Gordon Memorial Lecture. Poultry mycoplasmas: sophisticated pathogens in simple guise

Mycoplasmas are a genus within the class Mollicutes (trivial name mollicutes), which are the smallest known prokaryotes capable of self-replication. They have a very small genome, and have evolved to this 'minimalist' status by losing non-essential genes, including those involved in cell wall synthesis. The mollicutes exploit their limited genetic material to the maximum and many are successful pathogens in man, animals, birds and plants. Most of those of veterinary importance are in the genus Mycoplasma and include 4 poultry pathogens of economic importance: Mycoplasma gallisepticum, Mycoplasma synoviae, Mycoplasma meleagridis and Mycoplasma iowae. The pathogenetic mechanisms of mycoplasmas are not fully understood, but they are successful pathogens because they can enter the host and multiply, evade the defence mechanisms, cause damage and escape to infect new hosts. M. gallisepticum is one of several motile species and possesses a terminal tip structure that mediates adherence to its target tissues. For some species, including M. gallisepticum, some of the organisms may become intracellular. Some Mycoplasma species, including the pathogenic poultry species, have a remarkable ability to vary their major surface antigens, a mechanism that is thought to help them to persist in their host by evading the immune response. The molecular and cellular events that lead to the development of lesions and clinical disease are still obscure. Some lesions appear to be the result of indirect damage from the host's inflammatory and cellular responses. Despite short survival times in the environment, mycoplasmas are able to transmit successfully to new hosts. In poultry flocks there is both horizontal and vertical transmission, the former being encouraged by intensive husbandry and stress factors. Establishing the pathways of transmission and the possible role of other birds, such as game and wild birds, as intermediate vectors between poultry flocks is now greatly aided by the availability of modern molecular methods for strain typing.