Acquisition of Coinfection and Simultaneous Transmission of Borrelia burgdorferi and Ehrlichia phagocytophila by Ixodes scapularis Ticks

ABSTRACT The agents of Lyme disease (Borrelia burgdorferi) and human granulocytic ehrlichiosis (Ehrlichia phagocytophila) are both transmitted by the tick Ixodes scapularis. In nature, ticks are often infected with both agents simultaneously. We studied whether previous infection with either Borrelia orEhrlichia in ticks would affect acquisition and transmission of a second pathogen. Ehrlichia-infectedI. scapularis nymphs were fed uponBorrelia-infected mice, and Borrelia-infectedI. scapularis nymphs were fed uponEhrlichia-infected mice. The efficiency with which previously infected nymphal ticks acquired a second pathogen from infected hosts was compared to that of uninfected ticks. An average of 51% ± 15% of ticks acquired Ehrlichia from infected mice regardless of their prior infection status with Borrelia. An average of 85% ± 10% of ticks acquired Borrelia from infected mice regardless of their prior infection status withEhrlichia. Also, we assessed the efficiency with which individual nymphs could transmit either agent alone, or both agents simultaneously, to individual susceptible hosts. An average of 76% ± 9% of Borrelia-infected ticks and 84% ± 10% ofEhrlichia-infected ticks transmitted these agents to mice regardless of the presence of the other pathogen. There was no evidence of interaction between the agents of Lyme disease and human granulocytic ehrlichiosis in I. scapularis ticks. The presence of either agent in the ticks did not affect acquisition of the other agent from an infected host. Transmission of the agents of Lyme disease and human granulocytic ehrlichiosis by individual ticks was equally efficient and independent. Dually infected ticks transmitted each pathogen to susceptible hosts as efficiently as ticks infected with only one pathogen.

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Heat Shock Protein 70 of the Agent of Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis Binds to Borrelia burgdorferi Antibodies

Clinical and Diagnostic Laboratory Immunology ◽

10.1128/cdli.5.1.118-120.1998 ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 118-120 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Jacob W. Ijdo ◽

Yan Zhang ◽

Matthew L. Anderson ◽

David Goldberg ◽

Erol Fikrig

Keyword(s):

Heat Shock ◽

Lyme Disease ◽

Borrelia Burgdorferi ◽

Heat Shock Protein ◽

Immunoblot Analysis ◽

Test Results ◽

Hsp 70 ◽

Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis ◽

Amino Terminal ◽

Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis

ABSTRACT We describe a patient with human granulocytic ehrlichiosis (HGE), a diagnosis confirmed by PCR and immunoblot analysis. Unexpectedly, immunoglobulin G (IgG) directed towards an 80-kDa ehrlichial antigen (without detectable IgM) was present in the patient’s serum in the first week of illness. Lyme disease immunoblots were reactive for IgG (but not IgM), a result indicative of prior exposure to the Lyme disease spirochete. Amino-terminal sequencing revealed that the 80-kDa ehrlichial antigen was an HSP-70 homolog similar to Borrelia burgdorferi HSP-70. We conclude that antibodies against B. burgdorferi HSP-70 may cross-react with the ehrlichial heat shock protein and that this possibility must be considered when serologic test results for HGE and Lyme disease are interpreted.

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Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis Agent Infection in a Pony Vaccinated with a Borrelia burgdorferi Recombinant OspA Vaccine and Challenged by Exposure to Naturally Infected Ticks

Clinical and Diagnostic Laboratory Immunology ◽

10.1128/cdli.7.1.68-71.2000 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 7 (1) ◽

pp. 68-71 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Yung-Fu Chang ◽

Sean P. McDonough ◽

Chao-Fu Chang ◽

Kwang-Soon Shin ◽

William Yen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Borrelia Burgdorferi ◽

Inclusion Bodies ◽

Ixodes Scapularis ◽

Clinical Signs ◽

Buffy Coat ◽

The Body ◽

Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis ◽

Flunixin Meglumine ◽

Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis ◽

Vector Dna

ABSTRACT A pony was vaccinated with recombinant OspA vaccine (rOspA) and then exposed 3 months later to Borrelia burgdorferi-infected ticks (Ixodes scapularis) collected in Westchester County, N.Y. At 2 weeks after tick exposure, the pony developed a high fever (105°F). Buffy coat smears showed that 20% of neutrophils contained ehrlichial inclusion bodies (morulae). Flunixin Meglumine (1 g daily) was given for 2 days, and the body temperature returned to normal. PCR for ehrlichial DNA was performed on blood samples for 10 consecutive days beginning when the pony was first febrile. This pony was monitored for another 3.5 months but developed no further clinical signs. The 44-kDa immunodominant human granulocytic ehrlichiosis antigen gene was amplified by PCR and cloned into a pCR2.1 vector. DNA sequence analysis of this gene showed it was only 8 bp different (99% identity) from the results reported by others (J.W. Ijdo et al., Infect. Immun. 66:3264–3269, 1998). Western blot analysis, growth inhibition assays, and repeated attempts to isolate B. burgdorferi all demonstrated the pony was protected against B. burgdorferi infection. These results highlight the potential for ticks to harbor and transmit several pathogens simultaneously, which further complicates the diagnosis and vaccination of these emerging tick-borne diseases.

