Identification of a rickettsial endosymbiont in a soft tick Ornithodoros turicata americanus.

ABSTRACT: Bacterial endosymbionts are abundantly found in both hard and soft ticks. Occidentia massiliensis, a rickettsial endosymbiont, was first identified in the soft tick Ornithodoros sonrai collected from Senegal and later was identified in a hard tick Africaniella transversale. In this study, we noted the presence of Occidentia species, designated as Occidentia-like species, in a soft tick O. turicata americanus. Sequencing and phylogenetic analyses of the two genetic markers, 16S rRNA and groEL confirmed the presence of Occidentia-like species in O. turicata americanus ticks. The Occidentia-like species was noted to be present in all developmental stages of O. turicata americanus and in different tick tissues including ovaries, synganglion, guts and salivary gland. The levels of Occidentia-li

SUBMITTER: Liu L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9725135 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature