Tracking the Source of Human Q Fever from a Southern French Village: Sentinel Animals and Environmental Reservoir
<i>Coxiella burnetii</i>, also known as the causal agent of Q fever, is a zoonotic pathogen infecting humans and several animal species. Here, we investigated the epidemiological context of <i>C. burnetii</i> from an area in the Hérault department in southern France, using th...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-04-01
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| Series: | Microorganisms |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/11/4/1016 |
| _version_ | 1797604178749554688 |
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| author | Younes Laidoudi Elodie Rousset Anne-Sophie Dessimoulie Myriam Prigent Alizée Raptopoulo Quentin Huteau Elisabeth Chabbert Catherine Navarro Pierre-Edouard Fournier Bernard Davoust |
| author_facet | Younes Laidoudi Elodie Rousset Anne-Sophie Dessimoulie Myriam Prigent Alizée Raptopoulo Quentin Huteau Elisabeth Chabbert Catherine Navarro Pierre-Edouard Fournier Bernard Davoust |
| author_sort | Younes Laidoudi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <i>Coxiella burnetii</i>, also known as the causal agent of Q fever, is a zoonotic pathogen infecting humans and several animal species. Here, we investigated the epidemiological context of <i>C. burnetii</i> from an area in the Hérault department in southern France, using the One Health paradigm. In total, 13 human cases of Q fever were diagnosed over the last three years in an area comprising four villages. Serological and molecular investigations conducted on the representative animal population, as well as wind data, indicated that some of the recent cases are likely to have originated from a sheepfold, which revealed bacterial contamination and a seroprevalence of 47.6%. However, the clear-cut origin of human cases cannot be ruled out in the absence of molecular data from the patients. Multi-spacer typing based on dual barcoding nanopore sequencing highlighted the occurrence of a new genotype of <i>C. burnetii</i>. In addition, the environmental contamination appeared to be widespread across a perimeter of 6 km due to local wind activity, according to the seroprevalence detected in dogs (12.6%) and horses (8.49%) in the surrounding populations. These findings were helpful in describing the extent of the exposed area and thus supporting the use of dogs and horses as valuable sentinel indicators for monitoring Q fever. The present data clearly highlighted that the epidemiological surveillance of Q fever should be reinforced and improved. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T04:43:41Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-9049737b9f574f449e08944735e92de1 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2607 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T04:43:41Z |
| publishDate | 2023-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Microorganisms |
| spelling | doaj.art-9049737b9f574f449e08944735e92de12023-11-17T20:33:48ZengMDPI AGMicroorganisms2076-26072023-04-01114101610.3390/microorganisms11041016Tracking the Source of Human Q Fever from a Southern French Village: Sentinel Animals and Environmental ReservoirYounes Laidoudi0Elodie Rousset1Anne-Sophie Dessimoulie2Myriam Prigent3Alizée Raptopoulo4Quentin Huteau5Elisabeth Chabbert6Catherine Navarro7Pierre-Edouard Fournier8Bernard Davoust9Aix Marseille University, IRD, AP-HM, MEPHI, 13005 Marseille, FranceANSES, Laboratoire de Sophia Antipolis, Unité fièvre Q animale, 06902 Sophia Antipolis, FranceClinique Vétérinaire des 4 Chemins, 34110 Vic-la-Gardiole, FranceANSES, Laboratoire de Sophia Antipolis, Unité fièvre Q animale, 06902 Sophia Antipolis, FranceANSES, Laboratoire de Sophia Antipolis, Unité fièvre Q animale, 06902 Sophia Antipolis, FranceAix Marseille University, IRD, AP-HM, MEPHI, 13005 Marseille, FranceLaboratoire d’Analyses Médicales Biomed 34, 34110 Mireval, FranceCabinet Médical, 34110 Vic-la-Gardiole, FranceIHU Méditerranée Infection, 13005 Marseille, FranceAix Marseille University, IRD, AP-HM, MEPHI, 13005 Marseille, France<i>Coxiella burnetii</i>, also known as the causal agent of Q fever, is a zoonotic pathogen infecting humans and several animal species. Here, we investigated the epidemiological context of <i>C. burnetii</i> from an area in the Hérault department in southern France, using the One Health paradigm. In total, 13 human cases of Q fever were diagnosed over the last three years in an area comprising four villages. Serological and molecular investigations conducted on the representative animal population, as well as wind data, indicated that some of the recent cases are likely to have originated from a sheepfold, which revealed bacterial contamination and a seroprevalence of 47.6%. However, the clear-cut origin of human cases cannot be ruled out in the absence of molecular data from the patients. Multi-spacer typing based on dual barcoding nanopore sequencing highlighted the occurrence of a new genotype of <i>C. burnetii</i>. In addition, the environmental contamination appeared to be widespread across a perimeter of 6 km due to local wind activity, according to the seroprevalence detected in dogs (12.6%) and horses (8.49%) in the surrounding populations. These findings were helpful in describing the extent of the exposed area and thus supporting the use of dogs and horses as valuable sentinel indicators for monitoring Q fever. The present data clearly highlighted that the epidemiological surveillance of Q fever should be reinforced and improved.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/11/4/1016One Health<i>Coxiella burnetii</i>Q feversentinelsepidemiology |
| spellingShingle | Younes Laidoudi Elodie Rousset Anne-Sophie Dessimoulie Myriam Prigent Alizée Raptopoulo Quentin Huteau Elisabeth Chabbert Catherine Navarro Pierre-Edouard Fournier Bernard Davoust Tracking the Source of Human Q Fever from a Southern French Village: Sentinel Animals and Environmental Reservoir Microorganisms One Health <i>Coxiella burnetii</i> Q fever sentinels epidemiology |
| title | Tracking the Source of Human Q Fever from a Southern French Village: Sentinel Animals and Environmental Reservoir |
| title_full | Tracking the Source of Human Q Fever from a Southern French Village: Sentinel Animals and Environmental Reservoir |
| title_fullStr | Tracking the Source of Human Q Fever from a Southern French Village: Sentinel Animals and Environmental Reservoir |
| title_full_unstemmed | Tracking the Source of Human Q Fever from a Southern French Village: Sentinel Animals and Environmental Reservoir |
| title_short | Tracking the Source of Human Q Fever from a Southern French Village: Sentinel Animals and Environmental Reservoir |
| title_sort | tracking the source of human q fever from a southern french village sentinel animals and environmental reservoir |
| topic | One Health <i>Coxiella burnetii</i> Q fever sentinels epidemiology |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/11/4/1016 |
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