{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,7]],"date-time":"2026-04-07T20:11:15Z","timestamp":1775592675254,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":45,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,1,17]],"date-time":"2025-01-17T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1737072000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Vet. Sci."],"abstract":"<jats:sec><jats:title>Background<\/jats:title><jats:p>Texas tortoises (<jats:italic>Gopherus berlandieri<\/jats:italic>) are a Texas-state threatened species. Translocation is often suggested as a mitigation option; however, disease status and the potential for spread must be considered prior to such efforts. <jats:italic>Mycoplasma<\/jats:italic> infection of the upper respiratory tract is a concern within tortoise populations, which requires monitoring so translocation efforts do not inadvertently spread the disease.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Objectives<\/jats:title><jats:p>We determined and compared the prevalences of <jats:italic>Mycoplasma agassizii<\/jats:italic> in Texas tortoises from donor and recipient sites in southern Texas prior to translocation, treated <jats:italic>Mycoplasma agassizii<\/jats:italic>-infected tortoises with danofloxacin, and developed alternate <jats:italic>Mycoplasma agassizii<\/jats:italic> treatments for Texas tortoises.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title><jats:p>We collected 171 and 23 Texas tortoises from a 270-ha and a 100-ha donor site and recipient site, respectively. We began a regimen of danofloxacin (6\u202fmg\/kg body weight injected subcutaneously every other day for 30\u202fdays) for tortoises with clinical signs (<jats:italic>N<\/jats:italic>\u202f=\u202f20). We noted an additional 10 tortoises began displaying clinical signs of upper respiratory tract disease (URTD) after translocation, so we designed a trial to test tulathromycin (5\u202fmg\/kg body weight given intramuscularly once\/week for 7\u202fweeks) or oxytetracycline (8\u202fmg\/kg body weight given subcutaneously once\/day for 14\u202fdays) as <jats:italic>Mycoplasma<\/jats:italic> treatments for symptomatic tortoises.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Results<\/jats:title><jats:p>Within the donor and recipient sites, 56 (32.7%) and 8 (34.8%), respectively, had antibody titers suggestive of past exposure. Eighteen tortoises from the donor site (10.5%) and 2 from the recipient site (8.7%) displayed clinical signs (i.e., clear serous nasal discharge, conjunctivitis, and palpebral edema) consistent with Mycoplasmal URTD upon initial collection, even though all polymerase chain reaction (PCR) results were negative for active shedding of <jats:italic>Mycoplasma agassizii<\/jats:italic>. We ceased treatment after the first dose of danofloxacin due to adverse reactions, which only began to subside after 72\u202fh from the initial dose. Neither tulathromycin or oxytetracycline caused the clinical signs of URTD to subside after a 50-day treatment period.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title><jats:p><jats:italic>Mycoplasma<\/jats:italic> is a persistent issue facing Texas tortoises. Stressors, such as translocation, can cause <jats:italic>Mycoplasma<\/jats:italic>-seropositive tortoises to display clinical symptoms of URTD, which can abate without treatment, once the stressor subsides.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Implications<\/jats:title><jats:p>Danofloxacin, the recommended treatment for <jats:italic>Mycoplasma<\/jats:italic> infection in tortoises, is too potent for Texas tortoises.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fvets.2024.1525179","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,1,17]],"date-time":"2025-01-17T06:53:31Z","timestamp":1737096811000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":3,"title":["Surveillance of Mycoplasma agassizii in Texas tortoises (Gopherus berlandieri) for translocation with emphasis on treatment and recovery"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"11","author":[{"given":"Christin A.","family":"Moeller","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Saren","family":"Perales","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Wraith","family":"Rodriguez","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Alynn M.","family":"Martin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Cord B.","family":"Eversole","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Sandra","family":"Rideout-Hanzak","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Paul","family":"Crump","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Clayton D.","family":"Hilton","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Scott E.","family":"Henke","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,1,17]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","first-page":"1","article-title":"Conservation status of the Texas tortoise Gopherus berlandieri","volume-title":"Occasional papers, Museum of Texas Tech University","author":"Judd","year":"2000"},{"key":"ref2","first-page":"6","article-title":"Texas tortoise of southern Texas","volume-title":"The conservation biology of tortoises","author":"Rose","year":"1989"},{"key":"ref3","first-page":"57","article-title":"Texas tortoise","volume-title":"North American tortoise: Conservation and ecology","author":"Rose","year":"1982"},{"key":"ref4","first-page":"188","volume-title":"The Texas tortoise: a natural history","author":"Rose","year":"2014"},{"key":"ref5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"387","DOI":"10.2307\/3671844","article-title":"Aspects of the ecology and management of the tortoise at Laguna Atascosa, Texas","volume":"31","author":"Bury","year":"1986","journal-title":"Southwest Nat"},{"key":"ref6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"410","DOI":"10.2307\/1565959","article-title":"Mark-recapture analysis of population parameters in a Texas tortoise (Gopherus berlandieri) population in southern Texas","volume":"35","author":"Kazmaier","year":"2001","journal-title":"J Herpetol"},{"key":"ref7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"387","DOI":"10.2307\/3670817","article-title":"Population structure, density, and movements of the Texas tortoise","volume":"28","author":"Judd","year":"1983","journal-title":"Southwest Nat"},{"key":"ref8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"653","DOI":"10.2307\/3803016","article-title":"Habitat selection by the Texas tortoise in a managed thornscrub ecosystem","volume":"65","author":"Kazmaier","year":"2001","journal-title":"J Wildl Manag"},{"key":"ref9","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e22352","DOI":"10.1002\/jwmg.22352","article-title":"Drivers of survival of translocated tortoises","volume":"87","author":"Mack","year":"2023","journal-title":"J Wildl Manag"},{"key":"ref10","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"430","DOI":"10.1111\/1365-2664.12774","article-title":"Habitat drives dispersal and survival of translocated juvenile desert tortoises","volume":"54","author":"Nafus","year":"2017","journal-title":"J Appl Ecol"},{"key":"ref11","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1341","DOI":"10.1002\/jwmg.390","article-title":"Translocation as a conservation tool for Agassiz\u2019s desert tortoises: survivorship, reproduction, and movements","volume":"76","author":"Nussear","year":"2012","journal-title":"J Wildl Manag"},{"key":"ref12","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1527","DOI":"10.1099\/ijs.0.63072-0","article-title":"Mycoplasma testudineum sp. 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