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New World origins for haemoparasites infecting United Kingdom grey squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis), as revealed by phylogenetic analysis of bartonella infecting squirrel populations in England and the United States

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 January 2003

K. J. BOWN ,
B. A. ELLIS ,
R. J. BIRTLES ,
L. A. DURDEN ,
J. LELLO ,
M. BEGON  and
M. BENNETT
K. J. BOWN
Affiliation:
Centre for Comparative Infectious Diseases, University of Liverpool, P.O. Box 147, Liverpool L69 3BX, UK
B. A. ELLIS
Affiliation:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Rd NE, Mailstop E10, Atlanta, GA 30333, USA
R. J. BIRTLES
Affiliation:
Department of Pathology and Microbiology, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 1TD, UK
L. A. DURDEN
Affiliation:
Institute of Arthropodology & Parasitology, P.O. Box 8056, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, Georgia 30460, USA
J. LELLO
Affiliation:
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK
M. BEGON
Affiliation:
Centre for Comparative Infectious Diseases, University of Liverpool, P.O. Box 147, Liverpool L69 3BX, UK
M. BENNETT
Affiliation:
Centre for Comparative Infectious Diseases, University of Liverpool, P.O. Box 147, Liverpool L69 3BX, UK
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Abstract

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Phylogenetic analyses of bartonella have suggested divergence between bartonellae that infect mammals native to the Old and New Worlds. We characterized bartonella isolated from Eastern grey squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis) in the United States and from grey and red squirrels (Sciurus vulgaris) in the United Kingdom by nucleotide sequence comparison (gltA and groEL). Isolates from grey squirrels in the United States and the United Kingdom were identical, and most similar to Bartonella vinsonii, a species associated with New World rodents. A single and novel bartonella genotype was obtained from all 12 red squirrel isolates. Although grey squirrels were first introduced into the United Kingdom over 125 years ago, they continue to be infected solely by the bartonella associated with grey squirrels native to the United States. These results illustrate that exotic species may be accompanied by the introduction and maintenance, over many generations, of their microparasites.

Type
Research Article
Information
Epidemiology & Infection , Volume 129 , Issue 3 , December 2002 , pp. 647 - 653
Copyright
2002 Cambridge University Press