Experimental Disease Relations 



Virioses and Rickettsiae 



The use of 0. moubata and other Ornithodoros species for trans- 

 porting a ntnnber of pathogenic organisms for experimental pirrposes 

 has been siiggested. 



This species is easily infected with Ci fever (Coxiella burnetii^ 

 aiid is capable of transmitting the organism by its bite, A diagnos- 

 tic test for Q fever, using 0. moubata for feeding on a suspected 

 host, has been developed, 



Rickettsia provazekii , the causative organism of classical 

 typhus, and R, typhi , that of murine typhus, develop in 0. moubata . 

 The former rickettsTa can be transmitted transovarially and the 

 latter can be found in eggs and coxal fluid of infected ticks. 

 No multiplication of R, tsutsugainushi , the causative organism of 

 scrub typhus, occurs Tn 0, moubata ; the tick is therefore not a 

 likely vector of this unusually host- specific rickettsia, 



0. moubata maintains infection with the virus of Russian 

 spring- summer (Far Eastern) encephalitis. It has also been shovm 

 that these ticks can be infected with western equine encephalitis 

 virus. The virus causing miorine poliomyelitis (strain Columbia 

 SK) is destroyed or inactivated in blood ingested by the tampan. 

 Yellow fever is not transmissible by this tick. A Congo rickett- 

 sia of the boutonneuse fever type (boutonneux-pourpre ) remains 

 virulent in ticks fed on infected guinea pigs for two months but 

 not for six months. 



Bacteria 



Tularemia (Bacterium tularense ) is transmitted by the bite 

 of 0. moubata and is also transovarially transmitted to progeny. 

 BacTllus anthracis , the causative organism of anthrax, is not 

 transmissible and apparently kills the ticks, although it does 

 remain virulent in the tick's body long after death. The etiologic 

 agent of food poisoning. Salmonella enteritidis , has been recovered 

 from this tick in Africa, 



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