A new flea from Iran

Rodent Ectoparasites in the Middle East: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Rodents carry many ectoparasites, such as ticks, lice, fleas, and mites, which have potential public health importance. Middle Eastern countries are hotspots for many emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases, such as plague, leishmaniasis, Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever, and Q fever, due to their ecological, socioeconomic, and political diversity. Rodent ectoparasites can act as vectors for many of these pathogens. Knowledge of rodent ectoparasites is of prime importance in controlling rodent ectoparasite-borne zoonotic diseases in this region. The current systematic review and meta-analysis performs a comprehensive synthesis of the available knowledge, providing an evidence-based overview of the ectoparasites detected on rodents in Middle Eastern countries. Following a systematic search in Pubmed, Scopus, and Web of Science, a total of 113 published articles on rodent ectoparasites were studied and analyzed. A total of 87 rodent species were documented, from which Mus musculus, Rattus norvegicus, and Rattus rattus were found to be the most common. Fleas were the most reported ectoparasites (87 articles), followed by mites (53), ticks (44), and lice (25). Xenopsylla cheopis, Polyplax spinulosa, Ornithonyssus bacoti, and Hyalomma rhipicephaloides were the most commonly described fleas, lice, mites, and ticks, respectively. Based on the reviewed articles, the median flea, louse, mite, and tick indices were highest in Israel (4.15), Egypt (1.39), Egypt (1.27), and Saudi Arabia (1.17), respectively. Quantitative meta-analysis, using a random-effects model, determined the overall pooled flea prevalence in the Middle East as 40% (95% CI: 25-55, I2 = 100%, p < 0.00001), ranging between 13% (95% CI: 0-30, I2 = 95%, p < 0.00001) in Iran and 59% (95% CI: 42-77, I2 = 75%, p < 0.00001) in Israel. The overall pooled louse prevalence was found to be 30% (95% CI: 13-47, I2 = 100%, p < 0.00001), ranging between 25% in Iran (95% CI: 1-50, I2 = 99%) and 38% in Egypt (95% CI: 7-68, I2 = 100%). In the case of mites, the pooled prevalence in this region was 33% (95% CI: 11-55, I2 = 100%, p < 0.00001), where the country-specific prevalence estimates were 30% in Iran (95% CI: 4-56, I2 = 99%) and 32% in Egypt (95% CI: 0-76, I2 = 100%). For ticks, the overall prevalence was found to be 25% (95% CI: 2-47, I2 = 100%, p < 0.00001), ranging from 16% in Iran (95% CI: 7-25, I2 = 74%) to 42% in Egypt (95% CI: 1-85, I2 = 100%). The control of rodent ectoparasites should be considered to reduce their adverse effects. Using the One Health strategy, rodent control, and precisely control of the most common rodent species, i.e., Mus musculus, Rattus norvegicus, and Rattus rattus, should be considered to control the rodent-borne ectoparasites in this region.

Molecular-based Survey of Rickettsia spp. and Coxiella burnetii in Mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) from Fars Province, Southern Iran, during 2017-18

Objectives:

Since there have not been any studies on the roles of the Iranian mosquitoes in the transmission of Rickettsia spp. and Coxiella burneti, the present study investigates the roles of mosquitoes in the transmission of the pathogens using the PCR techniques for the first time in Iran.

Methods:

The present study was conducted in Fars province during the activity seasons of mosquitoes in 2017-18. The primer design was done to investigate the probability of mosquito’s contamination with Rickettsia spp. and Coxiella burnetii. The conventional PCR was used after the extraction of DNA from mosquitoes to study the contamination.

Results:

A total of 1103 adult mosquitoes were collected and identified. Among them, 3 genera and 11 species were identified, including Anopheles (25.74%), Culex (51.84%) and Culiseta (22.39%) genera. All tested mosquitoes were negative in terms of contamination to Rickettsia spp. and Coxiella burnetii.

Conclusion:

Based on the results, mosquitoes are not considered as vectors of Rickettsia spp. and Coxiella burnetii in this part of the country currently. Further studies on a larger scale are needed to examine the exact role of mosquitoes (as a possible vector with high abundance and mobility) in the transmission of these pathogens in tropical areas of Iran.

Rodent-borne diseases and their public health importance in Iran

Background

Rodents are reservoirs and hosts for several zoonotic diseases such as plague, leptospirosis, and leishmaniasis. Rapid development of industry and agriculture, as well as climate change throughout the globe, has led to change or increase in occurrence of rodent-borne diseases. Considering the distribution of rodents throughout Iran, the aim of this review is to assess the risk of rodent-borne diseases in Iran.

Methodology/Principal finding

We searched Google Scholar, PubMed, Science Direct, Scientific Information Database (SID), and Magiran databases up to September 2016 to obtain articles reporting occurrence of rodent-borne diseases in Iran and extract information from them. Out of 70 known rodent-borne diseases, 34 were reported in Iran: 17 (50%) parasitic diseases, 13 (38%) bacterial diseases, and 4 (12%) viral diseases. Twenty-one out of 34 diseases were reported from both humans and rodents. Among the diseases reported in the rodents of Iran, plague, leishmaniasis, and hymenolepiasis were the most frequent. The most infected rodents were Rattus norvegicus (16 diseases), Mus musculus (14 diseases), Rattus rattus (13 diseases), Meriones persicus (7 diseases), Apodemus spp. (5 diseases), Tatera indica (4 diseases), Meriones libycus (3 diseases), Rhombomys opimus (3 diseases), Cricetulus migratorius (3 diseases), and Nesokia indica (2 diseases).

