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Case Reports
. 2022 Oct 12;9(10):562.
doi: 10.3390/vetsci9100562.

Morganella Morganii Infection in Hirudo Medicinalis (Iran): A Case Report

Hooman Rahmati Holasoo  1   2 , Iradj Ashrafi Tamai  3 , Wolfram Manuel Brück  4 , Babak Pakbin  4 , Alireza Nasiri  1 , Amirparsa Azizi  5
Affiliations
Case Reports

Morganella Morganii Infection in Hirudo Medicinalis (Iran): A Case Report

Hooman Rahmati Holasoo et al. Vet Sci. .

Abstract

Medicinal leeches (Hirudo medicinalis) are used in surgical and non-surgical manners. Morganella morganii is an opportunistic and zoonotic pathogenic bacterium causing serious clinical complications. In this study, we isolated, discovered and characterized M. morganii-infected H. medicinalis. We detected and identified M. morganii in all inflamed and swollen Hirudo medicinalis samples. The 16S rRNA sequence of the isolates confirmed all strains of M. morganii. All strains were sensitive to Ceftriaxone, Ceftiofur, Danofloxacin, Ciprofloxacin, Enrofloxacin, Oxytetracycline, and Meropenem and were resistant to Erythromycin, Amoxicillin, Ampicillin, Cefazolin, Colistin, Penicillin G, and Lincomycin. This pathogenic bacterium is a zoonotic pathogen, and monitoring the prevalence rate of this bacteria is strongly necessary for leeches used in human medical treatment and care. Finally, all infected leeches were treated successfully in this case report study.

Keywords: 16S rRNA sequencing; Antimicrobial susceptibility; Hirudo medicinalis; Morganella morganii.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Inflamed and swollen Hirudo medicinalis samples.
Figure 2
Figure 2
16S rRNA PCR products. (1–7: samples 1 to 7; M: marker 100 bp).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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