Aquatic snails, passive hosts of Mycobacterium ulcerans.

Autor: Marsollier L; Unité de Génétique bactérienne, Institut Pasteur, 75724 Paris, France. marsol@pasteur.fr., Sévérin T, Aubry J, Merritt RW, Saint André JP, Legras P, Manceau AL, Chauty A, Carbonnelle B, Cole ST
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Applied and environmental microbiology [Appl Environ Microbiol] 2004 Oct; Vol. 70 (10), pp. 6296-8.
DOI: 10.1128/AEM.70.10.6296-6298.2004
Abstrakt: Accumulative indirect evidence of the epidemiology of Mycobacterium ulcerans infections causing chronic skin ulcers (i.e., Buruli ulcer disease) suggests that the development of this pathogen and its transmission to humans are related predominantly to aquatic environments. We report that snails could transitorily harbor M. ulcerans without offering favorable conditions for its growth and replication. A novel intermediate link in the transmission chain of M. ulcerans becomes likely with predator aquatic insects in addition to phytophage insects. Water bugs, such as Naucoris cimicoides, a potential vector of M. ulcerans, were shown to be infected specifically by this bacterium after feeding on snails experimentally exposed to M. ulcerans.
Databáze: MEDLINE