Frontiers in Microbiology (Jan 2022)

The Role of Ranged Horses in Eco-Epidemiology of Rickettsia raoultii Infection in China

  • Qiao-Cheng Chang,
  • Qiao-Cheng Chang,
  • Yang Hu,
  • Ting-Ting Wu,
  • Xiao-Xiao Ma,
  • Bao-Gui Jiang,
  • Na Jia,
  • An-Qi Wang,
  • Jia-Fu Jiang

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.795500
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 12

Abstract

Read online

Rickettsia raoultii is a tick-borne pathogen that infects humans; however, the vertebrate hosts of this pathogen have not been clearly defined. Our molecular examination of Rickettsia spp. infecting mammals and ticks in China, identified the gltA, ompA, and 17KD gene sequences of R. raoultii in horses and their ticks. This indicates a role of horses in R. raoultii epidemiology.

Keywords