ABSTRACT
Rickettsia akari is the causative agent of rickettsialpox, a primarily urban mite-borne rickettsiosis that is encountered in the United States and in a few countries around the world. Its vector is the mite Liponyssoides sanguineus, which is found on rats and mice, which serve as reservoirs for the disease. In this work we report a severe animal case of R. akari infection with two unusual features: R. akari was found in a dog, and its potential vector was a tick.
Subject(s)
Dog Diseases/microbiology , Rickettsia Infections/veterinary , Rickettsia akari/isolation & purification , Animals , Anti-Bacterial Agents/therapeutic use , Dog Diseases/drug therapy , Dog Diseases/epidemiology , Dogs , Doxycycline/therapeutic use , Female , Mexico/epidemiology , Rhipicephalus sanguineus/microbiology , Rickettsia Infections/drug therapy , Rickettsia Infections/epidemiology , Rickettsia Infections/microbiologyABSTRACT
Rickettsia felis infection in humans has been detected worldwide, causing an illness that could be confused with other viral and bacterial infections such as dengue fever. Despite the high incidence of infection in humans, reservoirs, and vectors, the definitive diagnosis of R. felis infection currently requires polymerase chain reaction and sequencing because its antigens are closely related to other rickettsiae, making serologic diagnosis problematic. In this work, we report the immune reactivity of sera from four patients infected with R. felis with recombinant peptides representing regions of outer membrane protein A of R. felis.
Subject(s)
Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins/genetics , Rickettsia Infections/microbiology , Rickettsia felis/genetics , Rickettsia felis/metabolism , Siphonaptera/microbiology , Animals , Antibodies, Bacterial/blood , Humans , Insect Vectors/microbiology , Rickettsia Infections/bloodABSTRACT
The first human case of infection caused by Rickettsia in Yucatan was detected in 1996, and it was determined that the species was R. felis. Since then, passive epidemiologic surveillance was implemented to search for human cases in the public hospitals of the state, and in 2005, the first human case of Rocky Mountain spotted fever was detected. During the following 2 years, eight new confirmed cases and one probable case were identified. Seven cases involved children younger than 12 years of age, with a fatal outcome in three of the cases. Children are a particularly vulnerable population for this serious emerging infection.
