Anti-Borrelia antibodies in rodents: important hosts in ecology of Lyme disease.
Data presented in this study focuses on the presence of anti-Borrelia antibodies in small mammals from Eastern Slovakia during 2000-2003. The total seropositivity observed was 18.78% in rodents. Amongst all species, the total seroprevalence in Apodemus flavicolis was the highest (20.87%), followed by Apodemus agrarius (19.58%) and Clethrionomys glareolus (11.11%). However, the prevalence in Apodemus flavicolis during the year 2000-2001 was higher (26.72%), which reduced to 10.60% in 2002-2003. To compare the year range of seroprevalence in other small mammals was not feasible due to the small sample number. Area-wise distribution of anti-Borrelia antibodies was even (18.75% to 20%) in this study, except in the Bot'any province (0%). This confirms the equal distribution of Borrelia spirochetes in the other 3 localities. Prevalence of anti-Borrelia antibodies during summer was significantly higher than during autumn and early spring. The overall study also reviews the importance of small mammals in Lyme disease ecology.
Stefancíková
Astéria
A
Parasitological Institute of the Slovak Academy of Science, Hlinkova 3, 04001 Kosice, Slovakia. astefan@saske.sk
Bhide
Mangesh
M
Pet'ko
Branislav
B
Stanko
Michal
M
Mosanskỳ
Ladislav
L
Fricova
Jana
J
Derdáková
Markéta
M
Trávnicek
Milan
M
D000818:Animals; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis*; D000917:Antibody Formation; D015748:Borrelia burgdorferi Group / Q000276:immunology* / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D006801:Humans; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000032:analysis; D008193:Lyme Disease / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology* / Q000635:transmission*; D009115:Muridae / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology*; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D018154:Slovakia / Q000453:epidemiology
D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D007074:Immunoglobulin G