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Brito-Lorán CB, Araiza-Rodríguez A, Garcés-Ayala F, Contreras-Pérez CU, Montes-Colima NA, López-Martínez I, Hernandez-Cortez C, Castro-Escarpulli G, Ramírez-González JE. Analysis of Rocky Mountain spotted fever cases in Northern Mexico reveals genetic variability of Rickettsia rickettsii and the different distribution of genotypes. Int Microbiol 2024; 27:689-695. [PMID: 37646898 DOI: 10.1007/s10123-023-00424-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2023] [Revised: 08/16/2023] [Accepted: 08/23/2023] [Indexed: 09/01/2023]
Abstract
Rickettsioses have been reported in parts of Mexico since the last century, with Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF) being one of the most prevalent in northern states. Unfortunately, fatality rates for RMSF in Mexico are higher than in other countries, like the USA. The reason for this difference in fatality rates is currently unknown and could be associated with a genotype of the bacterium, but no comparative molecular typing has been conducted in Mexico to date. The purpose of this study was to analyze 47 RMSF samples with different outcomes from several states in northern Mexico to know the genetic variability of Rickettsia rickettsii, as well as to reconstruct its phylogeny, for which the following intergenic regions were sequenced: RR0155-rpmB, cspA-ksgA, RR1240-tlc5, and Spo0J-abc T1, as well as the following partial genes: ompA, ompB, and gltA. We identified 8 genotypes with different distribution and prevalence among the states analyzed, as well as a different association with case outcome; these genotypes were clustered in 2 clades and 5 lineages were revealed, some of them probably exclusive from Mexico.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carina Berenice Brito-Lorán
- Laboratorio de Investigación Clínica y Ambiental, Departamento de Bioquímica Microbiana, Escuela Nacional de Ciencias Biológicas, Instituto Politécnico Nacional (IPN), Colonia Santo Tomás, Miguel Hidalgo, 011340, México City, México
- Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos (InDRE) "Dr. Manuel Martínez Báez", Secretaría de Salud, Francisco de P. Miranda 177, Lomas de Plateros, Álvaro Obregón, 01480, Mexico City, México
| | - Adnan Araiza-Rodríguez
- Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos (InDRE) "Dr. Manuel Martínez Báez", Secretaría de Salud, Francisco de P. Miranda 177, Lomas de Plateros, Álvaro Obregón, 01480, Mexico City, México
| | - Fabiola Garcés-Ayala
- Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos (InDRE) "Dr. Manuel Martínez Báez", Secretaría de Salud, Francisco de P. Miranda 177, Lomas de Plateros, Álvaro Obregón, 01480, Mexico City, México
| | - Cudberto U Contreras-Pérez
- Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos (InDRE) "Dr. Manuel Martínez Báez", Secretaría de Salud, Francisco de P. Miranda 177, Lomas de Plateros, Álvaro Obregón, 01480, Mexico City, México
| | - Norma Angélica Montes-Colima
- Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos (InDRE) "Dr. Manuel Martínez Báez", Secretaría de Salud, Francisco de P. Miranda 177, Lomas de Plateros, Álvaro Obregón, 01480, Mexico City, México
| | - Irma López-Martínez
- Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos (InDRE) "Dr. Manuel Martínez Báez", Secretaría de Salud, Francisco de P. Miranda 177, Lomas de Plateros, Álvaro Obregón, 01480, Mexico City, México
| | - Cecilia Hernandez-Cortez
- Laboratorio de Investigación Clínica y Ambiental, Departamento de Bioquímica Microbiana, Escuela Nacional de Ciencias Biológicas, Instituto Politécnico Nacional (IPN), Colonia Santo Tomás, Miguel Hidalgo, 011340, México City, México
| | - Graciela Castro-Escarpulli
- Laboratorio de Investigación Clínica y Ambiental, Departamento de Bioquímica Microbiana, Escuela Nacional de Ciencias Biológicas, Instituto Politécnico Nacional (IPN), Colonia Santo Tomás, Miguel Hidalgo, 011340, México City, México.
| | - José Ernesto Ramírez-González
- Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos (InDRE) "Dr. Manuel Martínez Báez", Secretaría de Salud, Francisco de P. Miranda 177, Lomas de Plateros, Álvaro Obregón, 01480, Mexico City, México.
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Richardson EA, Roe RM, Apperson CS, Ponnusamy L. Rickettsia amblyommatis in Ticks: A Review of Distribution, Pathogenicity, and Diversity. Microorganisms 2023; 11:microorganisms11020493. [PMID: 36838458 PMCID: PMC9960904 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms11020493] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2022] [Revised: 02/09/2023] [Accepted: 02/14/2023] [Indexed: 02/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Rickettsia amblyommatis is a potentially pathogenic species of Rickettsia within the spotted fever group vectored by ticks. While many studies have been published on this species, there is debate over its pathogenicity and the inhibitory role it plays in diagnosing illnesses caused by other spotted fever group Rickettsia species. Many publications have recorded the high infection prevalence of R. amblyommatis in tick populations at a global scale. While this species is rather ubiquitous, questions remain over the epidemiological importance of this possible human pathogen. With tick-borne diseases on the rise, understanding the exact role that R. amblyommatis plays as a pathogen and inhibitor of infection relative to other tick-borne pathogens will help public health efforts. The goal of this review was to compile the known literature on R. amblyommatis, review what we know about its geographic distribution, tick vectors, and pathogenicity, assess relatedness between various international strains from ticks by phylogenetic analysis and draw conclusions regarding future research needed.
