Detection of Brazilian spotted fever infection by polymerase chain reaction in a patient from the state of São Paulo

Brazilian spotted fever (BSF) cases have been increasing in the state of São Paulo but no genomic information about local rickettsia isolated from humans has been well documented. We recovered spotted-fever group rickettsiae from a sample of patient blood cultured in Vero cells using the shell vial technique. Rickettsial DNA fragments (gltA, ompA, and, ompB genes) were detected, and analysis of the ompB gene base sequences showed identity with the Rickettsia rickettsii ompB sequence available in the GenBank.

Detection of Rickettsia rickettsii in the tick Amblyomma cajennense in a new Brazilian spotted fever-endemic area in the state of Minas Gerais

The present study evaluated rickettsial infection in Amblyomma spp. ticks collected in a farm in Coronel Pacheco, a Brazilian spotted fever (BSF) endemic area. A total of 78 A. cajennense and 78 A. dubitatum free-living adult ticks were collected and tested by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) targeting a fragment of the rickettsial gene gltA. Only one pool of three A. cajennense ticks showed the expected product by PCR. This pool was further tested by PCR using sets of primers targeting the rickettsial genes gltA, ompA, and ompB. All reactions yielded the expected bands that by sequencing, showed 100% identity to the corresponding sequences of the Rickettsia rickettsii gene fragments gltA (1063-bp), ompA (457-bp), and ompB (720-bp). The minimal infection rate of R. rickettii in the A. cajennense population was 1.28% (at least one infected tick within 78 ticks).The present study showed molecular evidence for the presence of R. rickettsii in A. cajennense from a BSF-endemic area in Coronel Pacheco, state of Minas Gerais. Although R. rickettsii has been previously reported infecting A. cajennense ticks in Brazil and other Latin American countries, the present study performed the first molecular characterization of R. rickettsii from the tick A. cajennense.

Molecular identification of Rickettsia felis in ticks and fleas from an endemic area for Brazilian Spotted Fever

Rickettsioses are arthropod-borne diseases caused by parasites from the Order Rickettsiales. The most prevalent rickettsial disease in Brazil is Brazilian Spotted Fever (BSF). This work intends the molecular detection of those agents in ectoparasites from an endemic area of BSF in the state of Espírito Santo. A total of 502 ectoparasites, among them Amblyomma cajennense, Amblyomma dubitatum (A. cooperi), Riphicephalus sanguineus, Anocentor nitens and Ctenocephalides felis, was collected from domestic animals and the environment and separated in 152 lots according to the origin. Rickettsia sp. was detected in pools of all collected species by amplification of 17kDa protein-encoding gene fragments. The products of PCR amplification of three samples were sequenced, and Rickettsia felis was identified in R. sanguineus and C. felis. These results confirm the presence of Rickettsia felis in areas previously known as endemic for BSF, disease caused by Rickettsia rickettsii. Moreover, they show the needing of further studies for deeper knowledge of R. felis-spotted fever epidemiology and differentiation of these diseases in Brazil.

Outbreak of Rocky Mountain spotted fever in Córdoba, Colombia

Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF) is a tick-borne disease caused by the obligate intracellular bacterium Rickettsia rickettsii. Although RMSF was first reported in Colombia in 1937, it remains a neglected disease. Herein, we describe the investigation of a large cluster of cases of spotted fever rickettsiosis in a new area of Colombia.

Spotted fever group Rickettsia infecting ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) in the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil

During 2006-2008, a total of 260 adult ticks were collected from domestic and wild animals in different regions of the state of Santa Catarina (SC), Brazil, including areas where human cases of Brazilian spotted fever have been reported. Collected ticks belonging to nine species (Amblyomma aureolatum, Amblyomma cajennense, Amblyomma dubitatum, Amblyomma longirostre, Amblyomma ovale, Amblyomma tigrinum, Dermacentor nitens, Rhipicephalus microplus and Rhipicephalus sanguineus) were tested by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for rickettsial infection. Overall, eight (3.1%) ticks were found to be infected with Rickettsia species. After sequencing the PCR products, we determined that the sequences generated from three A. aureolatum, one A. ovale and one R. sanguineus from the municipality of Blumenau, one A. ovale from the municipality of Águas Mornas and one A. ovale from the municipality of Urussanga were identical to the corresponding partial rickettsial ompA gene sequence of Rickettsia parkeri strain Atlantic rainforest. The sequence generated from one A. longirostre from Blumenau was 100% identical to the corresponding partial rickettsial ompA gene sequence of Rickettsia amblyommii strain AL. Because R. parkeri strain Atlantic rainforest was recently shown to have caused two cases of human spotted fever in other states of Brazil, the role of this rickettsial agent as a possible etiological agent of spotted fever in SC is discussed.

Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae, a spotted fever group agent infecting Amblyomma parvum ticks in two Brazilian biomes

Adult ticks of the species Amblyomma parvum were collected from the vegetation in the Pantanal biome (state of Mato Grosso do Sul) and from horses in the Cerrado biome (state of Piauí) in Brazil. The ticks were individually tested for rickettsial infection via polymerase chain reaction (PCR) targeting three rickettsial genes, gltA, ompA and ompB. Overall, 63.5% (40/63) and 66.7% (2/3) of A. parvum ticks from Pantanal and Cerrado, respectively, contained rickettsial DNA, which were all confirmed by DNA sequencing to be 100% identical to the corresponding fragments of the gltA, ompA and ompB genes of Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae. This report is the first to describe Ca. R. andeanae in Brazil.

