Rickettsia and Bartonella Species in Fleas from Reunion Island

Dieme, Constentin; Parola, Philippe; Guernier, Vanina; Lagadec, Erwan; Minter, Gildas Le; Balleydier, Elsa; Pagès, Frédéric; Dellagi, Koussay; Tortosa, Pablo; Raoult, Didier; Socolovschi, Cristina

doi:10.4269/ajtmh.14-0424

Cited by 10 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…Although it cannot be stated that these flea species are competent vectors of Bartonella, as they may have consumed Bartonella-infected blood from a host with bacteremia, their role as vectors of these bacteria cannot be ruled out; as such, future laboratory tests to verify their competence are necessary (Billeter et al, 2008). The prevalence of Bartonella in the rodent fleas in our study is within the ranges documented by other authors (2.1%-40.5%), values that vary with respect to the geographical area and flea species analyzed (Loftis et al, 2006;Marie et al, 2006;Li et al, 2007;Bitam et al, 2012;Billeter et al, 2014, Dieme et al, 2015, Lipatova et al, 2015. Bartonella DNA was found in several flea species with variations observed in the infection prevalence of Bartonella detected between flea species (4.2%-100%).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 58%

“…Several species of Bartonella have been detected in X. cheopis (B. elizabethae, B. grahamii, B. tribocorum, B. rochalimae, B. rattimassiliensis, Bartonella queenslandensis, and Bartonella sp. 1.1C;Billeter et al, 2008;Tsai et al, 2010;Billeter et al, 2011;Dieme et al, 2015), although its competence as a vector has only been determined experimentally for B. elizabethae, which would be eliminated through the feces (McKee et al, 2018). Tetrapsyllus rhombus was another very rare species, but which had a high prevalence of Bartonella DNA; there is no known history of pathogens that this flea species transmits.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Peer Review #1 of "Fleas of black rats (Rattus rattus) as reservoir host of Bartonella spp. in Chile (v0.1)"

Šlapeta¹

2019

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Background. Rattus rattus is a widely distributed, invasive species that presents an important role in disease transmission, either directly or through vector arthropods such as fleas. These black rats can transmit a wide variety of pathogens, including bacteria of the genus Bartonella, which can cause diseases in humans and animals. In Chile, no data are available identifying fleas from synanthropic rodents as Bartonella vectors. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of Bartonella spp. in the fleas of R. rattus in areas with different climate conditions and featuring different human population densities. Methods. In all, 174 fleas collected from 261 R. rattus captured from 30 localities with different human densities (cities, villages, and wild areas) across five hydrographic zones of Chile (hyper-arid, arid, semiarid, sub-humid, and hyper-humid) were examined. Bartonella spp. presence was determined through polymerase chain reaction, using gltA and rpoB genes, which were concatenated to perform a similarity analysis with BLAST and phylogenetic analysis. Results. Overall, 15 fleas species were identified; Bartonella gltA and rpoB fragments were detected in 21.2% (37/174) and 19.5% (34/174) of fleas, respectively. Ten of the 15 fleas species found were positive for Bartonella DNA. Leptopsylla segnis was the most commonly collected flea species (n=55), and it also presented a high prevalence of Bartonella DNA (P%=34.5%). The highest numbers of fleas of this species were collected in villages of the arid zone. There were no seasonal differences in the prevalence of Bartonella DNA. The presence of Bartonella DNA in fleas was recorded in all hydrographic areas, and the arid zone presented the highest prevalence of this species. Regarding areas with different human densities, the highest prevalence was noted in the villages (34.8% gltA and 31.8% rpoB), followed by cities (14.8% gltA and 11.1% rpoB) and wild areas (7.4% gltA and 14.8% rpoB). The BLAST analysis showed a high similitude (>96%) with four uncharacterized Bartonella genotypes and with two species with zoonotic potential: B. mastomydis and B. tribocorum. The phylogenetic analysis showed a close relationship with B. elizabethae and B. tribocorum. This is the first study to provide evidence of the presence of Bartonella in fleas of R. rattus in Chile, indicating that the villages and arid zone correspond to areas with higher infection risk.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 58%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Peer Review #1 of "Fleas of black rats (Rattus rattus) as reservoir host of Bartonella spp. in Chile (v0.1)"

Šlapeta¹

2019

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“…Second, a third (7/21) of the sera reactive with C. burnetii also reacted with SFGR or TGR or both, and those cross-reactions may result in Q fever seroprevalence overestimation. However, 71% of the participants showing cross-reactions lived in the western dryer part of the island, which is also the habitat of Xenopsylla cheopis , the rat flea, vector of murine typhus [15, 16]. This suggests that cross-reactions might signal previous exposure to multiple pathogens rather than false positives, which is more in keeping with seroprevalence figures.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seroprevalence of Coxiella burnetii (Q fever) Exposure in Humans on Reunion Island

Jaubert

Naze

Camuset³

et al. 2019

Open Forum Infectious Diseases

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After the documentation of sporadic cases of Q fever endocarditis, we conducted a serosurvey to assess Coxiella burnetii exposure on Reunion Island. Two hundred forty-one stored frozen human sera were analyzed using an immunofluorescence assay. The weighted seroprevalence of Q fever was of 6.81% (95% confidence interval, 4.02%–9.59%). Despite the absence of infection in youths <20 years of age, exposure was not driven by age or by gender. There was a spatial disparity in exposure across the island, with higher prevalence being reported in regions where ruminant farms are present. The seroprevalence pattern suggests that Q fever is endemic on Reunion Island.

