Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia V8P 5C2, Canada.
Appl Environ Microbiol. 2010 Apr;76(7):2280-5. doi: 10.1128/AEM.00026-10. Epub 2010 Feb 5.
Many species of Rickettsia are well-known mammalian pathogens transmitted by blood-feeding arthropods. However, molecular surveys are continually uncovering novel Rickettsia species, often in unexpected hosts, including many arthropods that do not feed on blood. This study reports a systematic molecular characterization of a Rickettsia infecting the psocid Liposcelis bostrychophila (Psocoptera: Liposcelidae), a common and cosmopolitan household pest. Surprisingly, the psocid Rickettsia is shown to be Rickettsia felis, a human pathogen transmitted by fleas that causes serious morbidity and occasional mortality. The plasmid from the psocid R. felis was sequenced and was found to be virtually identical to the one in R. felis from fleas. As Liposcelis insects are often intimately associated with humans and other vertebrates, it is speculated that they acquired R. felis from fleas. Whether the R. felis in psocids causes disease in vertebrates is not known and warrants further study.
许多种立克次体是通过吸血节肢动物传播的已知哺乳动物病原体。然而，分子调查不断发现新的立克次体物种，通常在意想不到的宿主中，包括许多不以血液为食的节肢动物。本研究系统地描述了一种感染书虱（双翅目：皮蠹科）的立克次体，书虱是一种常见且广泛分布的家庭害虫。令人惊讶的是，书虱中的立克次体实际上是猫立克次体，一种通过跳蚤传播的人类病原体，可导致严重的发病率和偶尔的死亡率。从书虱中的立克次体分离的质粒进行了测序，发现与跳蚤中的立克次体几乎完全相同。由于书虱昆虫通常与人类和其他脊椎动物密切相关，因此推测它们从跳蚤中获得了猫立克次体。书虱中的猫立克次体是否会导致脊椎动物患病尚不清楚，值得进一步研究。
