The members of the Chlamydiaceae family are important pathogens that infect a wide range of vertebrate hosts, including humans. Among them, Chlamydia psittaci, historically considered as an avian agent, has recently been identified in livestock, primarily sheep and cattle, but also in horses, with the infection being linked to reproductive disorders, such as abortion, absorption of embryos, stillbirth, and the birth of weak foals. Much less is known about chlamydial infections in the Sardinian equine population. This study aimed to identify the chlamydial diversity in genital samples from asymptomatic Sardinian horses. However, some horses had a previous history of reproductive disorders, i.e., abortion and infertility. A total of 60 horses (39 mares and 21 stallions) were opportunistically recruited from 17 equine farms in central-northern Sardinia. Vaginal and uterine swabs from mares and urethral swabs and seminal fluid from stallions were sampled for the presence of chlamydial DNA. Samples from environments where the horses lived were also tested for the detection of Chlamydia spp. Eight vaginal swabs (8/39; 20%), two uterine swabs (2/27; 7%), two seminal fluid samples (2/20; 10%), and one urethral swab (1/21; 4.7%) were found to be positive for Chlamydia spp. by PCR analysis. In addition, results from environmental samples showed the presence of Chlamydia spp. in three environmental swabs (3/8; 37.5%) and five water samples (5/16; 31.2%). Sequencing results revealed that strains here identified were 99–100% similar to members belonging to the Chlamydiaceae family, including C. abortus, C. psittaci, and uncultured Chlamydia genotypes. ompA species-specific PCR performed on samples was found to be positive after 16S rRNA amplification gave positive results for C. psittaci. These results reveal the first presence of C. psittaci in the genital tract of horses and in the environment in Sardinia and indicate that this pathogen could be the prevailing cause of infertility and abortion in the tested equines. However, these findings need further proof and highlight the importance of adopting a ‘One Health’ approach to control the presence of this zoonotic bacteria in domestic animals in order to understand its impact on people exposed to the infection risk.

中文翻译：

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马生殖道和环境样本中鹦鹉热衣原体的检测：撒丁岛的初步研究

衣原体科成员是感染包括人类在内的多种脊椎动物宿主的重要病原体。其中，鹦鹉热衣原体（Chlamydia psittaci）历来被认为是禽类病原体，最近在牲畜（主要是绵羊和牛）中被发现，但也在马中被发现，这种感染与生殖疾病有关，例如流产、胚胎吸收、死产和弱小马驹的出生。关于撒丁岛马群中的衣原体感染知之甚少。本研究旨在鉴定无症状撒丁岛马生殖器样本中的衣原体多样性。然而，有些马以前有生殖疾病史，即流产和不孕不育。撒丁岛中北部的 17 个马场随机招募了 60 匹马（39 匹母马和 21 匹种马）。对母马的阴道和子宫拭子以及种马的尿道拭子和精液进行取样，以确定是否存在衣原体 DNA。还对马生活环境中的样本进行了衣原体检测。采集了八份阴道拭子（8/39；20%）、两份子宫拭子（2/27；7%）、两份精液样本（2/20；10%）和一份尿道拭子（1/21；4.7%）。发现衣原体呈阳性。通过PCR分析。此外，环境样本的结果显示存在衣原体。三个环境拭子（3/8；37.5%）和五个水样（5/16；31.2%）中。测序结果显示，这里鉴定的菌株与衣原体科成员有 99-100% 相似，包括流产衣原体、鹦鹉热衣原体和未培养的衣原体基因型。在 16S rRNA 扩增得出鹦鹉热衣原体阳性结果后，对样品进行的 ompA 物种特异性 PCR 呈阳性。这些结果揭示了鹦鹉热衣原体首次出现在马的生殖道和撒丁岛的环境中，并表明这种病原体可能是所测试的马不孕和流产的主要原因。然而，这些发现需要进一步的证据，并强调采用“同一个健康”方法来控制家畜中这种人畜共患细菌的存在的重要性，以便了解其对暴露于感染风险的人们的影响。