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“…The samples were considered positive when the qPCR1 Ct was <36 and when samples also tested positive using another qPCR system, a standard procedure in our laboratory (17). The mosquitoes infected by the membrane system were also tested by qPCR2 using the following primers: Rfel_ guano_MBF, 5′GCATATACTTTATTGTGCGCAA-GTT-3′; Rfel_guano_MBR, 5′-TTTATCGATTGACAGAAGAAGAAATCA-3′; and Rfel_guano_MBP, 6FAM-TCGCTTTTTGGGATTGTTTGCCAGA, which target a guanosine polyphosphate gene (qPCR2) (42). For the animal model, in addition to the qPCR1 system, the presence of R. felis was confirmed by qPCR3, using specific primers and probes F (5′-CCCTTTTCGTAACGCTTTGCT-3′), R (5′-GGGCTAAAC-CAGGGAAACCT-3′) and P (6-FAM-TGTTCCGGTTTTAACGGCAGATACCCA-TAMR), which target a fragment of the R. felis Orf B gene (17).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transmission potential of Rickettsia felis infection by Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes

Dieme

Bechah

Socolovschi

et al. 2015

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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138

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A growing number of recent reports have implicated Rickettsia felis as a human pathogen, paralleling the increasing detection of R. felis in arthropod hosts across the globe, primarily in fleas. Here Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes, the primary malarial vectors in subSaharan Africa, were fed with either blood meal infected with R. felis or infected cellular media administered in membrane feeding systems. In addition, a group of mosquitoes was fed on R. felisinfected BALB/c mice. The acquisition and persistence of R. felis in mosquitoes was demonstrated by quantitative PCR detection of the bacteria up to day 15 postinfection. R. felis was detected in mosquito feces up to day 14. Furthermore, R. felis was visualized by immunofluorescence in salivary glands, in and around the gut, and in the ovaries, although no vertical transmission was observed. R. felis was also found in the cotton used for sucrose feeding after the mosquitoes were fed infected blood. Natural bites from R. felisinfected An. gambiae were able to cause transient rickettsemias in mice, indicating that this mosquito species has the potential to be a vector of R. felis infection. This is particularly important given the recent report of high prevalence of R. felis infection in patients with "fever of unknown origin" in malaria-endemic areas.Rickettsia felis | spotted fever | Anopheles gambiae I n 2002, Rickettsia felis, an obligate intracellular bacterium that belongs to the spotted fever group of Rickettsia, was definitively described (1, 2). Over the past 2 decades, an increasing number of reports have implicated R. felis as a human pathogen, paralleling an increase in reports of the detection of R. felis in arthropod hosts throughout the world (1, 3).By 2011, more than 70 human cases of R. felis had been reported worldwide, including in Central and South America, Asia, northern Africa, and Europe (1). More cases have been published since then, including the first probable human cases in Australia (4). In sub-Saharan Africa, recent studies have challenged the importance of R. felis infection in patients with "fever of unknown origin," with this bacterium detected in up to 15% of such patients (5-7). In 2011, a potential R. felis primary infection, called "yaaf," was suspected in the case of an 8-mo-old girl in Senegal with polymorphous skin lesions similar to those seen in patients from Mexico (8). The epidemiologic and clinical picture of this emerging infection in Africa, including its potential vectors, is poorly understood, however.Various arthropods, but primarily fleas, have been associated with R. felis (1, 3). More specifically, the cat flea Ctenocephalides felis is the arthropod in which R. felis has been most frequently detected. To date, it is the sole confirmed biological vector of R. felis, with both horizontal and vertical transmission making this flea a potential reservoir for this bacterium (9-11). However, in some countries where R. felis appears to be highly prevalent, such as Senegal, neither cat fleas nor other arthropods have been...

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Rickettsia and Bartonella Species in Fleas from Reunion Island

Cited by 10 publications

References 15 publications

Peer Review #1 of "Fleas of black rats (Rattus rattus) as reservoir host of Bartonella spp. in Chile (v0.1)"

Peer Review #1 of "Fleas of black rats (Rattus rattus) as reservoir host of Bartonella spp. in Chile (v0.1)"

Seroprevalence of Coxiella burnetii (Q fever) Exposure in Humans on Reunion Island

Transmission potential of Rickettsia felis infection by Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes

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