• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.63 no.4
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• pp.378-381
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• 2007

Tsutsugamushi disease (Scrub typhus) is an acute, febrile illness caused by Orientia tsutsugamushi, which is transmitted to humans through chigger bites. Leptospirosis, a febrile disease caused by various pathogenic Leptospira, and is acquired by exposure to contaminated water and soil. Both diseases have been the most common acute febrile diseases in the autumn in Korea for many years. Concomitant leptospirosis and scrub typhus is quite rare. We report a case of a coinfection with leptospirosis and scrub typhus in a 51-year-old male who presented with fever, abdominal pain and acute dyspnea. The patient was diagnosed with as acalculous cholecystitis, acute respiratory distress syndrome, and septic shock caused by the infection. This is the first case report of a coinfection with leptospirosis and scrub typhus in Korea.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.61 no.4
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• pp.389-393
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• 2006

Tsutstugamushi disease is a major febrile disease that generally occurs in the fall in Korea with hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome and leptospirosis. This disease is often accompanied by interstitial pneumonia, acute renal failure and liver failure. The causative agent, namely Orientia tsutsugamushi, is transmitted to humans through the bite of a laval trombiculid mite, which is commonly known as a chigger. A 78 year old man was admitted in October 2004 with intractable fever and a drowsy mentality. Two weeks earlier, he visited a private clinic complaining of a simple skin rash. He was treated with antihistamine and steroid, but his symptoms were aggravated and he was referred to our hospital. His physical examination and laboratory findings showed a septic shock status. The maculopapular rash had spread over his face, chest, abdomen and extremities. Eschar was observed in lower back area but it was too difficult to distinguish it from other skin rashes. His chest X-ray appeared as diffuse nodular patchy consolidations in the bilateral lung parenchyme. He was treated with a mechanical ventilator and doxycycline under th suspicion of Tsutstugamushi disease. However, he suffered multiorgan failure accompanied by acute respiratory distress syndrome, acute renal failure and acute hepatitis. He was treated in the intensive care unit for approximately 12 weeks and his general condition was recovered.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.56 no.5
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• pp.521-525
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• 2018

Rodents are well-known reservoirs and vectors of many emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases, but little is known about their role in zoonotic disease transmission in Bhutan. In this study, a cross-sectional investigation of zoonotic disease pathogens in rodents was performed in Chukha district, Bhutan, where a high incidence of scrub typhus and cases of acute undifferentiated febrile illness had been reported in people during the preceding 4-6 months. Twelve rodents were trapped alive using wire-mesh traps. Following euthanasia, liver and kidney tissues were removed and tested using PCR for Orientia tsutsugamushi and other bacterial and rickettsial pathogens causing bartonellosis, borreliosis, human monocytic ehrlichiosis, human granulocytic anaplasmosis, leptospirosis, and rickettsiosis. A phylogenetic analysis was performed on all rodent species captured and pathogens detected. Four out of the 12 rodents (33.3%) tested positive by PCR for zoonotic pathogens. Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Bartonella grahamii, and B. queenslandensis were identified for the first time in Bhutan. Leptospira interrogans was also detected for the first time from rodents in Bhutan. The findings demonstrate the presence of these zoonotic pathogens in rodents in Bhutan, which may pose a risk of disease transmission to humans.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.52 no.3
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• pp.283-287
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• 2002

Scrub typhus is an acute, febrile disease of humans that is caused by Orientia Tsutsugamushi. It is transmitted through the bite of chiggers. The spectrum of the clinical severity for scrub typhus ranges from mild to severe with fatal complication such as meningoencephalitis, pneumonitis, myocarditis. Severe pulmonary involvement e.g. acute respiratory distress syndrome(ARDS) and meningoencephalitis have rarely been observed since the introduction of specific antibiotic therapy. We experienced a case of scrub typhus manifested with ARDS and meningoencephalitis. The patient was treated with doxycycline, anticonvulsant and mechanical ventilator therapy.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.311-316
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• 2010

