Abstract
A retrospective analysis by molecular-sequence-based techniques was performed to correctly identify the
etiological agent of 24 Mediterranean spotted fever cases occurring in Western Sicily, Italy, from 1987 to 2001.
Restriction analysis of a 632-bp PCR-amplified portion of the ompA gene allowed presumptive identification of
five clinical isolates as belonging to Rickettsia conorii subsp. israelensis, the etiological agent of Israeli spotted
fever (ISF). The remaining 19 rickettsial isolates were Rickettsia conorii subsp. conorii, the only pathogenic
rickettsia of the spotted fever group reported in Italy until the present. Sequence analysis of the ompA gene
confirmed the identification of all the R. conorii subsp. israelensis isolates and demonstrated that rickettsiosis
caused by R. conorii subsp. israelensis can be traced back to 1991 in Sicily. The recorded clinical data of the five
ISF patients support the idea that these strains could correlate to more-severe forms of human disease. Three
of five patients experienced severe disease, and one of them died
Lingua originale | English |
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pagine (da-a) | 6027-6031 |
Rivista | Journal of Clinical Microbiology |
Volume | 43 |
Stato di pubblicazione | Published - 2005 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- ???subjectarea.asjc.2700.2726???
- ???subjectarea.asjc.2400.2404???