%0 Journal Article
%T First report of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato in two threatened carnivores: the Marbled polecat, Vormela peregusna and the European mink, Mustela lutreola (Mammalia: Mustelidae)
%A C£żlin M Gherman
%A Attila D S¨˘ndor
%A Zsuzsa Kalm¨˘r
%A Mihai Marinov
%A Andrei D Mihalca
%J BMC Veterinary Research
%D 2012
%I BioMed Central
%R 10.1186/1746-6148-8-137
%X Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato infection was identified in a marbled polecat, Vormela peregusna, and two European minks, Mustela lutreola, from Romania, by PCR. RFLP revealed the presence of a single genospecies, Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto.This is the first report of the Lyme disease spirochetes in the two mentioned hosts.Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato is the causative agent of Lyme borreliosis, the most widespread vector-borne disease in the cool-temperate regions of the Northern hemisphere. The medical importance of this pathogen is generally restricted to humans and few domestic species. However, as for many vector-borne diseases, the key to the understanding of the epidemiology of Lyme borreliosis consists in revealing the ecological relationships that exist between pathogens, vectors and wildlife hosts [1]. All 18 currently recognized genotypes [2] circulate in nature between vectors (several ticks of genus Ixodes) and reservoir hosts (various vertebrates) which are able to maintain and transmit the spirochetes [3].Between 2009 and 2011, 5 specimens belonging to two species of threatened mustelids were brought to the Laboratory of Parasitology and Parasitic Diseases in deep frozen state (Table 1). The dead animals were collected either as road kills (Vormela peregusna) or as accidental casualties of live-trapping during field studies (Mustela lutreola). The trapping was performed as part of biodiversity and ecology studies in the central part of the Danube Delta using box traps [4]. The accidental death of animals in live traps was caused by extreme morning frost or poor overall health status caused by floods (Kiss JB personal communication). Examination of the fur and skin did not reveal the presence of external parasites.During the necropsy of these animals, tissue samples (myocardium) were collected and processed for DNA extraction (Qiagen, DNeasy Blood & Tissue Kit). An extraction blank was included in each extraction procedures to control the cro
%K Borrelia burgdorferi s.s
%K First report
%K Mustela lutreola
%K Vormela peregusna
%K Romania
%U http://www.biomedcentral.com/1746-6148/8/137