scholarly journals Identifying the Reservoir Hosts of the Lyme Disease Spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi in California: The Role of the Western Gray Squirrel (Sciurus griseus)

2008 ◽  
Vol 79 (4) ◽  
pp. 535-540 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel J. Salkeld ◽  
Kerry A. Padgett ◽  
Nina Hahn ◽  
Jeomhee Mun ◽  
Sarah Leonhard ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lyme Disease ◽  
Borrelia Burgdorferi ◽  
Gray Squirrel ◽  
Sciurus Griseus ◽  
Western Gray Squirrel ◽  
Reservoir Hosts

scholarly journals Seasonal Prevalence of Lyme Disease Spirochetes in a Heterothermic Mammal, the Edible Dormouse (Glis glis)

2014 ◽  
Vol 80 (12) ◽  
pp. 3615-3621 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna Fietz ◽  
Jürgen Tomiuk ◽  
Franz-Rainer Matuschka ◽  
Dania Richter
Keyword(s):  
Lyme Disease ◽  
Reservoir Host ◽  
Glis Glis ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Transmission Cycle ◽  
Western Germany ◽  
Edible Dormice ◽  
Study Sites ◽  
Reservoir Hosts

ABSTRACTIn Europe, dormice serve as competent reservoir hosts for particular genospecies of the tick-borne agent of Lyme disease (LD) and seem to support them more efficiently than do mice or voles. The longevity of edible dormice (Glis glis) and their attractiveness for ticks may result in a predominance of LD spirochetes in ticks questing in dormouse habitats. To investigate the role of edible dormice in the transmission cycle of LD spirochetes, we sampled skin tissue from the ear pinnae of dormice inhabiting five different study sites in south western Germany. Of 501 edible dormice, 12.6% harbored DNA of LD spirochetes. Edible dormice were infected most frequently with the pathogenic LD spirocheteBorrelia afzelii. The DNA ofB. gariniiandB. bavariensiswas detected in ca. 0.5% of the examined individuals. No spirochetal DNA was detectable in the skin of edible dormice until July, 6 weeks after they generally start to emerge from their obligate hibernation. Thereafter, the prevalence of spirochetal DNA in edible dormice increased during the remaining period of their 4 to 5 months of activity, reaching nearly 40% in September. Males were more than four times more likely to harbor LD spirochetes than females, and yearlings were almost twice more likely to be infected than adults. The seasonality of the prevalence of LD spirochetes in edible dormice was pronounced and may affect their role as a reservoir host in respect to other hosts.

scholarly journals Serum Complement Sensitivity as a Key Factor in Lyme Disease Ecology

1998 ◽  
Vol 66 (3) ◽  
pp. 1248-1251 ◽  
Author(s):  
Klaus Kurtenbach ◽  
Henna-Sisko Sewell ◽  
Nick H. Ogden ◽  
Sarah E. Randolph ◽  
Patricia A. Nuttall
Keyword(s):  
Lyme Disease ◽  
Borrelia Burgdorferi ◽  
Lyme Borreliosis ◽  
Disease Ecology ◽  
Specific Pattern ◽  
Serum Complement ◽  
Key Factor ◽  
Species Specific

ABSTRACT The sensitivity of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato to animal sera was analyzed. Complement-mediated borreliacidal effects were observed with particular combinations of host serum andBorrelia genospecies. The species-specific pattern of viability and/or lysis is highly consistent with the pattern of reservoir competence of hosts for B. burgdorferi sensu lato, suggesting a key role of complement in the global ecology of Lyme borreliosis.

scholarly journals Seroprevalence in Bats and Detection of Borrelia burgdorferi in Bat Ectoparasites

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 440
Author(s):  
Arinjay Banerjee ◽  
Kaushal Baid ◽  
Taylor Byron ◽  
Alyssa Yip ◽  
Caleb Ryan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lyme Disease ◽  
Borrelia Burgdorferi ◽  
Sensu Stricto ◽  
Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay ◽  
Immunoblot Assay ◽  
Big Brown Bats ◽  
Borrelia Burgdorferi Sensu Stricto ◽  
Flab Gene ◽  
Elisa Data

The role of bats in the enzootic cycle of Lyme disease and relapsing fever-causing bacteria is a matter of speculation. In Canada, Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto (ss) is the genospecies that is responsible for most cases of Lyme disease in humans. In this study, we determined if big brown bats, Eptesicus fuscus, have been exposed to spirochetes from the genus Borrelia. We collected serum from 31 bats and tested them for the presence of anti-Borrelia burgdorferi antibodies using a commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). We detected cross-reactive antibodies to Borrelia spp. in 14 of 31 bats. We confirmed the ELISA data using a commercial immunoblot assay. Pooled sera from ELISA-positive bats also cross-reacted with Borrelia antigens coated on the immunoblot strips, whereas pooled sera from ELISA-negative bats did not bind to Borrelia spp. antigens. Furthermore, to identify if bat ectoparasites, such as mites, can carry Borrelia spp., we analyzed DNA from 142 bat ectoparasites that were collected between 2003 and 2019. We detected DNA for the Borrelia burgdorferi flaB gene in one bat mite, Spinturnix americanus. The low detection rate of Borrelia burgdorferi DNA in bat ectoparasites suggests that bats are not reservoirs of this bacterium. Data from this study also raises intriguing questions about Borrelia infections in bats, including the role of humoral immunity and the ability of bats to be infected with Borrelia burgdorferi. This study can lead to more sampling efforts and controlled laboratory studies to identify if bats can be infected with Borrelia burgdorferi and the role of bat ectoparasites, such as S. americanus, in the transmission of this spirochete. Furthermore, we outlined reagents that can be used to adapt ELISA kits and immunoblot strips for use with bat sera.

