Omneity® Pellets
All-In-One Vitamin & Mineral Pellet
Genotyping of Burkholderia mallei from an outbreak of glanders in Bahrain suggests multiple introduction events.
Abstract: Glanders, caused by the gram-negative bacterium Burkholderia mallei, is a highly infectious zoonotic disease of solipeds causing severe disease in animals and men. Although eradicated from many Western countries, it recently emerged in Asia, the Middle-East, Africa, and South America. Due to its rareness, little is known about outbreak dynamics of the disease and its epidemiology. Results: We investigated a recent outbreak of glanders in Bahrain by applying high resolution genotyping (multiple locus variable number of tandem repeats, MLVA) and comparative whole genome sequencing to B. mallei isolated from infected horses and a camel. These results were compared to samples obtained from an outbreak in the United Arab Emirates in 2004, and further placed into a broader phylogeographic context based on previously published B. mallei data. The samples from the outbreak in Bahrain separated into two distinct clusters, suggesting a complex epidemiological background and evidence for the involvement of multiple B. mallei strains. Additionally, the samples from Bahrain were more closely related to B. mallei isolated from horses in the United Arab Emirates in 2004 than other B. mallei which is suggestive of repeated importation to the region from similar geographic sources. Conclusions: High-resolution genotyping and comparative whole genome analysis revealed the same phylogenetic patterns among our samples. The close relationship of the Dubai/UAE B. mallei populations to each other may be indicative of a similar geographic origin that has yet to be identified for the infecting strains. The recent emergence of glanders in combination with worldwide horse trading might pose a new risk for human infections.
Publication Date: 2014-09-25 PubMed ID: 25255232PubMed Central: PMC4177748DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0003195Google Scholar: Lookup The Equine Research Bank provides access to a large database of publicly available scientific literature. Inclusion in the Research Bank does not imply endorsement of study methods or findings by Mad Barn.
- Journal Article
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
Summary
This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.
This research investigates an outbreak of glanders disease in Bahrain caused by the Burkholderia mallei bacterium, suggesting through genotyping and genome sequencing that multiple strains of the bacterium were involved and may have been imported from similar geographic sources.
Overview of Glanders Disease
- Glanders is a highly infectious zoonotic disease affecting solipeds (hoofed animals) and humans.
- It is caused by the gram-negative bacterium, Burkholderia mallei.
- Though eradicated from many Western countries, the disease has recently emerged in parts of Asia, the Middle-East, Africa, and South America.
- Its rareness has left its outbreak dynamics and epidemiology relatively unknown till date.
Investigation into the Outbreak in Bahrain
- The researchers investigated a recent outbreak of glanders in Bahrain, applying high-resolution genotyping (Multiple Locus Variable Number of Tandem Repeats, MLVA) and comparative whole genome sequencing to B. mallei samples isolated from infected horses and a camel.
- When these results were compared with samples from an outbreak in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2004, it was found that the samples from Bahrain separated into two distinct clusters.
- This suggests a complex epidemiological background and evidence for the involvement of multiple B. mallei strains.
Chain of Infection and Phylogeographical Context
- Further analysis showed that the samples from Bahrain were more closely related to B. mallei isolated from horses in the UAE in 2004 than other B. mallei.
- This suggests that there may be repeated importation to the region from similar geographic sources.
- The broader phylogeographic context established from previous B. mallei data further confirmed this notion.
Conclusions
- High-resolution genotyping and comparative whole genome analysis revealed consistent phylogenetic patterns among the samples.
- The close relationship of the Dubai/UAE B. mallei populations to each other suggests a similar geographic origin, undetermined as yet, for the infecting strains.
- The recent emergence of glanders, combined with worldwide horse trading, might pose a new risk for human infections.
Cite This Article
APA
Scholz HC, Pearson T, Hornstra H, Projahn M, Terzioglu R, Wernery R, Georgi E, Riehm JM, Wagner DM, Keim PS, Joseph M, Johnson B, Kinne J, Jose S, Hepp CM, Witte A, Wernery U.
(2014).
Genotyping of Burkholderia mallei from an outbreak of glanders in Bahrain suggests multiple introduction events.
PLoS Negl Trop Dis, 8(9), e3195.
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0003195 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Bacteriology and Toxinology, Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology, German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Munich, Germany.
- Center for Microbial Genetics and Genomics, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona, United States of America.
- Center for Microbial Genetics and Genomics, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona, United States of America.
- Department of Bacteriology and Toxinology, Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology, German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Munich, Germany.
- Department of Bacteriology and Toxinology, Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology, German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Munich, Germany.
