Chlamydophila psittaci/genetics* ; Humans ; Pneumonia ; Psittacosis/diagnosis*

Avian chlamydiosis is caused by Chlamydophila psittaci and considered as one of an important zoonotic disease throughout the world. Among more than 400 avian species including poultry and pet birds susceptible to the disease, psittacine birds were known to be mostly susceptible hosts. In Korea, no outbreak of the disease and genetic analysis of the agent in poultry and pet birds have been reported. With histopathological findings and genetic identification of a causative agent, avian chlamydiosis was identified in parrots submitted from the same pet bird farm in 2006 and 2009 for the diagnosis. Based on genetic sequences and phylogenetic analysis of ompA gene, the two isolates of Chlamydophila psittaci showed 100% of genetic similarity and belonged to genotype A, suggesting that the same agent might be continuously circulated in the farm. This result indicates that serological survey of the disease in pet bird farms and impact of the disease on significance in public health may be further studied.
Birds ; Chlamydophila ; Chlamydophila psittaci ; Genotype ; Korea ; Parrots ; Poultry ; Public Health

It was generally believed that psittacosis pneumonia (pneumonia caused by Chlamydia psittaci) was rarely combined with pleural effusion and the characteristics of pleural effusion were rarely reported in the domestic literature.Herein,we reported three cases of pleural effusion due to psittacosis pneumonia,with elevated level of adenosine deaminase and lymphocyte-predominant exudative pleural effusion.Further,we reviewed the psittacosis pneumonia reports with complete clinical and lung imaging data.The imaging manifestations included pulmonary consolidation and common occurrence of a small amount of pleural effusion.The patients of psittacosis pneumonia combined with pleural effusion had severe symptoms,obvious hypoxia,and increased risk of invasive ventilation.
Humans ; Psittacosis/diagnosis* ; Chlamydophila psittaci ; Pleural Effusion/diagnosis* ; Pneumonia ; Lymphocytes

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of SINC, a secreted protein of Chlamydia psittaci, on autophagy of host cells and the role of MAPK/ERK signaling pathway in mediating SINC-induced autophagy. METHODS: RAW 264.7 cells treated with recombinant SINC were examined for changes in expression levels of LC3-II, Beclin-1, phosphorylated and total ERK1/2 using Western blotting. The expression level of LC3 in the treated cells was detected using immunofluorescence analysis, and the formation of autophagosomes and autolysosomes was observed with transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The effect of pretreatment with U0126 (a specific ERK inhibitor) on the expression levels of LC3-II and Beclin-1 in RAW 264.7 cells exposed to different concentrations of SINC was examined using Western blotting, and LC3 puncta in the cells was detected with immunofluorescence analysis. RESULTS: The expression levels of LC3-II and Beclin-1 were the highest in RAW 264.7 cells treated with 2 μg/mL SINC for 12h. Immunofluorescence analysis showed exposure to SINC significantly increased the number of cells containing LC3 puncta, where the presence of autophagosomes and autolysosomes was detected. Exposure to 2 μg/mL SINC for 15 min resulted in the most significant increase of the ratios of p-ERK1/2/ERK1/2 in RAW 264.7 cells. Pretreatment of the cells with U0126 prior to SINC exposure significantly decreased the ratio of p-ERK1/2/ERK1/2, lowered the expression levels of LC3-II and Beclin-1, and decreased LC3 aggregation in the cells. CONCLUSIONS SINC exposure can induce autophagy in RAW 264.7 cells by activating the MAPK/ERK signaling pathway.
MAP Kinase Signaling System ; Chlamydophila psittaci ; Beclin-1 ; Signal Transduction ; Autophagy

This paper reported a case of severe Chlamydia psittaci pneumonia. The patient had a clear history of contact with sick poultry. The clinical manifestations were dry cough, fever and respiratory failure. Chest CT showed consolidation in the lower lobe of the right lung, and a small amount of exudative ground-glass opacity in the left lung. Chlamydia psittaci was detected in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) by metagenomic assay. After treatment with antibiotics such as nitroimidazoles and carbapenems, the patient was discharged with a better health condition.
Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid ; Chlamydophila psittaci ; Humans ; Metagenomics ; Pneumonia ; Psittacosis/drug therapy*