scholarly journals Identification of a New Borrelia Species among Small Mammals in Areas of Northern Spain Where Lyme Disease Is Endemic

2005 ◽  
Vol 71 (3) ◽  
pp. 1336-1345 ◽  
Author(s):  
Horacio Gil ◽  
Marta Barral ◽  
Raquel Escudero ◽  
Ana L. García-Pérez ◽  
Pedro Anda
Keyword(s):  
Lyme Disease ◽  
Small Mammals ◽  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Sensu Stricto ◽  
Cross Reactivity ◽  
Northern Spain ◽  
Borrelia Garinii ◽  
Questing Ticks ◽  
Reservoir Hosts

ABSTRACT The role of small mammals as reservoir hosts for Borrelia burgdorferi was investigated in several areas where Lyme disease is endemic in northern Spain. A low rate of infestation by Ixodes ricinus nymphs was found in the small mammal populations studied that correlated with the near-absence of B. burgdorferi sensu lato in 184 animals tested and with the lack of transmission of B. burgdorferi sensu lato to I. ricinus larvae that fed on them. In contrast, questing ticks collected at the same time and in the same areas were found to carry a highly variable B. burgdorferi sensu lato repertoire (B. burgdorferi sensu stricto, Borrelia garinii, Borrelia valaisiana, and Borrelia afzelii). Interestingly, the only isolate obtained from small mammals (R57, isolated from a bank vole) grouped by phylogenetic analyses with other Borrelia species but in a separate clade from the Lyme disease and relapsing fever organisms, suggesting that it is a new species. This new agent was widely distributed among small mammals, with infection rates of 8.5 to 12% by PCR. Moreover, a high seroprevalence to B. burgdorferi sensu lato was found in the animal sera, suggesting cross-reactivity between B. burgdorferi sensu lato and R57. Although small mammals do not seem to play an important role as reservoirs for B. burgdorferi sensu lato in the study area, they seem to be implicated in the maintenance of spirochetes similar to R57.

scholarly journals Modern condition of the problem of Lime Burreliosis of animals (systematic review)

2021 ◽  
pp. 64-78
Author(s):  
O. Panteleenko ◽  
B. Yarchuk ◽  
T. Tsarenko
Keyword(s):  
Borrelia Burgdorferi ◽  
Lyme Borreliosis ◽  
Clinical Manifestations ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Scientific Data ◽  
Temperate Climate ◽  
Borrelia Burgdorferi Sensu Lato ◽  
Considerable Uncertainty ◽  
Reservoir Hosts

Lyme borreliosis (LB) is the most common tick-borne disease in the temperate climate of the Northern Hemisphere. LB is caused by spirochetes, which are grouped in the complex Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato, vectors – Ixodidae mites, dozens of species of small mammals and birds actas reservoir hosts, and the role of reservoirs of domestic animals, such as dogs and cats, is not excluded. Although the ecology and epidemiology of the disease have been extensively studied in Europe and North America, there is considerable uncertainty regarding the study of Lyme borreliosis in veterinary medicine. Search, selection andanalysis of scientific data on the research topic were carried out according to acceptable rules for systematic reviews of the literature. The scientometric database Web of Science Core Collection, the database of scientific articles Pub Med and the database Scientific Periodicals of Ukraine were used. Seventy-four scientific articles were used for the article, which contained the necessary set of data and met the set goal. The article highlights the main issues of the etiology of the disease, which describes the characteristics of the pathogen, its properties, genotypic composition of Borrelia, which cause Lyme disease, the spread of pathogenic genotypes of Borrelia in Europe and Ukraine. The connection of Lyme borreliosis spread with ecological factors, climatic changes and anthropogenic impact on biocenoses and biotopes, the role of vectors and reservoir hosts in the spread of LB is described. Data on the prevalence and degree of infection of Ixodes mites with Borrelia, as well as the spread of LB among the population of Europe and Ukraine are presented. The seroprevalence of each of the animal species (dogs, cats, horses, ruminants), clinical manifestations of LB, if documented and indicators of LB prevalence among animals in Europe and Ukraine, as well as currently known treatments, prevention and diagnosis of LB animals are considered. Key words: Borrelia Burgdorferi Sensu Lato, Lyme Diseases Etiology, Ixodidae.

scholarly journals Range Expansion of the Western Gray Squirrel (Sciurus griseus) in Northeastern California

2010 ◽  
Vol 70 (2) ◽  
pp. 266-269
Author(s):  
John O. Matson ◽  
William F. Laudenslayer ◽  
Stephanie A. Trewhitt ◽  
Mary Flores
Keyword(s):  
Range Expansion ◽  
Gray Squirrel ◽  
Sciurus Griseus ◽  
Western Gray Squirrel
Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document