RESUMO
Canine monocytic ehrlichiosis is a common and widespread disease. This disease is present in Sardinia year-round because the temperate weather on the island permits the survival of many types of tick vectors. A total of 35 ticks was collected from goats in south-eastern Sardinia, Italy, and tested for Ehrlichia DNA using polymerase chain reaction and DNA sequencing. This study provides the first evidence of the presence of Ehrlichia canis in Rhipicephalus bursa ticks. The data presented here increase our knowledge of tick-borne diseases in Sardinia and provide a useful contribution toward understanding their epidemiology. The role of R. bursa in the life cycle and transmission of E. canis needs however further investigation.
Assuntos
Ehrlichia canis/isolamento & purificação , Rhipicephalus/microbiologia , Animais , DNA Bacteriano/química , DNA Bacteriano/genética , DNA Ribossômico/química , DNA Ribossômico/genética , Ehrlichia canis/classificação , Ehrlichia canis/genética , Feminino , Cabras/parasitologia , Itália , Masculino , Reação em Cadeia da Polimerase , RNA Ribossômico 16S/genética , Análise de Sequência de DNARESUMO
Nineteen ticks belonging to the species Dermacentor marginatus, Rhipicephalus bursa, and Haemaphysalis sulcata were collected from wild animals (wild boar, deer, and mouflon) in south-western Sardinia, Italy. Five D. marginatus ticks from wild boar were PCR-positive when analyzed using gltA-specific and ompA-specific primers, leading to the identification and first isolation in cell culture of Rickettsia slovaca, the causative agent of tick-borne lymphadenopathy (TIBOLA), on the island of Sardinia. This study confirms the detection of a new tick-borne rickettsia that can be added to the others already known to be present in Sardinia (Rickettsia aeschlimannii, R. massiliae, and Candidatus Rickettsia barbariae). These data increase our knowledge of tick-borne rickettsioses in Sardinia and, more generally, in the Mediterranean basin.