Abstract:
Prototheca infections are rare in cats, and they are usually associated with cutaneous or subcutaneous infections by P. wickerhamii, with no evidence of neurological signs or systemic disease. In this study, we report the identification of prototheca in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of a cat with neurological symptoms. Fourteen CSF samples were gathered from cats presented with neurological disease between 2012 and 2014. The inclusion criteria for the samples were an increase in CSF protein and cell number (pleocytosis), suggestive of an infectious inflammatory status of the central nervous system (CNS). Nine samples fulfilled the inclusion criteria (inflammatory samples), while five samples, used as control, did not (non-inflammatory samples). All the samples were screened molecularly for different pathogens associated with CNS disease in cats, including prototheca. Out of 14 CSF samples, only one inflammatory sample tested positive for prototheca. Upon sequence and phylogenetic analysis of the amplicon, the strain was characterized as P. bovis. This report is the first documented evidence of prototheca in the cerebrospinal fluid of a cat with neurological signs. Prototheca should be considered in the diagnostics procedures on the CNS of cats presented with infectious diseases.
摘要:
原虫感染在猫中很少见,它们通常与威克哈姆氏疟原虫的皮肤或皮下感染有关,没有神经系统症状或全身性疾病的证据。在这项研究中,我们报告了在有神经症状的猫的脑脊液(CSF)中鉴定出的原藻。在2012年至2014年之间,从患有神经系统疾病的猫收集了14个CSF样本。样本的纳入标准是CSF蛋白和细胞数量增加(细胞增多),提示中枢神经系统(CNS)的感染性炎症状态。9个样本符合纳入标准(炎症样本),虽然有五个样本,用作控制,没有(非炎性样品)。对所有样本进行了与猫中枢神经系统疾病相关的不同病原体的分子筛选,包括前藻.在14份脑脊液样本中,只有一个炎症样本检测出原皮细胞阳性.在对扩增子进行序列和系统发育分析后,该菌株的特征为牛疟原虫。该报告是有神经系统症状的猫的脑脊液中的前藻的第一个证据。在对患有传染病的猫的中枢神经系统的诊断程序中,应考虑原藻。