Barraza-Guerrero Sergio I, Meza-Herrera César A, García-De la Peña Cristina, González-Álvarez Vicente H, Vaca-Paniagua Felipe, Díaz-Velásquez Clara E, Sánchez-Tortosa Francisco, Ávila-Rodríguez Verónica, Valenzuela-Núñez Luis M, Herrera-Salazar Juan C
Unidad Regional Universitaria de Zonas Áridas, Universidad Autónoma Chapingo, 35230 Bermejillo, Durango, Mexico.
Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Juárez del Estado de Durango, 35010 Gómez Palacio, Durango, Mexico.
Biology (Basel). 2020 Sep 5;9(9):275. doi: 10.3390/biology9090275.
The general bacterial microbiota of the soft tick found on Bolson tortoises () were analyzed using next generation sequencing. The main aims of the study were to establish the relative abundance of bacterial taxa in the tick, and to document the presence of potentially pathogenic species for this tortoise, other animals, and humans. The study was carried-out in the Mapimi Biosphere Reserve in the northern-arid part of Mexico. Bolson tortoises ( = 45) were inspected for the presence of soft ticks, from which 11 tortoises (24.4%) had ticks in low loads (1-3 ticks per individual). Tick pools (five adult ticks each) were analyzed through 16S rRNA V3-V4 region amplification in a MiSeq Illumina, using EzBioCloud as a taxonomical reference. The operational taxonomic units (OTUs) revealed 28 phyla, 84 classes, 165 orders, 342 families, 1013 genera, and 1326 species. The high number of taxa registered for may be the result of the variety of hosts that this tick parasitizes as they live inside burrows. While the most abundant phyla were Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, and Firmicutes, the most abundant species were two endosymbionts of ticks (-like and -like). Two bacteria documented as pathogenic to spp. were registered ( spp. and ). The bovine and ovine tick-borne pathogens and , respectively, were recorded, as well as the zoonotic bacteria , and sp. Tortoises parasitized with did not show evident signs of disease, which could indicate a possible ecological role as a reservoir that has yet to be demonstrated. In fact, the defense mechanisms of this tortoise against the microorganisms transmitted by ticks during their feeding process are still unknown. Future studies on soft ticks should expand our knowledge about what components of the microbiota are notable across multiple host-microbe dynamics. Likewise, studies are required to better understand the host competence of this tortoise, considered the largest terrestrial reptile in North America distributed throughout the Chihuahuan Desert since the late Pleistocene.
利用下一代测序技术分析了在墨西哥巨型陆龟（）身上发现的软蜱的一般细菌微生物群。该研究的主要目的是确定蜱中细菌类群的相对丰度，并记录对这种陆龟、其他动物和人类有潜在致病性的物种的存在情况。该研究在墨西哥北部干旱地区的马皮米生物圈保护区进行。检查了45只墨西哥巨型陆龟是否有软蜱，其中11只陆龟（24.4%）身上有少量蜱（每只陆龟有1 - 3只蜱）。通过在Illumina MiSeq中对16S rRNA V3 - V4区域进行扩增，以EzBioCloud作为分类参考，对蜱样本池（每个样本池包含5只成年蜱）进行了分析。操作分类单元（OTU）显示有28个门、84个纲、165个目、342个科、1013个属和1326个物种。记录到的大量分类单元可能是由于这种蜱寄生的宿主种类繁多，因为它们生活在洞穴中。虽然最丰富的门是变形菌门、放线菌门和厚壁菌门，但最丰富的物种是蜱的两种内共生体（类和类）。记录到两种对陆龟属物种致病的细菌（属和属）。还记录到牛和羊的蜱传病原体和，以及人畜共患病菌、和菌属。感染蜱的陆龟没有表现出明显的疾病迹象，这可能表明其作为宿主库的一种可能的生态作用，但尚未得到证实。事实上，这种陆龟在蜱进食过程中抵御蜱传播的微生物的防御机制仍然未知。未来关于软蜱的研究应扩展我们对微生物群哪些成分在多种宿主 - 微生物动态中显著的认识。同样，鉴于这种陆龟是北美最大的陆地爬行动物，自晚更新世以来分布在整个奇瓦瓦沙漠，需要开展研究以更好地了解其宿主能力。
