Occlusive mycotic tracheobronchitis and systemic Alphaherpesvirus coinfection in a free-living striped dolphin Stenella coeruleoalba in Italy

A juvenile female striped dolphin Stenella coeruleoalba live stranded on 4 March 2016 at Alassio, western Ligurian Sea coast, Italy. The dolphin died shortly after stranding, and a complete postmortem examination was performed. Necropsy revealed severe tracheal occlusion and unilateral bronchial ste...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Diseases of aquatic organisms 2018-01, Vol.127 (2), p.137-144
Main Authors: Grattarola, Carla, Giorda, Federica, Iulini, Barbara, Pautasso, Alessandra, Ballardini, Marco, Zoppi, Simona, Marsili, Letizia, Peletto, Simone, Masoero, Loretta, Varello, Katia, Garibaldi, Fulvio, Scaglione, Frine E, Di Guardo, Giovanni, Dondo, Alessandro, Goria, Maria, Serracca, Laura, Mignone, Walter, Casalone, Cristina
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alphaherpesvirinae - isolation & purification
Animals
Bronchitis - epidemiology
Bronchitis - microbiology
Bronchitis - veterinary
Female
Herpesviridae Infections - epidemiology
Herpesviridae Infections - veterinary
Herpesviridae Infections - virology
Italy - epidemiology
Mycoses - veterinary
Phylogeny
Stenella - microbiology
Tracheitis - epidemiology
Tracheitis - microbiology
Tracheitis - veterinary
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Summary:A juvenile female striped dolphin Stenella coeruleoalba live stranded on 4 March 2016 at Alassio, western Ligurian Sea coast, Italy. The dolphin died shortly after stranding, and a complete postmortem examination was performed. Necropsy revealed severe tracheal occlusion and unilateral bronchial stenosis with luminal accumulation of abundant green-yellow mucous-gelatinous material. Histological features suggestive of tracheobronchial aspergillosis were observed. Cultures of lung tissue and tracheo-bronchial exudate isolated Aspergillus fumigatus, identified by a Microseq D2 LSUrDNA fungal sequencing kit. A pan-Herpesvirus nested-PCR assay on frozen samples obtained from multiple organs was positive. Phylogenetic analysis on the partial DNA polymerase gene revealed that the striped dolphin isolate was closely related to known cetacean Alphaherpesvirus sequences from the same host species. Attempted virus isolation was unsuccessful. The tissue levels of different persistent organic pollutants and the toxicological stress, evaluated using a theoretical model, showed a severely impaired immune response. This study reports the first case of occlusive mycotic tracheobronchitis in a free-living cetacean and the first molecular identification of an Alphaherpesvirus in a free-ranging striped dolphin stranded on the coast of Italy.
ISSN:0177-5103
1616-1580
DOI:10.3354/dao03190