BACKGROUND: There is growing evidence linking infection with Chlamydophila pneumoniae with vascular diseases, such as atherosclerosis and myocardial infarction. However, the data remain inconclusive and the clinical importance of C. pneumoniae as vasculopathic is unclear. So, we intend to detect C. pneumoniae in acute myocardial infarction patients by microimmunofluorescence (mIF) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). METHODS: Blood and peripheral mononuclear cells (PMNCs) of 24 myocardial infarction patients and 100 normal controls were collected. Serum were used in mIF and PMNCs in PCR. PMNC sample were tested for C. pneumoniae by 'touchdown 'nested PCR. The first round PCR amplified DNA from both C. pneumoniae and Chlamydophila psittaci, while the second round specially targeted C. pneumoniae allowing the two species to be differentiated. RESULTS: Seropositivity of IgG and IgM anti-Chlamydophila pneumoniae antibody titers were 95.8% and 25% in myocardial infarction patients and 61% and 16% in control group, respectively. Positive rates of PCR of PMNCs were 8.3% in the patients and 15% in control group. CONCLUSION: The results of mIF show that mIF positive rate in myocardial infarction was much higher than control group. So an association between C. pneumoniae and myocardial infarction can be concluded. But the opposite results of PCR of PMNCs needed further studies.
Atherosclerosis ; Chlamydial Pneumonia* ; Chlamydophila pneumoniae* ; Chlamydophila psittaci ; Chlamydophila* ; DNA ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G ; Immunoglobulin M ; Myocardial Infarction* ; Pneumonia ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Vascular Diseases

BACKGROUND: Chlamydia pneumoniae has recently been established as an important cause of acute respiratory tract infections such as pneumonia and bronchitis in humans. We introduced a 'touchdown' PCR method for detection of C. pneumoniae from sputum. METHODS: A total of 474 patients with respiratory infection were enrolled in the study. The sputum samples were tested for C. pneumoniae by the 'touchdown' PCR and cultured for Chlamydia. The sputum samples were pretreated with 5% NaOH for mucolysis. In 'touchdown' PCR, the first round PCR amplified DNA from both C. pneumoniae and Chlamydia psittaci, while the second round specifically targeted C. pneumoniae, allowing the two species to be differentiated. RESULTS: The 'touchdown' PCR could detect 10-2 inclusion forming unit (IFU) in the 1st round and 10-3 IFU in the second round PCR. None of the C. trachomatis serovars, C. psittaci and other organisms tested was amplified. 'Touchdown' PCR detected C. pneumoniae DNA in 24 (5%) of the 474 sputum samples. Nine patients with C. pneumoniae had community acquired pneumonia. Another nine patients had pulmonary tuberculosis of which three had coexisting pneumonia. Two patients had lung cancer, another two had chronic bronchitis, one had pharyngitis, and one person was a normal healthy individual. CONCLUSIONS: The sputum preparation with 5% NaOH and the 'touchdown' PCR method are effective in the detection of C. pneumoniae. C. pneumoniae is one of the most common causative agents for pulmonary infection.
Bronchitis ; Bronchitis, Chronic ; Chlamydia* ; Chlamydophila pneumoniae* ; Chlamydophila psittaci ; DNA ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms ; Pharyngitis ; Pneumonia ; Polymerase Chain Reaction* ; Respiratory Tract Infections ; Sputum ; Tuberculosis, Pulmonary

PURPOSE: Only a few cases of keratoconjunctivitis caused by Chlamydophila psittaci have been reported worldwide, and no case reported in Korea. We report an atypical case of keratoconjunctivitis caused by Chlamydophila psittaci. CASE SUMMARY: A 34-year-old male patient who had raised a parrot at home presented with three weeks of conjunctival injection and a week of ocular pain in his left eye. There were papillae on the left upper and lower tarsal conjunctiva and punctuate epithelial erosion of the entire cornea. He also complained of dizziness, fever, and dyspnea. Upon chest X-ray, consolidation on the right middle lobe was apparent. The Chlamydophila IgM antibody test was positive, and the pneumonia improved quickly. Nevertheless, signs of keratoconjunctivitis persisted despite 3-week treatment with oral doxycycline. As a result, the patient received an additional 10-day treatment with oral azithromycin. Four weeks after the first visit, symptoms were improving gradually, and, after six weeks, no signs of keratoconjunctivitis remained except minimal erosion. CONCLUSIONS: When patients show keratoconjunctivitis after contact with a bird, prolonged ketatoconjunctivitis by Chlamydophila psittaci should be considered.
Adult ; Azithromycin ; Birds ; Chlamydophila ; Chlamydophila psittaci ; Conjunctiva ; Cornea ; Dizziness ; Doxycycline ; Dyspnea ; Eye ; Fever ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin M ; Keratoconjunctivitis ; Korea ; Male ; Parrots ; Pneumonia ; Thorax

