Coxiella burnetii isolates cause genogroup-specific virulence in mouse and guinea pig models of acute Q fever. Academic Article uri icon

abstract

  • Q fever is a zoonotic disease of worldwide significance caused by the obligate intracellular bacterium Coxiella burnetii. Humans with Q fever may experience an acute flu-like illness and pneumonia and/or chronic hepatitis or endocarditis. Various markers demonstrate significant phylogenetic separation between and clustering among isolates from acute and chronic human disease. The clinical and pathological responses to infection with phase I C. burnetii isolates from the following four genomic groups were evaluated in immunocompetent and immunocompromised mice and in guinea pig infection models: group I (Nine Mile, African, and Ohio), group IV (Priscilla and P), group V (G and S), and group VI (Dugway). Isolates from all of the groups produced disease in the SCID mouse model, and genogroup-consistent trends were noted in cytokine production in response to infection in the immunocompetent-mouse model. Guinea pigs developed severe acute disease when aerosol challenged with group I isolates, mild to moderate acute disease in response to group V isolates, and no acute disease when infected with group IV and VI isolates. C. burnetii isolates have a range of disease potentials; isolates within the same genomic group cause similar pathological responses, and there is a clear distinction in strain virulence between these genomic groups.

published proceedings

  • Infect Immun

author list (cited authors)

  • Russell-Lodrigue, K. E., Andoh, M., Poels, M., Shive, H. R., Weeks, B. R., Zhang, G. Q., ... Samuel, J. E.

citation count

  • 83

complete list of authors

  • Russell-Lodrigue, KE||Andoh, M||Poels, MWJ||Shive, HR||Weeks, BR||Zhang, GQ||Tersteeg, C||Masegi, T||Hotta, A||Yamaguchi, T||Fukushi, H||Hirai, K||McMurray, DN||Samuel, JE

publication date

  • December 2009