White-Toothed Shrews (Genus ): Potential Reservoirs for Zoonotic spp. and Arthropod-Borne Pathogens?

Three species of white-toothed shrews of the order Eulipotyphla are present in central Europe: the bicolored (), greater () and lesser () white-toothed shrews. Their precise distribution in Germany is ill-defined and little is known about them as reservoirs for zoonotic pathogens ( spp., , spp.

Genetic Diversity of in Rodents and Human Patients in Austria, 2012-2019.

(PUUV) has a wide distribution throughout Europe. Distinctive temporal patterns of spillover into the human population are related to population dynamics of the reservoir host, the bank vole (). As the rodent host is tied to specific habitats with small individual ranges, PUUV genetic diversity is also highly correlated with geographic distance.

First report of Rickettsia raoultii in field collected Dermacentor reticulatus ticks from Austria.

In a set of pooled field collected Dermacentor reticulatus ticks, Rickettsia raoultii, the causative agent of Tick-borne lymphadenopathy/Dermacentor-borne necrosis erythema and lymphadenopathy, was found for the first time in Austria. The coordinates of the positive locations for tick and pathogen abundance are given and shown in a map.

Emergence of tick-borne encephalitis in new endemic areas in Austria: 42 years of surveillance.

Human infections with tick-borne encephalitis (TBE)virus are a public health concern in certain regions of Europe, central and eastern Asia. Expansions of endemic areas and increased incidences have been associated with different factors including ecological changes supporting tick reproduction, socioeconomic changes increasing human outdoor activities and climatic changes favouring virus circulation in natural foci. Austria is among the most strongly affected countries in Central Europe, but the annual number of cases has strongly declined due to vaccination.

Prevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato in the tick Ixodes ricinus in the Styrian mountains of Austria.

A total of 691 Ixodes ricinus (22 male, 39 female, 501 nymphs and 129 larvae), the tick vector of Lyme borreliosis, were collected by flagging from vegetation in 11 areas at altitudes between 789 m and 1350 m above sea level in mixed woodland with pasture land (cattle) in the province of Styria in Austria. The ticks were individually examined for presence of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato by dark-field microscopy and 107 of them by real-time PCR. Attempts to cultivate borreliae were made in BSK-H medium.

Transmission of Campylobacter spp. in a poultry slaughterhouse and genetic characterisation of the isolates by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis.

1. Contamination of retail products with Campylobacter spp. during the slaughter of poultry is a well-known problem of product hygiene.

Quality of water--quality of life.

Especially in developing countries, the problem of adequate drinking water supply is an ever growing one. Public health programmes have been established to improve the population's health conditions, but these programmes require big financial means for guaranteeing adequate supply of potable water and medical therapy for sick people. Too little emphasis is still put on regular testing of drinking water for microorganisms such as Aeromonas sp.

Francisella tularensis in Dermacentor reticulatus ticks from the Czech Republic and Austria.

Host-seeking adult Dermacentor reticulatus ticks were examined for the prevalence of Francisella tularensis in an active natural focus of tularemia along the lower reaches of the Dyje (Thaya) river in South Moravia (Czech Republic) and adjacent Lower Austria, in four localities of the flood plain forest-meadow ecosystem during the spring of 1996. The ticks were pooled (10 male or female ticks per group) and inoculated subcutaneously in 4-week-old SPF mice. Dead mice were sectioned, the spleens were homogenized in PBS and passaged in mice, and impression smears from the spleens, liver and heart blood were stained by Giemsa.

Prevalence of Francisella tularensis in Dermacentor reticulatus ticks collected in adjacent areas of the Czech and Austrian Republics.

A total of 1098 host-seeking adult Dermacentor reticulatus ticks were examined in an active enzootic focus (floodplain meadow and forest ecosystem) of tularemia along the lower reaches of the Thaya (Dyje) river in South Moravia (Czech Republic) and adjacent Austria during the spring of 1996. Twenty-five isolates of Francisella tularensis were recovered (i.e.

Campylobacter spp. and Salmonella spp. in black-headed gulls (Larus ridibundus).

