Small Indian Mongooses (Herpestes auropunctatus) Serve As Reservoirs of Bartonella henselae and Rickettsia felis Vectored by Ctenocephalides felis

Fleas (Siphonaptera) of domestic and wild animals in extreme northeastern Algeria: first inventory, hosts, and medical and veterinary importance

Fleas are an important member of the North African entomofauna. An understanding of the risks of flea-borne diseases to public and veterinary health can be gained with surveys of their abundance, distribution, and hosts. The aims of this study were to make an initial assessment of flea (Siphonaptera) species collected from a selected number of mammalian hosts in Algeria and debate their medical and veterinary importance. To do so, an entomological survey was conducted on several animal species (goats, dogs, cats, rabbits, hedgehogs, and mongooses) in six localities of El Tarf region located in extreme northeastern Algeria. During the survey, flea specimens were collected from hosts, stored in alcohol, and identified using a taxonomic key. More than 1,200 specimens were collected and identified; including four species: Ctenocephalides felis, Ctenocephalides canis, Pulex irritans, and Archaeopsylla erinacei (s.l.). Goats and dogs were the most infested animals, followed by cats and hedgehogs. Ctenocephalides felis was the most prevalent flea among all infested animals, with 631 collected specimens, followed by Pulex irritans with 433 samples. Overall, this study is an initial assessment of flea species recovered from selected common mammals in northeastern Algeria.

Molecular Survey and Genetic Diversity of Bartonella spp. in Small Indian Mongooses (Urva auropunctata) and Their Fleas on Saint Kitts, West Indies

This study aimed to molecularly survey and evaluate the genetic diversity of Bartonella spp. in mongooses and their fleas from St. Kitts. Spleen (n = 54), blood (n = 71), and pooled flea samples, all identified as Ctenocephalides felis (n = 53), were submitted to TaqMan real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) targeting Bartonella-nuoG fragment (84 bp). Positive samples underwent further conventional PCR assays targeting five loci (gltA, rpoB, fstZ, nuoG, and ITS), subsequent sequencing, and phylogenetic and haplotype analyses. The overall occurrence of Bartonella spp. in mongooses and fleas was 51.2% (64/125 [95% CI (42.1–60.2%)]) and 62.3% (33/53) [95% CI (47.9–75.2%)]), respectively. From samples sequenced across the five loci, 50.8% (33/65) were identified as Bartonella henselae, 26.2% (17/65) were 96.74–99.01% similar by BLAST analysis to an unidentified Bartonella sp. previously reported in Japanese badgers (Meles anakuma), and 23.1% (15/65) were co-infected with both species. Nucleotide polymorphism analysis showed low diversity amongst haplotypes but did concur with phylogenetic analysis, placing the unidentified species in a separate clade from B. henselae by multiple mutational events. Our data confirms that mongooses and Ctenocephalides felis fleas collected from them are not only potential reservoirs for B. henselae but also a novel Bartonella sp. which we propose be called ‘Candidatus Bartonella kittensis’.