Prevalence of tick-borne pathogens at various workplaces in forest exploitation environment

Background: The objective of the study was the evaluation of the infection of ticks with pathogenic microorganisms at various workplaces (timber acquisition, forest growing, forest cultivation, forest protection). Material and Methods: Eight hundred sixty one Ixodes ricinus ticks collected from 4 workplaces were examined for the presence of Borrelia burgdorferi, Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Babesia microti by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Then, a comparative analysis of the relative density and infection of ticks at individual workplaces was done. In the statistical analysis, Chi2 test, and Pearson’s test for correlation were applied. Results: The differences in infection (15.9–50%) of ticks with B. burgdorferi between the examined workplaces were highly significant, with the highest percentage observed at forest growing. The percentages of infection of ticks with A. phagocytophilum at individual workplaces ranged from 1.1–3.7%, and differences were statistically insignificant. The percentages of infections of ticks with Babesia microti at individual workplaces fluctuated from 3.6–4.4% and differences were also insignificant. Co-infections of ticks with 2 or 3 pathogens were rare. Conclusions: Co-infections with B. burgdorferi and B. microti showed a significant relationship with the workplaces, while those with B. burgdorferi and A. phagocytophilum did not show such a dependence. No significant positive correlation was found between the relative density of ticks and the frequencies of infections with B. burgdorferi, A. phagocytophilum and B. microti. Med. Pr. 2014;65(5):575–58

Sexual function in women with pelvic organ prolapse and surgery influence on their complaints

Sexual health is an essential component of women’s wellbeing. Women with pelvic organ prolapse (POP) often suffer from sexual dysfunction. The current review focuses on the impact of POP as well as surgical POP repair on sexual function. A variety of techniques are discussed in relation to this issue, including native tissue repair (NTR), transvaginal mesh (TVM) and sacrocolpopexy (SCP). The majority of studies utilise validated questionnaires to assess sexual function in women pre- and post-POP repair and FSFI (Female Sexual Function Index) and PISQ-IR (Pelvic Organ Prolapse/Urinary Incontinence Sexual Questionnaire-IUGA revised) are among the most commonly used. According to the available data, surgical management of POP usually results in improved or unchanged scores in sexual function, regardless of the type of procedure used. SCP appears to be the preferred surgical management for women with apical vaginal prolapse that minimises the risk of dyspareunia as compared to vaginal techniques

Comparison of the efficiency of two commercial kits – ELFA and Western blot in estimating the phase of <i>Toxoplasma gondii</i> infection in pregnant women

Sera of 89 pregnant women were selected according to the results of ELFA IgM, IgG and avidity IgG, and tested with commercial tests IgM, IgG and avidity IgG Western Blot (WB) to compare the efficacy of both techniques in determining the phase of T. gondii infection. In total, 81 of 89 tested sera (91.0%) were classified as positive, both in the ELFA and WB tests for the presence of anti- Toxoplasma antibodies of class IgG, indicating a past infection, while the prevalence of anti- Toxoplasma positive reactions associated with the antibodies of class IgM indicating a recent infection was much lower – 31.5% and 20.2%, respectively. Sera of 81 women were also tested in the ELFA and WB tests for avidity, e.g. ability of forming high-molecular IgG antibody complexes. Low or medium results in these tests (in this study all classified as low), indicating a recent infection, were detected by ELFA and WB in 22.2% and 45.7% of the total examined samples, respectively. The Spearman’s rank test for correlation, performed for recognition of quantitative data of the ELFA and WB tests (index, units or points), revealed a highly significant correlation between the ELFA and WB tests for homologous classes of antibodies, both for IgM and IgG (p0.05), except for the WB test for IgM antibodies, which showed a significant correlation with the ELFA test for IgG antibodies (p<0.01). A highly significant negative correlation between the ELFA and WB test for IgM antibodies and ELFA and WB tests for IgG avidity was demonstrated (p<0.01), except for a relationship between the WB test for IgM and WB for avidity, which was not significant. Such negative correlations are theoretically expected, as strong complexes with the participation of IgG antibodies are absent in the early phase of toxoplasmosis when early antibodies of IgM class are present. Summarizing, this study indicates the high usefulness of the commercial ELFA and WB tests in serodiagnostics of toxoplasmosis in pregnant women. Special attention should be paid to parallel detection of IgM antibodies and low values in the ELFA and WB tests for IgG avidity, which indicates a recent infection which may be associated with a clinical form of congenital toxoplasmosis and damage to the foetus