Rickettsia amblyommii infecting Amblyomma sculptum in endemic spotted fever area from southeastern Brazil

The Rickettsia bacteria include the aetiological agents for the human spotted fever (SF) disease. In the present study, a SF groupRickettsia amblyommii related bacterium was detected in a field collected Amblyomma sculptum (Amblyomma cajennense species complex) tick from a Brazilian SF endemic site in southeastern Brazil, in the municipality of Juiz de Fora, state of Minas Gerais. Genetic analysis based on genes ompA,ompB and htrA showed that the detected strain, named R. amblyommii str. JF, is related to the speciesR. amblyommii.

The invasive spotted-wing Drosophila (Diptera, Drosophilidae) has been found in the city of São Paulo (Brazil)

The invasive spotted-wing Drosophila (Diptera, Drosophilidae) has been found in the city of São Paulo (Brazil). Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura, 1931), the cherry fly or spotted-wing Drosophila, a pest species from the Oriental and southeastern Palaearctic regions belonging to the melanogaster group, invaded the Nearctic and western countries of the Palaearctic regions late last decade (2008) and, more recently (2013), the southern Brazilian states of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina. Early in 2014 it was reared from blueberries produced in São Joaquim, state of Santa Catarina, that were bought at a São Paulo city grocery store. Despite being a cold-adapted species, after having arrived to the southeastern state of São Paulo, this invasive fly will probably expand its territory to other Brazilian states and South American countries through trade of cultivated soft skin small fruits, such as blueberries and strawberries, as well as naturally through the use of small wild fruits as breeding sites.

Evaluation of peanut genotypes for resistance to Tomato spotted wilt virus by mechanical and thrips inoculation

The objective of this work was to evaluate the reactions of three peanut breeding lines (IC-10, IC-34, and ICGV 86388) to Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) by mechanical and thrips inoculation, under greenhouse conditions, and compare them to the reactions of cultivars SunOleic, Georgia Green, and the breeding line C11-2-39. TSWV infection by mechanical inoculation was visually assessed using an index ranging from 0 (no symptoms) to 4 (apical death). Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to confirm TSWV infection from both mechanical and thrips inoculations. IC-10, IC-34, ICGV 86388, and C11-2-39 were more resistant than the cultivars SunOleic and Georgia Green based on mechanical inoculation. Upon thrips inoculation only IC-34 and ICGV-86388 were infected by TSWV, as demonstrated by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), although no symptoms of infection were observed. The peanut breeding lines IC-10, IC-34, and ICGV 86388 show higher level of resistance to TSWV than cultivar Georgia Green considered a standard for TSWV resistance.

Primeiro relato do Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) em Campanula medium L. no Brasil

Plantas de campânula (Campanula medium) exibindo mosaico e necrose foliar e anéis em flores foram coletadas em uma estufa comercial de flores na região de Atibaia, SP. Suspeitando de possível etiologia viral, amostras de tecido lesionado foram analisadas por ensaios de transmissão mecânica, microscopia eletrônica e sorologia. Todos os resultados apontaram para a presença do Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) como o responsável pelos sintomas. Esse é o primeiro relato deste patógeno em campânula no Brasil.

Serological evidence of Rickettsia parkeri as the etiological agent of rickettsiosis in Uruguay

We report three new rickettsiosis human cases in Uruguay. The three clinical cases presented clinical manifestations similar to previous reported cases of Rickettsia parkeri in the United States; that is mild fever (< 40 ºC), malaise, headache, rash, inoculation eschar at the tick bite site, regional lymphadenopathy, and no lethality. Serological antibody-absorption tests with purified antigens of R. parkeri and Rickettsia rickettsii, associated with immunofluorescence assay indicated that the patients in two cases were infected by R. parkeri. Epidemiological and clinical evidences, coupled with our serological analysis, suggest that R. parkeri is the etiological agent of human cases of spotted fever in Uruguay, a disease that has been recognized in that country as cutaneous-ganglionar rickettsiosis.

Rhipicephalus sanguineus (ACARI: IXODIDAE) BITING A HUMAN BEING IN PORTOALEGRE CITY, RIO GRANDE DO SUL, BRAZIL

We report the finding of a female brown dog tick, Rhipicephalus sanguineus (Acari: Ixodidae) on the scalp of a male patient inPorto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Human parasitism by this tick is rare and has seldomly been reported in the literature, despite its recognized importance since it can act as a vector of Rickettsia rickettsii, the agent of spotted fever.

Report on ticks collected in the Southeast and Mid-West regions of Brazil: analyzing the potential transmission of tick-borne pathogens to man

Specimens of ticks were collected in 1993, 1996, 1997, and 1998, mostly from wild and domestic animals in the Southeast and Mid-West regions of Brazil. Nine species of Amblyommidae were identified: Anocentor nitens, Amblyomma cajennense, Amblyomma ovale, Amblyomma fulvum, Amblyomma striatum, Amblyomma rotundatum, Boophilus microplus, Boophilus annulatus, and Rhipicephalus sanguineus. The potential of these tick species as transmitters of pathogens to man was analyzed. A Flaviviridade Flavivirus was isolated from Amblyomma cajennense specimens collected from a sick capybara (Hydrochaeris hydrochaeris). Amblyomma cajennense is the main transmitter of Rickettsia rickettsii (=R. rickettsi), the causative agent of spotted fever in Brazil. Wild mammals, mainly capybaras and deer, infested by ticks and living in close contact with cattle, horses and dogs, offer the risk of transmission of wild zoonosis to these domestic animals and to man.