M Petrovec

..9% amino acid difference found between the Kosova Hoti and another strain from Kosovo (9553-01). This suggests that distinct virus strains can coexist in highly endemic areas...

..Thus, European physicians need to be aware that HGE exists in Europe and that the diagnosis should be considered in febrile patients with tick bites in areas where Lyme disease is endemic...

..In order to assess the possibility that roe and red deer in Slovenia serve as potential reservoir hosts for A. phagocytophila, materials from both species were examined...

..This study identified I. ricinus as the likely vector for these ehrlichial pathogens of humans in this part of Europe...

..The results of this study represent the first genetic evidence of B. microti and B. divergens-like parasites in I. ricinus ticks in Europe...

..Patients reporting additional tick bites during the study had significantly higher antibody titers at most time points during follow-up. No long-term clinical consequences were found during follow-up...

..agrarius from Russia, Estonia and Slovakia. These findings suggest that the DOB variants carried by the two species of APODEMUS: in Europerepresent two distinct genetic lineages...

..5%] of 68; P<.0001). Tickborne viral and bacterial infections are an important cause of febrile illness in Slovenia...

..Little is known about the seroprevalence of ehrlichiosis in adults and much less about the same in children...

..We have demonstrated that Dobrava and Puumala viruses coexist in a single region of endemicity and are capable of causing HFRS with significant differences in severity...

..flavicollis were indistinguishable from each other and identical with those previously described in I. ricinus ticks collected in Slovenia. The results of this study represent molecular evidence of B. microti in small mammals in Europe...

..The fact that C. parvum, which is associated traditionally with animals, was identified in the majority of human faecal specimens suggests that cryptosporidiosis may have primarily a zoonotic origin in Slovenia...

..Since the Balkan peninsula is also an endemic region for hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS), this method is suggested as convenient for early differential diagnosis of suspected viral hemorrhagic fever patients...

..Both babesial parasites were found in roe deer. Sequence analysis of 18S rRNA showed 99.7% identity of roe deer Babesia EU1 with the human EU1 strain. B. divergens detected in cervids was 99.6% identical to bovine B. divergens...

..On the basis of a comparison of the complete babesial 18S rRNA gene, we have generated strong molecular evidence that Ixodes ricinus ticks from Slovenia are infected with EU1...

..This method can be of valuable use for a differential diagnosis of TBEV infection in patients with febrile illness after a tick bite, particularly in regions where more than one tick-transmitted diseases are endemic...

..The differences indicate that in some patients fulfilling criteria for probable HGE the signs and symptoms most probably are not the result of a recent infection with A. phagocytophilum...

..Analysis of the complete S segment sequences recovered for two wild-type PUUV strains confirmed the existence of a distinct genetic lineage and also indicated a possible quasispecies type of Slovenian PUUV...

..Molecular analysis of the complete gltA gene and portion of 17 kDa and ompB genes revealed the presence of Rickettsia felis-like bacteria in up to 26% of tested ticks...

..7%) patients tested seropositive (> or =1 : 256) for A. phagocytophilum antibody, and two years after the first visit positive titers were still present in 10/18 (55.6%) patients...

..This analysis demonstrated that the strain is most likely a representative of possible new species within the genus...

..phagocytophilum strains should serve well in molecular epidemiological studies of infection transmission, particularly when fine-scale strain delineation is required...

..Viral load correlated with clinical disease and antibodies and could be used as a predictor of disease outcome...

..Tickborne encephalitis virus infection was established by serum immunoglobulin (Ig) M and IgG antibodies...

..c. canis could be subdivided into three groups, whereas the three B. c. vogeli isolates were genetically identical. The results of this study demonstrate the presence of canine babesiosis due to B. c. canis and B. c. vogeli in Slovenia...

..To establish the etiology in Slovenian children with febrile illnesses occurring after a tick bite...

..To establish epidemiological, clinical and laboratory differences between adult patients with proven acute human granulocytic ehrlichiosis (HGE) and patients with the initial phase of tick-borne encephalitis (TBE)...

..The results of the study indicate a marked difference in clinical manifestation, neutropenia, antibody response, and cross-protection after experimental infection with the two variants of A. phagocytophilum...

..The severity of the illness was mild to moderately severe. All patients recovered rapidly and without sequelae. HGE should be included in the differential diagnosis of febrile illnesses occurring after a tick bite in Slovenia...

..aeschlimannii. The results of this study extend the knowledge of the geographic distribution of SFG rickettsiae and indicate that at least two of them, with yet uncertain pathogenicity to humans, are present in ticks in southern Croatia...

..However, long-term follow-up of children born to primary infected women would be necessary for an accurate evaluation of the effectiveness of the screening because of the possibility of late onset of symptoms...

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