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Condit ME, Jones E, Biggerstaff BJ, Kato CY. Procedure for spotted fever group Rickettsia isolation from limited clinical blood specimens. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2022; 16:e0010781. [PMID: 36240222 PMCID: PMC9605293 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0010781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2021] [Revised: 10/26/2022] [Accepted: 08/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Current isolation techniques for spotted fever group Rickettsia from clinical samples are laborious and are limited to tissue, blood and blood derivatives with volumes ideally greater than 1 mL. We validated the use of simplified methodologies for spotted fever group Rickettsia culture isolation that overcome sample volume limitations and provide utility in clinical diagnostics and research studies. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS A modified cell culture method is evaluated for the isolation of Rickettsia ssp. from human diagnostic samples. Culture sampling method, culture platform, and growth phase analysis were evaluated to determine best practices for optimal culture isolation conditions. Rickettsial isolates (R. conorii, R. rickettsii, and R. parkeri) were grown in Vero E6 cells over a course of 5 to 7 days at low inoculum treatments (~40 bacterial copies) to standardize the sampling strategy at a copy number reflective of the bacteremia in acute diagnostic samples. This methodology was verified using small volumes (50 μL) of 25 unprocessed clinical whole blood, plasma, and serum samples from acute samples of patients suspected of having Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, of which 10 were previously confirmed positive via the PanR8 qPCR assay, 13 had no detectable Rickettsia DNA by the PanR8 qPCR assay, and 2 were not previously tested; these samples resulted in the cultivation of 7 new R. rickettsii isolates. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE We observed that rickettsial isolate growth in culture is reproducibly identified by real-time PCR testing of culture media within 72 hours after inoculation. Additionally, specimen sedimentation prior to isolation to remove red blood cells was found to decrease the amount of total organism available in the inoculum. A small volume culture method was established focusing on comparative qPCR detection rather than bacterial visualization, taking significantly shorter time to detect, and requiring less manipulation compared to traditional clinical isolate culture methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marah E. Condit
- Rickettsial Zoonoses Branch, Division of Vector-Borne Diseases, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Emma Jones
- Office of the Director, Division of Vector-Borne Diseases, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Brad J. Biggerstaff
- Office of the Director, Division of Vector-Borne Diseases, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America
| | - Cecilia Y. Kato
- Rickettsial Zoonoses Branch, Division of Vector-Borne Diseases, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America,* E-mail:
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Association between Growth Rate and Pathogenicity of Spotted Fever Group Rickettsia. JOURNAL OF PURE AND APPLIED MICROBIOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.22207/jpam.16.1.31] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Rickettsia parkeri and Rickettsia amblyommatis are spotted fever group Rickettsia (SFGR) associated with Amblyomma ticks. R. parkeri is a recognized human pathogen that causes an eschar-associated febrile illness, while R. amblyommatis has not been confirmed as a causative agent of human disease. We hypothesized that the rate of replication is one of the factors contributing to rickettsial pathogenicity. In this study, growth and infectivity of R. parkeri and R. amblyommatis in mammalian (Vero E6) and tick-derived (ISE6) cell lines were assessed and compared over a 96-hour time course of infection using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and microscopy. The pathogenic R. parkeri displayed a significantly higher level of infection in both Vero E6 and ISE6 cells than R. amblyommatis at 72 hours post-inoculation (hpi). Distinct growth profiles between rickettsial species with known and uncertain pathogenicity were identified. R. parkeri burdens were significantly greater than those of R. amblyommatis from 24 to 96 hpi. The relative fold changes of load were significantly higher in the pathogenic agent than in R. amblyommatis from 48 hpi onward and reached the maximum fold increase of ~2002- and ~296-fold in Vero E6 cells and ~1363- and ~161-fold in ISE6 cells, respectively, at 96 hpi. The results from the present study demonstrate that growth rate is associated with the pathogenicity of rickettsiae. Understanding SFGR growth characteristics in mammalian and tick cells will provide insight into rickettsial biology and pathogenesis.
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Yen WY, Stern K, Mishra S, Helminiak L, Sanchez-Vicente S, Kim HK. Virulence potential of Rickettsia amblyommatis for spotted fever pathogenesis in mice. Pathog Dis 2021; 79:ftab024. [PMID: 33908603 PMCID: PMC8110513 DOI: 10.1093/femspd/ftab024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2021] [Accepted: 04/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Rickettsia amblyommatis belongs to the spotted fever group of Rickettsia and infects Amblyomma americanum (Lone Star ticks) for transmission to offspring and mammals. Historically, the geographic range of A. americanum was restricted to the southeastern USA. However, recent tick surveys identified the progressive northward invasion of A. americanum, contributing to the increased number of patients with febrile illnesses of unknown etiology after a tick bite in the northeastern USA. While serological evidence strongly suggests that patients are infected with R. amblyommatis, the virulence potential of R. amblyommatis is not well established. Here, we performed a bioinformatic analysis of three genome sequences of R. amblyommatis and identified the presence of multiple putative virulence genes whose products are implicated for spotted fever pathogenesis. Similar to other pathogenic spotted fever rickettsiae, R. amblyommatis replicated intracellularly within the cytoplasm of tissue culture cells. Interestingly, R. amblyommatis displayed defective attachment to microvascular endothelial cells. The attachment defect and slow growth rate of R. amblyommatis required relatively high intravenous infectious doses to produce dose-dependent morbidity and mortality in C3H mice. In summary, our results corroborate clinical evidence that R. amblyommatis can cause mild disease manifestation in some patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wan-Yi Yen
- Division of Laboratory Animal Resources, Laboratory of Comparative Medicine, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - Kayla Stern
- John F. Kennedy High School, Bellmore, NY 11710, USA
| | - Smruti Mishra
- Center for Infectious Diseases, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - Luke Helminiak
- Center for Infectious Diseases, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - Santiago Sanchez-Vicente
- Center for Infectious Diseases, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - Hwan Keun Kim
- Center for Infectious Diseases, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
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