title: Ants in a hospital environment and their potential as mechanical bacterial vectors.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  We studied the richness and abundance of ant species, their bacteria and the bacteria isolated from patient clinical samples.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ants were collected with baited traps at 64 sites in a public hospital in São Luis, State of Maranhão, Brazil.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In total, 1,659 ants from 14 species were captured. The most frequent species were Crematogaster victima, Solenopsis saevissima, Tapinoma melanocephalum, Camponotus vittatus and Paratrechina fulva. Forty-one species of bacteria were isolated from the ants and 18 from patients.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Ants are potential vehicles for pathogenic and opportunistic bacteria, and they can represent a risk factor in nosocomial infections.
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Microbiologia, Hospital da Universidade Federal do Maranhão, São LuisMA.
authors.forename: Wanda Ramos dos Santos
authors.initials: WR
authors.lastname: Lima
authors.forename: Sirlei Garcia
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Marques
authors.forename: Fernanda Souto
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: Rodrigues
authors.forename: José Manuel Macário
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Rebêlo
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001000:Ants / Q000145:classification* / Q000382:microbiology; D001938:Brazil; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000635:transmission; D004199:Disease Vectors / Q000145:classification*; D006779:Hospitals, Public; D006801:Humans; D011156:Population Density; D012307:Risk Factors; D012621:Seasons