Prevalence of infections and co-infections with 6 pathogens in <i>Dermacentor reticulatus</i> ticks collected in eastern Poland

Occurrence of co-infections with various pathogens in ixodid ticks creates a risk of increased severity of tick-borne diseases in humans and animals exposed to bite of the ticks carrying multiple pathogens. Accordingly, co-infections in ticks were subject of numerous analyses, but almost exclusively with regard to Ixodes ricinus complex whereas potential tick vectors belonging to other genera were much less studied. Taking into consideration the role of Dermacentor reticulatus in the transmission of various pathogens, we carried out for the first time the comprehensive statistical analysis of co-infections occurring in this tick species. An attempt was made to determine the significance of the associations between 6 different pathogens occurring in D. reticulatus (Tick-borne encephalitis virus = TBEV, Anaplasma phagocytophilum , Rickettsia raoultii , Borrelia burgdorferi s. l., Babesia spp., Toxoplasma gondii ), using 2 statistical methods: determination of Odds Ratios (ORs) and the Fisher’s exact test. 634 questing Dermacentor reticulatus ticks (370 females and 264 males) were collected in 2011– 2013 by flagging the lower vegetation in 3 localities in the area of Łęczyńsko-Włodawskie Lakeland, situated in the Lublin region of eastern Poland. The presence of individual pathogens was detected by PCR. Ticks were infected most often with Rickettsia raoultii (43.8%), less with TBEV (8.5%), and much less with Babesia spp., Toxoplasma gondii , Borrelia burgdorferi s.l., and Anaplasma phagocytophilum (2.5%, 2.1%, 1.6% and 1.1%, respectively). The locality-dependent variability proved to be significant for TBEV (χ 2 =11.063; P=0.004) and Toxoplasma gondii (χ 2 =11.298; P=0.0035), but not for other pathogens. Two hundred seventy (42.6%) of the examined ticks were infected only with a single pathogen, and 54 (8.5%) showed the presence of dual co-infections, each with 2 pathogens. The most common were dual infections with participation of Rickettsia raoultii (7.41%); next, those with participation of the TBEV (5.21%), Toxoplasma gondii (1.58%), Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. (1.26%), Anaplasma phagocytophilum (0.95%), and Babesia spp. (0.63%). On the total number of 15 possible associations, in 9 cases co-infections occurred whereas in 6 cases they were not detected. The most noteworthy were positive co-infections with the participation of TBEV, which proved to be weakly significant (0.05&lt;P&lt;0.1) in associations with Toxoplasma gondii and Anaplasma phagocytophilum , with Odds Ratios over 3.3 and 4.4, respectively. The values of Odds Ratios exceeded 3.0 also at the co-infections of Rickettsia raoultii with B. burgdorferi s.l., and T. gondii with Babesia spp., but these associations did not attain a significance level. The co-infections of Rickettsia raoultii with Babesia spp. appeared not to be significant (0.05&lt;P&lt;0.1) with OR below 0.3. In conclusion, co-infections with various pathogens in D. reticulatus ticks seem to be relatively rare and mostly not significant

Retrospective clinical and serological studies of tick-borne encephalitis-indication for vaccination

Introduction: Tick borne encephalitis (TBE) is a potentially debilitating disease caused by TBE virus. Tick born encephalitis has wide distribution. Natural foci of TBE had been localized in the Lublin region, Poland, with a growing prevalence of the incidence beginning in the 90s. Material and methods: We have examined 108 patients who underwent tick-born encephalitis with a clinical manifestation of meningoencephalitis and encephalitis who had suffered from TBE in the years 1995-2001. Only 38 patients, however, fulfilled both clinical and serological criteria of TBEV and were included in further analysis. Results: In all 38 patients specific TBE antigens in the cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) and serum were noticed at the level at least 300 Vu (Vienna unit) (ELISA) during the illness. In 42% of cases seropositive high levels of specific immunoglobulins have still been noticed after the recovery. None of the patients suffered from TBEV for the second time. Moreover, we did not find any correlation of seropositive levels of immunoglobulins and neurological symptoms dynamics. Conclusions: TBE, however, has to be taken into account in the history of the patient with acute neurological symptoms who have previously suffered from TBE. Besides, in patients suffering from TBEV the level of specific immunoglobulins may have a protective value

