The chigger microbiome: big questions in a tiny world

Chaisiri, Kittipong, Linsuwanon, Piyada and Makepeace, Benjamin L ORCID: 0000-0002-6100-6727 (2023) The chigger microbiome: big questions in a tiny world. TRENDS IN PARASITOLOGY, 39 (8). pp. 696-707.

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Abstract

'Chiggers' (trombiculid mite larvae) are best known as vectors of rickettsial pathogens, Orientia spp., which cause a zoonosis, scrub typhus. However, several other pathogens (e.g., Hantaan orthohantavirus, Dabie bandavirus, Anaplasma spp., Bartonella spp., Borrelia spp., and Rickettsia spp.) and bacterial symbionts (e.g., Cardinium, Rickettsiella, and Wolbachia) are being reported from chiggers with increasing frequency. Here, we explore the surprisingly diverse chigger microbiota and potential interactions within this microcosm. Key conclusions include a possible role for chiggers as vectors of viral diseases; the dominance in some chigger populations of unidentified symbionts in several bacterial families; and increasing evidence for vertical transmission of potential pathogens and symbiotic bacteria in chiggers, suggesting intimate interactions and not simply incidental acquisition of bacteria from the environment or host.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Animals, Humans, Trombiculidae, Orientia tsutsugamushi, Rickettsia, Scrub Typhus, Zoonoses
Divisions:	Faculty of Health and Life Sciences Faculty of Health and Life Sciences > Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	19 Jun 2023 10:54
Last Modified:	07 Sep 2023 02:46
DOI:	10.1016/j.pt.2023.05.002
Related URLs:	Author Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3171084