Dataset Information

Detection of Antibodies to Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiae and Arboviral Coinfections in Febrile Individuals in 2014-2015 in Southern Coastal Ecuador.

ABSTRACT: Tick-borne diseases (TBDs) are a growing public health threat and are increasingly identified as the cause of undifferentiated febrile illness. There is a significant gap in our understanding of ticks and their associated pathogens in Ecuador. An arboviral surveillance study allowed us to explore potential exposure to TBDs in febrile subjects. We tested plasma samples from 222 febrile subjects for spotted fever group rickettsial (SFGR) antibodies from southern coastal Ecuador in 2014-2015 via ELISA. Fifty-five (25%) subjects had evidence of anti-SFRG IgG or IgM antibodies. Although attempts to detect Rickettsia species in plasma by polymerase chain reaction were unsuccessful, these preliminary data suggest the possibility of endemic SFGR transmission in Ecuador. To better understand the burden and entomological risk for TBDs in Ecuador, future studies should expand TBD surveillance in humans, document common human-biting ticks, and measure pathogen carriage rates in questing ticks.

SUBMITTER: Farovitch L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6838566 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Detection of Antibodies to Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiae and Arboviral Coinfections in Febrile Individuals in 2014-2015 in Southern Coastal Ecuador.

Farovitch Lorne L Sippy Rachel R Beltrán-Ayala Efraín E Endy Timothy P TP Stewart-Ibarra Anna M AM Leydet Brian F BF

The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene 20191101 5

Tick-borne diseases (TBDs) are a growing public health threat and are increasingly identified as the cause of undifferentiated febrile illness. There is a significant gap in our understanding of ticks and their associated pathogens in Ecuador. An arboviral surveillance study allowed us to explore potential exposure to TBDs in febrile subjects. We tested plasma samples from 222 febrile subjects for spotted fever group rickettsial (SFGR) antibodies from southern coastal Ecuador in 2014-2015 via EL ...[more]

PMID: 31549616

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Project description:Birds are important hosts and dispersers of parasitic arthropods and vector-borne zoonotic pathogens. Particularly migratory species may carry these parasites over long distances in short time periods. Migratory hotspots present ideal conditions to get a snapshot of parasite and pathogen diversity of birds migrating between continents. The aim of this study was to investigate the presence and diversity of Rickettsia spp. in ticks collected from birds at a migratory hot-spot in the Danube Delta, Romania, eastern Europe.DNA was extracted from ticks that were collected from migratory birds in the Danube Delta during migratory seasons in 2011-2012. Two 360 bp fragments of the 16S ribosomal RNA gene and a 381 bp fragment Gene gltA were PCR amplified and analyzed by sequence analysis (performed at Macrogen Europe, Amsterdam, The Netherlands). Nucleotide sequences were compared to reference sequences available in the GenBank database, using Basic Local Alignment Search Tool.Four hundred ticks of four different species were found on 11 bird species. The prevalence of Rickettsia spp. infection was 14 % (56/400, CI: 11.7-29.1), with significantly more nymphs hosting rickettsial infection compared to larvae (48 vs 7; P?<?0.001). Significantly more ticks in nymphal stage were hosting Rickettsia spp. infection in spring, than in autumn. Four different genospecies were found: R. monacensis (29 ticks), R. helvetica (13), R. massiliae (3) and R. slovaca (2). The seasonal distribution of different Rickettsia spp. was heterogeneous; with most of the R. monacensis-infected ticks were found in spring, while more R. helvetica were found in autumn than spring. R. massiliae was found only in autumn and R. slovaca was found only in spring.This study has shown that birds migrating through eastern Europe may carry ticks infected with a high diversity of rickettsial pathogens, with four Rickettsia spp. recorded. Migratory direction was important for pathogen burden, with seasonal differences in the occurrence of individual Rickettsia species. Here we report the first individual records of different Rickettsia spp. in H. concinna (R. monacensis), I. arboricola (R. helvetica, R. massiliae) and I. redikorzevi (R. helvetica) and also the first geographical record of occurrence of R. massiliae in Romania, representing the easternmost observation on the continent.

Dataset Information

Detection of Antibodies to Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiae and Arboviral Coinfections in Febrile Individuals in 2014-2015 in Southern Coastal Ecuador.

Publications

Detection of Antibodies to Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiae and Arboviral Coinfections in Febrile Individuals in 2014-2015 in Southern Coastal Ecuador.

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