title: Evaluation of the presence of Rickettsia slovaca infection in domestic ruminants in Catalonia, Northeastern Spain.
abstract: Rickettsia slovaca is the etiological agent of the human disease tick-borne lymphadenopathy (TIBOLA) transmitted by Dermacentor spp. ticks. In our area, Dermacentor marginatus is the most important tick vector; adult ticks feed on mammals, especially ungulates such as wild boars and domestic ruminants. The epidemiology of tick-transmitted diseases describes a wild cycle and a domestic cycle and both are connected by ticks. To identify the role of domestic ruminants in the transmission and maintenance of R. slovaca infection, blood samples from sheep (n=95), goats (n=91), and bullfighting cattle (n=100) were collected during a herd health program, and livestock grazing was selected to ensure tick contact. Samples were analyzed by serology using an indirect immunofluorescent assay (IFA) and molecular techniques (real-time PCR). Seroprevalence was 15.7% in sheep, 20.8% in goats, and 65.0% in bullfighting cattle. On the basis of molecular methods, R. slovaca infection was demonstrated in a goat blood sample with an antibody titer of 1:160. This is the first time that R. slovaca has been identified in a goat blood sample. These results suggest that domestic ruminants are exposed to R. slovaca infection and, because the domestic cycle is close to the human environment, this could increase the risk of transmitting the pathogen to human beings.
authors.affiliation: Departament de Sanitat i Anatomia Animals. Facultat de Veterinària, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona , Barcelona, Spain. ana.ortuno@uab.cat
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ortuño
authors.forename: Imma
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Pons
authors.forename: Mariela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Quesada
authors.forename: Sergio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lario
authors.forename: Esperança
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Anton
authors.forename: Andreu
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gil
authors.forename: Joaquim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Castellà
authors.forename: Ferran
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Segura
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood; D001483:Base Sequence; D002417:Cattle; D002418:Cattle Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000097:blood / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D015511:Goat Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D006041:Goats; D006801:Humans; D008206:Lymphatic Diseases / Q000382:microbiology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012281:Rickettsia / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D012282:Rickettsia Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission / Q000662:veterinary*; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D012756:Sheep; D012757:Sheep Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology; D017282:Tick-Borne Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission; D015047:Zoonoses
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D004269:DNA, Bacterial