Seasonal dynamics of <i>Amblyomma cajennense</i> (Fabricius, 1787) sensu stricto in a degraded area of the Amazon biome, with notes on <i>Rickettsia amblyommatis</i> infection

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Abstract

Background

The tick Amblyomma cajennense sensu stricto ( A. cajennense s.s.) frequently parasitizes animals and humans in the Amazon biome, in addition to being a vector of Rickettsia amblyommatis. In the present study, we evaluated both the population dynamics of A. cajennense s.s. in a degraded area of the Amazon biome and the presence of rickettsial organisms in this tick population.

Methods

The study was carried out in a rural area of the Santa Inês municipality (altitude: 24 m a.s.l.), Maranhão state, Brazil. Ticks were collected from the environment for 24 consecutive months, from June 2021 to May 2023. The region is characterized by two warm seasons: a rainy season (November–May) and a dry season (June–October). We characterized the temporal activity of A. cajennense s.s. on the vegetation by examining questing activity for each life stage (larvae, nymphs, adults [males and females]) in relation to the dry and rainy season. Ticks collected in this study were randomly selected and individually tested by a TaqMan real-time PCR assay that targeted a 147-bp fragment of the rickettsial gltA gene.

Results

Overall, 1843 (62.4%) adults (52.6% females, 47.4% males), 1110 (37.6%) nymphs and 398 larval clusters were collected. All adult females and nymphs were morphologically identified as A. cajennense s.s. Larval activity was observed from April to December, with a peak from June to September (dry season); nymph abundance peaked from September to November (transition period between dry and rainy seasons); and adult ticks were abundant from October to May (spring/summer/early autumn). The infection rate by R. amblyommatis in A. cajennense s.s. ticks was at least 7% (7/99).

Conclusion

Our data suggest a 1-year generation pattern for A. cajennense s.s., with a well-defined seasonality of larvae, nymphs and adults in the Amazon biome. Larvae predominate during the dry season, nymphs are most abundant in the dry-rainy season transition and adults are most abundant in the rainy season. The presence of R. amblyommatis in adult ticks suggests that animals and humans in the study region are at risk of infection by this species belonging to the spotted fever group of Rickettsia.

Graphical Abstract

Related collections

Most cited references 51

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Genotypic identification of rickettsiae and estimation of intraspecies sequence divergence for portions of two rickettsial genes.

R Regnery, C L Spruill, B D Plikaytis (1991)

DNA sequences from specific genes, amplified by the polymerase chain reaction technique, were used as substrata for nonisotopic restriction endonuclease fragment length polymorphism differentiation of rickettsial species and genotypes. The products amplified using a single pair of oligonucleotide primers (derived from a rickettsial citrate synthase gene sequence) and cleaved with restriction endonucleases were used to differentiate almost all recognized species of rickettsiae. A second set of primers was used for differentiation of all recognized species of closely related spotted fever group rickettsiae. The procedure circumvents many technical obstacles previously associated with identification of rickettsial species. Multiple amplified DNA digest patterns were used to estimate the intraspecies nucleotide sequence divergence for the genes coding for rickettsial citrate synthase and a large antigen-coding gene of the spotted fever group rickettsiae. The estimated relationships deduced from these genotypic data correlate reasonably well with established rickettsial taxonomic schemes.

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The Blacklegged Tick, Ixodes scapularis: An Increasing Public Health Concern.

Rebecca Eisen, Lars Eisen (2018)

In the United States, the blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis, is a vector of seven human pathogens, including those causing Lyme disease, anaplasmosis, babesiosis, Borrelia miyamotoi disease, Powassan virus disease, and ehrlichiosis associated with Ehrlichia muris eauclarensis. In addition to an accelerated rate of discovery of I. scapularis-borne pathogens over the past two decades, the geographic range of the tick, and incidence and range of I. scapularis-borne disease cases, have increased. Despite knowledge of when and where humans are most at risk of exposure to infected ticks, control of I. scapularis-borne diseases remains a challenge. Human vaccines are not available, and we lack solid evidence for other prevention and control methods to reduce human disease. The way forward is discussed.

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Effects of Climate and Climate Change on Vectors and Vector-Borne Diseases: Ticks Are Different.

