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A 10-year surveillance of Rickettsiales (Rickettsia spp. and Anaplasma phagocytophilum) in the city of Hanover, Germany, reveals Rickettsia spp. as emerging pathogens in ticks.
- Source :
-
Parasites & vectors [Parasit Vectors] 2017 Nov 28; Vol. 10 (1), pp. 588. Date of Electronic Publication: 2017 Nov 28. - Publication Year :
- 2017
-
Abstract
- Background: Rickettsiales (Rickettsia spp. and Anaplasma phagocytophilum) transmitted by ticks are considered (re-)emerging pathogens posing a risk to public health. Nevertheless, year-long monitoring studies on prevalences of these pathogens in questing ticks to contribute to public health risk assessment are rare.<br />Methods: The current study extends previous prevalence surveillances (2005 and 2010) by 2015 to a 10-year monitoring. Therefore, 2100 questing Ixodes ricinus were collected from April to October 2015 at ten different recreation sites in the city of Hanover, Germany, to determine potential changes in tick infection rates with Rickettsiales.<br />Results: Of the collected ticks, 288 were adult females, 285 adult males and 1527 nymphs. Overall, 3.8% (79/2100) of ticks were infected with A. phagocytophilum, 50.8% (1066/2100) with Rickettsia spp. and 2.2% (46/2100) with both pathogens. Statistical analyses revealed stagnating A. phagocytophilum infection rates over the 10-year monitoring period, whereas Rickettsia infections increased significantly (33.3% in 2005 and 26.2% in 2010 vs 50.8% in 2015). This increase was also characterized by prominent seasonality with higher prevalences from July to October.<br />Conclusions: As increased tick infection rates result in an increased risk for public health, the long-term data reported here provide significant implications for the understanding of progressing Rickettsiales distribution in ticks and essentially contribute to reliable public health risk assessments.
- Subjects :
- Anaplasma phagocytophilum genetics
Anaplasma phagocytophilum pathogenicity
Animals
Communicable Diseases, Emerging microbiology
Ehrlichiosis microbiology
Epidemiological Monitoring
Germany epidemiology
Humans
Public Health
Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction
Rickettsia genetics
Rickettsia pathogenicity
Rickettsia Infections microbiology
Rickettsia Infections transmission
Anaplasma phagocytophilum isolation & purification
Communicable Diseases, Emerging epidemiology
Ehrlichiosis epidemiology
Ixodes microbiology
Rickettsia isolation & purification
Rickettsia Infections epidemiology
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 1756-3305
- Volume :
- 10
- Issue :
- 1
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- Parasites & vectors
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 29179774
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-017-2537-2