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Journal of Clinical Microbiology, September 2002, p. 3281-3285, Vol. 40, No. 9
0095-1137/02/$04.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/JCM.40.9.3281-3285.2002
Copyright © 2002, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Mycobacterium microti Infection (Vole Tuberculosis) in Wild Rodent Populations

Rachel Cavanagh,1* Michael Begon,1 Malcolm Bennett,1 Torbjørn Ergon,2 Isla M. Graham,3 Petra E. W. de Haas,4 C. A. Hart,1 Marianne Koedam,4 Kristin Kremer,4 Xavier Lambin,3 Paul Roholl,4 and Dick van Soolingen4

Centre for Comparative Infectious Diseases, University of Liverpool, Liverpool,1 Department of Zoology, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, United Kingdom,3 Department of Biological Sciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway,2 Diagnostic Laboratory for Infectious Diseases and Perinatal Screening, National Institute of Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, The Netherlands4

Received 19 November 2001/ Returned for modification 16 March 2002/ Accepted 12 May 2002

Mycobacterium microti (vole tuberculosis) infections in small wild mammals were first described more than 60 years ago in several populations in Great Britain. Few studies of vole tuberculosis have been undertaken since then, and little is known about the relationship between M. microti isolates originating from different populations or at different times or of the prevalence of this infection in wild rodent populations, despite human cases of M. microti infections being increasingly reported. In this study, field voles (Microtus agrestis), bank voles (Clethrionomys glareolus), and wood mice (Apodemus sylvaticus) were found to be infected, with up to 8% having external tuberculous signs, in wild populations in Northumberland and Cheshire, England. Spoligotyping applied directly to the clinical material simultaneously detected and typed M. microti bacteria in skin lesions, lymph glands, and internal abcesses. IS6110 restriction fragment length polymorphism typing of cultured bacteria was used to compare these isolates with previously isolated strains from both animals and humans. This demonstrated that although the current rodent isolates were distinct from those isolated from voles in the 1930s in Great Britain, they had a high degree of similarity to these strains and were distinct from the M. microti isolates from humans, a pig, and a ferret from The Netherlands. Thus, M. microti infection seems to be widespread in wild rodent populations, but more studies are needed to understand how M. microti might be transmitted from animals to humans and to determine better the zoonotic risk posed.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: c/o Michael Begon, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Liverpool, Nicholson Building, Brownlow St., Liverpool L69 3GS, United Kingdom. Phone: 44 (0) 1635 550 380. Fax: 44 (0) 1635 550 230. E-mail: rachel{at}naturebureau.co.uk.

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, September 2002, p. 3281-3285, Vol. 40, No. 9
0095-1137/02/$04.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/JCM.40.9.3281-3285.2002
Copyright © 2002, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



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