Role of the Lizard Teira dugesii as a Potential Host for Ixodes ricinus Tick-Borne Pathogens

• DOI: 10.1128/aem.07945-11
• Publication Date: 2012-03-10T18:51:03Z
• Authors: R. De Sousa; I. Lopes de Carvalho; A. S. Santos; C. Bernardes; N. Milhano; J. Jesus; D. Menezes; M. S. Núncio
• Keywords: Lizard Teira dugesii; Madeira island (Portugal); Bacteriological Techniques; Ixodes; Borrelia; Lizards; .; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Faculdade de Ciências da Vida; 03 medical and health sciences; 0302 clinical medicine; Tick-Borne Diseases; Animals; Rickettsia; Ixodes ricinus Tick-Borne Pathogens; Anaplasma phagocytophilum; Disease Reservoirs

PCR screening of ticks and tissue samples collected from 151 Teira dugesii lizards seems to indicate a potential role this lizard species in the maintenance transmission cycle some Ixodes ricinus tick-borne agents, such as Rickettsia monacensis, helvetica, Borrelia lusitaniae, that are circulating on Madeira Island.