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5 May 2020 Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) as Potential Mechanical Vectors of Pathogenic Bacteria in a Public Hospital in the Eastern Amazon, Brazil
Leonardo Espíndola Do Nascimento, Raquel Rodrigues Amaral, Ricardo Marcelo Dos Anjos Ferreira, Diogo Vitor Soares Trindade, Rafael Espíndola Do Nascimento, Tiago Silva Da Costa, Raimundo Nonato Picanço Souto
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Abstract

Studies related to ants found in hospital environments have aroused interest in their role as mechanical vectors of pathogenic microorganisms. The objective of the current research was to determine the species composition and bacterial contamination of ant species found in a public hospital in the eastern Amazonian region. Ants were captured using bait containing honey and sterilized sardines in 15 locations within the Macapá Emergency Hospital, Amapá. Ants were identified morphologically using specific keys. Bacteria were first inoculed in a Brain Heart Infusion broth and then plated on 5% Agar with blood or MacConkey media. Bacterial species were identified through biochemical procedures. In total, 9,687 ants were collected, with 69.8% from the dry season and 30.2% from the rainy season. Nine species of ants were identified belonging to three subfamilies: the Monomorium pharaonis (Linnaeus 1758) being the most common, comprising 39.2% of the total specimens. Only one ant species was found in each bait, facilitating microbiological analyses. In total, 92 bacteria isolates were identified comprising 12 species. Pseudomonas aeruginosa Schroeter 1872 (Pseudomonadales: Pseudomonadaceae) was pathogenic bacteria, most frequently isolated, comprising 10.9% of the positive samples. The most contaminated ant in the study was M. pharaonis with 38.3%. It was the dominant ant species in this hospital environment. Its wide prevalence, forage day and night of this vector in hospital facilitated bacterial contamination. The presence of bacteria on ants may be associated with the dissemination of pathogens which cause hospital infections, making pest control a necessity in these institutions.

© The Author(s) 2020. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.
Leonardo Espíndola Do Nascimento, Raquel Rodrigues Amaral, Ricardo Marcelo Dos Anjos Ferreira, Diogo Vitor Soares Trindade, Rafael Espíndola Do Nascimento, Tiago Silva Da Costa, and Raimundo Nonato Picanço Souto "Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) as Potential Mechanical Vectors of Pathogenic Bacteria in a Public Hospital in the Eastern Amazon, Brazil," Journal of Medical Entomology 57(5), 1619-1626, (5 May 2020). https://doi.org/10.1093/jme/tjaa062
Received: 11 September 2019; Accepted: 9 March 2020; Published: 5 May 2020
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KEYWORDS
ant
mechanical vectors
Monomorium pharaonis
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
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