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Deer Ticks (Ixodes scapularis) and the Agents of Lyme Disease and Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis in a New York City Park

Emerging Infectious Diseases ◽

10.3201/eid0303.970312 ◽

1997 ◽

Vol 3 (3) ◽

pp. 353-355 ◽

Cited By ~ 33

Author(s):

Thomas Daniels

Keyword(s):

New York ◽

New York City ◽

Lyme Disease ◽

York City ◽

Ixodes Scapularis ◽

Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis ◽

Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis ◽

City Park

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Detection of four Borrelia burgdorferi genospecies and first report of human granulocytic ehrlichiosis agent in Ixodes ricinus ticks collected in central Italy

Epidemiology and Infection ◽

10.1017/s0950268802007057 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 129 (1) ◽

pp. 93-97 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

I. SANTINO ◽

M. DEL PIANO ◽

R. SESSA ◽

G. FAVIA ◽

A. IORI

Keyword(s):

Borrelia Burgdorferi ◽

Ixodes Ricinus ◽

Protected Area ◽

Central Italy ◽

First Report ◽

Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis ◽

Ehrlichia Phagocytophila ◽

Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis ◽

Ixodes Ricinus Ticks ◽

Male Tick

The presence of Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. and of Ehrlichia phagocytophila group was sought by PCR in Ixodes ricinus collected in a protected area of central Italy. Nymphs (n = 1475, gathered in 295 pools of 5 nymphs each) and adult ticks (n = 28) were examined. B. burgdorferi s.l. was detected in 13.8% of the nymph pools; of these, 63.4% were infected by B. valaisiana, 26.8% by B. afzelii, 7.3% by B. garinii, and 2.5% by B. burgdorferi s.s. Only a single adult male tick proved to host B. afzelii. The agent of human granulocytic ehrlichiosis (HGE) was detected in 2.7% of the nymph pools. Two HGE agent-positive nymph pools were also found to be positive for B. garinii and for B. afzelii, respectively. This is the first report from central Italy of the finding of the HGE agent in ticks.

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Prevalence of Borrelia Burgdorferi Sensu Lato Genomospecies and of the Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis (HGE) Agent in Ixodes Ricinus Ticks Collected in the Area of Monti Lepini, Italy

International Journal of Immunopathology and Pharmacology ◽

10.1177/039463200301600203 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 16 (2) ◽

pp. 105-108 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

I. Santino ◽

A. Iori ◽

M. Nicoletti ◽

S. Valletta ◽

C. Cimmino ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Borrelia Burgdorferi ◽

Pcr Amplification ◽

Sensu Stricto ◽

16S Rrna Genes ◽

Rrna Genes ◽

Borrelia Burgdorferi Sensu Lato ◽

Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis ◽

Ehrlichia Phagocytophila ◽

Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis ◽

Ixodes Ricinus Ticks

Ticks are obligate hematophagous arthropods that are parasites in every class of vertebrates in most regions of the world. They are also considered to be important vectors for the transmission of human infectious diseases. In the present study we used polymer chain reaction (PCR) amplification analysis to determine the prevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi and Ehrlichia phagocytophila, the agents of, respectively, Lyme borreliosis and human granulocytic ehrlichiosis, among ticks inhabiting the area of Monti Lepini, a wild area located in the Latium Region of Italy. A total of 141 I. ricinus ticks (125 nymphs and 16 adults) were collected in the studied area. Total DNAs were extracted from I. ricinus nymphs (pooled in groups of five) and from individual adults. The DNA samples were examined for the presence of B. burgdorferi sensu lato and E. phagocytophila by PCR using two specific pairs of oligonucleotides that specifically amplify distinct DNA regions of the 16S rRNA genes of the two species. The prevalence of vectors infected with B. burgdorferi s. 1. was 16% in pooled nymphs samples, and 12.5% in adult ticks, while E. phagocytophila was found only in pooled nymphs samples (8%). Three genomospecies were identified, namely Borrelia afzelii, Borrelia garinii, and Borrelia valaisiana, in samples found positive for B. burgdorferi s. 1. No sample was found positive for Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto.

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Prevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi and Granulocytic and Monocytic Ehrlichiae in Ixodes ricinusTicks from Southern Germany

Journal of Clinical Microbiology ◽

10.1128/jcm.37.11.3448-3451.1999 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 37 (11) ◽

pp. 3448-3451 ◽

Cited By ~ 52

Author(s):

Birgit U. Baumgarten ◽

Martin Röllinghoff ◽

Christian Bogdan

Keyword(s):

Borrelia Burgdorferi ◽

The United States ◽

Tick Population ◽

Original Sequence ◽

Southern Germany ◽

Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis ◽

Ehrlichia Phagocytophila ◽

16S Ribosomal Dna ◽

Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis ◽

Pcr Products

A total of 287 adult Ixodes ricinus ticks, collected in two regions of southern Germany (Frankonia and Baden-Württemberg) where Borrelia burgdorferi infections are known to be endemic, were examined for the presence of 16S ribosomal DNA specific for the Ehrlichia phagocytophila genogroup, E. chaffeensis, E. canis, and B. burgdorferiby nested PCR. Totals of 2.2% (6 of 275) and 21.8% (65 of 275) of the ticks were positive for the E. phagocytophila genogroup andB. burgdorferi, respectively. Two ticks (0.7%) were coinfected with both bacteria. Of 12 engorged I. ricinusticks collected from two deer, 8 (67%) were positive for the E. phagocytophila genogroup and one (8%) was positive for B. burgdorferi. There was no evidence of infection with E. canis or E. chaffeensis in the investigated tick population. The nucleotide sequences of the 546-bpEhrlichia PCR products differed at one or two positions from the original sequence of the human granulocytic ehrlichiosis (HGE) agent (S.-M. Chen, J. S. Dumler, J. S. Bakken, and D. H. Walker, J. Clin. Microbiol. 32:589–595, 1994). Three groups of sequence variants were detected; two of these were known to occur in other areas in Europe or the United States, whereas one has not been reported before. Thus, in the German I. ricinus tick population closely related granulocytic ehrlichiae are prevalent, which might represent variants of E. phagocytophila or the HGE agent.

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