An outbreak of fatal hemorrhagic pneumonia with 70~90% morbidity and 50% mortality occurred in an animal shelter in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province, Korea. Clinically, the affected dogs showed severe respiratory distress within 48 h after arriving in the shelter. The dead were found mainly with nasal bleeding and hematemesis. At necropsy, hemothorax and hemorrhagic pneumonia along with severe pulmonary consolidation was observed, though histopathological analysis showed mainly hemorrhagic bronchopneumonia. Lymphoid depletion was inconsistently seen in the spleen, tonsil and bronchial lymph node. Gram-positive colonies were shown in blood vessels or parenchyma of cerebrum, lung, liver, spleen, and kidney. Also, Streptococcus (S.) equi subsp. zooepidemicus was isolated from the various organs in which the bacterium was microscopically and histologically detected. In addition, approximately 0.9 Kb specific amplicon, antiphagocytic factor H binding protein, was amplified in the bacterial isolates. In this study, we reported an outbreak of canine hemorrhagic bronchopneumonia caused by S. equi subsp. zooepidemicus in an animal shelter in Yangju, Korea.
Animals ; Disease Outbreaks/*veterinary ; Dog Diseases/*epidemiology/*microbiology/pathology ; Dogs ; Korea/epidemiology ; Pneumonia, Bacterial/epidemiology/microbiology/pathology/*veterinary ; Streptococcus equi/isolation & purification/*physiology

This study was carried out to evaluate the prevalence and clinical characterizations of gastric Helicobacter spp. infection of dogs and cats in Korea. The prevalence of Helicobacter spp. infection of dogs and cats determined by urease test was 78.4% and 64%, respectively, although Helicobacter genus-specific PCR assay showed that it was 82.3% and 84%. Urease mapping results based on urease test showed that total positive rate of tested tissues from clinically abnormal dogs was significantly higher than that from clinically normal dogs (p=0.0018; Odds ratio = 6.118; 95% Confidence Interval = 1.96~19.103). These findings were consistent with the results of Helicobacter genus-specific PCR assay which showed that positive rate of the fundus (100%) and the antrum (100%) of clinically abnormal dogs was significantly higher than that of same gastric regions of clinically normal dogs (77.5 and 67.5% respectively). In comparison of gastric regions between clinically normal dogs and abnormal dogs, positive rate of urease test for the fundus (100%) and body (90.9%) in clinically abnormal dogs was significantly higher than that of abnormal dogs (72.5% and 57.5% respectively; p<0.05). The results of urease mapping in dogs and cats also indicated that Helicobacter colonization in the fundus was more dense compared with the density in the body and antrum. In Helicobacter species-specific PCR assay for dogs, 32 of 42 fundic tissues (76.2%) were positive for H. heilmannii and two (4.8%) were positive for H. felis. In cats, 18 of 21 fundic tissues (85.7%) were positive for H. heilmannii and 2 (9.5%) were positive for H. felis. Gastritis scores of fundic tissues from clinically abnormal infected dogs were similar to that from noninfected dogs and evidence of upregulation of IL-1beta, IL-8, and TNF-alpha mRNA was not detected in gastric fundic tissues from clinically abnormal infected dogs. This study suggested that Helicobacter spp. infection in domestic dogs including private owned pet dogs and cats is highly prevalent usually with no clinical sign but high density of colonization can be related to gastrointestinal signs
Animals ; Cat Diseases/enzymology/*epidemiology/microbiology ; Cats ; Cytokines/genetics ; DNA, Bacterial/analysis/genetics ; Dog Diseases/enzymology/*epidemiology/microbiology/pathology ; Dogs ; Gene Expression Regulation ; Helicobacter/classification/genetics/isolation&purification ; Helicobacter Infections/*epidemiology/microbiology/pathology/*veterinary ; Korea/epidemiology ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Prevalence ; RNA, Messenger/genetics/metabolism ; Species Specificity ; Stomach/microbiology ; Stomach Diseases/enzymology/*epidemiology/microbiology/*veterinary ; Urease/metabolism