Abstract
The genus Borrelia comprises arthropod-borne bacteria, which are infectious agents in vertebrates. They are mainly transmitted by ixodid or argasid ticks. In Hokkaido, Japan, Borrelia spp. were found in deer and Haemaphysalis ticks between 2011 and 2013; however, the study was limited to a particular area. Therefore, in the present study, we conducted large-scale surveillance of ticks and wild animals in the western part of the main island of Japan. We collected 6,407 host-seeking ticks from two regions and 1,598 larvae obtained from 32 engorged female ticks and examined them to elucidate transovarial transmission. In addition, we examined whole blood samples from 190 wild boars and 276 sika deer, as well as sera from 120 wild raccoons. We detected Borrelia spp. in Haemaphysalis flava, Haemaphysalis megaspinosa, Haemaphysalis kitaokai, Haemaphysalis longicornis, and Haemaphysalis formosensis. In addition, we isolated a strain from H. megaspinosa using Barbour-Stoenner-Kelly medium. The minimum infection rate of ticks was less than 5%. Transovarial transmission was observed in H. kitaokai. Phylogenetic analysis of the isolated strain and DNA fragments amplified from ticks identified at least four bacterial genotypes, which corresponded to the tick species detected. Bacteria were detected in 8.4%, 15%, and 0.8% of wild boars, sika deer, and raccoons, respectively. In this study, we found seasonal differences in the prevalence of bacterial genotypes in sika deer during the winter and summer. The tick activity season corresponds to the season with a high prevalence of animals. The present study suggests that a particular bacterial genotype detected in this study are defined by a particular tick species in which they are present.
Highlights
Several surveys of B. lonestari derived from unfed A. americanum adults have shown that the prevalence in the USA was less than 6% [32,33,34,35,36,37]
The prevalence of human pathogenic hard-bodied tick-borne relapsing fever (hTBRF) borreliae, B. miyamotoi, in unfed ixodid ticks was less than 5% in the USA, Eurasia, and Japan [26, 40, 41]
Our results and those of previous investigations suggest that the prevalence of hTBRF borreliae in unfed ticks is generally less than 5%
Summary
Members of the genus Borrelia in the family Spirochaetaceae are arthropod-borne infectious agents in vertebrates [1], and they are classified into three major groups based on phylogenetic. Relapsing fever borreliae detected in Haemaphysalis ticks in Japan. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript
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