Novel Anaplasma (Rickettsiales: Anaplasmataceae) strain and Hepatozoon sp. cf. H. procyonis (Apicomplexa, Hepatozoidae) detected in Procyon cancrivorus (Carnivora, Procyonidae) from Argentina, with note of tick-host association

EVELINA L. TARRAGONA; PATRICK S. SEBASTIAN; MARIA L. FELIX; JOSE M. VENZAL

VETERINARY RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS

SPRINGER

Año: 2023

0165-7380

The aim of this work is to report the first detection of Procyon cancrivorus naturally co-infected with Hepatozoon sp. cf.H. procyonis and a novel Anaplasma strain from South America and potential vector tick species associated. On August30, 2016, a specimen of P. cancrivorus was found dead on the route in Chaco province, Argentina. A tick and a bloodsample by cardiac puncture was collected from the specimen. DNA was extracted from blood sample and the tick wasmorphological identity as a female of Amblyomma ovale. Molecular detection of Anaplasmataceae family and Hepatozoonspp. agents was performed targeting two different loci: 16 S rRNA and 18 S rRNA gene. The phylogenetic analysesshow that the Anaplasma sp. strain detected in P. cancrivorus in this study is similar to Anaplasma sp. strains previouslydetected in Nasua nasua and A. ovale from Brazil. Furthermore, Hepatozoon sp. of the H. procyonis group was amplifiedthat is phylogenetically closely related to H. procyonis reported in N. nasua from Brazil. Since it was not exactly the sameas the latter, it was decided to name at Hepatozoon sp. cf. H. procyonis. It is possible that, this potential new species ofAnaplasma would be specific for Procyonidae family and there are two species of Hepatozoon linked to this family inSouth America. These results added to other published studies suggest that A. ovale could be a potential vector both forthe new potential strain of Anaplasma and for the Hepatazoon sp. of the H. procyonis group.