Rickettsia massiliae circulation in sheep and attached Rhipicephalus sanguineus in Central Portugal.
Trop Anim Health Prod
; 54(4): 199, 2022 Jun 06.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-35668327
ABSTRACT
Rickettsiosis is considered an emerging/re-emerging vector-borne disease that causes significant public health threats. Ticks are reservoirs and vectors of Rickettsia having a significant role in the transmission of rickettsiae. In Portugal, little is known about tick-borne Rickettsia species in sheep. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate rickettsiae infection in ticks and their sheep host from 27 farms in four districts of central Portugal, to clarify the role of the sheep host in the circulation of this zoonotic agent. Between March and May 2021, EDTA blood samples (n = 100) of healthy grazing sheep and their ticks (n = 100, one tick per animal) were collected during a herd health program in central Portugal. Obtained ticks were identified as Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato by PCR targeting a partial sequence of 16S rRNA gene followed by sequence analysis. Rhipicephalus sanguineus s.l. and host sheep blood were tested for the presence of Rickettsia spp. by PCR targeting a partial sequence of ompB and ompA genes. From a total of 100 paired R. sanguineus s.l. and host sheep, Rickettsia massiliae was detected in 62 ticks and 35 grazing sheep blood samples, collected in central Portugal, 2021. All 35 positive sheep had attached positive R. sanguineus s.l., with matching nucleotidic sequences. These findings suggest that sheep may develop rickettsiemia and are likely capable of transmitting and amplifying the infection to uninfected ticks maintaining rickettsiae in circulation in the domestic cycle.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Rickettsia
/
Infecções por Rickettsia
/
Doenças dos Ovinos
/
Rhipicephalus sanguineus
Tipo de estudo:
Prognostic_studies
Limite:
Animals
País/Região como assunto:
Europa
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Trop Anim Health Prod
Ano de publicação:
2022
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Portugal