Multi-Locus Sequencing Reveals Putative Novel Anaplasmataceae Agents, ' Candidatus Ehrlichia dumleri' and Anaplasma sp., in Ring-Tailed Coatis (Carnivora: Nasua nasua ) from Urban Forested Fragments at Midwestern Brazil

• Published in: Microorganisms (Basel) Vol. 10; no. 12; p. 2379
• Main Authors: Perles, Lívia, Herrera, Heitor M, Barreto, Wanessa T G, de Macedo, Gabriel C, Calchi, Ana C, Machado, Rosangela Z, André, Marcos R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 30-11-2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Anaplasma; Anaplasmataceae; Animals; Biomarkers; Ehrlichia; Gene sequencing; Genotypes; Haplotypes; Phylogenetics; Phylogeny; Procyonidae; Rickettsiales; rRNA 16S; Screening; tick-borne agents; Ticks; Urban forests; Vectors (Biology); Veterinary medicine; Wild animals; Zoonoses; Brazil; United States > US; Rickettsiales; tick-borne agents; wild animals; Procyonidae
• ISSN: 2076-2607; 2076-2607
• DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms10122379

The Anaplasmataceae family encompasses obligate intracellular α-proteobacteria of human and veterinary medicine importance. This study performed multi-locus sequencing to characterize
and
in coati's blood samples in Midwestern Brazil. Twenty-five samples (25/165-15.1%) were positive in the screening PCR based on the
gene of
spp. and were characterized using 16S rRNA,
,
, and
genes and the 23S-5S intergenic space region (ITS). Phylogenetic analyses based on all six molecular markers positioned the sequences into a new clade, with a common origin of
. Haplotype analyses of 16S RNA sequences revealed the presence of two distinct
genotypes. Six samples (6/165, 3.6%) were positive in the screening nPCR for the 16S rRNA gene of
spp. and were submitted to an additional PCR targeting the ITS for molecular characterization. Phylogenetic analyses based on both 16S rRNA gene and ITS positioned the
sp. detected in the present study in a large clade with other
sp. previously detected in ticks and wild animals and in a clade with '
Anaplasma brasiliensis', respectively. Based on distinct molecular markers, the present work described a putative novel Anaplasmataceae agent, namely '
Ehrlichia dumleri', and
sp. closely related to the previously described '
Anaplasma brasiliensis'.