Lyme disease: why the controversy?

Beaman, Miles

doi:10.1111/imj.13278

Cited by 14 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…The clinical impact and zoonotic potential of 'Ca. E. occidentalis' remains unknown and needs to be explored in more detail given the current public health concerns regarding tick-transmitted diseases in Australia (Beaman, 2016;Collignon et al, 2016).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Detection and phylogenetic characterisation of novel Anaplasma and Ehrlichia species in Amblyomma triguttatum subsp. from four allopatric populations in Australia

Gofton

Waudby

Petit

et al. 2017

Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases

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Anaplasma and Ehrlichia spp. are tick-borne pathogens that can cause severe disease in domestic animals, and several species are responsible for emerging zoonoses in the northern hemisphere. Until recently, the only members of these genera reported in Australia (A. marginale, A. centrale, and A. platys) were introduced from other continents, through the importation of domestic animals and their associated ticks. However, unique Anaplasma and Ehrlichia 16S rRNA gene sequences were recently detected for the first time in native Australian ticks, particularly in Amblyomma triguttatum subsp. ticks from southwest Western Australia (WA). We used molecular techniques to survey Am. triguttatum subsp. ticks from four allopatric populations in southern and western Australia for Anaplasma and Ehrlichia species, and described here the phylogeny of these novel organisms. An A. bovis variant (genotype Y11) was detected in ticks from two study sites; Yanchep National Park (12/280, 4.3%) and Barrow Island (1/69, 1.4%). Phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA and groEL gene sequences concluded that A. bovis genotype Y11 is a unique genetic variant, distinct from other A. bovis isolates worldwide. Additionally, a novel Ehrlichia species was detected in Am. triguttatum subsp. from three of the four study sites; Yanchep National Park (18/280, 6.4%), Bungendore Park (8/46, 17.4%), and Innes National Park (9/214, 4.2%), but not from Barrow Island. Phylogenetic analysis of 16S, groEL, gltA, and map1 gene sequences revealed that this Ehrlichia sp. is most closely related to, but clearly distinct from, E. ruminantium and Ehrlichia sp. Panola Mountain. We propose to designate this new species 'Candidatus Ehrlichia occidentalis'. Anaplasma bovis genotype Y11 and 'Candidatus E. occidentalis' are the first Anaplasma and Ehrlichia species to be recorded in native Australian ticks.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Detection and phylogenetic characterisation of novel Anaplasma and Ehrlichia species in Amblyomma triguttatum subsp. from four allopatric populations in Australia

Gofton

Waudby

Petit

et al. 2017

Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases

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“…A myriad of Ixodes ticks reside in Australia, the most common and perhaps medically relevant being Ixodes holocyclus , which can be found along the east coast . I. holocyclus has been implicated in tick paralysis and transmission of rickettsial infections . To date, no Australian ticks have been shown to transmit B.microti .…”

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confidence: 99%

No evidence for widespread Babesia microti transmission in Australia

et al. 2019

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BACKGROUND A fatal case of autochthonous Babesia microti infection was reported in Australia in 2012. This has implications for Australian public health and, given that babesiosis is transfusion transmissible, has possible implications for Australian blood transfusion recipients. We investigated the seroprevalence of antibodies to B. microti in Australian blood donors and in patients with clinically suspected babesiosis. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS Plasma samples (n = 7,000) from donors donating in at‐risk areas and clinical specimens from patients with clinically suspected babesiosis (n = 29) were tested for B. microti IgG by immunofluorescence assay (IFA). IFA initially reactive samples were tested for B. microti IgG and IgM by immunoblot and B. microti DNA by polymerase chain reaction. RESULTS Although five donors were initially reactive for B. microti IgG by IFA, none was confirmed for B. microti IgG (zero estimate; 95% confidence interval, 0%–0.05%) and all were negative for B. microti DNA. None of the patient samples had B. microti IgG, IgM, or DNA. CONCLUSIONS This study does not provide evidence for widespread exposure to B. microti in Australian blood donors at local theoretical risk, nor does it provide evidence of B. microti infection in Australian patients with clinically suspected babesiosis. Given that confirmed evidence of previous exposure to B. microti was not seen, these data suggest that transmission of this pathogen is currently uncommon in Australia and unlikely to pose a risk to transfusion safety at present.

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“…In Australia endemic ‘Australian Lyme disease’ has been controversial for at least 30 years . The issues surrounding ‘Australian Lyme disease’ have been reviewed recently and recommendations for diagnosis have been published . There is no current evidence of B. burgdorferi sensu lato in non‐travelling Australian patients or Australian ticks …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…4 The issues surrounding 'Australian Lyme disease' have been reviewed recently and recommendations for diagnosis have been published. [5][6][7][8] There is no current evidence of B. burgdorferi sensu lato in non-travelling Australian patients or Australian ticks. 5,[9][10][11] However, there are patient advocacy groups and some doctors in Australia that describe, diagnose and treat an Australian 'Lyme-like illness'.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%