title: Bartonella, Rodents, Fleas and Ticks: a Molecular Field Study on Host-Vector-Pathogen Associations in Saxony, Eastern Germany.
abstract: Bartonellae cause zoonotic diseases and are transmitted by arthropods. Rodents are reservoirs for most Bartonella spp. As the knowledge about Bartonella in rodents and their parasitizing ectoparasites is scarce in Germany, this study's objectives were to investigate Bartonella spp. in small mammals and in their ectoparasites. A total of 79 small mammals (seven species) were captured and their ectoparasites collected at seven sites around Leipzig, Saxony, Germany, in 2010 and 2011. Altogether, 79 spleen samples, 135 fleas (five species) and 365 ticks (three species) were investigated for Bartonella spp. by PCR targeting the ITS 16S-23S rRNA region. In total, 52 (65.8 %) small mammals, 73 (54.1 %) fleas and 51 (16.3 %) ticks were positive for Bartonella spp. Most small mammals were positive for uncultured Bartonella sp. (n = 29) followed by Bartonella grahamii (n = 12), Bartonella taylorii (n = 8) and Bartonella sp. N40 (n = 3). Likewise, most fleas were positive for uncultured Bartonella sp. (n = 45) followed by B. grahamii (n = 14), B. taylorii (n = 8), B. sp. N40 (n = 5) and Bartonella elizabethae (n = 2). Most ticks were positive for B. sp. (n = 19) followed by B. grahamii (n = 10), Bartonella chomelii (n = 3), B. taylorii (n = 2) and B. sp. N40 (n = 1). This study's results suggest that rodents and fleas may be reservoirs and vectors, respectively. Zoonotic B. grahamii and B. elizabethae were found in rodents and their fleas. Therefore, humans may contract Bartonella infection by contact to wild rodents. Ticks seem of minor importance in transmitting Bartonella spp. found in fleas and rodents. However, ticks might be vectors of B. chomelii.
authors.affiliation: Comparative Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany.|National Center of Vector Entomology, Institute of Parasitology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Cornelia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Silaghi
authors.affiliation: Institute of Animal Hygiene and Veterinary Public Health, University of Leipzig, An den Tierkliniken 1, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pfeffer
authors.affiliation: Comparative Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany.|Marco and Louise Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology (MDDE), Ben-Gurion University Negev, Beersheba, Israel.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kiefer
authors.affiliation: The Bavarian State Collection of Zoology, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Matthias
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kiefer
authors.affiliation: Institute of Animal Hygiene and Veterinary Public Health, University of Leipzig, An den Tierkliniken 1, 04103, Leipzig, Germany. Anna.Obiegala@vetmed.uni-leipzig.de.
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Obiegala
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001473:Bartonella / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D001474:Bartonella Infections / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission*; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D021901:DNA, Intergenic / Q000235:genetics; D004197:Disease Reservoirs / Q000382:microbiology*; D004199:Disease Vectors; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D026863:Ixodidae / Q000382:microbiology*; D008297:Male; D012376:Rodent Diseases / Q000382:microbiology; D012377:Rodentia / Q000382:microbiology*; D005423:Siphonaptera / Q000382:microbiology*
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D021901:DNA, Intergenic
keywords: Apodemus flavicollis; Bartonella spp.; Ctenophthalmus nobilis; Ixodes ricinus; Myodes glareolus