Genetic characterization of a novel Ehrlichia chaffeensis genotype from an Amblyomma tenellum tick from South Texas, USA.

ABSTRACT: Ehrlichia chaffeensis is the causative agent of human monocytotropic ehrlichiosis (HME), a disease that ranges in severity from mild to fatal infection. Ehrlichia chaffeensis is maintained in a zoonotic cycle involving white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) as the main vertebrate reservoir and lone star ticks (Amblyomma americanum) as its principal vector. Through complete genomic analysis from human ehrlichial isolates and DNA sequences obtained from deer and tick specimens, nine strains of E. chaffeensis have been characterized. Few studies have examined the genetic diversity of E. chaffeensis in ticks, and some of these investigations have identified that the genetic sequences coincide with the circulating strains reported so far. Here, we report the first evidence of E. chaffeensis

SUBMITTER: Arroyave E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9940300 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature