Candidatus ‘Rickettsia senegalensis’ in cat fleas in Senegal

Oleg Mediannikov (1) , Maxence Aubadie-Ladrix (1) , Didier Raoult (1)

1 URMITE - Unité de Recherche sur les Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales Emergentes

Epidemiological studies of Rickettsia felis and related bacteria are very important, because the natural cycle of this important infection has not yet been established. The recent emergence of R. felis-associated febrile diseases in West and East Africa demands insightful epidemiological studies of the vectors and reservoirs of this bacterium in Africa. Twenty-nine cat fleas, Ctenocephalides felis, were tested for the presence of rickettsiae, including R. felis, bartonellae, and borreliae, with specific quantitative real-time PCR assays. Supporting our previous studies, R. felis was not detected in the fleas collected. In addition, neither Bartonella nor Borrelia was found. In five (17%) examined fleas, we found another species of rickettsia. We isolated three rickettsial strains, and genetic analysis demonstrated that these strains represent a probable new species, provisionally called Candidatus Rickettsia senegalensis here. New Microbes and New Infections

Keywords: Africa; Candidatus Rickettsia senegalensis; flea; Rickettsia felis; Rickettsia; Senegal

Domains: Life Sciences [q-bio]; Microbiology and Parasitology; Bacteriology; Life Sciences [q-bio]; Human health and pathology; Infectious diseases; Life Sciences [q-bio]; Human health and pathology; Emerging diseases

Oleg Mediannikov, Maxence Aubadie-Ladrix, Didier Raoult. Candidatus ‘Rickettsia senegalensis’ in cat fleas in Senegal. New Microbes and New Infections, 2015, 3, pp.24-28. ⟨10.1016/j.nmni.2014.10.005⟩. ⟨hal-01769695⟩