Abstract
BackgroundTicks and fleas are considered amongst the most important arthropod vectors of medical and veterinary concern due to their ability to transmit pathogens to a range of animal species including dogs, cats and humans. By sharing a common environment with humans, companion animal-associated parasitic arthropods may potentially transmit zoonotic vector-borne pathogens (VBPs). This study aimed to molecularly detect pathogens from ticks and fleas from companion dogs and cats in East and Southeast Asia.MethodsA total of 392 ticks and 248 fleas were collected from 401 infested animals (i.e. 271 dogs and 130 cats) from China, Taiwan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam, and molecularly screened for the presence of pathogens. Ticks were tested for Rickettsia spp., Anaplasma spp., Ehrlichia spp., Babesia spp. and Hepatozoon spp. while fleas were screened for the presence of Rickettsia spp. and Bartonella spp.ResultOf the 392 ticks tested, 37 (9.4%) scored positive for at least one pathogen with Hepatozoon canis being the most prevalent (5.4%), followed by Ehrlichia canis (1.8%), Babesia vogeli (1%), Anaplasma platys (0.8%) and Rickettsia spp. (1%) [including Rickettsia sp. (0.5%), Rickettsia asembonensis (0.3%) and Rickettsia felis (0.3%)]. Out of 248 fleas tested, 106 (42.7%) were harboring at least one pathogen with R. felis being the most common (19.4%), followed by Bartonella spp. (16.5%), Rickettsia asembonensis (10.9%) and “Candidatus Rickettsia senegalensis” (0.4%). Furthermore, 35 Rhipicephalus sanguineus ticks were subjected to phylogenetic analysis, of which 34 ticks belonged to the tropical and only one belonged to the temperate lineage (Rh. sanguineus (sensu stricto)).ConclusionOur data reveals the circulation of different VBPs in ticks and fleas of dogs and cats from Asia, including zoonotic agents, which may represent a potential risk to animal and human health.
Highlights
Ticks and fleas are considered amongst the most important arthropod vectors of medical and veteri‐ nary concern due to their ability to transmit pathogens to a range of animal species including dogs, cats and humans
A large-scale survey conducted in EA and Southeast Asia (SEA) reported that 22.3% of dogs and 3.7% of cats were infested by ticks, while 14.8% of dogs and 19.6% of cats were infested by fleas [10]
The occurrence of vector-borne pathogens (VBPs) has been detected in ticks and fleas, with a higher number of fleas in which at least one pathogen was detected compared to ticks (Fisher’s exact test, P < 0.001)
Summary
Ticks and fleas are considered amongst the most important arthropod vectors of medical and veteri‐ nary concern due to their ability to transmit pathogens to a range of animal species including dogs, cats and humans. Other apicomplexan parasite commonly found in dogs across this region is H. canis, which is transmitted by ingestion of Rh. sanguineus (s.l.) This protozoan is commonly found in dogs from Thailand, Taiwan, China, Cambodia, Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines [10, 17, 18, 23,24,25,26] and in cats from Thailand and the Philippines [10, 24]. Other zoonotic flea-borne pathogens such as B. henselae and Bartonella clarridgeiae, agents of cat-scratch disease, were molecularly detected in cats and their fleas from the Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and China with the prevalence ranging from 10 to 60% [31,32,33,34,35,36]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
