A 2-yr-old male veiled chameleon (Chamaeleo calyptratus) was presented for open-mouthed breathing, lethargy, and progressive deterioration culminating in euthanasia. Postmortem examination revealed red discoloration of the lungs, liver, and coelomic fat pads and mild fluid accumulation in the coelom. Histopathological evaluation revealed acute septicemia characterized by numerous intravascular acid-fast bacteria and intravascular fibrin thrombi in multiple organs. Bacteriologic culture of the lung yielded heavy growth of Gram-positive, acid-fast pleomorphic bacilli which were identified as Mycobacterium chelonae chemovar niacinogenes with the use of 16s and hsp65 gene sequencing. The gonads were determined to be ovotestes. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first report of acute Mycobacterium chelonae septicemia in a veiled chameleon and also the first report of hermaphroditism in this species.
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20 May 2019
Acute Septicemia in a Hermaphrodite Veiled Chameleon (Chamaeleo calyptratus) Infected with Mycobacterium chelonae Chemovar niacinogenes
Shannon A. Martinson,
Chantal Skjonsberg,
Catherine Anne Muckle,
Jonathan Spears
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Chamaeleo calyptratus
Mycobacterium chelonae
ovotestes
septicemia