Key points are not available for this paper at this time.
Nocardia spp. and Mycobacterium spp. are known etiological agents of granulomatous pulmonary infections in humans and animals; however, co-infections involving these pathogens have not previously been reported in veterinary medicine. This paper describes the first documented case of co-infection with Mycobacterium bovis and Nocardia spp. in a captive roan antelope (Hippotragus equinus). The animal was a 9-year-old female roan antelope from a safari park in northern Italy that died suddenly with a one-month history of weight loss. Post-mortem examination revealed severe, diffuse, chronic granulomatous pneumonia associated with fibrino-granulomatous pleuritis and granulomatous pericarditis. Histologically, multifocal to coalescing necrotizing granulomas were observed, with intralesional acid-fast bacteria. Microbiological culture and biomolecular analyses allowed the identification of M. bovis and Nocardia spp. in lung tissue samples. The Nocardia genome sequence was 98.5% similar to N. tengchongensis, a recently discovered species. The findings emphasize the importance of comprehensive diagnostic approaches in animal granulomatous lung disease. Mixed infections in captive wildlife represent a One Health concern, as the potential for zoonotic adaptation and transmission to humans cannot be excluded. Therefore, pathogen surveillance is of particular importance within zoological collections.
Botta et al. (Thu,) studied this question.