Molecular characterization of tandem repeat protein 36 gene of ehrlichia canis detected in naturally infected dogs from Peru

Joseph Geiger, Bridget A. Morton, Elton Jose Rosas Vasconcelos, Maryam Tngrian, Malika Kachani, Eduardo A. Barrón, Cesar M. Gavidia, Robert H. Gilman, Noelia P. Angulo, Richard Lerner, Tamerin Scott, N. Hannah Mirrashed, Brian Oakley, Pedro Paulo V.P. Diniz

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

8 Scopus citations

Abstract

Ehrlichia spp. are emerging infectious pathogens, especially in the Americas. Although Ehrlichia canis is primarily a parasite of dogs, polymerase chain reaction-confirmed human infections have been reported from Mexico, Venezuela, and Costa Rica. This study reports the presence of E. canis DNA in 13.7% of 205 dogs from urban areas in Peru and of those, five were analyzed for phylogenetic variation using the Tandem Repeat Protein 36 (TRP36) gene. The use of the TRP36 gene for such analysis was validated against 16S rRNA and heat shock protein genes using Shannon's entropy bioinformatic approach. When compared with other E. canis strains previously reported, three unique and novel E. canis strains were detected. In addition, the TRP36 amino acid tandem repeat sequences of the Peruvian strains share close similarity to an E. canis strain detected from four human blood bank samples in Costa Rica. This study reports for the first time domestic dogs infected with E. canis strains closely related to a zoonotic strain, which may be of public health concern as dogs can be chronically infected with this pathogen.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)297-302
Number of pages6
JournalAmerican Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Volume99
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - 2018

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Infectious Diseases
  • Virology
  • Parasitology

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