A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal
Microbiome Analysis Reveals the Presence of Bartonella spp. and Acinetobacter spp. in Deer Keds (Lipoptena cervi)
Authors: Yvonne Regier, Kassandra Komma, Markus Weigel, Arto T. Pulliainen, Stephan Göttig, Torsten Hain, Volkhard A. J. Kempf
Publisher: FRONTIERS MEDIA SA
Publication year: 2018
Journal: Frontiers in Microbiology
Journal name in source: FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
Journal acronym: FRONT MICROBIOL
Article number: ARTN 3100
Volume: 9
Number of pages: 10
ISSN: 1664-302X
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2018.03100
Self-archived copy’s web address: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/37623730
Abstract
The deer ked (Lipoptena cervi) is distributed in Europe, North America, and Siberia and mainly infests cervids as roe deer, fallow deer, and moose. From a one health perspective, deer keds occasionally bite other animals or humans and are a potential vector for Bartonella schoenbuchensis. This bacterium belongs to a lineage of ruminant-associated Bartonella spp. and is suspected to cause dermatitis and febrile diseases in humans. In this study, we analyzed the microbiome from 130 deer keds collected from roe deer, fallow deer and humans in the federal states of Hesse, Baden-Wuerttemberg, and Brandenburg, Germany. Endosymbiontic Arsenophonus spp. and Bartonella spp. represented the biggest portion (similar to 90%) of the microbiome. Most Bartonella spp. (n = 93) were confirmed to represent B. schoenbuchensis. In deer keds collected from humans, no Bartonella spp. were detected. Furthermore, Acinetobacter spp. were present in four samples, one of those was confirmed to represent A. baumannii. These data suggest that deer keds harbor only a very narrow spectrum of bacteria which are potentially pathogenic for animals of humans.
The deer ked (Lipoptena cervi) is distributed in Europe, North America, and Siberia and mainly infests cervids as roe deer, fallow deer, and moose. From a one health perspective, deer keds occasionally bite other animals or humans and are a potential vector for Bartonella schoenbuchensis. This bacterium belongs to a lineage of ruminant-associated Bartonella spp. and is suspected to cause dermatitis and febrile diseases in humans. In this study, we analyzed the microbiome from 130 deer keds collected from roe deer, fallow deer and humans in the federal states of Hesse, Baden-Wuerttemberg, and Brandenburg, Germany. Endosymbiontic Arsenophonus spp. and Bartonella spp. represented the biggest portion (similar to 90%) of the microbiome. Most Bartonella spp. (n = 93) were confirmed to represent B. schoenbuchensis. In deer keds collected from humans, no Bartonella spp. were detected. Furthermore, Acinetobacter spp. were present in four samples, one of those was confirmed to represent A. baumannii. These data suggest that deer keds harbor only a very narrow spectrum of bacteria which are potentially pathogenic for animals of humans.