Recombinant Babesia canis merozoite surface antigen 1 (a.a. 1-303) [His, biotin]

Background Increasing molecular evidence supports that bats and/or their ectoparasites may harbor vector-borne bacteria, such as bartonellae and borreliae. However, the simultaneous occurrence of rickettsiae in bats and bat ticks has been poorly studied. Methods In this study, 54 bat carcasses and their infesting soft ticks (n = 67) were collected in Shihezi City, northwestern China. The heart, liver, spleen, lung, kidney, small intestine and large intestine of bats were dissected, followed by DNA extraction. Soft ticks were identified both morphologically and molecularly. All samples were examined for the presence of rickettsiae by amplifying four genetic markers (17-kDa, gltA, ompA and ompB). Results All bats were identified as Pipistrellus pipistrellus, and their ticks as Argas vespertilionis. Molecular analyses showed that DNA of Rickettsia parkeri, R. lusitaniae, R. slovaca and R. raoultii was present in bat organs/tissues. In addition, nine of the 67 bat soft ticks (13.43%) were positive for R. raoultii (n = 5) and R. rickettsii (n = 4). In the phylogenetic analysis, these bat-associated rickettsiae clustered together with conspecific sequences reported from other host and tick species, confirming the above results. Conclusions To the best of our knowledge, DNA of R. parkeri, R. slovaca and R. raoultii was detected for the first time in bat organs/tissues. This is also the first molecular evidence for the presence of R. raoultii and R. rickettsii in bat ticks. To our knowledge, R. parkeri was not known to occur in Asia. Our results highlight the need to assess rickettsial agents in a broader range of bat species and associated tick species.

Ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) collected from wild birds in Panama were tested for the presence of tick-borne pathogens as Rickettsia, Anaplasma, Ehrlichia, Bartonella, Borrelia, Hepatozoon sp., and Babesia. Overall 124 ticks were found in 57 birds belonging to 28 species: Amblyomma longirostre (32 larvae, 1 nymph), Amblyomma nodosum (30 nymphs), Amblyomma geayi (15 larvae, 1 nymph), Amblyomma varium (5 larvae, 2 nymphs), Amblyomma naponense (2 larvae), Amblyomma ovale (2 larvae), and Amblyomma calcaratum (1 larva). DNA of Rickettsia amblyommatis was detected in 65% ofA. longirostre, 69% of A. geayi and 14% of A. varium. Moreover, results from two larvae of A. longirostre showed DNA of unidentified Rickettsia sp. No DNA of Borrelia, Bartonella, Anaplasmataceae neither Babesia nor Hepatozoon was detected. These results expand knowledge about the host for immature Amblyomma ticks in Panama and show the first data of Rickettsia in ticks collected from birds in this country.