Conclusion
In our current study, we show a high proportion of wild European
lagomorphs infected with TP eC/L, based on the detection of the
pathogen’s DNA in genital swab and tissue materials (Table 1).
Sequencing of the targeted gene loci revealed an unexpectedly high
genetic diversity. The various types of repetitions in one of the two
hypervariable regions at the tp0548 locus have not been described
in the sister bacterium T. pallidum subsp. pallidum , the
causative agent of human syphilis. This warrants further research on the
functional aspects of repetitive units in the genome of TP eC/L. A
revision of the MLST system is recommended once a substantial number of
lagomorph infecting treponemes has been whole genome sequences.