Conclusions/Significance

The results of this review indicate the importance of rodent-borne diseases in Iran. Considering notable diversity of rodents and their extensive distribution throughout the country, it is crucial to pay more attention to their role in spreading infectious diseases for better control of the diseases.

This review showed that approximately half of the known rodent-borne diseases have been reported in Iran, half of which were reported both in humans and rodents. Most of the diseases were bacterial and parasitic. Plague, leishmaniasis, and hymenolepiasis were the most frequent diseases among rodent populations. Also, this review showed that among the rodent species, three commensal ones—R. norvegicus, M. musculus, and R. rattus—play an important role in the transmission of diseases to humans in Iran. Considering repeated reports of many of these diseases in humans and rodents, and the notable diversity and extensive distribution of rodents throughout Iran, it is crucial to pay adequate attention to rodents as a source of zoonotic infectious diseases in the country.

The fauna and perspective of rodentia ectoparasites in Iran relying on their roles within public health and veterinary characteristics

Historically, rodents-ectoparasites are responsible for many diseases in human and domestic animal communities because they are well-adapted to the environment and nutritional resources. In addition, ectoparasites can affect the reproductive rates, ecological fitness and the dispersal pattern of their hosts. Data was compiled through all publications relating to ectoparasites fauna from Iranian rodents. Host specificity, rodent-parasites interaction, geographical distribution, ecological trends as well as the medical or veterinary importance of ectoparasites are considered in this review. Also, results compared with other equal global findings. According to the obtained information, the genus Hyalomma considered being the major vector of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever. Sistan-Balouchistan, Isfahan, Fars and Khuzestan are endemic provinces of this disease in Iran. Ixodes ticks (especially Hyalomma spp.) commonly existed throughout the months but had high activity in spring and late autumn seasons. Muridae as the most diversified rodent family was more reiterated exploited host by all parasites in this knowledge. Tatera indica confirmed as a positive host for Francisella tularensis by serological test but the definitive reservoir is still unclear in Iran. Meriones persicus as a nocturnal jird has been permanently presented in semi-desert areas except Dasht-e Kavir desert. This rodent was the frequent host for Pulicid fleas followed by Mus musculus and Cricetulus migratorius (Cricetidae). Rattus norvegicus was specialized host for Polyplax spinulosa (spiny rat louse). Pulex irritans from Pulicidae was spread in particularly west of Iran which known as an endemic focus of plague. Mites were high diversity than other taxa. The domestic vertebrates (sheep, goat and cattle) were primitive hosts and rodents were discovered as auxiliary hosts for ticks in Iran apparently. The available data suggested that lice had a type of model of host specificity due to their morphological traits. Meanwhile, Alborz and Zagros mountains ranges provided the specialized habitats for animals which have been surrounded by northern and western regions. Perhaps these mountainous areas can prevent gene flow between local mammalian populations. Notably, the genealogy of parasite genome can orient toward the evolutionary process into speciation point. In general, more researches are needed to decipher the whole sights of host-parasite association and the role of ectoparasites within zoonosis diseases.

The Fleas (Siphonaptera) in Iran: Diversity, Host Range, and Medical Importance

BACKGROUND

Flea-borne diseases have a wide distribution in the world. Studies on the identity, abundance, distribution and seasonality of the potential vectors of pathogenic agents (e.g. Yersinia pestis, Francisella tularensis, and Rickettsia felis) are necessary tools for controlling and preventing such diseases outbreaks. The improvements of diagnostic tools are partly responsible for an easier detection of otherwise unnoticed agents in the ectoparasitic fauna and as such a good taxonomical knowledge of the potential vectors is crucial. The aims of this study were to make an exhaustive inventory of the literature on the fleas (Siphonaptera) and range of associated hosts in Iran, present their known distribution, and discuss their medical importance.

METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS

The data were obtained by an extensive literature review related to medically significant fleas in Iran published before 31st August 2016. The flea-host specificity was then determined using a family and subfamily-oriented criteria to further realize and quantify the shared and exclusive vertebrate hosts of fleas among Iran fleas. The locations sampled and reported in the literature were primarily from human habitation, livestock farms, poultry, and rodents' burrows of the 31 provinces of the country. The flea fauna were dominated by seven families, namely the Ceratophyllidae, Leptopsyllidae, Pulicidae, Ctenophthalmidae, Coptopsyllidae, Ischnopsyllidae and Vermipsyllidae. The hosts associated with Iran fleas ranged from the small and large mammals to the birds. Pulicidae were associated with 73% (56/77) of identified host species. Flea-host association analysis indicates that rodents are the common hosts of 5 flea families but some sampling bias results in the reduced number of bird host sampled. Analyses of flea-host relationships at the subfamily level showed that most vertebrates hosted fleas belgonging to 3 subfamilies namely Xenopsyllinae (n = 43), Ctenophthalminae (n = 20) and Amphipsyllinae (n = 17). Meriones persicus was infested by 11 flea subfamilies in the arid, rocky, mountainous regions and Xenopsyllinae were hosted by at least 43 mammal species. These findings place the Persian jird (M. persicus) and the Xenopsyllinae as the major vertebrate and vector hosts of flea-borne diseases in Iran including Yersinia pestis, the etiological agent of plague. We found records of at least seven vector-borne pathogenic agents that can potentially be transmitted by the 117 flea species (or subspecies) of Iran.

CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE

Herein, we performed a thorough inventary of the flea species and their associated hosts, their medical importance and geographic distribution throughout Iran. This exercise allowed assessing the diversity of flea species with the potential flea-borne agents transmission risk in the country by arranging published data on flea-host associations. This information is a first step for issuing public health policies and rodent-flea control campaigns in Iran as well as those interested in the ecology/epidemiology of flea-borne disease.