Rickettsiae and Rickettsioses in Portugal

The only rickettsiae recorded in Portugal till now were Rickettsia conorii and Coxiella burnetii. Boutonneuse fever is one of the most important transmissible diseases in Portugal. Though the annual number of cases is not exactly known, it is estimated to be not far from 20,000 in some years. Q feve...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:European journal of epidemiology 1991-05, Vol.7 (3), p.291-293
Main Authors: Bacellar, F., Núncio, M. S., Řeháček, J., Filipe, A. R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Antibodies
Antibodies, Bacterial - analysis
Antigens
Arachnid Vectors
Boutonneuse fever
Boutonneuse Fever - epidemiology
Boutonneuse Fever - transmission
Coxiella - isolation & purification
Dogs
Hemocytes
Humans
Incidence
Infestation
Portugal - epidemiology
Prevalence
Q fever
Q Fever - epidemiology
Q Fever - transmission
Rickettsia - isolation & purification
Rickettsia conorii
Rickettsia Infections - epidemiology
Rickettsia Infections - transmission
Ticks
Ticks - microbiology
Vero cells
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Summary:The only rickettsiae recorded in Portugal till now were Rickettsia conorii and Coxiella burnetii. Boutonneuse fever is one of the most important transmissible diseases in Portugal. Though the annual number of cases is not exactly known, it is estimated to be not far from 20,000 in some years. Q fever is the other rickettsiosis widely disseminated throughout the country. The serological prevalence and the incidence of those rickettsioses in Portugal are presented in this communication. In recent research in southern Portugal, about 4,000 adult ticks of nine species were screened by the haemocyte test for rickettsiae and rickettsia-like organisms (RLO). In addition to R. conorii three microscopically different RLO were observed. Two of them, i.e. ovoid and bacillary-like, were positive in the immunofluorescence test with spotted fever (R. conorii) antiserum. The first occurred mainly in Rhipicephalus sanguineus ticks, the second one also in other tick species. The latter agent was cultivated in half-engorged R. sanguineus females and in Vero cells. The third organism was found in R. sanguineus, where it exhibited a massive infestation in haemocytes resembling that seen in experimentally infected ticks with C. burnetii, but not being this agent. The investigation of the isolates and their identification and characterization are being continued.
ISSN:0393-2990
0392-2990
1573-7284
DOI:10.1007/BF00145680