African 2, a Clonal Complex of Mycobacterium bovis Epidemiologically Important in East Africa
Investigation published in Journal of Bacteriology
February 1st, 2011
We have identified a clonal complex of Mycobacterium bovis isolated at high frequency from cattle in Uganda, Burundi, Tanzania, and Ethiopia. We have named this related group of M. bovis strains the African 2 (Af2) clonal complex of M. bovis. Af2 strains are defined by a specific chromosomal deletion (RDAf2) and can be identified by the absence of spacers 3 to 7 in their spoligotype patterns. Deletion analysis of M. bovis isolates from Algeria, Mali, Chad, Nigeria, Cameroon, South Africa, and Mozambique did not identify any strains of the Af2 clonal complex, suggesting that this clonal complex of M. bovis is localised in East Africa. The specific spoligotype pattern of the Af2 clonal complex was rarely identified among isolates from outside Africa and the few isolates that were found and tested were intact at the RDAf2 locus. We conclude that the Af2 clonal complex is localised to cattle in East Africa. We found that strains of the Af2 clonal complex of M. bovis have, in general, four or more copies of the insertion sequence IS6110 in contrast to the majority of M. bovis strains isolated from cattle that are thought to carry one, or few copies, only
Berg S., Garcia-Pelayo MC., Muller B., Hailu E., Asiimwe B., Kremer K., Dale J., Boniotti B., Rodriguez-Campos S., Hilty M., Rigouts L., Firdessa R., Machado A., Mucavele C., Ngandolo BNR., Bruchfeld J., Boschiroli ML., Muller A., Sahraoui N., Pacciarini M., Cadmus S., Joloba M., van Soolingen D., Michel AL., Djonne B., Aranaz A., Zinsstag J., van Helden P., Portaels F., Kazwala R., Kallenius G., Hewinson RG., Aseffa A., Gordon SV. and Smith NH.
 | Servicio de Micobacterias (MYC). Centro de Vigilancia Sanitaria Veterinaria (VISAVET). Universidad Complutense (UCM). |
| Departamento de Sanidad Animal. Facultad de Veterinaria. Universidad Complutense (UCM). |
| VLA Weybridge. The Network of Animal Disease Infectiology Research Facilities (NADIR). | |
| Division of Molecular Biology and Human Genetics. Faculty of Health Sciences. Stellenbosch University (SUN). | |
| Armauer Hansen Research Institute (AHRI). East African Consortium for Clinical Research (EACCR). | |
 | Makerere University (MAK). |
 | The Netherlands Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory. Centre for Infectious Disease Control. National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM). |
| Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Lombardia e dell Emilia Romagna (IZSLER). | |
| Institute for Infectious Diseases. University of Bern (UNIBE). | |
 | Agence Nationale de Sécurité Sanitaire de l´alimentation, de l´environnement et du travail (ANSES). |
| Department of Clinical Science and Education. Karolinska Institutet (KI). | |
| Department of Veterinary Public Health & Preventive Medicine. University of Ibadan (UI). | |
| Laboratoire de Recherches Vétérinaire et Zootechnique de Farcha (LRVZ/F). | |
 | Sokoine University of Agriculture. |
| Université Saad Dahlab. | |
 | Department of Animal Health and Antimicrobial Strategies. National Veterinary Institute (SVA). |
 | Facultad d Veterinaria. Universidade Eduardo Mondlane (UEM). |
| Department of Microbiology. Institute of Tropical Medicine. | |
| Faculty of Veterinary Science. University of Pretoria (UP). | |
| Agricultural Research Council-Onderstepoort Veterinary Institute (ARC-OVI). | |
| Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH). | |
 | UCD Conway Institute of Biomolecular & Biomedical Research. University College Dublin (UCD). |
 | Centre for the Study of Evolution (CSE). University of Sussex (US). |
