Parasitology Division, National Veterinary Research Institute Vom, Plateau State, Nigeria.
PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2013 May 30;7(5):e2246. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0002246. Print 2013.
Bartonellae are fastidious bacteria causing persistent bacteremia in humans and a wide variety of animals. In recent years there is an increasing interest in mammalian bartonelloses in general and in rodent bartonelloses in particular. To date, no studies investigating the presence of Bartonella spp. in rodents and ectoparasites from Nigeria were carried out.
METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: The aim of the current study was to investigate the presence of Bartonella spp. in commensal rodents and their ectoparasites in Nigeria. We report, for the first time, the molecular detection of Bartonella in 26% (46/177) of commensal rodents (Rattus rattus, R. norvegicus and Cricetomys gambianus) and 28% (9/32) of ectoparasite pools (Xenopsylla cheopis, Haemolaelaps spp., Ctenophthalmus spp., Hemimerus talpoides, and Rhipicephalus sanguineus) from Nigeria. Sequence analysis of the citrate synthase gene (gltA) revealed diversity of Bartonella spp. and genotypes in Nigerian rodents and their ectoparasites. Bartonella spp. identical or closely related to Bartonella elizabethae, Bartonella tribocorum and Bartonella grahamii were detected.
CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: High prevalence of infection with Bartonella spp. was detected in commensal rodents and ectoparasites from Nigeria. The Bartonella spp. identified were previously associated with human diseases highlighting their importance to public health. Further studies need to be conducted to determine whether the identified Bartonella species could be responsible for human cases of febrile illness in Nigeria.
巴尔通体是一种苛养菌，可引起人类和各种动物持续性菌血症。近年来，人们对哺乳动物巴尔通体病，尤其是啮齿动物巴尔通体病的兴趣日益增加。迄今为止，尚无研究调查尼日利亚啮齿动物和外寄生虫中巴尔通体属的存在情况。
方法/主要发现：本研究旨在调查尼日利亚共生啮齿动物及其外寄生虫中巴尔通体属的存在情况。我们首次报告了在 26%（46/177）的共生啮齿动物（褐家鼠、挪威鼠和冈比亚巨鼠）和 28%（9/32）的外寄生虫群（印鼠客蚤、嗜群血虱属、睫角血蜱属、赫氏血蜱和血红扇头蜱）中检测到巴尔通体属。柠檬酸合酶基因（gltA）的序列分析显示，尼日利亚啮齿动物及其外寄生虫中的巴尔通体属具有多样性和基因型。检测到与巴尔通体伊丽莎白菌、巴尔通体TRIBOcorum 和巴尔通体grahamii 相同或密切相关的巴尔通体属。
结论/意义：在尼日利亚的共生啮齿动物和外寄生虫中检测到高感染率的巴尔通体属。鉴定出的巴尔通体属以前与人类疾病有关，这突显了它们对公共卫生的重要性。需要进一步研究以确定所鉴定的巴尔通体物种是否可能导致尼日利亚的人类发热病例。
