The survival of Coxiella burnetii in soils

• Published in: Eurasian soil science Vol. 40; no. 5; pp. 565 - 568
• Main Authors: Evstigneeva, A S, Ul'yanova, TYu, Tarasevich, I V
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Silver Spring Springer 01-05-2007; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Carbon content; Coxiella burnetii; Laboratory animals; Organic carbon; Pathogens; Risk reduction; Soil types; Soils; Survival; Zoonoses
• ISSN: 1064-2293; 1556-195X
• DOI: 10.1134/S1064229307050122

Coxiella burnetii is a pathogen of Q-fever--a widespread zoonosis. The effective adaptation of C. burnetii to intracellular existence is in contrast with its ability to survive in the environment outside the host cells and its resistance to chemical and physical agents. Its mechanism of survival remains unknown. However, its survival appears to be related to the developmental cycle of the microorganism itself, i.e., to the formation of its dormant forms. The survival of Coxiella burnetii was studied for the first time. The pathogenic microorganism was inoculated into different types of soil and cultivated under different temperatures. The survival of the pathogen was verified using a model with laboratory animals (mice). Viable C. burnetii were found in the soil even 20 days after their inoculation. The relationship between the organic carbon content in the soils and the survival of C. burnetii was revealed. Thus, the results obtained were the first to demonstrate that the soil may serve as a reservoir for the preservation and further spreading of the Q-fever pathogen in the environment, on the one hand, and reduce the risk of epidemics, on the other. DOI: 10.1134/S1064229307050122