SAGE Publications, Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation, 2(32), p. 287-290, 2020
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Clostridium botulinum is an important pathogen that causes botulism in humans and animals worldwide. C. botulinum group III strains, which produce a single toxin of type C or D or a chimeric toxin of type C/D or D/C, are responsible for botulism in a wide range of animal species including cattle and birds. We used unbiased high-throughput RNA sequencing (i.e., metatranscriptomics) to identify a strain of group III C. botulinum from a deceased Mongolian wild ass ( Equus hemionus). The strain was closely related to some European strains. Genetic analysis of the recovered bacterial sequences showed that the C. botulinum strain identified might represent a type C/D strain of group III. Infection by C. botulinum producing the mosaic toxin of type C/D is the most likely cause of the death of the wild ass.