title: Detection of Rickettsia hoogstraalii, Rickettsia helvetica, Rickettsia massiliae, Rickettsia slovaca and Rickettsia aeschlimannii in ticks from Sardinia, Italy.
abstract: Tick-borne diseases represent a large proportion of infectious diseases that have become a world health concern. The presence of Rickettsia spp. was evaluated by standard PCR and sequencing in 123 ticks collected from several mammals and vegetation in Sardinia, Italy. This study provides the first evidence of the presence of Rickettsia hoogstralii in Haemaphysalis punctata and Haemaphysalis sulcata ticks from mouflon and Rickettsia helvetica in Ixodes festai ticks from hedgehog. In addition, Rickettsia massiliae, Rickettsia slovaca and Rickettsia aeschlimannii were detected in Rhipicephalus sanguineus, Dermacentor marginatus and Hyalomma marginatum marginatum ticks from foxes, swine, wild boars, and mouflon. The data presented here increase our knowledge of tick-borne diseases in Sardinia and provide a useful contribution toward understanding their epidemiology.
authors.affiliation: Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sardegna, Sassari, Italy.
authors.forename: Valentina
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Chisu
authors.affiliation: Aix Marseille Université, Unité de Recherche en Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes (URMITE), UM63, CNRS 7278, IRD 198 (Dakar), Inserm 1095, Marseille, France; Ecole Nationale Supérieure Vétérinaire d'Alger, El Aliya Algiers, 16000, Algeria.
authors.forename: Hamza
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Leulmi
authors.affiliation: Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sardegna, Sassari, Italy.
authors.forename: Giovanna
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Masala
authors.affiliation: Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sardegna, Sassari, Italy.
authors.forename: Mariano
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Piredda
authors.affiliation: Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sardegna, Sassari, Italy.
authors.forename: Cipriano
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Foxi
authors.affiliation: Aix Marseille Université, Unité de Recherche en Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes (URMITE), UM63, CNRS 7278, IRD 198 (Dakar), Inserm 1095, Marseille, France. Electronic address: philippe.parola@univ-amu.fr.
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Parola
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D003870:Dermacentor / Q000382:microbiology*; D006364:Hedgehogs / Q000382:microbiology / Q000469:parasitology; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008322:Mammals / Q000382:microbiology / Q000469:parasitology; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012281:Rickettsia / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D012282:Rickettsia Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D034561:Sheep, Domestic / Q000382:microbiology / Q000469:parasitology; D017282:Tick-Borne Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial
keywords: Rickettsia helvetica; Rickettsia hoogstraalii; Sardinia; Ticks