title: Detection of coccidioidal antibodies in serum of a small rodent community in Baja California, Mexico.
abstract: Coccidioidomycosis (Valley Fever) represents a serious threat to inhabitants of endemic areas of North America. Despite successful clinical isolations of the fungal etiological agent, Coccidioides spp., the screening of environmental samples has had low effectiveness, mainly because of the poor characterization of Coccidioides ecological niche. We explored Valle de las Palmas, Baja California, Mexico, a highly endemic area near the U.S.-Mexico border, where we previously detected Coccidioides via culture-independent molecular methods. By testing the serum from 40-trapped rodents with ELISA, we detected antibodies against Coccidioides in two species: Peromyscus maniculatus and Neotoma lepida. This study comprises the first report of wild rodent serum tested for coccidioidal antibodies, and sets the basis to analyze this pathogen in its natural environment and explore its potential ecological niche.
authors.affiliation: Molecular Ecology & Biotechnology Graduate Program, Autonomous University of Baja California (UABC), Km 103 Carretera Tijuana-Ensenada, Ensenada, Baja California 22860, Mexico; Department of Microbiology, Center for Scientific Research and Higher Education of Ensenada (CICESE), Carretera Ensenada-Tijuana 3918, Ensenada, Baja California 22860, Mexico.
authors.forename: Jovani
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Catalán-Dibene
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, United States.
authors.forename: Suzanne M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.affiliation: Department of Conservation Biology, Center for Scientific Research and Higher Education of Ensenada (CICESE), Carretera Ensenada-Tijuana 3918, Ensenada, Baja California 22860, Mexico.
authors.forename: Ricardo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Eaton
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Center for Scientific Research and Higher Education of Ensenada (CICESE), Carretera Ensenada-Tijuana 3918, Ensenada, Baja California 22860, Mexico.
authors.forename: Adriana L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Romero-Olivares
authors.affiliation: Molecular Ecology & Biotechnology Graduate Program, Autonomous University of Baja California (UABC), Km 103 Carretera Tijuana-Ensenada, Ensenada, Baja California 22860, Mexico; Laboratory of Molecular Epidemiology, School of Health Sciences, UABC, Ensenada, Boulevard Zertuche, Ensenada, Baja California 22890, Mexico.
authors.forename: Raúl C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Baptista-Rosas
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, United States.
authors.forename: Demosthenes
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pappagianis
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Center for Scientific Research and Higher Education of Ensenada (CICESE), Carretera Ensenada-Tijuana 3918, Ensenada, Baja California 22860, Mexico. Electronic address: riquelme@cicese.mx.
authors.forename: Meritxell
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Riquelme
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000908:Antibodies, Fungal / Q000097:blood*; D003045:Coccidioides / Q000276:immunology*; D003047:Coccidioidomycosis / Q000276:immunology* / Q000662:veterinary*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D008800:Mexico; D010542:Peromyscus; D044967:Serum / Q000276:immunology; D016205:Sigmodontinae
chemical_list: D000908:Antibodies, Fungal
keywords: Coccidioidomycosis; ELISA; Ecological niche; ITS; Rodents