Molecular analysis of microbial communities identified in different developmental stages of <i>Ixodes scapularis</i> ticks from Westchester and Dutchess Counties, New York

Moreno, Cláudia; Moy, Fred; Daniels, Thomas J.; Godfrey, Henry P.; Cabello, Felipe C.

doi:10.1111/j.1462-2920.2005.00955.x

Cited by 118 publications

(100 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…There were two previous studies of I. scapularis larval and nymph microbiota that, like the current study, showed a high prevalence of Rickettsia (4,14). Neither study reported similarities with REIS, probably because the REIS sequences are not yet available in GenBank and can be searched for only via their unassembled reads.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 72%

Variation in the Microbiota of Ixodes Ticks with Regard to Geography, Species, and Sex

Treuren

Ponnusamy

Brinkerhoff

et al. 2015

Appl Environ Microbiol

173

204

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n Ixodes scapularis is the principal vector of Lyme disease on the East Coast and in the upper Midwest regions of the UnitedStates, yet the tick is also present in the Southeast, where Lyme disease is absent or rare. A closely related species, I. affinis, also carries the pathogen in the South but does not seem to transmit it to humans. In order to better understand the geographic diversity of the tick, we analyzed the microbiota of 104 adult I. scapularis and 13 adult I. affinis ticks captured in 19 locations in South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Connecticut, and New York. Initially, ticks from 4 sites were analyzed by 454 pyrosequencing. Subsequently, ticks from these sites plus 15 others were analyzed by sequencing with an Illumina MiSeq machine. By both analyses, the microbiomes of female ticks were significantly less diverse than those of male ticks. The dissimilarity between tick microbiomes increased with distance between sites, and the state in which a tick was collected could be inferred from its microbiota. The genus Rickettsia was prominent in all locations. Borrelia was also present in most locations and was present at especially high levels in one site in western Virginia. In contrast, members of the family Enterobacteriaceae were very common in North Carolina I. scapularis ticks but uncommon in I. scapularis ticks from other sites and in North Carolina I. affinis ticks. These data suggest substantial variations in the Ixodes microbiota in association with geography, species, and sex.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 72%

Variation in the Microbiota of Ixodes Ticks with Regard to Geography, Species, and Sex

Treuren

Ponnusamy

Brinkerhoff

et al. 2015

Appl Environ Microbiol

173

204

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Likewise, previous studies have not accounted for the contribution of the host blood meal source and the nutritional status of the fleas, which has been documented to influence bacterial communities in arthropods (Moreno et al, 2006). As a result of the high level of prevalence and stable vertical transmission of R. felis in some colonies of C. felis, we hypothesize that R. felis directly influences the prevalence of other species of bacteria within the flea.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 81%

“…The nutritional status of the arthropod in relation to bacterial composition has been examined for other blood feeding arthropods (Moreno et al, 2006). There was a correlation between life stage, feeding and prevalence of some species of bacteria (for example, Borrelia and Sphingobacteriaceae) in Ixodes scapularis ticks.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the current study, we utilized unfed adult fleas to reduce the variability of bacterial infections associated with blood feeding during the adult stage, which has been described for other blood feeding arthropods (Moreno et al, 2006). Neither species richness nor diversity was impacted as a result of colony maintenance on an artificial versus a live host.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Comparative microbiota of Rickettsia felis-uninfected and -infected colonized cat fleas, Ctenocephalides felis

et al. 2007

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Fleas serve as arthropod vectors for several emerging and re-emerging infectious disease causing agents including, Rickettsia felis. Although the prevalence of R. felis infection in colonies of fleas has been examined, the influence of the R. felis infection on flea microbiota has not been investigated. We identified three colonies of cat fleas, Ctenocephalides felis, with varying prevalence of R. felis infection (Louisiana State University (LSU), 93.8%; Professional Laboratory and Research Services Inc. (PLRS), 16.4%; Elward II (EL), 0%) and subsequently utilized polymerase chain reaction amplification, restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis and sequencing of the 1.4-kb portions of 16S rRNA genes to examine the diversity of bacteria in the flea populations. A total of 17 different bacterial 16S rRNA gene sequences were identified among the C. felis colonies. The prevalence of two Wolbachia species that were identified in each flea colony differed between colonies and R. felis-uninfected and -infected fleas. Species richness was unchanged among the R. felis-uninfected (LSU, PLRS and EL colonies) and -infected (LSU and PLRS colonies) fleas; however, between R. felis-uninfected and -infected fleas within both the LSU and PLRS colonies, R. felisuninfected fleas have greater species richness. Diversity indices did not identify a difference in diversity between any of the flea samples. The interaction of endosymbionts within arthropods can widely impact the dissemination of vertically transmitted pathogenic bacteria; and the reciprocal may be true. These results suggest that carriage of R. felis has an impact on the richness of flea microbiota.

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“…Diverse microbial communities were found in these vectors, and most microbial species were represented sparsely or occurred in only a few individual vectors. Some studies also indicated that the composition of these microbial communities often varies across time and space (Kirstein et al, 1997;Wielinga et al, 2006;van Overbeek et al, 2008;Jones et al, 2010) and that these variations are linked largely to the characteristics of the arthropod (for example, its species, life stage, diet and blood engorgement level; Pidiyar et al, 2004;Moreno et al, 2006;Heise et al, 2010;Jones et al, 2010;Hawlena et al, 2013). Nevertheless, because vector-borne microbes spend a part of their lives in the blood of the vertebrate host, it is important to consider also the internal environment of this host.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Similarities and seasonal variations in bacterial communities from the blood of rodents and from their flea vectors

et al. 2015

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Vector-borne microbes are subject to the ecological constraints of two distinct microenvironments: that in the arthropod vector and that in the blood of its vertebrate host. Because the structure of bacterial communities in these two microenvironments may substantially affect the abundance of vector-borne microbes, it is important to understand the relationship between bacterial communities in both microenvironments and the determinants that shape them. We used pyrosequencing analyses to compare the structure of bacterial communities in Synosternus cleopatrae fleas and in the blood of their Gerbillus andersoni hosts. We also monitored the interindividual and seasonal variability in these bacterial communities by sampling the same individual wild rodents during the spring and again during the summer. We show that the bacterial communities in each sample type (blood, female flea or male flea) had a similar phylotype composition among host individuals, but exhibited seasonal variability that was not directly associated with host characteristics. The structure of bacterial communities in male fleas and in the blood of their rodent hosts was remarkably similar and was dominated by flea-borne Bartonella and Mycoplasma phylotypes. A lower abundance of flea-borne bacteria and the presence of Wolbachia phylotypes distinguished bacterial communities in female fleas from those in male fleas and in rodent blood. These results suggest that the overall abundance of a certain vector-borne microbe is more likely to be determined by the abundance of endosymbiotic bacteria in the vector, abundance of other vector-borne microbes co-occurring in the vector and in the host blood and by seasonal changes, than by host characteristics.

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Molecular analysis of microbial communities identified in different developmental stages of Ixodes scapularis ticks from Westchester and Dutchess Counties, New York

Cited by 118 publications

References 55 publications

Variation in the Microbiota of Ixodes Ticks with Regard to Geography, Species, and Sex

Variation in the Microbiota of Ixodes Ticks with Regard to Geography, Species, and Sex

Comparative microbiota of Rickettsia felis-uninfected and -infected colonized cat fleas, Ctenocephalides felis

Similarities and seasonal variations in bacterial communities from the blood of rodents and from their flea vectors

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