Orientia tsutsugamushi in Chiggers and Small Mammals in Laos
1
Issued Date
2022-10-01
Resource Type
ISSN
15303667
eISSN
15577759
Scopus ID
2-s2.0-85140190342
Pubmed ID
36255415
Journal Title
Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases
Volume
22
Issue
10
Start Page
505
End Page
511
Rights Holder(s)
SCOPUS
Bibliographic Citation
Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases Vol.22 No.10 (2022) , 505-511
Suggested Citation
Elliott I., Kumlert R., Thangnimitchok N., Blacksell S.D., Tanganuchitcharnchai A., Paris D.H., Newton P.N., Morand S. Orientia tsutsugamushi in Chiggers and Small Mammals in Laos. Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases Vol.22 No.10 (2022) , 505-511. 511. doi:10.1089/vbz.2022.0029 Retrieved from: https://repository.li.mahidol.ac.th/handle/123456789/84895
Title
Orientia tsutsugamushi in Chiggers and Small Mammals in Laos
Author's Affiliation
Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University
Maladies Infectieuses et Vecteurs : Écologie, Génétique, Évolution et Contrôle
Universitat Basel
Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH)
Kasetsart University
Thailand Ministry of Public Health
Mahosot Hospital, Lao
Nuffield Department of Medicine
Maladies Infectieuses et Vecteurs : Écologie, Génétique, Évolution et Contrôle
Universitat Basel
Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH)
Kasetsart University
Thailand Ministry of Public Health
Mahosot Hospital, Lao
Nuffield Department of Medicine
Other Contributor(s)
Abstract
Background: Scrub typhus is a leading cause of febrile illness in Laos and accounts for a high burden of disease. There have been no previous studies on the causative agent, Orientia tsutsugamushi, in vector mites ("chiggers") or their small mammal hosts in Laos. Materials and Methods: Small mammals and free-living chiggers were trapped in districts of Vientiane Province and Capital. Tissues were tested for O. tsutsugamushi by PCR and serum for IgG to O. tsutsugamushi by immunofluorescence assays (IFAs). Chiggers removed from small mammals and collected in their free-living stage using black plates were identified and tested for O. tsutsugamushi by PCR. Results: Over an 18-month period, 131 small mammals of 14 species were collected in 5 districts. Seventy-eight of 131 small mammals were infested with chiggers, but all tissues were O. tsutsugamushi PCR negative. Eighteen species of chigger were identified and 1,609 were tested by PCR. A single pool of chiggers tested O. tsutsugamushi positive. Sera from 52 small mammals were tested by IFA, with 16 testing positive. Conclusions: These are the first molecular and serological data on O. tsutsugamushi in chiggers and small mammals in Laos. Further studies are needed to better understand the key vector species and ecology of scrub typhus in areas with high disease incidence in Laos.