We studied a comparison of the concentration of biochemical markers in sera of patients hospitalized with high fever (n=296) in Jeonbuk province during the last 2 years (2008 to 2009). The patients were divided into three patient groups of viral hemorrhagic fever (VHF) patient group tested positive for Hantavirus (n=53), leptospirosis (LEP) patient group tested positive for Leptospira interrogans (n=137) and scrub typhus (TSU) patient group tested positive for Orientia tsutsugamushi (n=106). We analyzed the concentration of ALP, AST, ALT, blood urea nitrogen, creatinine and glucose and compared the mean levels of them to normal range, the first sample and last sample. The frequencies of abnormal patient elevated above the upper limit of normal for ALP, AST and ALT were 18~43.4%, 78~97% and 62.3~92.7% in patient groups, and 24.5~47.4% (total protein) and 13.2~50.0% (albumin) of patients in patient groups had decreased below the lower limit of normal. The patients showed higher abnormal levels of glucose in patient groups were 58.5% (viral hemorrhagic fever patient group), 66.4% (leptospirosis patient group), 71.7% (scrub typhus patient group) and 66.9% (total patient group). There were significant difference between the first sample and the last sample in the mean levels of AST (decreased 22.2% in viral hemorrhagic fever patient group, 30.2% in leptospirosis patient group, 20.4% in scrub typhus patient group and 24.1% in total patient group), BUN (43.0% in viral hemorrhagic fever patient group, 41.6% in leptospirosis patient group, 47.4% in scrub typhus patient group and 43.0% in total patient group) and glucose (20.2% viral hemorrhagic fever patient group, 17.9% in leptospirosis patient group, 18.6% in scrub typhus patient group and 18.9% in total patient group) in the first sample and the last sample. According to these results, those diseases may cause liver damage and have high concentration of ALP, AST, ALT and glucose in blood even though the patients get out of the hospital.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Service
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.183-189
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• 2012

Tsutsugamushi disease or scrub typhus cause by Orientia tsutsugamushi is an endemic disease in Korea. Chigger mites and field rodents play roles in transmission of the disease by the vector and host of the agent. The purpose of this study is to investigate the density of the chigger mites and field rodents due to environmental factors such as temperature, relative humidity, soil thickness and the various vegetations to the 9 field rodent collection sites. The total 62 field rodents was captured by the Sherman collapsible traps from April to October 2009 at the Jangseong of Jeonnam Province, Korea. The trapping rate of the field rodents by the different collecting sites was dominant at subside storage water (24%), bush near by dam (22%), bank around field (20%), followed by 18% of grassy field and surround cattle shed. The distribution of chigger mites by the different collecting sites was the highest at Bush near by dam (28.7%). And the sites of subside storage water, bank around field and surround cattle shed were 20.4%, 18.8%, 16.4%, respectively. On the other hand the collecting sites of stream bank and ridges between rice paddies were not collected. The temperature to the collecting sites was showed $24.1^{\circ}C$ in June and $24.2^{\circ}C$ in October which was higher than April ($10.6^{\circ}C$), whereas lower than May ($25.3^{\circ}C$) and September ($26.8^{\circ}C$). The highest number of mites was collected at $24.2^{\circ}C$ and 46.6% relative humidity in October. The chigger mites and field rodents were highly collected between 18 and 24% at the sites where are loosely in the superficial layers of the soil from 8.0 cm to 10.2 cm. Total 25 species of vegetation were distributed at the collecting sites. In the present study, strong evidence was found that bank around field and grassy field were provided for the prevalence sites of tsutsugamushi disease.

• Journal of Microbiology
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• v.40 no.2
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• pp.156-160
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• 2002

The whole gal/lae operon genes of Lactococcus lactis ssp. lactis 7962 were reported as follows: galA-galM-galK-galT-lacA -lacZ-galE. The galK gene encoding a galactokinase involved in one of the Leloir pathways for galactose metabolism was found to be 1,197 bp in length and encodes a protein of 43,822 Da calculated molecular mass. The deduced amino acid sequence showed over 50% homology with GaIK proteins from several other lactic acid bacteria. The galK gene was expressed in E. coli and the product was identified as a 43 kDa protein which corresponds to the estimated size from the DNA sequence. The galactokinase activity of recombinant 5. coli was about 8 times greater against that of the host strain and more than 3 times higher than the induced L. lactis 7962.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.58 no.3
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• pp.301-308
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• 2020

