Antibodies against Coxiella burnetii and pregnancy outcome during the 2007-2008 Q fever outbreaks in the Netherlands

ABSTRACTQ fever, caused byCoxiella burnetii, is a zoonosis with a worldwide distribution. A large rural area in the southeast of the Netherlands was heavily affected by Q fever between 2007 and 2009. This initiated the development of a robust and internally controlled multiplex quantitative PCR (qPCR) assay for the detection ofC. burnetiiDNA in veterinary and environmental matrices on suspected Q fever-affected farms. The qPCR detects threeC. burnetiitargets (icd,com1, and IS1111) and oneBacillus thuringiensisinternal control target (cry1b).Bacillus thuringiensisspores were added to samples to control both DNA extraction and PCR amplification. The performance of the qPCR assay was investigated and showed a high efficiency; a limit of detection of 13.0, 10.6, and 10.4 copies per reaction for the targetsicd,com1, and IS1111, respectively; and no cross-reactivity with the nontarget organisms tested. Screening forC. burnetiiDNA on 29 suspected Q fever-affected farms during the Q fever epidemic in 2008 showed that swabs from dust-accumulating surfaces contained higher levels ofC. burnetiiDNA than vaginal swabs from goats or sheep. PCR inhibition by coextracted substances was observed in some environmental samples, and 10- or 100-fold dilutions of samples were sufficient to obtain interpretable signals for both theC. burnetiitargets and the internal control. The inclusion of an internal control target and threeC. burnetiitargets in one multiplex qPCR assay showed that complex veterinary and environmental matrices can be screened reliably for the presence ofC. burnetiiDNA during an outbreak.

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Screening of post-mortem tissue donors for Coxiella burnetii infection after large outbreaks of Q fever in The Netherlands

BMC Infectious Diseases ◽

10.1186/1471-2334-14-6 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 14 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Marja J van Wijk ◽

D Willemijn Maas ◽

Nicole HM Renders ◽

Mirjam HA Hermans ◽

Hans L Zaaijer ◽

...

Keyword(s):

The Netherlands ◽

Coxiella Burnetii ◽

Q Fever ◽

Post Mortem ◽

Tissue Donors

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First Draft Genome Sequence of a Human Coxiella burnetii Isolate, Originating from the Largest Q Fever Outbreak Ever Reported, the Netherlands, 2007 to 2010

Genome Announcements ◽

10.1128/genomea.00445-15 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 3 (3) ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

J. A. Hammerl ◽

K. Mertens ◽

L. D. Sprague ◽

V. H. Hackert ◽

J. Buijs ◽

...

Keyword(s):

The Netherlands ◽

Genome Sequence ◽

Coxiella Burnetii ◽

Q Fever ◽

Draft Genome ◽

Draft Genome Sequence

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Screening for Coxiella burnetii seroprevalence in chronic Q fever high-risk groups reveals the magnitude of the Dutch Q fever outbreak

Epidemiology and Infection ◽

10.1017/s0950268812001203 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 141 (4) ◽

pp. 847-851 ◽

Cited By ~ 44

Author(s):

L. M. KAMPSCHREUR ◽

J. C. J. P. HAGENAARS ◽

C. C. H. WIELDERS ◽

P. ELSMAN ◽

P. J. LESTRADE ◽

...

Keyword(s):

High Risk ◽

The Netherlands ◽

Confidence Interval ◽

Coxiella Burnetii ◽

Catchment Area ◽

Q Fever ◽

Risk Groups ◽

Chronic Q Fever ◽

Epidemic Area ◽

Acute Q Fever

SUMMARYThe Netherlands experienced an unprecedented outbreak of Q fever between 2007 and 2010. The Jeroen Bosch Hospital (JBH) in 's-Hertogenbosch is located in the centre of the epidemic area. Based on Q fever screening programmes, seroprevalence of IgG phase II antibodies to Coxiella burnetii in the JBH catchment area was 10·7% [785 tested, 84 seropositive, 95% confidence interval (CI) 8·5–12·9]. Seroprevalence appeared not to be influenced by age, gender or area of residence. Extrapolating these data, an estimated 40 600 persons (95% CI 32 200–48 900) in the JBH catchment area have been infected by C. burnetii and are, therefore, potentially at risk for chronic Q fever. This figure by far exceeds the nationwide number of notified symptomatic acute Q fever patients and illustrates the magnitude of the Dutch Q fever outbreak. Clinicians in epidemic Q fever areas should be alert for chronic Q fever, even if no acute Q fever is reported.

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The genome of Coxiella burnetii Z3055, a clone linked to the Netherlands Q fever outbreaks, provides evidence for the role of drift in the emergence of epidemic clones

Comparative Immunology Microbiology and Infectious Diseases ◽

10.1016/j.cimid.2014.08.003 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 37 (5-6) ◽

pp. 281-288 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Felicetta D’Amato ◽

Laetitia Rouli ◽

Sophie Edouard ◽

Judith Tyczka ◽

Matthieu Million ◽

...

Keyword(s):

The Netherlands ◽

Coxiella Burnetii ◽

Q Fever

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Detection of Coxiella burnetii DNA on Small-Ruminant Farms during a Q Fever Outbreak in the Netherlands

Applied and Environmental Microbiology ◽

10.1128/aem.07323-11 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 78 (6) ◽

pp. 1652-1657 ◽

Cited By ~ 43

Author(s):

A. de Bruin ◽

R. Q. J. van der Plaats ◽

L. de Heer ◽

R. Paauwe ◽

B. Schimmer ◽

...

Keyword(s):

The Netherlands ◽

Surface Area ◽

Coxiella Burnetii ◽

Q Fever ◽

Monitoring Program ◽

Primary Source ◽

Dairy Goat ◽

Environmental Matrices ◽

Content Type ◽

Bulk Milk

ABSTRACTDuring large Q fever outbreaks in the Netherlands between 2007 and 2010, dairy goat farms were implicated as the primary source of human Q fever. The transmission ofCoxiella burnetiito humans is thought to occur primarily via aerosols, although available data onC. burnetiiin aerosols and other environmental matrices are limited. During the outbreak of 2009, 19 dairy goat farms and one dairy sheep farm were selected nationwide to investigate the presence ofC. burnetiiDNA in vaginal swabs, manure, surface area swabs, milk unit filters, and aerosols. Four of these farms had a positive status during theCoxiella burnetiibulk milk monitoring program in 2009 and additionally reported abortion waves in 2008 or 2009. Eleven farms were reported as having positive bulk milk only, and five selected (control) farms had a bulk milk-negative status in 2009 and no reported Q fever history. Screening by quantitative PCR (qPCR) revealed that on farms with a history of abortions related toC. burnetiiand, to a lesser extent, on farms positive by bulk milk monitoring, generally higher proportions of positive samples and higher levels ofC. burnetiiDNA within positive samples were observed than on the control farms. The relatively high levels ofC. burnetiiDNA in surface area swabs and aerosols sampled in stables of bulk milk-positive farms, including farms with a Q fever-related abortion history, support the hypothesis that these farms can pose a risk for the transmission ofC. burnetiito humans.

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