The Feces of Cats with Diarrhea are Potential Source of Shigella Infection

Background: The occurrence of dysentery has received widespread attention. However, the occurrence of dysentery may be caused by many factors, among which poor sanitation is the main cause of dysentery. However, whether family pets are the cause of dysentery is still unclear. In this study, we investigated the effects of bacterial flora in cats with diarrhea on gut health in mice. Results: The results showed as following: 1) Microorganisms in feces of diarrheal cats can cause weight loss of germ-free mice; the histopathological section of the colon showed that neutrophil aggregation occurred in the colon of mice in the fecal bacteria transplantation group, and Occludin expression of tight junction protein significantly increased, which confirmed that microorganisms in feces of diarrheal cats have the ability to destroy intestinal barrier integrity; 2) In addition, microbes in cats with diarrhea can induce inflammation in the colon and aggregation of macrophages, which may be caused by some gram-negative pathogenic bacteria in feces of cats with diarrhea; 3) The composition of intestinal microbial community was analyzed by 16sRNA sequencing, and it was found that the abundance of Shigella in feces of diarrhea cats was significantly higher than that of normal cats; 4) We then verified by agarose electrophoresis with specific primers of Shigella, and found that the detection rate of Shigella reached 81.48%. Since Shigella is a typical gram-negative bacterium that activates the TLR4/NF-kB signaling pathway through lipopolysaccharide, we conclude that Shigella is the core pathogen mediating the damage of weight loss and intestinal inflammation in mice. Conclusion: These findings confirmed for the first time that domestic cats may be a potential carrier of Shigella, and provided an important theoretical basis for improving the prevention and control system of zoonotic infectious diseases.