Bartonella infection in asymptomatic horses and donkeys from Tuscany, Central Italy.

The research paper explores the prevalence of Bartonella, a type of bacteria, in horses and donkeys in Tuscany, Central Italy. It found that this infection is fairly common among these animals in this area, and it is also the first study to report Bartonella Henselae infection in donkeys.

Methods

• The researchers carried out an investigation on animals residing in Tuscany, Central Italy.
• They collected blood samples from a total of 77 horses and 15 donkeys to facilitate their study.
• These samples were then tested via an indirect immunofluorescent test to identify the presence of antibodies against the Bartonella Pathogen.
• Furthermore, the samples were also analyzed through Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect the presence of the pathogen itself.

Results

• The results determined that 54 animals out of the total number studied, consisting of 9 donkeys and 45 horses were seropositive, meaning they had detectable antibodies against Bartonella
• The antibody titers in these seropositive animals varied within a range from 1:64 to 1:512.
• The PCR assays revealed that 9 horses were positive for the Bartonella pathogen. Furthermore, it was also identified that 3 donkeys were positive for Bartonella henselae genotype I.

Conclusion

• The prevalence of seropositive animals reflected frequent exposure of horses and donkeys in this region of Central Italy to the Bartonella pathogen.
• The PCR results provided evidence that both horses and donkeys could acquire Bartonella infection.
• Additionally, the research broke new ground by being the first to report the presence of Bartonella Henselae infection within donkeys.