Molecular and serologic survey of Orientia tsutsugamushi infection among field rodents in southern Cholla Province, Korea

Hyun Jae Song, Seung Yong Seong, Myung Suk Huh, Sae Gwang Park, Won Jong Jang, Sun Ho Kee, Kai Hwan Kim, Sun Chun Kim, Myung Sik Choi, Ik Sang Kim, Woo Hyun Chang

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

17 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Field rodents were collected from six areas in southern Cholla Province, Korea from October to December 1993. Twenty-eight (24%) of the 119 Apodemus agrarius were seropositive (> 1:10) for Orientia tsutsugamushi by the passive hemagglutination assay (PHA). Of the seropositive cases, 11 specimens had antibody titers greater than 1:80. No seropositive specimens were found among the eight Crocidura lasiura collected. On the other hand, the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplified about 520 basepairs of a gene encoding the 56- kD protein from the genomic DNA of 12 strains of O. tsutsugamushi tested. This target DNA sequence was amplified from the 11 (8.7%) blood specimens of A. agrarius, and one of the eight C. lasiura also showed evidence of O. tsutsugamushi infection by PCR. Only one of the PCR-positive samples was also PHA-positive. These results suggest that the PCR combined with a serologic assay more accurately detects the degree of infection of rodents with rickettsiae-causing scrub typhus in epidemiologic surveys.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)513-518
Number of pages6
JournalAmerican Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Volume58
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1998
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Parasitology
  • Virology
  • Infectious Diseases

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Molecular and serologic survey of Orientia tsutsugamushi infection among field rodents in southern Cholla Province, Korea'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this