Molecular investigation of bacterial and protozoal pathogens in ticks collected from different hosts in Turkey

Ahmet Efe Köseoğlu,Çağrı Kandemir,Gülşah Akgül,Samiye Demir,Mert Döşkaya,Aysu Değirmenci Döşkaya,Adnan Yüksel Gürüz,Muhammet Karakavuk,Turğay Taşkın,Mervenur Güvendi,Sedef Erkunt Alak,Cemal Ün,Hüseyin Can

doi:10.1186/s13071-021-04779-2

Ahmet Efe Köseoğlu, Çağrı Kandemir + Show 11 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-021-04779-2

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Journal: Parasites & Vectors	Publication Date: May 20, 2021
Citations: 9	License type: open-access

Affiliation: Ege University, Siirt University

Abstract

BackgroundThe emergence of tick-borne disease is increasing because of the effects of the temperature rise driven by global warming. In Turkey, 19 pathogens transmitted by ticks to humans and animals have been reported. Based on this, this study aimed to investigate tick-borne pathogens including Hepatozoon spp., Theileria spp., Babesia spp., Anaplasma spp., Borrelia spp., and Bartonella spp. in tick samples (n = 110) collected from different hosts (dogs, cats, cattle, goats, sheep, and turtles) by molecular methods.MethodsTo meet this objective, ticks were identified morphologically at the genus level by microscopy; after DNA isolation, each tick sample was identified at the species level using the molecular method. Involved pathogens were then investigated by PCR method.ResultsSeven different tick species were identified including Rhipicephalus sanguineus, R. turanicus, R. bursa, Hyalomma marginatum, H. anatolicum, H. aegyptium, and Haemaphysalis erinacei. Among the analyzed ticks, Hepatozoon spp., Theileria spp., Babesia spp., and Anaplasma spp. were detected at rates of 6.36%, 16.3%, 1.81%, and 6.36%, respectively while Borrelia spp. and Bartonella spp. were not detected. Hepatozoon spp. was detected in R. sanguineus ticks while Theileria spp., Babesia spp., and Anaplasma spp. were detected in R. turanicus and H. marginatum. According to the results of sequence analyses applied for pathogen positive samples, Hepatozoon canis, Theileria ovis, Babesia caballi, and Anaplasma ovis were identified.ConclusionTheileria ovis and Anaplasma ovis were detected for the first time to our knowledge in H. marginatum and R. turanicus collected from Turkey, respectively. Also, B. caballi was detected for the first time to our knowledge in ticks in Turkey.Graphical

Highlights

The emergence of tick-borne disease is increasing because of the effects of the temperature rise driven by global warming
In Turkey, T. ovis has been detected in R. bursa, R. turanicus, and R. sanguineus collected from sheep and goats [16, 17]
We aimed to investigate tick-borne pathogens including Hepatozoon spp., Theileria spp., Babesia spp., Anaplasma spp., Borrelia spp., and Bartonella spp. in tick samples collected from different hosts from the İzmir, Aydın, Şanlıurfa, and Siirt provinces of Turkey by PCR method

Summary

Introduction

The emergence of tick-borne disease is increasing because of the effects of the temperature rise driven by global warming. In Turkey, H. canis was detected in R. sanguineus collected from dogs and Haemaphysalis parva collected from red foxes [11, 12] Theileria is another apicomplexan parasite that belongs to the order Piroplasmida, and it infects many domestic and wild ruminant animals. In Turkey, T. ovis has been detected in R. bursa, R. turanicus, and R. sanguineus collected from sheep and goats [16, 17] Babesia is another important apicomplexan parasite that belongs to the order Piroplasmida, which is transmitted by ticks and infects the red blood cells of various mammals such as cattle, sheep, horses, dogs, and rodents [10]. In Turkey, B. henselae and B. clarridgeiae have been reported in domestic cats [33]

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