engleski

Prevalence of Francisella tularensis among small rodents in continental Croatia

PREVALENCE OF FRANCISELLA TULARENSIS AMONG SMALL RODENTS IN CONTINENTAL CROATIA Francisella tularensisis is a causative agent of zoonotic disease tularemia infecting wide range of hosts: arthropods, mammals and birds. In this study, the prevalence of rodent’s tularaemia in Croatia was investigated. The 456 samples of small rodents were collected in a 7 different localities in continental Croatia during 2-year study. Spleen samples of: 197 Apodemus agrarius (striped field mouse), 78 Apodemus sylvaticus (wood mouse), 92 Apodemus flavicollis (yellow-necked mouse), 17 Myodes glareolus (bank vole), 27 Mycrotus agrestis (field vole), 20 Microtus arvalis (common vole), 13 Sorex araneus (common shrew), and 12 samples of unidentified species were investigated for the presence of DNA of Francisella spp. using qRT-PCR method. Two mice of Apodemus agrarius species and one Apodemus sylvaticus, originated from the same area - locality of Lipovljani, were found to be positive on Francisella, revealing the presence of bacteria among small rodents population in Croatia.

Francisella ; Tularemia ; DNA ; Small rodents ; Insectivores ; Reservoirs ; Endemic areas ; Croatia ; Prevalence

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