{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,1]],"date-time":"2026-09-01T14:57:07Z","timestamp":1788274627226,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":67,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"8","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2022,8,6]],"date-time":"2022-08-06T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1659744000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"EU","award":["FP7-261504"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["FP7-261504"]}]},{"name":"EU","award":["Vega 2\/0021\/21"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["Vega 2\/0021\/21"]}]},{"name":"EU","award":["APVV 19-0066"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["APVV 19-0066"]}]},{"name":"Scientific Grant Agency of Ministry of Education, Science, Research","award":["FP7-261504"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["FP7-261504"]}]},{"name":"Scientific Grant Agency of Ministry of Education, Science, Research","award":["Vega 2\/0021\/21"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["Vega 2\/0021\/21"]}]},{"name":"Scientific Grant Agency of Ministry of Education, Science, Research","award":["APVV 19-0066"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["APVV 19-0066"]}]},{"name":"Slovak Research and Development Agency","award":["FP7-261504"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["FP7-261504"]}]},{"name":"Slovak Research and Development Agency","award":["Vega 2\/0021\/21"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["Vega 2\/0021\/21"]}]},{"name":"Slovak Research and Development Agency","award":["APVV 19-0066"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["APVV 19-0066"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Pathogens"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Fleas (Siphonaptera) as obligate, blood-feeding ectoparasites are, together with ticks, hosted by small mammals and can transmit causative agents of serious infections. This study aimed to determine and characterize the presence and genetic diversity of Bartonella, Rickettsia, and apicomplexan parasites (Babesia, Hepatozoon) in fleas feeding on small mammals from three different habitat types (suburban, natural, and rural) in Slovakia. The most common pathogen in the examined fleas was Bartonella spp. (33.98%; 95% CI: 30.38\u201337.58), followed by Rickettsia spp. (19.1%; 95% CI: 16.25\u201322.24) and apicomplexan parasites (4.36%; 95% CI: 2.81\u20135.91). Bartonella strains belonging to B. taylorii, B. grahamii, B. elizabethae, Bartonella sp. wbs11, and B. rochalimae clades were identified in Ctenophthalmus agyrtes, C. congener, C. assimilis, C. sciurorum, C. solutus, C. bisoctodentatus, Palaeopsylla similis, Megabothris turbidus, and Nosopsyllus fasciatus within all habitats. The presence of Rickettsia helvetica, R. monacensis, and rickettsiae, belonging to the R. akari and R. felis clusters, and endosymbionts with a 96\u2013100% identity with the Rickettsia endosymbiont of Nosopsyllus laeviceps laeviceps were also revealed in C. agyrtes, C. solutus, C. assimilis, C. congener, M. turbidus, and N. fasciatus. Babesia and Hepatozoon DNA was detected in the fleas from all habitat types. Hepatozoon sp. was detected in C. agyrtes, C. assimilis, and M. turbidus, while Babesia microti was identified from C. agyrtes, C. congener, and P. similis. The present study demonstrated the presence of zoonotic pathogens in fleas, parasitizing the wild-living small mammals of southwestern and central Slovakia and widens our knowledge of the ecology and genomic diversity of Bartonella, Rickettsia, Babesia, and Hepatozoon.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/pathogens11080886","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2022,8,9]],"date-time":"2022-08-09T04:16:55Z","timestamp":1660018615000},"page":"886","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":12,"title":["Bartonella, Rickettsia, Babesia, and Hepatozoon Species in Fleas (Siphonaptera) Infesting Small Mammals of Slovakia (Central Europe)"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"11","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6138-7136","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Eva","family":"\u0160pitalsk\u00e1","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center, Slovak Academy of Sciences, D\u00fabravsk\u00e1 cesta 9, 845 05 Bratislava, Slovakia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7171-1729","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Lenka","family":"Minichov\u00e1","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Virology, Biomedical Research Center, Slovak Academy of Sciences, D\u00fabravsk\u00e1 cesta 9, 845 05 Bratislava, Slovakia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Zuzana","family":"Ham\u0161\u00edkov\u00e1","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Zoology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, D\u00fabravsk\u00e1 cesta 9, 845 06 Bratislava, Slovakia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9917-2421","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Michal","family":"Stanko","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Zoology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, D\u00fabravsk\u00e1 cesta 9, 845 06 Bratislava, Slovakia"},{"name":"Institute of Parasitology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Hlinkova 3, 040 01 Ko\u0161ice, Slovakia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6904-8342","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"M\u00e1ria","family":"Kazim\u00edrov\u00e1","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Zoology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, D\u00fabravsk\u00e1 cesta 9, 845 06 Bratislava, Slovakia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,8,6]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e667","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijid.2009.11.011","article-title":"Fleas and fleas-borne diseases","volume":"14","author":"Bitam","year":"2010","journal-title":"Int. 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