Screening of rickettsia sp. In ticks (acari: Ixodidae) collected from small mammals in three recreational forests in Selangor, Malaysia

Rickettsia is a gram-negative, non-motile, and obligate intracellular bacterium that usually associated with arthropods vectors such as ticks, fleas, lice and mites. These bacteria have the ability to cause diseases in humans, however, in Malaysia, knowledge on the prevalence and distribution of the...

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Main Authors: Ishak, Siti Nabilah, Lim, Fang Shiang, Khoo, Jing Jing, Mohd-Taib, Farah Shafawati
Format: Article
Published: Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Press 2019
Subjects:
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author Ishak, Siti Nabilah
Lim, Fang Shiang
Khoo, Jing Jing
Mohd-Taib, Farah Shafawati
author_facet Ishak, Siti Nabilah
Lim, Fang Shiang
Khoo, Jing Jing
Mohd-Taib, Farah Shafawati
author_sort Ishak, Siti Nabilah
collection UM
description Rickettsia is a gram-negative, non-motile, and obligate intracellular bacterium that usually associated with arthropods vectors such as ticks, fleas, lice and mites. These bacteria have the ability to cause diseases in humans, however, in Malaysia, knowledge on the prevalence and distribution of these bacteria mainly focused on humans and information of these bacteria in small mammal hosts is limited. Thus, this study aims to investigate the presence of Rickettsia sp. in the DNA of tick’s samples collected from small mammals in three different recreational forests in Selangor, Malaysia. Sampling was conducted in which 200 cage traps were set up randomly along streams and forest trails for five nights. A total of 106 fully engorged and adult ticks were collected from 23 individuals of seven small mammals host species. All samples were tested for Rickettsia bacteria based on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using partial 17-kDa antigen gene. The PCR results obtained from this study showed no infestation of Rickettsia sp. in all tick samples. Our findings revealed that none of the tick samples from these forests’ sites were infected with Rickettsia pathogen, however, more intense and extensive surveillance for Rickettsia sp. from other tick species is still necessary for greater geographical areas across Malaysia. © 2019, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Press. All rights reserved.
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spelling um.eprints-240932020-03-22T11:52:53Z http://eprints.um.edu.my/24093/ Screening of rickettsia sp. In ticks (acari: Ixodidae) collected from small mammals in three recreational forests in Selangor, Malaysia Ishak, Siti Nabilah Lim, Fang Shiang Khoo, Jing Jing Mohd-Taib, Farah Shafawati QR Microbiology R Medicine Rickettsia is a gram-negative, non-motile, and obligate intracellular bacterium that usually associated with arthropods vectors such as ticks, fleas, lice and mites. These bacteria have the ability to cause diseases in humans, however, in Malaysia, knowledge on the prevalence and distribution of these bacteria mainly focused on humans and information of these bacteria in small mammal hosts is limited. Thus, this study aims to investigate the presence of Rickettsia sp. in the DNA of tick’s samples collected from small mammals in three different recreational forests in Selangor, Malaysia. Sampling was conducted in which 200 cage traps were set up randomly along streams and forest trails for five nights. A total of 106 fully engorged and adult ticks were collected from 23 individuals of seven small mammals host species. All samples were tested for Rickettsia bacteria based on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using partial 17-kDa antigen gene. The PCR results obtained from this study showed no infestation of Rickettsia sp. in all tick samples. Our findings revealed that none of the tick samples from these forests’ sites were infected with Rickettsia pathogen, however, more intense and extensive surveillance for Rickettsia sp. from other tick species is still necessary for greater geographical areas across Malaysia. © 2019, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Press. All rights reserved. Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Press 2019 Article PeerReviewed Ishak, Siti Nabilah and Lim, Fang Shiang and Khoo, Jing Jing and Mohd-Taib, Farah Shafawati (2019) Screening of rickettsia sp. In ticks (acari: Ixodidae) collected from small mammals in three recreational forests in Selangor, Malaysia. Serangga, 24 (1). pp. 116-125. ISSN 1394-5130, http://ejournals.ukm.my/serangga/article/view/30967
spellingShingle QR Microbiology
R Medicine
Ishak, Siti Nabilah
Lim, Fang Shiang
Khoo, Jing Jing
Mohd-Taib, Farah Shafawati
Screening of rickettsia sp. In ticks (acari: Ixodidae) collected from small mammals in three recreational forests in Selangor, Malaysia
title Screening of rickettsia sp. In ticks (acari: Ixodidae) collected from small mammals in three recreational forests in Selangor, Malaysia
title_full Screening of rickettsia sp. In ticks (acari: Ixodidae) collected from small mammals in three recreational forests in Selangor, Malaysia
title_fullStr Screening of rickettsia sp. In ticks (acari: Ixodidae) collected from small mammals in three recreational forests in Selangor, Malaysia
title_full_unstemmed Screening of rickettsia sp. In ticks (acari: Ixodidae) collected from small mammals in three recreational forests in Selangor, Malaysia
title_short Screening of rickettsia sp. In ticks (acari: Ixodidae) collected from small mammals in three recreational forests in Selangor, Malaysia
title_sort screening of rickettsia sp in ticks acari ixodidae collected from small mammals in three recreational forests in selangor malaysia
topic QR Microbiology
R Medicine
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