- Central Veterinary Research Laboratory, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
- Department of Bacteriology and Toxinology, Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology, German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Munich, Germany.
- Department of Bacteriology and Toxinology, Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology, German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Munich, Germany.
- Center for Microbial Genetics and Genomics, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona, United States of America.
- Center for Microbial Genetics and Genomics, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona, United States of America.
- Central Veterinary Research Laboratory, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
- Central Veterinary Research Laboratory, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
- Central Veterinary Research Laboratory, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
- Central Veterinary Research Laboratory, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
- Center for Microbial Genetics and Genomics, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona, United States of America.
- Department of Microbiology, Immunbiology and Genetics, MFPL laboratories, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
- Central Veterinary Research Laboratory, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Bahrain / epidemiology
- Burkholderia mallei / genetics
- Camelus
- Disease Outbreaks / veterinary
- Genotyping Techniques
- Glanders / epidemiology
- Glanders / microbiology
- Horses
Conflict of Interest Statement
The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
References
This article includes 11 references
- Wittig MB, Wohlsein P, Hagen RM, Al Dahouk S, Tomaso H. Glanders-a comprehensive review [in German]. Dtsch Tierarztl Wochenschr 113: 323–330.
- Estes DM, Dow SW, Schweizer HP, Torres AG. Present and future therapeutic strategies for melioidosis and glanders. Expert Rev Anti Infect Ther 3: 325–338.
- Roberts H, Lopez M, Hancock R. International disease monitoring, April to June. Vet Rec 167: 192–195.
- Wernery U. Glanders. Equine Veterinary Journal, Ltd. 2009; p. 253–260.
- Verma AK, Saminathan M, Tiwari R, Dahama K, Singh V. Glanders- A re-emerging Zoonotic disease: A Review. J Biol Sci 14: 38–51.
- Khan I, Wieler LH, Melzer F, Elschner MC, Muhammad G. Glanders in animals: a review on epidemiology, clinical presentation, diagnosis and countermeasures. Transbound Emerg Dis 60: 204–221.
- Sprague LD, Zachariah R, Neubauer H, Wernery R, Joseph M. Prevalence dependent use of serological tests for diagnosing glanders in horses. BMC Vet Res 5: 1–6.
- Wernery U, Wernery R, Joseph M, Al-Salloom F, Johnson B. Natural Burkholderia mallei infection in Dromedary, Bahrain. Emerg Infect Dis 7: 1277–1279.
- U'Ren JM, Schupp JM, Pearson T, Hornstra H, Friedman CL. Tandem repeat regions within the Burkholderia pseudomallei genome and their application for high resolution genotyping. BMC Microbiol 7: 23.
- Hornstra H, Pearson T, Georgia S, Liguori A, Dale J. Molecular epidemiology of glanders, Pakistan. Emerg Infect Dis 15: 2036–2039.
- Kurtz S, Phillippy A, Delcher AL, Smoot M, Shumway M. Versatile and open software for comparing large genomes. Genome Biol 5: R12.
Citations
This article has been cited 19 times.- Sukmanadi M, Khairullah AR, Wardhani BWK, Mustofa I, Aliyah SH, Moses IB, Ahmad RZ, Khalisa AT, Pratama BP, Kusala MKJ, Kurniasih DAA, Akintunde AO, Fauziah I, Wibowo S, Furqoni AH, Fauzia KA, Melati I, Kurniawan M'. Glanders: Historical military use and potential bioterrorism concern. Open Vet J 2025 Sep;15(9):3912-3930.
- Torres AG. Glanders: An ancient and emergent disease with no vaccine or treatment on site. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2025 Jun;19(6):e0013160.
- Suniga PAP, Mantovani C, Santos MG, Rieger JSG, Gaspar EB, Dos Santos FL, Mota RA, Chaves KP, Egito AA, Filho JCO, Nassar AFC, Dos Santos LR, Araújo FR. Molecular detection of Burkholderia mallei in different geographic regions of Brazil. Braz J Microbiol 2023 Jun;54(2):1275-1285.
- Brangsch H, Singha H, Laroucau K, Elschner M. Sequence-based detection and typing procedures for Burkholderia mallei: Assessment and prospects. Front Vet Sci 2022;9:1056996.
- Appelt S, Rohleder AM, Jacob D, von Buttlar H, Georgi E, Mueller K, Wernery U, Kinne J, Joseph M, Jose SV, Scholz HC. Genetic diversity and spatial distribution of Burkholderia mallei by core genome-based multilocus sequence typing analysis. PLoS One 2022;17(7):e0270499.