Owing to global climate change, the global resurgence of vector-borne infectious diseases and their potential to inflict widespread casualties among human populations has emerged as a pivotal burden on public health systems. Tsutsugamushi disease (scrub typhus) in the Republic of Korea is steadily increasing and was designated as a legal communicable disease in 1994. The disease is a mite-borne acute febrile disease most commonly contracted from October to December. In this study, we tried to determine the prevalence of tsutsugamushi disease transmitted by chigger mites living on rodents and investigated their target vector diversity, abundance, and distribution to enable the mapping of hotspots for this disease in 2015. A total of 5 species belonging to 4 genera (109 mites): Leptotrombidium scutellare 60.6%, L. pallidum 28.4% Neotrombicula tamiyai 9.2%, Euschoengastia koreaensis/0.9%), and Neoschoengastia asakawa 0.9% were collected using chigger mite collecting traps mimicking human skin odor and sticky chigger traps from April to November 2015. Chigger mites causing tsutsugamushi disease in wild rodents were also collected in Hwaseong for the zoonotic surveillance of the vector. A total of 77 rodents belonging to 3 genera: Apodemus agrarius (93.5%), Crocidura lasiura (5.2%), and Micromys minutus (1.3%) were collected in April, October, and November 2015. The most common mite was L. pallidum (46.9%), followed by L. scutellare (18.6%), and L. orientale (18.0%). However, any of the chigger mite pools collected from rodent hosts was tested positive for Orientia tsutsugamushi, the pathogen of tsutsugamushi disease, in this survey.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.41-52
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• 2016

Objectives: Scrub typhus is one of the most prevalent vector-borne diseases. It is caused by Orientia tsutsugamushi, which is transmitted when people are bitten by infected chigger mites. This study aims at quantifying the association between the incidence of scrub typhus and meteorological factors in Jeollabuk-do Province over the period 2001-2015. Methods: Reported cases of scrub typhus were collected from the website of the Disease Web Statistical System supported by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC). Simultaneous meteorological data, including temperature, rainfall, relative humidity, and sunshine duration were collected from the website of the National Climate Data Service System by the Korea Meteorological Administration. Correlation and regression analyses were applied to identify the association between the incidence of scrub typhus and meteorological factors. Results: The general epidemiological characteristics of scrub typhus in Jeollabuk-do Province were similar to those nationwide for sex, age, and geographical distribution. However, the annual incidence rate (i.e., cases per 100,000) of scrub typhus in Jeollabuk-do Province was approximately four times higher than all Korea's 0.9. The number of total cases was the highest proportion at 13.3% in Jeonbuk compared to other regions in Korea. The results of correlation analysis showed that there were significant correlations between annual cases of scrub typhus and monthly data for meteorological factors such as temperature and relative humidity in late spring and summer, especially in the case of temperature in May and June. The results of regression analysis showed that determining factors in the regression equation explaining the incidence of scrub typhus reached 46.2% and 43.5% in May and June. Using the regression equation, each 1oC rise in the monthly mean temperature in May or June may lead to an increase of 38 patients with scrub typhus compared to the annual mean of incidence cases in Jeollabuk-do Province. Conclusion: The result of our novel attempts provided rational evidence that meteorological factors are associated with the occurrence of scrub typhus in Jeollabuk-do. It should therefore be necessary to observe the trends and predict patterns of scrub typhus transmission in relation to global-scale climate change. Also, action is urgently needed in all areas, especially critical regions, toward taking steps to come up with preventive measures against scrub typhus transmission.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.48 no.3
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• pp.237-243
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• 2010

Comprehensive quarterly serosurveillance on scrub typhus in small mammals collected from military training sites located near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), northern Gyeonggi-do (Province), ROK was conducted to determine the potential rodent-borne and associated ectoparasite disease risks to military personnel. A total of 1,196 rodents and insectivores representing 8 species, Apodemus agrarius (87.3%, n = 1,044), Mus musculus (5.4%, n = 65), Crocidura lasiura (3.3%, n = 40), Microtus fortis (2.6%, n = 31), Micromys minutus (0.3%, n = 4), Tscherskia triton (0.3%, n = 4), Rattus norvegicus (0.3%, n = 4), and Myodes regulus (0.3%, n = 4) were assayed for the presence of antibodies to Orientia tsutsugamushi. O. tsutsugamushi antibodies were detected in 6 of 8 species and seroprevalence determined; A. agrarius (45.6%), M. musculus (23.1%), M. fortis (48.4%), M. minutus (50.0%), T. triton (50.0%), and R. norvegicus (25.0%). A total of 31,184 chigger mites collected from 508 rodents and insectivores were slide-mounted and 10 species belonging to 4 genera were identified. Leptotrombidium pallidum (53.4%) was the most frequently collected, followed by L. pal pale (15.7%), Neotrombicula tam/yai (14.3%), L. orientate (10.7%), L. zetum (3.1%), Walchia fragilis (2.1%), and L. gemiticutum (0.8%), while the remaining 3 species, L subintennedium, N. gardellai, and Euschoengastia koreaensis were rarely observed (prevalence < 10%). In contrast to previous surveys, higher chigger indices of the primary scrub typhus vectors, L. pallidum (165.4), L. orientale (45.0), and L. palpate (21.4), were observed during the spring season.