Prevalence of tick-borne pathogens at various workplaces in forest exploitation environment

Background: The objective of the study was the evaluation of the infection of ticks with pathogenic microorganisms at various workplaces (timber acquisition, forest growing, forest cultivation, forest protection). Material and Methods: Eight hundred sixty one Ixodes ricinus ticks collected from 4 workplaces were examined for the presence of Borrelia burgdorferi, Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Babesia microti by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Then, a comparative analysis of the relative density and infection of ticks at individual workplaces was done. In the statistical analysis, Chi2 test, and Pearson’s test for correlation were applied. Results: The differences in infection (15.9–50%) of ticks with B. burgdorferi between the examined workplaces were highly significant, with the highest percentage observed at forest growing. The percentages of infection of ticks with A. phagocytophilum at individual workplaces ranged from 1.1–3.7%, and differences were statistically insignificant. The percentages of infections of ticks with Babesia microti at individual workplaces fluctuated from 3.6–4.4% and differences were also insignificant. Co-infections of ticks with 2 or 3 pathogens were rare. Conclusions: Co-infections with B. burgdorferi and B. microti showed a significant relationship with the workplaces, while those with B. burgdorferi and A. phagocytophilum did not show such a dependence. No significant positive correlation was found between the relative density of ticks and the frequencies of infections with B. burgdorferi, A. phagocytophilum and B. microti. Med. Pr. 2014;65(5):575–58

Spiroplasma – an emerging arthropod-borne pathogen?

Spiroplasma is a genus of wall-less, low-GC, small Gram-positive bacteria of the internal contractile cytoskeleton, with helical morphology and motility. The genus is classified within the class Mollicutes. Spiroplasma / host interactions can be classified as commensal, pathogenic or mutualist. The majority of spiroplasmas are found to be commensals of insects, arachnids, crustaceans or plants, whereas a small number of species are pathogens of plants, insects, and crustaceans. Insects are particularly rich sources of spiroplasmas. The bacteria are common in haematophagous arthropods: deerflies, horseflies, mosquitoes, and in ticks, where they may occur abundantly in salivary glands. The ability of spiroplasmas to propagate in rodents was experimentally proven, and Spiroplasma infections have been reported recently in humans. Some authors have purported an etiological role of Spiroplasma in causing transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), but convincing proof is lacking. The possibility for humans and other vertebrates to be infected with Spiroplasma spp. in natural conditions is largely unknown, as well as the possibility of the transmission of these bacteria by ticks and haematophagous insects. Nevertheless, in the light of new data, such possibilities cannot be excluded

Occurrence of [i]Leptospira[/i] DNA in water and soil samples collected in eastern Poland

[i]Leptospira[/i] is an important re-emerging zoonotic human pathogen, disseminated by sick and carrier animals, water and soil. Weather calamities, such as flooding or cyclones favour the spreading of these bacteria. To check a potential role of natural water and soil in the persistence and spread of [i]Leptospira [/i]on the territory of eastern Poland, 40 samples of natural water and 40 samples of soil were collected from areas exposed to flooding, and 64 samples of natural water and 68 samples of soil were collected from areas not exposed to flooding. Samples of water were taken from various reservoirs (rivers, natural lakes, artificial lakes, canals, ponds, farm wells) and samples of soils were taken at the distance of 1–3 meters from the edge of the reservoirs. The samples were examined for the presence of [i]Leptospira[/i] DNA by nested-PCR. Two out of 40 samples of water (5.0%) collected from the area exposed to flooding showed the presence of [i]Leptospira[/i] DNA, while all 40 samples of soil from this area were negative. All samples of water and soil (64 and 68, respectively) collected from the areas not exposed to flooding were negative. No significant difference were found between the results obtained in the areas exposed and not exposed to flooding. In conclusion, these results suggest that water and soil have only limited significance in the persistence and dissemination of [i]Leptospira[/i] in eastern Poland