Abstract
Ticks are obligate hematophagous ectoparasites. They are important vectors for many pathogens, of both medical and veterinary importance. Antibiotic residues in animal food are known, but very little is known about the effects of antibiotic residues in animals on the microbiome diversity of ticks and tick-borne pathogen transmission. We used a Haemaphysalis longicornis–infested mouse model to evaluate the effect of antibiotic usage on tick microbiome. Nymphal ticks were fed on an antibiotic cocktail-treated or water control mice. Adult ticks molted from nymphs fed on the antibiotic cocktail-treated mouse had a dysbiosed microbiota. Nymphal ticks were also fed on a B. microti–infected mice that had been treated with antibiotic cocktail or water. We found that the B. microti infection in adult ticks with a dysbiosed microbiota (44.7%) was increased compared with the control adult ticks (24.2%) by using qPCR targeting 18S rRNA gene. This may increase the risk of tick-borne pathogens (TBPs) transmission from adult ticks to a vertebrate host. These results show that an antibiotic-treated mouse can induce tick microbiota dysbiosis. Antibiotic treatment of B. microti-infected mouse poses the possibility of increasing transstadial transmission of B. microti from the nymph to the adult H. longicornis. These findings suggest that B. microti transmission may be exacerbated in high antibiotic usage areas.
Highlights
Ticks are obligate hematophagous ectoparasites of vertebrates, which feed on a wide range of hosts, including mammals, birds, and reptiles
The parasitemia density of mice on the 0 and 3rd days of tick infestation was similar between the two groups (Supplement Table S3). These results demonstrated that the antibiotic treatment had no influence on B. microti infection in mice, but it did have a significant influence on the transstadial transmission from nymphs to adult ticks
Our findings show that the disruption of the tick microbiome enhances tick-borne B. microti transstadial transmission from nymphs to adult ticks (Figure 3)
Summary
Ticks are obligate hematophagous ectoparasites of vertebrates, which feed on a wide range of hosts, including mammals, birds, and reptiles. Ticks are important vectors of human infectious diseases worldwide and are second only to mosquitoes in terms of public health importance. Nymphs and adults are the most important stages for the transmission of tick-borne pathogens (TBPs). Few TBPs are transmitted transovarially, and most TBDs are transmitted by nymphs or adult ticks (Bonnet et al, 2017). The ixodid ticks typically feed only once during each developmental stage, after which they detach from the host. Adult ticks effectively transmit pathogens to vertebrate hosts during blood feeding. The study of transstadial transmission of TBPs from nymphs to adults is significant for tick and TBD control
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