Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever Case Study

Table of Contents

Introduction and Overview of Rickettsia and Rocky Mountain spotted fever 3

Symptoms 3

Treatment 4 The immune response…………………………….…………………………………………………………………………… 4

Pathophysiology of Rocky Mountain spotted fever (Rickettsia rickettsii) 5

The detailed immune response 6

The innate response …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….6 The specific response …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………7

References………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………10

Table of figures

Figure 1: Incidence and case fatality in the United States 1920-2010 3

Figure 2: Maculopapular rash caused by Rocky Mountain spotted fever 4

Figure 3: DC maturation 8

Figure 4: Diagrammatic representation of the complete immune response 9

Introduction and Overview of Rickettsia and Rocky Mountain spotted fever

Rickettsia rickettsii is a bacterium that causes the Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (RMSF). (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2013) This bacterium causes a potentially fatal disease in humans and is commonly transmitted by ticks. (Centers for Disease Control

(Walker, 1996) These mechanisms play a more important role than antibodies which explains why vaccines are not effective for RSMF. (Walker, 1996)

Pathophysiology of Rocky Mountain spotted fever (Rickettsia rickettsii)

The primary vector for Rickettsia rickettsii, ticks, become infected through feeding on the blood of infected animals either by transovarial passage or fertilization. (Cunha, MD, 2014) The bacterium is transferred to humans during feeding. (Cunha, MD, 2014) The tick need to be attached to the host for 6-10 hours in order for the bacterium to be transmitted through saliva. (Cunha, MD, 2014)

Rickettsia rickettsii has an incubation period of 2-14 days after the bite of an infected tick. (Minniear & Buckingham,