Molecular Survey of Chlamydial Infections in Three Public Bird Collections in Tehran, Iran

TL;DR

This study found high rates of chlamydial infections in birds at three public aviaries in Tehran, raising concerns about public health and conservation risks.

Contribution

The study provides new insights into the prevalence of Chlamydia spp. in diverse avian species in public bird collections in Iran.

Findings

Chlamydial infections were detected in 37 out of 108 bird samples from three public collections in Tehran.

High infection rates were observed in Psittaciformes (60%) and Columbiformes (77.8%).

The findings highlight a public health risk due to close contact between infected birds and humans.

Abstract

Avian Chlamydia spp. are capable of infecting different avian species and potentially cause the loss of valuable birds in rehabilitation facilities and zoos. They also pose a potential zoonotic risk to visitors and workers at such centres.

This study aimed to assess the occurrence of chlamydia in two different public aviaries and a rehabilitation centre.

One hundred and eight samples from 48 different avian species belonging to 11 different orders were collected. These samples were tested for chlamydia infection by detecting the Chlamydia 16s rRNA gene using polymerase chain reaction.

Thirty‐seven samples were positive for Chlamydia DNA. High infection rates were detected in Psittaciformes (60%) and Columbiformes (77.8%). These findings indicate the relatively high frequency of chlamydial infections in birds of these orders. The occurrence of this infection in Falconiformes was 33.3%. Galliformes species investigated in this study had a lower occurrence (16.7%) of chlamydial infection. The only sample taken from the Charadriiformes order belonging to the yellow‐footed gull was tested positive. A relatively high rate of infection with chlamydial agents was demonstrated in this study.

Regarding the close contact of infected animals with both workers and visitors, these findings are alarming. The affected aviary centres must implement a strategy to monitor, detect and control the infection, as it poses a considerable public health risk. On the other hand, the infection of rehabilitating captive birds in rescue centres is particularly relevant because the infection might be reintroduced to endangered wild populations, posing a conservation and environmental hazard.

One hundred and eight samples from different avian species were collected and tested for Chlamydia spp. infection using PCR. Thirty‐seven samples from Psittaciformes, Columbiformes, Falconiformes, Galliformes and Charadriiformes were positive for Chlamydia DNA. A relatively high rate of infection was demonstrated in three zoological collections in Tehran, Iran.

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