Journal
PARASITOLOGY INTERNATIONAL
Volume 67, Issue 2, Pages 209-212Publisher
ELSEVIER IRELAND LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.parint.2017.12.001
Keywords
Ctenocephalides felis; Pathogens; Rickettsia; Bartonella; Real-time PCR; Sequencing
Categories
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Fleas are commonly recorded on stray as well as domestic dogs and cats in Hong Kong. Fleas can be a major cause of pruritus in dogs and cats and also vectors of potentially zoonotic bacteria in the genera Rickettsia and Bartonella. Morphological examination of 174 fleas from dogs and cats living in Hong Kong revealed only cat fleas (Ctenocephalides felis). Cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 gene (cox1) genotyping of 20 randomly selected specimens, revealed three cox1 haplotypes (HK-h1 to HK-h3). The most common haplotype was HK-h1 with 17 specimens (17/20, 85%). HK-h1 was identical to cox1 sequences of fleas in Thailand and Fiji. HK-h1 and HK-h2 form a distinct cat flea cox1 Glade previously recognized as the Clade 3. HK-h3 forms a new Clade 6. A multiplex Bartonella and Rickettsia real-time PCR of DNA from 20 C. fells found Bartonella and Rickettsia DNA in three (15%) and ten (50%) C. fells, respectively. DNA sequencing confirmed the presence of R. fells, B. clarridgeiae and Bartonella henselae. This is the first reported study of that kind in Hong Kong, and further work is required to expand the survey of companion animals in the geographical region. The sampling of fleas on domestic cats and dogs in Hong Kong revealed them to be exclusively infested by the cat flea and to be harbouring pathogens of zoonotic potential.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available