Abstract
We report the first evidence of Rickettsia massiliae in the brown dog tick, Rhipicephalus sanguineus, from the East Coast of the United States. As part of routine pathogen surveillance, DNA samples from ixodid ticks were tested for spotted fever group rickettsiae by nested PCR. A R. massiliae-positive tick was collected off a beagle mix recently rescued from North Carolina. Infection was confirmed by partial sequence analysis of the htrA, gltA, ompB, ompA, and sca4 genes, which had 100% identity to a R. massiliae isolate from Arizona.
Publication types
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Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
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Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
MeSH terms
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Animals
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Arachnid Vectors / microbiology*
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DNA, Bacterial / genetics
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Dog Diseases / microbiology
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Dog Diseases / parasitology
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Dogs
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Epidemiological Monitoring
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Genes, Bacterial / genetics
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Humans
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Male
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Maryland / epidemiology
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North Carolina / epidemiology
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Polymerase Chain Reaction
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Prevalence
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Rhipicephalus sanguineus / microbiology*
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Rickettsia / genetics
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Rickettsia / isolation & purification*
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Rickettsia Infections / epidemiology
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Rickettsia Infections / microbiology*
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Sequence Analysis, DNA
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Tick Infestations / epidemiology
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Tick Infestations / parasitology
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Tick Infestations / veterinary
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Virginia / epidemiology