Nick Ogden, L. Robbin Lindsay (2016)

There has been considerable debate as to whether global risk from vector-borne diseases will be impacted by climate change. This has focussed on important mosquito-borne diseases that are transmitted by the vectors from infected to uninfected humans. However, this debate has mostly ignored the biological diversity of vectors and vector-borne diseases. Here, we review how climate and climate change may impact those most divergent of arthropod disease vector groups: multivoltine insects and hard-bodied (ixodid) ticks. We contrast features of the life cycles and behaviour of these arthropods, and how weather, climate, and climate change may have very different impacts on the spatiotemporal occurrence and abundance of vectors, and the pathogens they transmit.

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Author and article information

Contributors

Hermes Ribeiro Luz: hermes.luz@ufma.br

Journal

Journal ID (nlm-ta): Parasit Vectors

Journal ID (iso-abbrev): Parasit Vectors

Title: Parasites & Vectors

Publisher: BioMed Central (London )

ISSN (Electronic): 1756-3305

Publication date (Electronic): 27 October 2023

Publication date PMC-release: 27 October 2023

Publication date Collection: 2023

Volume: 16

Electronic Location Identifier: 391

Affiliations

[1 ]Post-Graduation Program in Health and Environment, Federal University of Maranhão, ( https://ror.org/043fhe951) São Luís, MA Brazil

[2 ]Pasteur Institute, São Paulo State Department of Health, São Paulo, SP Brazil

[3 ]Department of Preventive Veterinary Medicine and Animal Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, University of São Paulo, ( https://ror.org/036rp1748) São Paulo, Brazil

[4 ]Post-Graduation Program in Animal Health Defense, State University of Maranhão, ( https://ror.org/04ja5n907) Maranhão, Brazil

[5 ]Post-Graduation Program in Health Sciences, Center of Biological and Health Sciences, Federal University of Maranhão, ( https://ror.org/043fhe951) São Luís, MA Brazil

[6 ]Veterinary and Animal Science School, Federal University of Goiás, ( https://ror.org/0039d5757) Goiânia, GO Brazil

[7 ]Post-Graduation Program in Biodiversity and Conservation, Center of Biological and Health Sciences, Federal University of Maranhão, ( https://ror.org/043fhe951) São Luís, MA Brazil

[8 ]Tick-Pathogen Transmission Unit, Laboratory of Bacteriology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, ( https://ror.org/043z4tv69) Hamilton, MT USA

[9 ]Department of Immunology, Aggeu Magalhães Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz), ( https://ror.org/04jhswv08) Recife, PE Brazil

[10 ]Post-Graduation Program in Northeast Biotechnology Network (RENORBIO), Biodiversity and Conservation, Center of Biological and Health Sciences, Federal University of Maranhão, ( https://ror.org/043fhe951) São Luís, MA Brazil

Article

Publisher ID: 5978

DOI: 10.1186/s13071-023-05978-9

PMC ID: 10612284

PubMed ID: 37891604

SO-VID: 2739365c-86b5-412e-8c43-61c8845bdef3

License:

Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver ( http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated in a credit line to the data.

History

Date received : 20 August 2023

Date accepted : 23 September 2023

Funding

Funded by: FundRef http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100002322, Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior;

Award ID: 088.990.417-09

Funded by: FundRef http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100003758, Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa e ao Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico do Maranhão;

Funded by: FundRef http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001807, Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo;

Funded by: FundRef http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100003593, Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico;

Custom metadata

ScienceOpen disciplines: Parasitology

Keywords: amblyomma cajennense,ixodidae,population dynamics,rickettsia,amazon region,brazil

Data availability:

ScienceOpen disciplines: Parasitology

Keywords: amblyomma cajennense, ixodidae, population dynamics, rickettsia, amazon region, brazil

Seasonal dynamics of Amblyomma cajennense (Fabricius, 1787) sensu stricto in a degraded area of the Amazon biome, with notes on Rickettsia amblyommatis infection

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Abstract

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Graphical Abstract

Related collections

Ticks and tick-borne pathogens

Most cited references 51

Genotypic identification of rickettsiae and estimation of intraspecies sequence divergence for portions of two rickettsial genes.

The Blacklegged Tick, Ixodes scapularis: An Increasing Public Health Concern.

Effects of Climate and Climate Change on Vectors and Vector-Borne Diseases: Ticks Are Different.

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