Detection of Rickettsia africae in Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) decoloratus ticks from the Republic of Botswana, South Africa.
A total of 53 engorged adult ticks belonging to the species Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) decoloratus (N = 9), Rhipicephalus evertsi evertsi (N = 27), Rhipicephalus appendiculatus (N = 9), Amblyomma hebraeum (N = 5), and Hyalomma marginatum turanicum (N = 3), were removed from oryx in Botswana (South Africa). They were tested for the presence of spotted fever group (SFG) Rickettsia and Anaplasma phagocytophilum using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Seventy-seven percent of R. decoloratus as well as twenty percent of A. hebraeum were positive for ompA, gltA and 16S rRNA SFG Rickettsia PCR assays. All nucleotide sequences were homologous to Rickettsia africae, the agent of African tick-bite fever (ATBF). None of the tested ticks was positive for 16S rRNA A. phagocytophilum PCR assays. These results suggest for the first time that R. decoloratus ticks may be reservoirs of R. africae, and support the ATBF risk in this area.
Portillo
Aránzazu
A
Area de Enfermedades Infecciosas, Hospital San Pedro-Centro de Investigacíon Biomédica de La Rioja (CIBIR), 26006 Logroño, Spain.
Pérez-Martínez
Laura
L
Santibáñez
Sonia
S
Blanco
José R
JR
Ibarra
Valvanera
V
Oteo
José A
JA
D000818:Animals; D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D001902:Botswana; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D048494:Rhipicephalus / Q000382:microbiology*; D012281:Rickettsia / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D012282:Rickettsia Infections / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000635:transmission; D017282:Tick-Borne Diseases / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000635:transmission
D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S; C078167:OMPA outer membrane proteins