| Brucella canis | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Bacteria |
| Phylum: | Proteobacteria |
| Class: | Alpha Proteobacteria |
| Order: | Rhizobiales |
| Family: | Brucellaceae |
| Genus: | Brucella |
| Species: | B. canis |
| Binomial name | |
| Brucella canis Carmichael & Bruner, 1968 |
|
Brucella canis is a gram-negative proteobacterium in the family Brucellaceae that causes brucellosis in dogs and other canids. Bacteria B. canis are rod-shaped or cocci, oxidase, catalase, and urease positive.[1] The species was firstly described in USA in 1966 where mass abortions of beagles were documented.[2] The disease is characterized by epididymitis and orchitis in male dogs, endometritis, placentitis and abortions in females, and often presents as infertility in both sexes. Other symptoms such an inflammation in eyes and axial and appendicular skeleton, lymphadenopathy and splenomegaly, are less common.[3] Humans can be also infected but infections are rare.[3]
Brucella canis is a zoonotic organism. Signs of this disease are different in both genders of dogs; females who have Brucella canis face an abortion of their pre-developed fetus. Males face the chance of infertility; the reason is that they develop an antibody against the sperm. This may be followed by inflammation of the testes which will generally settle down a little while after. Symptoms do not only include testicular inflammation, infertility in males, and abortion in females. Another symptom is the infection of the spinal plates or vertebrae, which is called diskospondylitis.
Treatment for B. canis is very difficult to find and often very expensive. The combination of minocycline and streptomycin is thought to be useful, but it is often unaffordable. Tetracycline can be a less expensive substitute for minocycline, but it also lowers the effect of the treatment.