OBJECTIVETo investigate the prevalence of Anaplasma phagocytophilum in small mammals from the forest area of Hengduan Mountains in southwestern China.

METHODSSmall mammals captured from Gaoligong and Xianggelila mountainous area of Yunnan province were detected by PCR amplification. The sequences of 16S rRNA and Msp4 gene fragments from positive samples were compared with corresponding sequences deposited in GenBank.

RESULTSA total number of 436 small animals, which belongs to 5 orders 18 genera 35 species were tested, 32 (7.34%) were positive in 6 genera 11 species. There were 8.64% (26/301) positive in 25 species at Goligong mountainous areas, and 4.44% (6/135) were positive in 19 species at the Xianggelila mountainous areas. Positive small mammals were most rodents. The nucleotide sequences of A.phagocytophilum 16S rRNA gene amplified from small mammals varied from 99% - 100% and were 99% - 100% similar with the corresponding segments of A. phagocytophilum from Jilin deposited in GeneBank. The sequences of A. phagocytophilum Msp4 gene showed that there was 95% - 97% similarity with the corresponding sequences registered in GenBank.

CONCLUSIONA. phagocytophilum was firstly identified in 6 genera 11 species small mammals from a forest area of Hengduan Mountainous areas in southwestern China. Rodents might serve as the primary hosts indicating the potential risk to the domestic animals and human beings in this area.

Anaplasma phagocytophilum ; classification ; genetics ; Animals ; Base Sequence ; China ; epidemiology ; DNA, Bacterial ; genetics ; Ehrlichiosis ; epidemiology ; veterinary ; Molecular Sequence Data ; RNA, Ribosomal, 16S ; genetics ; Rodentia ; microbiology ; Sequence Analysis, DNA

OBJECTIVETo study the existence of Ehrluichiosis, lyme disease and tick-borne spotted fever coinfection in some areas in China.

METHODSUsing polymerase chain reaction (PCR), B. burgdorferi sensu lato, spotted fever group (SFG) Rickettsiae and human granulocytic ehrlichia (HGE), Ehrlichia chaffeensis (EC) were detected in ticks and mouse samples collected from Inner Mogolia autonomous region, Heilongjiang province, Beijing and Fujian province.

RESULTS408 Ixodes persulcatus collected from Inner Mogolia autonomous region, HGE and B. burgdorferi sensu lato and SFG Rickettsiae were detected positive, with rates as 6.8%, 7.8%, 45.6%, respectively. 5 (5/408) were coinfection with HGE and B. burgdorferi sensu lato while 1 (1/408) was coinfection with HGE and SFG Rickettsiae. 46 Ixodes persulcatus collected from Helongjiang province were determined positive, with rates as 6.5%, 10.8% and 34.8%, respectively including 1 (1/46) coinfected with HGE and B. burgdorferi sensu lato. 2 of 922 ticks collected from Beijing were detected positive with B. burgdorferi sensu lato. Among 283 groups of Haemaphysalis yeni ticks (3/group) and from 38 rodent samples collected from Ninghua county of Fujian province HCE and B. burgdorferi sensu lato and SFG Rickettsiae were detected. Out of them, 25 groups were positive with EC and the minimal positive rate was 3.8% while 21 rodent samples were positive with EC with a positive rate of 56.4%. 2 ticks and 1 rodent sample were detected positive with EC and spotted fever group.

CONCLUSIONCoinfection of HGE and B. burgdorferi sensu lato or spotted fever group Richi did exist in Ixodes persulcatus collected from Inner Mogolia autonomous region and Heilongjiang province. Coinfection of EC and spotted fever group Richi was found in the ticks and rodents collected from Fujian province.

Animals ; Arachnid Vectors ; Borrelia burgdorferi Group ; isolation & purification ; China ; epidemiology ; DNA, Bacterial ; analysis ; Disease Vectors ; Ehrlichia ; isolation & purification ; Ehrlichiosis ; epidemiology ; Humans ; Ixodes ; microbiology ; Lyme Disease ; epidemiology ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Rats ; Rickettsia ; isolation & purification ; Rickettsia Infections ; epidemiology ; Rodentia ; microbiology ; Tick-Borne Diseases ; epidemiology ; Ticks ; microbiology

Genomic DNAs extracted from 1,288 Haemaphysalis longicornis ticks collected from grass vegetation and various animals from nine provinces of Korea were subjected to screening by genus-specific (Ehrlichia spp. or Anaplasma spp.) real-time TaqMan PCR and speciesspecific (E. chaffeensis) nested-PCR based on amplification of 16S rRNA gene fragments. In all, 611 (47.4%) ticks tested positive for genus-specific amplification of 116 bp fragment of 16S rRNA of Ehrlichia spp. or Anaplasma spp. Subsequently, 396 bp E. chaffeensis-specific fragment of 16S rRNA was amplified from 4.2% (26/611) tick samples. The comparison of the nucleotide sequence of 16S rRNA gene from one tick (EC-PGHL, GeneBank accession number AY35042) with the sequences of 20 E. chaffeensis strains available in the database showed that EC-PGHL was 100% identical or similar to the Arkansas (AF416764), the Sapulpa (U60476) and the 91HE17 (U23503) strains. The phylogenetic analysis also revealed that the E. chaffeensis EC-PGHL formed a single cluster with the above strains. This is the first study to report molecular detection and phylogenetic analysis of E. chaffeensis from H. longicornis ticks in Korea. The implicit significance of E. chaffeensis infection in H. longicornis ticks in Korea is discussed.
Anaplasma/growth&development ; Animals ; Base Sequence ; Cloning, Molecular ; DNA, Bacterial/chemistry/genetics ; Ehrlichia chaffeensis/*genetics/growth&development ; Ehrlichiosis/*epidemiology/microbiology ; Korea/epidemiology ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Phylogeny ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Prevalence ; RNA, Ribosomal, 16S/chemistry/genetics ; Sequence Alignment ; Sequence Analysis, DNA ; Ticks/*microbiology