@article{fdi:010068912,
  title = {{H}ead lice of {P}ygmies reveal the presence of relapsing fever {B}orreliae in the {R}epublic of {C}ongo},
  author = {{A}manzougaghene, {N}. and {A}kiana, {J}. and {N}dombe, {G}. {M}. and {D}avoust, {B}. and {N}sana, {N}. {S}. and {P}arra, {H}. {J}. and {F}enollar, {F}. and {R}aoult, {D}. and {M}ediannikov, {O}leg},
  editor = {},
  language = {{ENG}},
  abstract = {{B}ackground {H}ead lice, {P}ediculus humanus capitis, occur in four divergent mitochondrial clades ({A}, {B}, {C} and {D}), each having particular geographical distributions. {R}ecent studies suggest that head lice, as is the case of body lice, can act as a vector for louse-borne diseases. {T}herefore, understanding the genetic diversity of lice worldwide is of critical importance to our understanding of the risk of louse-borne diseases. {M}ethodology/{P}rincipal {F}indings {H}ere, we report the results of the first molecular screening of pygmies' head lice in the {R}epublic of {C}ongo for seven pathogens and an analysis of lice mitochondrial clades. {W}e developed two duplex clade-specific real-time {PCR}s and identified three major mitochondrial clades: {A}, {C}, and {D} indicating high diversity among the head lice studied. {W}e identified the presence of a dangerous human pathogen, {B}orrelia recurrentis, the causative agent of relapsing fever, in ten clade {A} head lice, which was not reported in the {R}epublic of {C}ongo, and {B}. theileri in one head louse. {T}he results also show widespread infection among head lice with several species of {A}cinetobacter. {A}. junii was the most prevalent, followed by {A}. ursingii, {A}. baumannii, {A}. johnsonii, {A}. schindleri, {A}. lwoffii, {A}. nosocomialis and {A}. towneri. {C}onclusions/{S}ignificance {O}ur study is the first to show the presence of {B}. recurrentis in {A}frican pygmies' head lice in the {R}epublic of {C}ongo. {T}his study is also the first to report the presence of {DNA}s of {B}. theileri and several species of {A}cinetobacter in human head lice. {F}urther studies are needed to determine whether the head lice can transmit these pathogenic bacteria from person to another.},
  keywords = {{CONGO}},
  booktitle = {},
  journal = {{P}los {N}eglected {T}ropical {D}iseases},
  volume = {10},
  numero = {12},
  pages = {e0005142 [18 p.]},
  ISSN = {1935-2735},
  year = {2016},
  DOI = {10.1371/journal.pntd.0005142},
  URL = {https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010068912},
}