A single fungal strain was the unexpected cause of a mass aspergillosis outbreak in the world's largest and only flightless parrot.
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Kākāpō are a critically endangered species of parrots restricted to a few islands off the coast of New Zealand. Kākāpō are very closely monitored, especially during nesting seasons. In 2019, during a highly successful nesting season, an outbreak of aspergillosis affected 21 individuals and led to the deaths of 9, leaving a population of only 211 kākāpō. In monitoring this outbreak, cultures of aspergillus were grown, and genome sequenced. These sequences demonstrate that, very unusually for an aspergillus outbreak, a single strain of aspergillus caused the outbreak. This strain was found on two islands, but only one had an outbreak of aspergillosis; indicating that the strain was necessary, but not sufficient, to cause disease. Our analysis provides an understanding of the 2019 outbreak and provides potential ways to manage such events in the future.
Date Issued
2022-12-22
Date Acceptance
2022-10-28
Citation
iScience, 2022, 25 (12), pp.105470-105470
ISSN
2589-0042
Publisher
Cell Press
Start Page
105470
End Page
105470
Journal / Book Title
iScience
Volume
25
Issue
12
Copyright Statement
© 2022 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
License URL
Identifier
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/36404926
PII: S2589-0042(22)01742-4
Subjects
Animals
Microbiology
Microbiology parasite
Parasitology
Publication Status
Published
Coverage Spatial
United States
Date Publish Online
2022-11-02