Brown Dog Tick (Rhipicephalus sanguineus Sensu Lato) Infection with Endosymbiont and Human Pathogenic Rickettsia spp., in Northeastern Mxico.
Academic Article
Overview
Research
Identity
Additional Document Info
Other
View All
Overview
abstract
Of the documented tick-borne diseases infecting humans in Mxico, Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF), caused by the Gram-negative bacterium Rickettsia rickettsii, is responsible for most fatalities. Given recent evidence of brown dog tick, Rhipicephalus sanguineus s.l., as an emerging vector of human RMSF, we aimed to evaluate dogs and their ticks for rickettsiae infections as an initial step in assessing the establishment of this pathosystem in a poorly studied region of northeastern Mxico while evaluating the use of dogs as sentinels for transmission/human disease risk. We sampled owned dogs living in six disadvantaged neighborhoods of Reynosa, northeastern Mxico to collect whole blood and ticks. Of 168 dogs assessed, tick infestation prevalence was 53%, composed of exclusively Rh. sanguineus s. l. (n = 2170 ticks). Using PCR and sequencing, we identified an overall rickettsiae infection prevalence of 4.1% (n = 12/292) in ticks, in which eight dogs harbored at least one infected tick. Rickettsiae infections included Rickettsia amblyommatis and Rickettsia parkeri, both of which are emerging human pathogens, as well as Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae. This is the first documentation of pathogenic Rickettsia species in Rh. sanguineus s.l. collected from dogs from northeastern Mxico. Domestic dog infestation with Rickettsia-infected ticks indicates ongoing transmission; thus, humans are at risk for exposure, and this underscores the importance of public and veterinary health surveillance for these pathogens.
Salomon, J., Fernandez Santos, N. A., Zecca, I. B., Estrada-Franco, J. G., Davila, E., Hamer, G. L., Rodriguez Perez, M. A., & Hamer, S. A.
complete list of authors
Salomon, Jordan||Fernandez Santos, Nadia Angelica||Zecca, Italo B||Estrada-Franco, Jose G||Davila, Edward||Hamer, Gabriel L||Rodriguez Perez, Mario Alberto||Hamer, Sarah A