Cloacal examination of 41 juvenile black-headed gulls (Larus ridibundus) by cultivation demonstrated Campylobacter jejuni in 26 (63%) and Salmonella typhimurium in 21 (51%) of them. All the bird samples were collected in a breeding colony near the town Hodonin, South Moravia, Czech Republic in 1996. Twenty six Campylobacter isolates were tested for antibiotic and drug sensitivity: all were resistant to at least three agents (Penicillin, Tetracyclin and Sulfomethoxazol-trimethoprim) while all were sensitive to Augmentan, Cefotaxim, Ciprofloxacin, Erythromycin, Nitrofurantoin and Cephazidine.

Serological examination of human and animal sera from six countries of three continents for the presence of rickettsial antibodies.

Forty samples each of human sera collected in Guinea Bissau, Cape Verde, El Salvador and Iran, and animal sera (goat and cattle from Sri Lanka and sheep from Tanzania) were examined for the presence of antibodies to typhus group (TG) rickettsiae, spotted fever group (SFG) rickettsiae and Coxiella burnetii by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) test. Of human sera tested, a higher proportion of positive sera were found with ELISA and IFA test for TG, SFG rickettsiae and C. burnetii in El Salvador (42.

People on the garbage dumps of Cairo: a toxicological in vivo model?

In the outskirts of Cairo, some 40,000 people live on garbage dumps. These people form a closed population whose socio-economic problems are identical. The pollutants are evenly distributed.

Salmonellae in gulls and other free-living birds in the Czech Republic.

Cloacal swabs, collected from 756 wild synanthropic and exoanthropic birds of 57 species in the Czech Republic, yielded 32 strains of Salmonella typhimurium [phage types (PT) 141, 104 and 41], six isolates of S. enteritidis (PT 8, 4 and 6e), and one each of S. panama and S.

Tick-borne encephalitis virus activity in Styria, Austria.

From 3,404 Ixodes ricinus ticks collected in 12 localities of Styria, Austria in 1990, 15 tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) virus isolates were recovered. Minimal field infection rate reached 4.4 virus containing ticks out of 1,000 collected ticks.

[10 years foodborne listeriosis--an evaluation].

Foodborne listeriosis outbreaks, which occurred in the past 10 years, have raised new questions in listeriosis epidemiology. The renewed interest in listeriosis and Listeria monocytogenes has resulted in various efforts, which enormously enriched the knowledge about his relatively rare, but because of the high mortality rate, important infectious disease as well as about its causative agent. New data concerning epidemiology and therapy of human listeriosis as well as new experience with Listeria monocytogenes regarding virulence, typing, isolation, identification, occurrence in food and environment, behaviour towards disinfectants etc.

Cryptosporidiosis in children in Idukki District in southern India.

Concentrated stool samples from 560 children, aged from two weeks to 10 years, from Idukki District, southern India, were examined to detect Cryptosporidium oocysts, using a phenol-auramin stain and fluorescent microscopy. Smears of stool samples were also stained by a modified Ziehl-Neelsen method and were examined by light-microscopy. One sample was collected from each of 266 children with diarrhoea and 294 age-matched children without diarrhoea.

[Air pollution emissions and changes in lung function].

Among the environmental hazards in a modern industrial society, air pollutants are of major significance. They can directly affect the cells of the bronchopulmonary system and lead to an irritation of the epithelial and immunocompetent cells. This results in a decreased secretion of immunoglobulin A, and, consequently, a decreased resistance against infections.

Results of serological examination for leptospirosis of domestic and wild animals in the Upper Nile province (Sudan).

195 domestic and 766 wild animals were serologically examined for leptospirosis. Cattle was found to be positive at titres 1 greater than or equal to 400 in 63.5%, namely 50.

Lead, cadmium, mercury and insecticide residue control of fresh vegetables.

Comparative investigations were carried out for heavy metals and heptenophos the sole used insecticide in used water, soil samples and harvest vegetables of a fresh cultivation region and of supplies of large plants. If one compares the recommended levels given with the levels found in the different types of vegetables investigated (cucumber, green pepper, tomatoes) then the values found lie far below the recommended levels.

Serological investigations of small mammals in waste disposal sites in Austria. 2nd report.

In serological investigations of small mammals in waste disposal sites, in Austria, antibodies were demonstrated against Q-fever, RMSF-Rickettsia, listeriosis, TBE (FSME) and West-Nile Virus.