title: Detection of Bartonella tamiae, Coxiella burnetii and rickettsiae in arthropods and tissues from wild and domestic animals in northeastern Algeria.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In recent years, the scope and importance of emergent vector-borne diseases has increased dramatically. In Algeria, only limited information is currently available concerning the presence and prevalence of these zoonotic diseases. For this reason, we conducted a survey of hematophagous ectoparasites of domestic mammals and/or spleens of wild animals in El Tarf and Souk Ahras, Algeria.
  
  
  METHODS
  Using real-time PCR, standard PCR and sequencing, the presence of Bartonella spp., Rickettsia spp., Borrelia spp. and Coxiella burnetii was evaluated in 268/1626 ticks, 136 fleas, 11 Nycteribiidae flies and 16 spleens of domestic and/or wild animals from the El Tarf and Souk Ahras areas.
  
  
  RESULTS
  For the first time in Algeria, Bartonella tamiae was detected in 12/19 (63.2%) Ixodes vespertilionis ticks, 8/11 (72.7%) Nycteribiidae spp. flies and in 6/10 (60%) bat spleens (Chiroptera spp.). DNA from Coxiella burnetii, the agent of Q fever, was also identified in 3/19 (15.8%) I. vespertilionis from bats. Rickettsia slovaca, the agent of tick-borne lymphadenopathy, was detected in 1/1 (100%) Haemaphysalis punctata and 2/3 (66.7%) Dermacentor marginatus ticks collected from two boars (Sus scrofa algira) respectively. Ri. massiliae, an agent of spotted fever, was detected in 38/94 (40.4%) Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato collected from cattle, sheep, dogs, boars and jackals. DNA of Ri. aeschlimannii was detected in 6/20 (30%) Hyalomma anatolicum excavatum and 6/20 (30%) Hy. scupense from cattle. Finally, Ri. felis, an emerging rickettsial pathogen, was detected in 80/110 (72.7%) Archaeopsylla erinacei and 2/2 (100%) Ctenocephalides felis of hedgehogs (Atelerix algirus).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this study, we expanded knowledge about the repertoire of ticks and flea-borne bacteria present in ectoparasites and/or tissues of domestic and wild animals in Algeria.
authors.affiliation: Aix Marseille Université, Unité de Recherche en Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes (URMITE), UM63, CNRS 7278, IRD 198 (Dakar), Inserm 1095, Faculté de Médecine, 27 bd Jean Moulin, 13385, Marseille, Cedex 5, France. drleulmihamza@gmail.com.|Ecole Nationale Supérieure Vétérinaire d'Alger. El Aliya Alger, Algiers, 16000, Algeria. drleulmihamza@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Hamza
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Leulmi
authors.affiliation: Département des Sciences Vétérinaires, Université Cherif Messaadia, Souk Ahras, 41000, Algeria. draouadiatef@gmail.com.|Département des Sciences Vétérinaires, Université Chadli Bendjdid, El Tarf, 36000, Algeria. draouadiatef@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Atef
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Aouadi
authors.affiliation: Aix Marseille Université, Unité de Recherche en Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes (URMITE), UM63, CNRS 7278, IRD 198 (Dakar), Inserm 1095, Faculté de Médecine, 27 bd Jean Moulin, 13385, Marseille, Cedex 5, France. idirbitam@gmail.com.|Ecole Nationale Supérieure Vétérinaire d'Alger. El Aliya Alger, Algiers, 16000, Algeria. idirbitam@gmail.com.|Laboratoire d'Ecologie et Environnement: Interaction, Génome, Université de Bab Ezzouar, Bab Ezzouar, 16000, Algeria. idirbitam@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Idir
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Bitam
authors.affiliation: Ecole Nationale Supérieure Vétérinaire d'Alger. El Aliya Alger, Algiers, 16000, Algeria. bsamina@outlook.com.
authors.forename: Amina
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bessas
authors.affiliation: Département des Sciences Vétérinaires, Université Cherif Messaadia, Souk Ahras, 41000, Algeria. benakhlaahmed@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Ahmed
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Benakhla
authors.affiliation: Aix Marseille Université, Unité de Recherche en Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes (URMITE), UM63, CNRS 7278, IRD 198 (Dakar), Inserm 1095, Faculté de Médecine, 27 bd Jean Moulin, 13385, Marseille, Cedex 5, France. didier.raoult@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Didier
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Raoult
authors.affiliation: Aix Marseille Université, Unité de Recherche en Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes (URMITE), UM63, CNRS 7278, IRD 198 (Dakar), Inserm 1095, Faculté de Médecine, 27 bd Jean Moulin, 13385, Marseille, Cedex 5, France. philippe.parola@univ-amu.fr.
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Parola
mesh_terms: D000462:Algeria / Q000453:epidemiology; D000818:Animals; D001181:Arthropods / Q000382:microbiology*; D001473:Bartonella / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D001474:Bartonella Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology; D002417:Cattle; D016997:Coxiella burnetii / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D004285:Dogs; D006364:Hedgehogs; D026863:Ixodidae / Q000382:microbiology; D008322:Mammals; D011778:Q Fever / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology; D012281:Rickettsia / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D012282:Rickettsia Infections / Q000453:epidemiology; D012756:Sheep; D005423:Siphonaptera / Q000382:microbiology; D013552:Swine; D017282:Tick-Borne Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology