A comprehensive review on avian chlamydiosis: a neglected zoonotic disease

AbstractAvian chlamydiosis is one of the important neglected diseases with critical zoonotic potential.Chlamydia psittaci, the causative agent, affects most categories of birds, livestock, companion animals, and humans. It has many obscured characters and epidemiological dimensions, which makes it unique among other bacterial agents. Recent reports on transmission from equine to humans alarmed the public health authorities, and it necessitates the importance of routine screening of this infectious disease. High prevalence of spill-over infection in equines was associated with reproductive losses. Newer avian chlamydial species are being reported in the recent years. It is a potential biological warfare agent and the disease is an occupational hazard mainly to custom officers handling exotic birds. Prevalence of the disease in wild birds, pet birds, and poultry causes economic losses to the poultry industry and the pet bird trade. Interestingly, there are speculations on the ‘legal’ and ‘illegal’ bird trade that may be the global source of some of the most virulent strains of this pathogen. The mortality rate generally ranges from 5 to 40% in untreated cases, but it can sometimes be higher in co-infection. The intracellular lifestyle of this pathogen makes the d iagnosis more complicated and there is also lack of accurate diagnostics. Resistance to antibiotics is reported only in some pathogens of the Chlamydiaceae family, but routine screening may assess the actual si...
Source: Tropical Animal Health and Production - Category: Veterinary Research Source Type: research