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Confirming the zoonotic importance of the Order Siphonaptera among arthropods: Study of the microbiome of synanthropic fleas

ABSTRACT: The role of domestic and peridomestic animals in vector-borne diseases is very important as they share a common environment with people having the potential to extend the network of pathogen transmission to humans. The most significant vector-borne infectious diseases that are shared by man, domestic and peridomestic animals are leishmaniosis, borreliosis, bartonellosis, ehrlichiosis, rickettsiosis and anaplasmosis with fleas acting as main vectors in the transmission of some of these diseases. Flea-borne diseases which are relevant in Europe include plague (caused by Yersinia pestis), murine typhus (caused by Rickettsia typhi), flea-borne spotted fever (Rickettsia felis), and cat scratch disease (Bartonella henselae). In the present study, mNGS was applied to detect and understand the composition of the microbial communities of five different species of fleas (Archaeopsylla erinacei, Ctenocephalides felis, Spilopsyllus cuniculi, Pulex irritans and Ctenocephalides canis) collected on dogs, cats and hedgehogs from Andalusia (Spain) to know the prevalence of pathogenic bacteria among synanthropic fleas. Based on our results, we could conclude that Pulicidae family encompassed those flea species with a close contact with humans and therefore more involved in the potential transmission of infectious diseases. The higher relative abundance of the Phylum Pseudomanadota was mainly due to the presence of the endosymbiont Wolbachia, as well as to notice a high relative abundance of both genera Rickettsia and Bartonella in all flea species. For the first time, we detected Babesia sp. in all species tested, especially with higher abundance in S. cuniculi collected from cats emphasizing the need for further investigation into its potential implications as vectors. Our results also demonstrate that the microbiota composition of fleas is largely influenced by the host they parasitize. Lastly, statistical analyses of microbiota allowed for the ecological separation of flea species, with individuals from these five species clustering distinctly each other.

ORGANISM(S): Archaeopsylla erinacei Pulex irritans Ctenocephalides canis Ctenocephalides felis Spilopsyllus cuniculi

PROVIDER: GSE284667 | GEO | 2025/09/24

REPOSITORIES: GEO

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Project description:Rickettsia spp. can cause mild to severe human disease. These intracellular bacteria are associated with arthropods, nematodes and trematodes, and usually, are efficiently transmitted transovarially to the progeny of the invertebrate host. We recently demonstrated foreign gene acquisition by lateral gene transfer in Rickettsia genomes. The unexpected presence of laterally transferred toxin-antitoxin (TA) genetic elements (including vapBC) in several Rickettsia genomes has not been connected with the pathogenic process or the host-bacteria relationship. We suspect that vapBC are selfish genetic elements that addict eukaryotic hosts to Rickettsia. We identified a statistical link between the transovarial transmission of Rickettsia in invertebrate hosts and the presence of TA operons, specifically vapBC, in the Rickettsia genome. These TA are neighboring to type IV secretion genes. Tunel assays and whole-genome expression of infected cells showed that antibiotic eradication of TA-containing Rickettsia from the host in cell culture initiates a proapoptotic program. Rickettsia VapC toxins inhibit the growth of transformed Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Rickettsia toxin presents in vitro RNase activity. Annexin-V staining and time-lapse video showed that intracytoplasmic injections of VapC toxins in cells cause apoptosis. These data demonstrate that host cells may develop a dependence on Rickettsia spp. expressing the vapBC operon. This would constitute a new evolutionary M-bM-^@M-^\mafia strategyM-bM-^@M-^] of intracellular bacteria based on host addiction. Fresh cells from the human microvascular endothelial cell line (HMEC-1) [26] were infected with R. felis California-2 strain in the presence and absence of antibiotics, at a rate of 5 bacteria per eukaryotic cell. Then, we added or not antibiotics (chloramphenicol 50 M-BM-5g/ml or doxycycline to 40 M-BM-5g/ml) in both experimental (R.felis-infected) and control, mock-infected cells for 6 hours. The cells were harvested and RNA was extracted using the RNeasy Mini Kit (Qiagen). DNA contamination was removed using the Turbo DNA-free Kit (Ambion). RNA were labeled using the Quick Amp Labeling Kit One-color (Agilent) and hybridized onto a Whole Human Genome Microarray, 4x44K (Agilent) as recommended by the manufacturer. Arrays were scanned with DNA Microarray Scanner (Agilent), and data were extracted using Feature Extractor (Agilent).

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Confirming the zoonotic importance of the Order Siphonaptera among arthropods: Study of the microbiome of synanthropic fleas

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