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Vlaschenko A, Răileanu C, Tauchmann O, Muzyka D, Bohodist V, Filatov S, Rodenko O, Tovstukha I, Silaghi C. First data on bacteria associated with bat ectoparasites collected in Kharkiv oblast, Northeastern Ukraine. Parasit Vectors 2022; 15:443. [PMID: 36434644 PMCID: PMC9700949 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-022-05582-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2022] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) serve as natural reservoirs for many zoonotic pathogens worldwide, including vector-borne pathogens. However, bat-associated parasitic arthropods and their microbiota are thus far not thoroughly described in many regions across the globe, nor is their role in the spillover of pathogens to other vertebrate species well understood. Basic epidemiological research is needed to disentangle the complex ecological interactions among bats, their specific ectoparasites and microorganisms they harbor. Some countries, such as Ukraine, are particularly data-deficient in this respect as the ectoparasitic fauna is poorly documented there and has never been screened for the presence of medically important microorganisms. Therefore, the aims of this study were to provide first data on this topic. METHODS A total of 239 arthropod specimens were collected from bats. They belonged to several major groups of external parasites, including soft ticks, fleas, and nycteribiid flies from six chiropteran species in Northeastern Ukraine. The ectoparasites were individually screened for the presence of DNA of Rickettsia spp., Anaplasma/Ehrlichia spp., Bartonella spp., Borrelia spp., and Babesia spp. with conventional PCRs. Positive samples were amplified at several loci, sequenced for species identification, and subjected to phylogenetic analysis. RESULTS Rickettsia DNA was detected exclusively in specimens of the soft tick, Carios vespertilionis (7 out of 43 or 16.3%). Sequencing and phylogenetic analysis revealed high similarity to sequences from Rickettsia parkeri and several other Rickettsia species. Bacteria from the family Anaplasmataceae were detected in all groups of the ectoparasites (51%, 122/239 samples), belonging to the genera Anaplasma, Ehrlichia, and Wolbachia. The detection of Bartonella spp. was successful only in fleas (Nycteridopsylla eusarca) and bat flies (Nycteribia koleantii, N. pedicularia), representing 12.1% (29/239) of the collected ectoparasites. No DNA of Babesia or Borrelia species was identified in the samples. CONCLUSIONS We report for the first time in Ukraine the molecular detection of several bacterial agents in bat ectoparasites collected from six species of bats. The data presented extend the knowledge on the distribution of ectoparasite species in bats and their involvement in potentially circulating agents pathogenic for humans and vertebrate animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anton Vlaschenko
- LLC “ASTRAVIR TECHNOLOGY”, Poltavskyi Shliakh, 6, 25, Kharkiv, 61001 Ukraine ,Bat Rehabilitation Center of Feldman Ecopark, Lesnoye, Kharkiv Region, 62340 Ukraine ,grid.445512.30000 0004 6091 1068Institute of Natural Sciences, Department of Zoology, H.S. Skovoroda Kharkiv National Pedagogical University, Valentynivska St., 2, Kharkiv, 61168 Ukraine ,NGO “Ukrainian Independent Ecology Institute”, Plekhanov St., 40, Kharkiv, 61001 Ukraine
| | - Cristian Răileanu
- grid.417834.dInstitute of Infectology, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Suedufer 10, 17493 Greifswald-Isle of Riems, Germany
| | - Oliver Tauchmann
- grid.417834.dInstitute of Infectology, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Suedufer 10, 17493 Greifswald-Isle of Riems, Germany
| | - Denys Muzyka
- grid.445512.30000 0004 6091 1068Institute of Natural Sciences, Department of Zoology, H.S. Skovoroda Kharkiv National Pedagogical University, Valentynivska St., 2, Kharkiv, 61168 Ukraine ,grid.483569.50000 0004 6086 6965National Scientific Center “Institute of Experimental and Clinical Veterinary Medicine”, Pushkinska St., 83, Kharkiv, 61023 Ukraine
| | - Valeria Bohodist
- Bat Rehabilitation Center of Feldman Ecopark, Lesnoye, Kharkiv Region, 62340 Ukraine ,grid.445333.6Veterinary Medicine Department, Bila Tserkva National Agrarian University, Stavishchanskaya St., 126, Bila Tserkva, 09111 Ukraine
| | - Serhii Filatov
- grid.483569.50000 0004 6086 6965National Scientific Center “Institute of Experimental and Clinical Veterinary Medicine”, Pushkinska St., 83, Kharkiv, 61023 Ukraine ,grid.39382.330000 0001 2160 926XDepartment of Pediatrics and the National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX USA
| | - Olena Rodenko
- LLC “ASTRAVIR TECHNOLOGY”, Poltavskyi Shliakh, 6, 25, Kharkiv, 61001 Ukraine ,NGO “Ukrainian Independent Ecology Institute”, Plekhanov St., 40, Kharkiv, 61001 Ukraine
| | - Ihor Tovstukha
- LLC “ASTRAVIR TECHNOLOGY”, Poltavskyi Shliakh, 6, 25, Kharkiv, 61001 Ukraine ,Kharkiv International Medical University, Molochna St., 38, Kharkiv, 61001 Ukraine
| | - Cornelia Silaghi
- grid.417834.dInstitute of Infectology, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Suedufer 10, 17493 Greifswald-Isle of Riems, Germany ,grid.5603.0Department of Biology, University of Greifswald, Domstraße 11, 17489 Greifswald, Germany
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Abstract
Ticks are hematophagous ectoparasites capable of transmitting multiple human pathogens. Environmental changes have supported the expansion of ticks into new geographical areas that have become the epicenters of tick-borne diseases (TBDs). The spotted fever group (SFG) of Rickettsia frequently infects ticks and causes tick-transmitted rickettsioses in areas of endemicity where ixodid ticks support host transmission during blood feeding. Ticks also serve as a reservoir for SFG Rickettsia. Among the members of SFG Rickettsia, R. rickettsii causes Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF), the most lethal TBD in the United States. Cases of RMSF have been reported for over a century in association with several species of ticks in the United States. However, the isolation of R. rickettsii from ticks has decreased, and recent serological and epidemiological studies suggest that novel species of SFG Rickettsia are responsible for the increased number of cases of RMSF-like rickettsioses in the United States. Recent analyses of rickettsial genomes and advances in genetic and molecular studies of Rickettsia provided insights into the biology of Rickettsia with the identification of conserved and unique putative virulence genes involved in the rickettsial life cycle. Thus, understanding Rickettsia-host-tick interactions mediating successful disease transmission and pathogenesis for SFG rickettsiae remains an active area of research. This review summarizes recent advances in understanding how SFG Rickettsia species coopt and manipulate ticks and mammalian hosts to cause rickettsioses, with a particular emphasis on newly described or emerging SFG Rickettsia species.
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Torres-Castro M, Sánchez-Montes S, Colunga-Salas P, Noh-Pech H, Reyes-Novelo E, Rodríguez-Vivas RI. Molecular confirmation of Rickettsia parkeri in humans from Southern Mexico. Zoonoses Public Health 2022; 69:382-386. [PMID: 35142079 DOI: 10.1111/zph.12927] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2021] [Revised: 12/26/2021] [Accepted: 01/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Human tick-borne rickettsioses are caused by Rickettsia africae, Rickettsia massiliae, Rickettsia parkeri, Rickettsia philipi and Rickettsia rickettsii in the American continent. Rickettsia parkeri represents the second most important agent of eschar-associated spotted fever throughout the American continent. In Mexico, the presence of three strains of this bacterium (Black Gap, Maculatum and Atlantic Rainforest) has recently been reported in four species of ticks from five states (Baja California, Campeche, Sonora, Tabasco and Veracruz) and rickettsaemia was demonstrated in a dog from the state of Yucatán. We report two human cases of R. parkeri-rickettsiosis from Yucatan, Mexico. These findings have increased the interest in R. parkeri surveillance in the human population, due to the fluctuating regional Spotted Fever morbidity and mortality in the country.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sokani Sánchez-Montes
- Universidad Veracruzana, Veracruz, México.,Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad de México, México
| | - Pablo Colunga-Salas
- Universidad Veracruzana, Veracruz, México.,Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad de México, México
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