presence of coxiella burnetii in airborne dust samples from goat and sheep farms in kerman, iran

background :  q fever is a zoonotic disease caused by inhalation of the bacterium coxiella burnetii . ruminant livestock are common reservoirs for c. burnetii , and bacteria present in aerosols derived from the waste of infected animals can infect humans . c. burnetii is thought to infect humans primarily via airborne transmission. methods : 64 environmental swab samples were collected from 24 sheep and goat farms in southeast kerman province (iran). results :  in this study touchdown nested trans- pcr were used for detection of c. burnetii in environmental samples. we detected c. burnetii dna in inhalable dust samples collected at 5 farms. conclusion :  this first report in iran highlighted presence of c. burnetii in dust originated from goat and sheep farms and that role in human infections with disseminating by wind.