Serological survey of Rickettsia in equids from Vale do Paraíba, São Paulo, Brazil, and their tick identification and molecular investigation of Rickettsia

Authors

  • Claudia Iorio Budweg Universidade Santo Amaro, Mestrado em Medicina e Bem-Estar Animal, São Paulo – SP, Brazil
  • Amanda Oliveira de Sousa Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, São Paulo – SP, Brazil
  • Tânia Regina Vieira de Carvalho Universidade Santo Amaro, Mestrado em Medicina e Bem-Estar Animal, São Paulo – SP, Brazil
  • Zahi Êni Santos Souza Universidade Santo Amaro, Mestrado em Medicina e Bem-Estar Animal, São Paulo – SP, Brazil
  • Maria Carolina de Azevedo Serpa Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, São Paulo – SP, Brazil
  • Thiago Fernandes Martins Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, São Paulo – SP, Brazil
  • Fernanda Nieri-Bastos Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, São Paulo – SP, Brazil
  • Arlei Marcili Universidade Santo Amaro, Mestrado em Medicina e Bem-Estar Animal, São Paulo – SP, Brazil; Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, São Paulo – SP, Brazil
  • Marcelo Bahia Labruna Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, São Paulo – SP, Brazil
  • Jonas Moraes-Filho Universidade Santo Amaro, Mestrado em Medicina e Bem-Estar Animal, São Paulo – SP, Brazil; Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal, São Paulo – SP, Brazil

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.11606/issn.1678-4456.bjvras.2019.158159

Keywords:

Ticks, Amblyomma, Dermacentor, qPCR, Host

Abstract

Brazilian spotted fever is a serious and lethal illness for humans and is caused by the Rickettsia rickettsii bacteria. In the state of São Paulo/SP (Brazil), the etiological agent of this disease is transmitted by the Amblyomma sculptum tick. It was already shown that horses infected with this bacteria produce a strong immune response and could be important sentinels for the detection of the disease in a proper region. The present investigation performed a serological survey in horses from five farms of Vale do Paraíba, São Paulo state, Brazil, searching for antibodies against, Rickettsia rickettsii, Rickettsia parkeri, Rickettsia amblyommatis, Rickettsia rhipicephali, and Rickettsia bellii. In each farm, ticks were also collected that were taxonomically identified and examined by real-time PCR for Rickettsia spp DNA. Blood samples were collected from 206 horses, and 334 ticks were picked up from these animals from January to December 2017. Eighty ticks were
A. sculptum and 254 Dermacentor nitens. Of the blood samples, 7.3% seroconverted to Rickettsia spp. Of these, 0.97% had a positive serological response to R. bellii. None of the 80 A. sculptum ticks were positive through real-time PCR for Rickettsia spp. Although there was no detection of ticks infected by Rickettsia spp in five farms of Paraíba Valley, the horses presented serological positive reactions against this agent. Thus, further large studies should be conducted in the area targeting hosts and vectors to generate data for control measures of the transmission of Brazilian spotted fever. 

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Published

2019-12-09

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How to Cite

Serological survey of Rickettsia in equids from Vale do Paraíba, São Paulo, Brazil, and their tick identification and molecular investigation of Rickettsia. (2019). Brazilian Journal of Veterinary Research and Animal Science, 56(4), e158159. https://doi.org/10.11606/issn.1678-4456.bjvras.2019.158159