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Detection of selected pathogens in ticks collected from cats and dogs in the Wrocław Agglomeration, South-West Poland
- Source :
- Parasites & Vectors
- Publication Year :
- 2016
- Publisher :
- BioMed Central, 2016.
-
Abstract
- Background Tick-borne infections are no longer confined to rural areas, they are documented with increasing frequency in urban settlements across the world. They are known to cause diseases in humans as well as in their companion animals. Methods During a period of 2 years, from January 2013 until December 2014, ticks were collected from dogs and cats in 18 veterinary clinics in the Wrocław Agglomeration, Poland. In total, 1455 ticks were found on 931 pets: 760 domestic dogs and 171 cats. For molecular examinations 127 I. ricinus ticks (115 females and 12 males) were randomly selected, all collected I. hexagonus (n = 137, 32 females, 98 nymphs, 7 larvae) and all collected D. reticulatus (n = 46, 31 females, 15 males) were taken. Ixodes ricinus and I. hexagonus ticks were tested for Rickettsia spp., Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Candidatus Neoehrlichia mikurensis and Babesia spp., while D. reticulatus ticks were investigated for Rickettsia spp. and Babesia spp. only. Results In total, 65.4 % I. ricinus ticks were infected with at least one pathogen. Over 50 % of I. ricinus were positive for Rickettsia spp. (R. helvetica and R. monacensis). The infection level with A. phagocytophilum was 21.3 %. DNA of Cand. N. mikurensis was detected in 8.1 % I. ricinus ticks. Interestingly only female ticks were infected. The prevalence of Babesia spp. was confirmed in 9.0 % of I. ricinus involving the species B. microti and B. venatorum. A total of nineteen double, one triple and two quadruple infections were found in I. ricinus ticks only. Almost 11 % of I. hexagonus ticks were positive for at least one of the tested pathogens. Rickettsia spp. infection was found in 2.2 %, while A. phagocytophilum was detected in 8.1 % of I. hexagonus ticks. Only one nymph was positive for Cand. N. mikurensis and none of I. hexagonus ticks harbored a Babesia spp. Over 60 % of D. reticulatus ticks were positive for rickettsial DNA, exclusively belonging to the species R. raoultii. Conclusion The high tick infestation rates and the prevalence of pathogens found in these ticks demonstrate a serious level of encounter to tick-borne diseases in urban dogs in the Wroclaw area, and provide evidence that dogs and cats themselves may substantially contribute to the circulation of the ticks and pathogens in the urban area.
- Subjects :
- 0301 basic medicine
Male
Veterinary medicine
Tick infestation
Ixodes ricinus
Dermacentor reticulatus
Candidatus Neoehrlichia mikurensis
Babesia spp
Ixodidae
Urban Population
Ixodes hexagonus
animal diseases
030231 tropical medicine
030106 microbiology
Babesia
Cat Diseases
03 medical and health sciences
0302 clinical medicine
Ticks
Dogs
parasitic diseases
medicine
Animals
Rickettsia spp
Dog Diseases
Rickettsia
biology
Research
biology.organism_classification
medicine.disease
bacterial infections and mycoses
Anaplasma phagocytophilum
Tick Infestations
Anaplasmataceae
Infectious Diseases
Cats
Parasitology
Arachnid Vectors
Female
Poland
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 17563305
- Volume :
- 9
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Parasites & Vectors
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....7a7e942ebe4510c3856d3e237d4d5ef5