OBJECTIVEChlamydia psittaci is an avian respiratory pathogen and zoonotic agent. The wide prevalence of C. psittaci poses a threat to the poultry industry and its employees. However, few commercial kits are available for detecting avian antibodies excluding the in-house ELISA kit. In this study, we developed a novel ELISA kit for detecting antibodies against C. psittaci based on the N-terminal fragment of polymorphic outer membrane protein D (PmpD-N) as the coating antigen.

METHODSThe antigen concentrations, primary antibody, and cut-off value were determined and optimized. The ELISA, designated PmpD-N ELISA, was assessed for sensitivity, specificity, and concordance using sera samples from 48 experimentally infected and 168 uninfected SPF chickens.

RESULTSThe sensitivity and specificity of PmpD-N ELISA were 97.9%, 100%, respectively, while the concordance was 98.1% as compared to that of MOMP-ELISA. No cross-reaction with positive sera for other avian pathogens was found. Using PmpD-N ELISA, 799/836 clinical samples were positive, including 93.0% and 98.1% positivity in layers and broilers, respectively.

CONCLUSIONThese data indicate that indirect ELISA with PmpD-N as the antigen candidate is a promising approach for the surveillance of C. psittaci infection.

Animals ; Bacterial Proteins ; analysis ; Chickens ; Chlamydophila psittaci ; genetics ; immunology ; isolation & purification ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; veterinary ; Membrane Proteins ; analysis ; Poultry Diseases ; diagnosis ; microbiology ; Psittacosis ; diagnosis ; microbiology ; veterinary ; Sensitivity and Specificity

OBJECTIVETo study the role of pathogenic microorganisms commonly associated with chronic eye disease, including Chlamydia psittaci, Chlamydia trachomatis, Chlamydia pneumoniae, herpes simplex virus (HSV) type 1 and type 2, and adenovirus type 8 and type 19, in the development of primary ocular adnexal mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma in Chinese patients.

METHODSSixty-eight archival cases of primary ocular adnexal lymphoproliferative lesions, including 38 cases of MALT lymphoma, 3 cases of non-MALT lymphoma and 27 cases of chronic inflammation, were enrolled into the study. DNA was extracted from the paraffin-embedded tissue samples. The presence of DNA of C. psittaci, C. trachomatis, C. pneumoniae, HSV type 1, HSV type 2, adenovirus type 8 and adenovirus type 19 were analyzed by multiplex touchdown enzyme time-release polymerase chain reaction (TETR-PCR).

RESULTSAll of the specimens yielded PCR products of over 100 base pairs and were thus suitable for TETR-PCR screening of infectious agents. The prevalence of DNA of C. psittaci, C. trachomatis and adenovirus type 19 were 0 in MALT lymphoma, non-MALT lymphoma and chronic inflammation. There were 2 cases positive for C. pneumoniae DNA, amongst the 38 cases of MALT lymphoma studied (5.3%, 2/38). HSV type 1, HSV type 2 and adenovirus type 8 DNA was found in each of the 3 patients with chronic inflammation.

CONCLUSIONThe study indicates that C. psittaci, C. trachomatis, C. pneumoniae, HSV type 1, HSV type 2, adenovirus type 8 and adenovirus type 19 probably play little role in the pathogenesis of ocular adnexal MALT lymphoma in Chinese patients.

Adenovirus Infections, Human ; virology ; Adenoviruses, Human ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Chlamydia Infections ; microbiology ; Chlamydia trachomatis ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Chlamydophila Infections ; microbiology ; Chlamydophila pneumoniae ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Chlamydophila psittaci ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; DNA, Bacterial ; analysis ; DNA, Viral ; analysis ; Eye Infections ; microbiology ; virology ; Eye Neoplasms ; microbiology ; virology ; Herpes Simplex ; virology ; Herpesvirus 1, Human ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Herpesvirus 2, Human ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Humans ; Lymphoma, B-Cell, Marginal Zone ; microbiology ; virology ; Psittacosis ; microbiology