An exotic souvenir on a German traveler returning from South Africa

Lidia Chitimia-Dobler; Ben J Mans

doi:10.1007/s00436-022-07480-0

An exotic souvenir on a German traveler returning from South Africa

Parasitol Res. 2022 May;121(5):1527-1531. doi: 10.1007/s00436-022-07480-0. Epub 2022 Mar 12.

Authors

Lidia Chitimia-Dobler¹, Ben J Mans^{2

3

4}

Affiliations

¹ Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology, Neuherbergstrasse 11, 80937, Munich, Germany.
² Epidemiology, Parasites and Vectors, Agricultural Research Council-Onderstepoort Veterinary Research, Onderstepoort, South Africa. [email protected].
³ Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa. [email protected].
⁴ Department of Life and Consumer Sciences, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa. [email protected].

PMID: 35277752
DOI: 10.1007/s00436-022-07480-0

Abstract

The study reports the finding of a nymph attached to a German tourist during a holiday in South Africa. The nymph specimen was morphologically identified and confirmed by sequence analysis of the 16S rRNA and 12S rRNA genes. The nymph was identified as Rhipicephalus maculatus, a rare tick reported in humans. Screening using the pan-Rickettsia-PCR for infection gave a negative result.

Keywords: Germany; Human; South Africa; Tick.

MeSH terms

Animals
Humans
Nymph
RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / genetics
Rhipicephalus* / genetics
Rickettsia* / genetics
Südafrika

Substances

RNA, Ribosomal, 16S