Molecular identification of Borrelia and SFG Rickettsia spp. in hard ticks parasitizing domestic and wild animals in southeastern Spain.

Lyme disease and the spotted fever group rickettsiosis, involve bacteria belonging to the genus Borrelia and Rickettsia, respectively. These infections are the most important tick-borne zoonotic diseases involving ticks as vectors. Descriptive and epidemiological studies are essential to determine the animal hosts involved in the maintenance of these diseases. In the present study, 94 tick pool samples from 15 different host species located in the Region of Murcia (southeastern, Spain) were analysed. Ticks were morphologically identified as: Dermacentor marginatus, Hyalomma lusitanicum, Ixodes Ricinus, and Rhipicephalus sanguineus. Our results showed that 5.3% of the tick pool samples carried Borrelia spp. DNA, and 20.2% carried SFG Rickettsia DNA. In every hard tick pool Spot Fever Group (SFG) Rickettsia spp. DNA were detected, except for H. lusitanicum. Likewise, D. marginatum was the only species in which Borrelia spp. DNA was not detected. Barbary sheep and wild boar were the host species in which tick pools showed DNA presence of both pathogens. This study increases the knowledge about the presence of Borrelia spp. DNA and SFG Rickettsia spp. DNA in different hard tick species from this geographical area.

Application of acute phase protein measurements in meat extract collected during routine veterinary inspection at abattoirs.

The possible application of acute phase protein measurements of meat extract in porcine carcass inspection at abattoir, under routine conditions, was studied. Concentrations of two acute phase proteins, C-reactive protein and haptoglobin, were quantified in 357 samples from carcasses subjected to official veterinary inspection at slaughterhouses. Carcasses were classified according to their sanitary status in five groups of animals ranging from healthy animals, without any organ alteration (group 1), to completely condemned carcasses with gross alteration in several organic systems (group 5). The concentration of both acute phase proteins appeared significantly higher in groups 2 to 5 in comparison to group 1. Sensitivity of these proteins to detect animals with organ alterations was 86% when the values of both proteins were taken into account. The quantification of the levels of acute phase proteins could be of help during routine veterinary meat inspection by offering an objective tool for active disease detection.