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Triatoma dimidiata is the only reported Chagas disease vector in Campeche, Mexico. The purpose of this study was to determine the genetic variability of vectors from Campeche coastal and rain forest areas and establish a phylogenetic relationship with other T. dimidiata populations by analyzing the internal transcribed spacer-2 (ITS-2) region. The sequence length of samples from Campeche ranged from 469 to 478 basepairs. The ITS-2 variability among the populations enabled us to classify them into two clades with an 18-22 nucleotide difference. The genetic distance (0.042) between them confirms this divergence. Phylogenetic analysis of gene genealogies confirmed these two clades. Furthermore, the population genetic analyses showed two groups with little genetic similarity or migration between them. One group was associated with the tropical forest area and the other group was associated with a mainly coastal distribution. This correlation was also observed when T. dimidiata from other regions of Mexico and Central America were analyzed.

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The deer ked Lipoptena mazamae (Diptera: Hippoboscidae) (Róndani), is a blood‐feeding obligate ectoparasite of several species of deer and brocket. However, at present little information is available about its role as a vector of hemoparasites. Nonetheless, it is considered a competent vector for the transmission of Bartonella species. The aim of this study was performing the morphological and molecular identification of ked flies and to carry out the detection of Bartonella. We collected specimens from Chiná, Campeche, Mexico associated with white‐tailed deer. Using polymerase chain reaction (PCR), of COI, gltA and rpoB genes, we were able to obtain the first barcode for L. mazamae from Mexico and identified a new species of Bartonella which was found with a prevalence of 73%. The data obtained in this study confirmed the presence of L. mazamae associated with white‐tailed deer and its possible role as vector of Candidatus Bartonella odocoilei n. sp. in Mexico and we considered that it may also be present in white‐tailed deer populations in the U.S.A. Additional investigations into Bartonella species associated with deer ked could provide further insight into their pathogenicity and its role as a zoonotic agent.

Murine typhus is a flea-borne disease caused by Rickettsia typhi, which was first detected in Mexico in 1927. It was not until 1996 that the first systematized study involving this pathogen was conducted in two coastal states of Mexico. We now report the first confirmed case of murine typhus in the state of Campeche, which occurred in a male patient who exhibited fever, thrombocytopenia, hyperbilirubinemia, and a rash. Furthermore, the patient reported having had previous contact with Rickettsia reservoirs.