Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2002 May;8(5):467-72.
doi: 10.3201/eid0805.010251.

Genetic variants of Ehrlichia phagocytophila, Rhode Island and Connecticut

Robert F Massung  1 , Michael J Mauel, Jessica H Owens, Nancy Allan, Joshua W Courtney, Kirby C Stafford 3rd, Thomas N Mather
Affiliations

Genetic variants of Ehrlichia phagocytophila, Rhode Island and Connecticut

Robert F Massung et al. Emerg Infect Dis. 2002 May.

Abstract

Primers were used to amplify a 561-bp region of the 16S rRNA gene of Ehrlichia phagocytophila from Ixodes scapularis ticks and small mammals collected in Rhode Island and Connecticut. DNA sequences for all 50 E. phagocytophila-positive samples collected from 1996 through 1998 in southwestern Connecticut were identical to the sequence reported for E. phagocytophila DNA from confirmed human cases. In contrast, the sequences from 92 of 123 E. phagocytophila-positive Rhode Island samples collected from 1996 through 1999 included several variants differing by 1-2 nucleotides from that in the agent infecting humans. While 11.9% of 67 E. phagocytophila-positive ticks collected during 1997 in Rhode Island harbored ehrlichiae with sequences identical to that of the human agent, 79.1% had a variant sequence not previously described. The low incidence of human ehrlichiosis in Rhode Island may in part result from interference by these variant ehrlichiae with maintenance and transmission of the true agent of human disease.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure
Figure
Map of northeastern United States, showing location of tick and rodent sampling sites.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Maeda K, Markowitz N, Hawley RC, Ristic M, Cox D, McDade JE. Human infection with Ehrlichia canis, a leukocytic rickettsia. N Engl J Med. 1987;316:853–6. - PubMed
    1. Anderson BE, Dawson JE, Jones DC, Wilson KH. Ehrlichia chaffeensis, a new species associated with human ehrlichiosis. J Clin Microbiol. 1991;29:2838–42. - PMC - PubMed
    1. McQuiston JH, Paddock CD, Holman RC, Childs JE. The human ehrlichioses in the United States. Emerg Infect Dis. 1999;5:635–42. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Chen SM, Dumler JS, Bakken JS, Walker DH. Identification of a granulocytotropic Ehrlichia species as the etiologic agent of human disease. J Clin Microbiol. 1994;32:589–95. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bakken JS, Dumler JS, Chen SM, Eckman MR, Van Etta LL, Walker DH. Human granulocytic ehrlichiosis in upper midwest United States. A new species emerging? JAMA. 1994;272:212–8. 10.1001/jama.272.3.212 - DOI - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources