ArticleParasites & vectors2025
Study on the aggregation patterns of fleas parasitizing the great gerbil (Rhombomys opimus) in the Junggar Basin plague natural focus.
Article in Parasites & vectors, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
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.
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.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Host traits shape flea infestation patterns in small mammals: a case study ofFrontiers in veterinary science · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
12 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe great gerbil (Rhombomys opimus), whose ectoparasitic fleas significantly influence the transmission and prevalence of plague, was the dominant rodent species in the Junggar Basin in Northwestern China. However, the distribution pattern of fleas parasitizing the great gerbils and whether that pattern affected the intensity of plague prevalence in different regions remains unclear.
methodsA total of 17,780 fleas were collected from 2258 great gerbils throughout 90 investigations. This study focused on analyzing the rate of flea infestation and the flea indices of species that parasitized the great gerbils. The aggregation patterns of fleas parasitizing the great gerbils were measured using the parameter b of Taylor's power law, and the differences in the aggregation index of plague epidemic areas were compared.
resultsWe observed an aggregated distribution of ectoparasitic fleas in the great gerbils. The aggregation degree of combined fleas was higher (P > 0.05) in the eastern area of the Junggar Basin than in the western area. The primary species of ectoparasitic fleas of the great gerbils were Xenopsylla skrjabini, Xenopsylla minax, Xenopsylla hirtipes, and Nosopsyllus laeviceps laiveceps. X. skrjabini exhibited the highest (P < 0.01) degree of aggregation in the eastern zone (III), with an aggregation index of 1.61. In addition, in the middle zone (II), the aggregation index of X. minax and X. hirtipes reached their peak, with values of 1.53 and 1.56, respectively. Conversely, the degree of aggregation of N. laeviceps was more pronounced in the eastern zone than in the western zone of the Junggar Basin. Notably, the aggregation degree of the combined fleas of the great gerbils during the low-intensity plague epidemic period, with an index of 1.93, was significantly higher (P < 0.001) than during the high-intensity epidemic period, with an index of 1.50.
conclusionsFleas exhibited an aggregated distribution within the great gerbil population. The levels of flea aggregation varied across zones characterized by differing intensities of plague epidemics. In addition, the degree of flea aggregation was significantly correlated with the intensity of plague prevalence.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.