Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37752595›Full record

ArticleParasites & vectors2023

Borrelia persica infection in wild carnivores in Israel: molecular characterization and new potential reservoirs.

Dor Shwartz, Yaarit Nachum-Biala, Stephanie Oren, Kobi Aharoni, Nir Edery, Lior Moss, Roni King, Roi Lapid, Reinhard K Straubinger, Gad Baneth

Open access · goldAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Parasites & vectors, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
0.8field-weighted citation impact, top 30% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed, 3 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Prevalence of Lyme Disease and Relapsing FeverPathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024
    Review
  5. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Dor ShwartzKoret School of Veterinary Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, P.O. Box 12, 7610001, Rehovot, Israel.
Yaarit Nachum-BialaKoret School of Veterinary Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, P.O. Box 12, 7610001, Rehovot, Israel.
Stephanie OrenKoret School of Veterinary Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, P.O. Box 12, 7610001, Rehovot, Israel.
Kobi AharoniKoret School of Veterinary Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, P.O. Box 12, 7610001, Rehovot, Israel.
Nir EderyPathology Department, Kimron Veterinary Institute, Rishon Lezion, Israel.
Lior MossPathology Department, Kimron Veterinary Institute, Rishon Lezion, Israel.
Roni KingIsraeli National Parks and Nature Reserves, Jerusalem, Israel.
Roi LapidIsraeli National Parks and Nature Reserves, Jerusalem, Israel.
Reinhard K StraubingerBacteriology and Mycology, Institute for Infectious Diseases and Zoonoses, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Oberschleißheim, Germany.
Gad BanethKoret School of Veterinary Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, P.O. Box 12, 7610001, Rehovot, Israel. Gad.baneth@mail.huji.ac.il.
Hebrew University of Jerusalem · ILNational Library of Israel · ILLudwig-Maximilians-Universität München · DE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundBorrelia persica causes tick-borne relapsing fever in Israel, the eastern Mediterranean basin, and Asia. Relapsing fever is associated with severe illness and potentially death in humans and animals. Since B. persica infection has rarely been described in wild animals, the aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of infection with B. persica in wild carnivores in Israel.

methodsSpleen and blood clot samples from wild carnivores, which underwent necropsy, were tested for the presence of Borrelia DNA by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). PCR products were sequenced, and the spirochete loads were quantified using a specific quantitative PCR (qPCR).

resultsA total of 140 samples from 74 wild carnivores were analyzed for the presence of Borrelia DNA. Six out of the 74 (8.1%) animals were found positive for B. persica by PCR and sequencing of the flagellin B gene, of which 4/74 (5.4%) were also positive by PCR for the glycerophosphodiester phosphodiesterase (glpQ) gene. Positive samples were obtained from three European badgers, and one striped hyena, golden jackal, and red fox each. All B. persica-positive animals were young males (P < 0.0001). Quantifiable results were obtained from 3/5 spleen and 4/5 blood samples. The spirochete loads in the blood were significantly higher than those found in the spleen (P = 0.034).

conclusionsThe prevalence of B. persica infection found in wild carnivores brought for necropsy was unexpectedly high, suggesting that this infection is widespread in some wild animal species in Israel. This is the first report of B. persica infection in the European badger and striped hyena. These carnivores have a wide geographical range of activity, and the results of this survey raise the possibility that they may serve as reservoir hosts for B. persica.

Indexed as

BorreliaBorrelia InfectionsHyaenidaeMustelidaeRelapsing FeverAnimalsAnimals, WildDNAHumansIsraelMaleDNABorrelia persicaBorreliosisEuropean badgerRelapsing feverStriped hyenaWildlife carnivores

Identifiers

PMID37752595
PMCPMC10523677
OpenAlexW4387046024

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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.