The first description of ram infection with rickettsiae Anaplasma ovis in the Republic of Croatia

Krajem svibnja 2015. godine u Laboratorij za parazitologiju, Hrvatskog veterinarskog instituta, Zagreb, Hrvatska dostavljena je krv ovna iz okolice Benkovca sa sumnjom na piroplazmozu. Ovan je uz potpornu terapiju vitaminima AD3E i B-kompleksa liječen imidokarbom (Imizol® 0,5 mL s/c) i oksitetraciklinom (Geomicin retard® 5 mL i/m) te je za pet dana prestao pokazivati kliničke znakove bolesti. U razmazu krvi pronađena su periferno smještena intraeritrocitarna tjelešca, a sekvenciranjem odsječka 16S rRNK i MSP4 gena dokazali smo vrstu Anaplasma ovis, dok DNK drugih uzročnika nije bila prisutna. Ovim istraživanjem smo po prvi puta dokazali vrstu A. ovis u Hrvatskoj, ali i u Jugoistočnoj Europi. Od danas priznatih osam vrsta anaplazmi, anaplazmozu malih preživača uzrokuju tri vrste A. phagocytophilum, A. capra i A. ovis od kojih je A. phagocytophilum dokazana u Hrvatskoj. Prema navodima veterinara Veterinarske ambulante Benkovac opisani klinički znaci bolesti su česti u ovaca i ovnova dopremljenih s drugih područja Hrvatska i nikada nisu uočeni u životinja mlađih od pet mjeseci. Treba naglasiti da osim Imizolom veterinari na području Benkovca oboljele ovce uvijek liječe i tetraciklinima što predstavlja i lijek izbora, a oboljele životinje uspješno izliječe ukoliko lijekove apliciraju unutar pet dana od pojave kliničkih znakova bolesti. Vektor je krpelj Rhipicephalus bursa prisutan diljem Republike Hrvatske ujedno pronađen i na oboljelom ovnu. Stoga treba očekivati da je uzročnik prisutan i u drugim dijelovima Hrvatske.In late May 2015, a sample of ram blood with suspected piroplasmosis from the vicinity of Benkovac was delivered to the Laboratory for Parasitology of the Croatian Veterinary Institute in Zagreb, Croatia. Therapy with Imidocarb (Imizol 0.5 mL s/c) and oxytetracycline (Geomycin retard 5 mL i/m) was started immediately, with supportive therapy with vitamins AD3E and B-complex. The health status improved and clinical signs disappeared after five days, and the ram fully recovered. Peripherally located intraerythrocyte bodies were found in the blood smear, and Anaplasma ovis was confirmed by sequencing the 16S rRNA and MSP4 gene, while the DNA of other pathogens was not present. This research proved the presence of A. ovis in Croatia and in Southeast Europe for the first time. Of the eight species of Anaplasma recognized today, small ruminant anaplasmosis is caused by three species, A. phagocytophilum, A. capra and A. ovis, and to date only A. phagocytophilum has been proven in Croatia. According to veterinarians from the Benkovac Veterinary practice, the described clinical signs of the disease are common in sheep and rams introduced from non-endemic areas and have never been observed in animals younger than five months. It should be emphasized that in addition to Imisol, veterinarians in the Benkovac area always treat sick sheep with tetracyclines, the drug of choice for Anaplasma treatment, and sick animals are successfully cured if treatment is administered within five days of the onset of clinical signs. The vector is the tick Rhipicephalus bursa, which is present throughout the Republic of Croatia and was also found on the infected ram, so it is to be expected that the causative agent is also present elsewhere in Croatia