Rickettsia helvetica in C3H/HeN mice: A model for studying pathogen-host interactions
An infection with the tick-borne <i>Rickettsia helvetica</i> has been associated with a broad spectrum of clinical manifestations in humans, but patients are only seldomly reported. Understanding its disease etiology necessitates well-stablished infection models, improving to recognize and diagnose patients with <i>R. helvetica</i> infection and facilitating the development of effective control strategies. In this study, we used C3H/HeN mice as a model to establish <i>R. helvetica</i> infection, achieving a high infection prevalence (89-100 %). While the liver and the spleen DNA consistently tested positive for infection in all challenged mice, additional infected organs included the kidneys, heart, and the lungs. Notably, a low prevalence of infection was observed in <i>I. ricinus</i> nymphs fed on <i>R. helvetica</i>-challenged mice. In addition, larvae were refractory to infection, suggesting that ticks exhibit low susceptibility to the pathogen. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study of an animal model for <i>R. helvetica</i> infection. It serves as a valuable tool for advancing research on the interactions among the bacterium and its vertebrate host.
Authors
- Sara Moutailler (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3010-6968)
- Stefania Porcelli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1645-1917)
- Aurélie Heckmann
- Lourdes Mateos‐Hernández (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9566-7710)
- Hein Sprong (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0218-4320)
- Alejandro Cabezas‐Cruz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8660-730X)
- Clémence Galon (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5143-7961)
- Zbigniew Zając (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4684-7245)
- Andréa Cristina Fogaça (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0890-6136)
- Apolline Maître (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5586-9569)
- Angélique Foucault‐Simonin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3712-9946)
- Sabine Rakotobé (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7622-755X)
- Pavle Banović (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7902-6606)
- Tal Azagi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8889-5854)
Institutions
- Medical University of Lublin (PL)
- Université de Corse Pascal Paoli (FR)
- University of Novi Sad (RS)
- École Nationale Vétérinaire d'Alfort (FR)
- Universidade de São Paulo (BR)
- Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement (FR)
- Universidade Cidade de São Paulo (BR)
- National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (NL)
- Bipar (FR)
- Systèmes d'Elevage Méditerranéens et Tropicaux - Laboratoire de Recherche sur le Développement de l'Elevage (FR)
- Systèmes d’élevage méditerranéens et tropicaux (FR)
- Hungarian Research Network (HU)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Heliyon
- Published
- 2024-09-01
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e37931
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Vector-borne infectious diseases
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.52
Funders
- Agence Nationale de la Recherche
- Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
- Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico