Genetic diversity of Anaplasma marginale strains from an outbreak of bovine anaplasmosis in an endemic area

Anaplasma marginale is a tick-borne pathogen of cattle that causes the disease bovine anaplasmosis worldwide. Major surface proteins (MSPs) are involved in host–pathogen and tick–pathogen interactions and have been used as markers for the genetic characterization of A. marginale strains. A. marginale genotypes are highly variable in endemic areas worldwide. The genetic composition of A. marginale strains during anaplasmosis outbreaks has been characterized in one study only which reported a single msp1α genotype in infected cattle. However, more information is required to characterize whether a single genotype is responsible for an anaplasmosis outbreak or whether multiple genotypes can cause disease in naïve cattle within a single herd in endemic areas. The aim of this study was to characterize the genetic diversity of A. marginale strains from an outbreak of bovine anaplasmosis in the State of Tamaulipas, Mexico. A. marginale genotypes were characterized at the molecular level using msp4 and msp1α gene sequences. The results revealed that several A. marginale genotypes are present in cattle during acute anaplasmosis outbreaks, thus suggesting that mechanical transmission or stochastic biological transmission through equally efficient independent transmission events may explain A. marginale genotype frequency in a cattle herd during acute bovine anaplasmosis outbreaks in endemic areas. The results reported herein corroborated the genetic heterogeneity of A. marginale strains in endemic regions worldwide. The development and implementation of anaplasmosis control measures is dependent upon understanding the epidemiology of A. marginale in endemic regions, including the characterization of the genetic diversity of strains that produce outbreaks of bovine anaplasmosis.