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. 2019 Apr;57(2):167-173.
doi: 10.3347/kjp.2019.57.2.167. Epub 2019 Apr 30.

Survey of Rickettsia spp. and Orientia tsutsugamushi Pathogens Found in Animal Vectors (Ticks, Fleas, Chiggers) in Bangkaew District, Phatthalung Province, Thailand

Amornrat Sanprick  1 , Thanapon Yooyen  1 , Wuttikon Rodkvamtook  2
Affiliations

Survey of Rickettsia spp. and Orientia tsutsugamushi Pathogens Found in Animal Vectors (Ticks, Fleas, Chiggers) in Bangkaew District, Phatthalung Province, Thailand

Amornrat Sanprick et al. Korean J Parasitol. 2019 Apr.

Abstract

Rickettsial infections (Rickettsioses) are the causes of acute fever found in Thailand. It is classified as acute febrile illnesses transmitted by bloodsucking arthropod vectors (tick, flea, and chigger). This research investigated pathogens of scrub typhus in vectors from Bangkaew District, Phatthalung Province. A total of 303 pools of vector samples were ticks (Rhipicephalus sanguineus, R. microplus, and Haemaphysalis sp.), fleas (Ctenocephalides felis orientis, C. f. felis, and C. canis), and chiggers (Leptotrombidium deliense, Aschoschoengastia indica, Blankaartia acuscutellaris and Walchia disparunguis pingue) collected from reservoir hosts (dogs and rodents). The 17 and 56 kDa gene of Rickettsia causing scrub typhus were found in 29% of ticks and 98% of flea. DNA sequence analysis reveeled the detected strains were R. asembonensis and Rickettsia sp. cf1 and 5.The chiggers, 1%, were infected with Rickettsia strain TA763, a pathogen of scrub typhus.

Keywords: Orientia tsutsugamushi; Rickettsia; bloodsucking arthropod; scrub typhu.

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Conflict of interest statement

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

The authors have no conflicts of interest concerning the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Chiggers. (A) Leptotrombidium delicense, (B) Blankaartia acuscutellaris, (C) Aschoschoengastia indica, (D) Walchia disparunguis pingue (S: scutum).
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Ticks. (A) Rhipicephalus sanguineus, (B) R. microplus, (C) Haemaphysalis sp. (BC: basis capitula, Cp: caudal appendage, E: eye, F: festoon, H: hypostome, Lg: lateral groove, P: palp, Pg: posteromedian groove).
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Fleas. (A) Ctenocephalides felis orientis, (B) C. f. felis, (C) C. canis (Gc: genal comb, PC: pronotal comb).
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Phylogenetic tree analysis of ticks via Neighbor Joining (NJ) (1,000 bootstrap). Italics words=data from GenBank (NCBI). ●=examples of Rickettsia spp. in this study. ○=Sample of Rickettsia spp. from the blood of patients admitted to Bangkaew Hospital, Bangkaew District, Phatthalung Province (information from Armed Forces Research Institute of Medical Science, Royal Thai Army).
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Phylogenetic tree analysis of fleas via Neighbor Joining (NJ) (1,000 bootstrap). Italics words=data from GenBank (NCBI). ●=examples of Rickettsia spp. in this study. ○=Sample of Rickettsia spp. from the blood of patients admitted to Bangkaew Hospital, Bangkaew District, Phatthalung Province (information from Armed Forces Research Institute of Medical Science, Royal Thai Army).
Fig. 6
Fig. 6
Phylogenetic tree analysis of chiggers via Neighbor Joining (NJ) (1,000 bootstrap). ●=examples of O. tsutsugamushi in this study. ○=Sample of O. tsutsugamushi from the blood of patients admitted to Bangkaew Hospital, Bangkaew District, Phatthalung Province (information from Armed Forces Research Institute of Medical Science, Royal Thai Army).
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