The high prevalence and diversity of Chlamydiales DNA within Ixodes ricinus ticks suggest a role for ticks as reservoirs and vectors of Chlamydia-related bacteria.

ABSTRACT: The Chlamydiales order is composed of nine families of strictly intracellular bacteria. Among them, Chlamydia trachomatis, C. pneumoniae, and C. psittaci are established human pathogens, whereas Waddlia chondrophila and Parachlamydia acanthamoebae have emerged as new pathogens in humans. However, despite their medical importance, their biodiversity and ecology remain to be studied. Even if arthropods and, particularly, ticks are well known to be vectors of numerous infectious agents such as viruses and bacteria, virtually nothing is known about ticks and chlamydia. This study investigated the prevalence of Chlamydiae in ticks. Specifically, 62,889 Ixodes ricinus ticks, consolidated into 8,534 pools, were sampled in 172 collection sites throughout Switzerland and were investigated using pan

SUBMITTER: Pilloux L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4651074 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature