Fatal atypical O:3 Yersinia pseudotuberculosis infection in cynomolgus macaques.

ABSTRACT

Fatal Yersinia pseudotuberculosis infection in cynomolgus macaques was diagnosed based upon pathology, microbiology and PCR for this study. Pathological findings included acute, erosive to ulcerative, necrohemorrhagic enterocolitis. Genotyping by PCR showed an O3 pattern (gmd-fcl(+), ddhC-prt(+), manB(+), ddhA-B(+)), but an additional gene, wbyK, was detected. This is the second report to identify wbyK+ O3 genotype as the cause of fatal yersiniosis. The first case was reported in 2008, and involved farm deer in the U.S. As the frequency of wbyK+ O3 genotype is found more often in different carriers, O3 genotype is proposed to be divided into two subtypes O3a without wbyK and O3b with wbyK. Virulence gene analysis showed the presence of inv, ypmC, irp1, ybtP-ybtQ, yadA, yopB, yopH, lcrF, and suggested that this O3b isolate could be a highly pathogenic strain to cynomolgus macaques.