Detection of Bartonella spp. in foxes' populations in Piedmont and Aosta Valley (NW Italy) coupling geospatially-based techniques.

ABSTRACT: Bartonella is a genus of bacteria known to cause various rare but potentially dangerous diseases in humans and wildlife. The objective of this study was to investigate the presence of Bartonella spp. in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) from Piedmont and Aosta Valley (NW Italy) and to explore the potential association between environmental humidity and Bartonella infection using remote sensing data. A total of 114 spleen samples were collected from hunted red foxes and screened for Bartonella spp. DNA using a qPCR assay targeting the ssrA locus. Samples that tested positive were further analyzed using end-point PCR to detect the ssrA, gltA, and rpoB loci. The overall prevalence of Bartonella spp. infection was found to be 7.9% (9/114),

SUBMITTER: Viani A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11790647 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature