr 23, 2021
Page range: 155 - 160
Received: Sep 14, 2020
Accepted: Mar 26, 2021
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/jvetres-2021-0021
Keywords
© 2021 J.Y. Zhao et al., published by Sciendo
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Introduction

It is very important to monitor the infection of Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae as a potential threat to the sheep industry. Southern Xinjiang is a major sheep breeding base in China, however, there is no relevant information concerning the infection of the region’s ovine stock with this bacteria at present. This study aimed to address this knowledge gap.

Material and Methods

A total of 824 nasal swabs and the lungs of six sheep that died of pneumonia were collected in four regions between 2018 and 2020. Primers specific for M. ovipneumoniae and universal ones for the genus were used for PCR. Sequencing was undertaken of 159 universal primer-positive samples (153 nasal swabs and 6 lungs) and of 84 specific primer-positive samples (80 nasal swabs, 20 per region; and 4 lungs, 1 per region). The lungs were also sampled for the isolation of M. ovipneumoniae. A phylogenetic tree based on partial sequences of the Mycoplasma 16S rRNA gene was built.

Results

The overall nasal swab positive rate for M. ovipneumoniae was 40.78%; the rate of animals older than 12 months was significantly different to those of younger sheep (< 3 months, 53.39%; 3 – 12 months, 46.01%; >12 months, 31.76%). Four strains of M. ovipneumoniae were isolated from six lungs. Phylogenetic analysis indicated their origin outside southern Xinjiang. Two other species were also detected: M. arginine and M. conjunctivae.

Conclusion

Our survey indicated that a high level of M. ovipneumoniae asymptomatic colonisation in sheep, especially in lambs, affects southern Xinjiang and also confirmed the existence of M. conjunctivae and M. arginine. Our results showed that the health of sheep in southern Xinjiang is facing a great threat, and relevant prevention and control measures should be strengthened.

Language:
English
Publication timeframe:
4 times per year
Journal Subjects:
Life Sciences, Molecular Biology, Microbiology and Virology, Life Sciences, other, Medicine, Veterinary Medicine
Journal RSS Feed