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Journal of Clinical Microbiology, February 2008, p. 423-430, Vol. 46, No. 2
0095-1137/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JCM.01931-07
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Association of Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae Infection with Population-Limiting Respiratory Disease in Free-Ranging Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep (Ovis canadensis canadensis){triangledown}

Thomas E. Besser,1,2* E. Frances Cassirer,2,3 Kathleen A. Potter,1,2 John VanderSchalie,1 Allison Fischer,2 Donald P. Knowles,4 David R. Herndon,4 Fred R. Rurangirwa,2 Glen C. Weiser,5 and Subramaniam Srikumaran2

Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory,1 Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington 99164-6610,2 Idaho Department of Fish and Game, 3316 16th St., Lewiston, Idaho 83501,3 Animal Disease Research Unit, USDA Agricultural Research Service, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington 99164-6630,4 Caine Veterinary Teaching Center, University of Idaho, Caldwell, Idaho 836075

Received 30 September 2007/ Returned for modification 26 October 2007/ Accepted 9 November 2007

Bronchopneumonia is a population-limiting disease in bighorn sheep in much of western North America. Previous investigators have isolated diverse bacteria from the lungs of affected sheep, but no single bacterial species is consistently present, even within single epizootics. We obtained high-quality diagnostic specimens from nine pneumonic bighorn sheep in three populations and analyzed the bacterial populations present in bronchoalveolar lavage specimens of seven by using a culture-independent method (16S rRNA gene amplification and clone library analyses). Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae was detected as a predominant member of the pneumonic lung flora in lambs with early lesions of bronchopneumonia. Specific PCR tests then revealed the consistent presence of M. ovipneumoniae in the lungs of pneumonic bighorn sheep in this study, and M. ovipneumoniae was isolated from lung specimens of five of the animals. Retrospective application of M. ovipneumoniae PCR to DNA extracted from archived formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded lung tissues of historical adult bighorn sheep necropsy specimens supported the association of this agent with bronchopneumonia (16/34 pneumonic versus 0/17 nonpneumonic sheep were PCR positive [P < 0.001]). Similarly, a very strong association was observed between the presence of one or more M. ovipneumoniae antibody-positive animals and the occurrence of current or recent historical bronchopneumonia problems (seropositive animals detected in 9/9 versus 0/9 pneumonic and nonpneumonic populations, respectively [P < 0.001]). M. ovipneumoniae is strongly associated with bronchopneumonia in free-ranging bighorn sheep and is a candidate primary etiologic agent for this disease.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: P.O. Box 647040, Pullman, WA 99164-7040. Phone: (509) 335-6075. Fax: (509) 335-8529. E-mail: tbesser{at}vetmed.wsu.edu

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 5 December 2007.

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, February 2008, p. 423-430, Vol. 46, No. 2
0095-1137/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JCM.01931-07
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.





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