Emergence of an East China lineage of Chlamydia psittaci with accelerated evolution and zoonotic potential: a multi-center, genomic epidemiological study.

A distinct East China (EC) whole-genome lineage of Chlamydia psittaci was found in 2020–2023 and is significantly enriched among human-derived isolates.

• Why it matters: Local evolution and cross-host transmission of this bird-associated zoonotic pathogen in East China are poorly understood, limiting assessment of emerging human risk.
• What they did: The team screened 1,525 human, poultry, and wild-bird samples from East China during 2020–2023, recovered 41 genomes via targeted capture, and analyzed them with 103 public genomes using phylogenomics.
• The result: The EC lineage shows an elevated substitution rate, extensive recombination, and multiple Chlamydia abortus-like genomic regions; poultry-human linked clusters support recent cross-host transmission, while human-to-human transmission remains unresolved.

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