- Brangsch H, Saqib M, Sial AUR, Melzer F, Linde J, Elschner MC. Sequencing-Based Genotyping of Pakistani Burkholderia mallei Strains: A Useful Way for Investigating Glanders Outbreaks. Pathogens 2022 May 24;11(6).
- Nielsen SS, Alvarez J, Bicout DJ, Calistri P, Canali E, Drewe JA, Garin-Bastuji B, Gonzales Rojas JL, Schmidt CG, Herskin M, Michel V, Miranda Chueca MÁ, Padalino B, Pasquali P, Spoolder H, Ståhl K, Velarde A, Viltrop A, Winckler C, Gubbins S, Laroucau K, Antoniou SE, Aznar I, Broglia A, Lima E, Van der Stede Y, Zancanaro G, Roberts HC. Assessment of the control measures of the category A diseases of Animal Health Law: Burkholderia mallei (Glanders). EFSA J 2022 Jan;20(1):e07069.
- Wernery U, Chan E, Raghavan R, Teng JLL, Syriac G, Siu SY, Joseph M, Yeung ML, Jia L, Cai JP, Chiu TH, Lau SKP, Woo PCY. Development of a sensitive competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for serodiagnosis of Burkholderia mallei, a Tier 1 select agent. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2021 Dec;15(12):e0010007.
- Shanmugasundaram K, Singha H, Saini S, Tripathi BN. 16S rDNA and ITS Sequence Diversity of Burkholderia mallei Isolated from Glanders-Affected Horses and Mules in India (2013-2019). Curr Microbiol 2021 Dec 18;79(1):31.
- Singha H, Elschner MC, Malik P, Saini S, Tripathi BN, Mertens-Scholz K, Brangsch H, Melzer F, Singh RK, Neubauer H. Molecular Typing of Burkholderia mallei Isolates from Equids with Glanders, India. Emerg Infect Dis 2021 Jun;27(6):1745-1748.
- Elschner MC, Melzer F, Singha H, Muhammad S, Gardner I, Neubauer H. Validation of a Commercial Glanders ELISA as an Alternative to the CFT in International Trade of Equidae. Front Vet Sci 2021;8:628389.
- Hammerl JA, Volkmar S, Jacob D, Klein I, Jäckel C, Hertwig S. The Burkholderia thailandensis Phages ΦE058 and ΦE067 Represent Distinct Prototypes of a New Subgroup of Temperate Burkholderia Myoviruses. Front Microbiol 2020;11:1120.
- Adhikari N, Acharya KP, Wilson RT. The potential for an outbreak of glanders in Nepal. Trop Med Health 2019;47:57.
- Zhu S, Zimmerman D, Deem SL. A Review of Zoonotic Pathogens of Dromedary Camels. Ecohealth 2019 Jun;16(2):356-377.
- Olivas S, Hornstra H, Priestley RA, Kaufman E, Hepp C, Sonderegger DL, Handady K, Massung RF, Keim P, Kersh GJ, Pearson T. Massive dispersal of Coxiella burnetii among cattle across the United States. Microb Genom 2016 Aug;2(8):e000068.
- Elschner MC, Thomas P, Melzer F. Complete Genome Sequence of a Burkholderia mallei Isolate Originating from a Glanderous Horse from the Kingdom of Bahrain. Genome Announc 2016 Dec 1;4(6).
- Hatcher CL, Mott TM, Muruato LA, Sbrana E, Torres AG. Burkholderia mallei CLH001 Attenuated Vaccine Strain Is Immunogenic and Protects against Acute Respiratory Glanders. Infect Immun 2016 Aug;84(8):2345-54.
- Gao R, Krysciak D, Petersen K, Utpatel C, Knapp A, Schmeisser C, Daniel R, Voget S, Jaeger KE, Streit WR. Genome-wide RNA sequencing analysis of quorum sensing-controlled regulons in the plant-associated Burkholderia glumae PG1 strain. Appl Environ Microbiol 2015 Dec;81(23):7993-8007.
- Jelesijevic T, Zimmerman SM, Harvey SB, Mead DG, Shaffer TL, Estes DM, Michel F, Quinn FD, Hogan RJ, Lafontaine ER. Use of the common marmoset to study Burkholderia mallei infection. PLoS One 2015;10(4):e0124181.
Use Nutrition Calculator
Check if your horse's diet meets their nutrition requirements with our easy-to-use tool Check your horse's diet with our easy-to-use tool
Talk to a Nutritionist
Discuss your horse's feeding plan with our experts over a free phone consultation Discuss your horse's diet over a phone consultation
Submit Diet Evaluation
Get a customized feeding plan for your horse formulated by our equine nutritionists Get a custom feeding plan formulated by our nutritionists
