The genus Trypanosoma includes flagellated protozoa belonging to the family Trypanosomatidae (Euglenozoa, Kinetoplastida) that can infect humans and several animal species. The most studied species are those causing severe human pathology, such as Chagas disease in South and Central America, and the human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), or infections highly affecting animal health, such as nagana in Africa and surra with a wider geographical distribution. The presence of these Trypanosoma species in Europe has been thus far linked only to travel/immigration history of the human patients or introduction of infected animals. On the contrary, little is known about the epidemiological status of trypanosomes endemically infecting mammals in Europe, such as Trypanosomatheileri in ruminants and Trypanosomalewisi in rodents and other sporadically reported species. This brief review provides an updated collection of scientific data on the presence of autochthonous Trypanosoma spp. in mammals on the European territory, in order to support epidemiological and diagnostic studies on Trypanosomatid parasites.

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To date, sand flies (Phlebotominae) are the only recognized biological vectors of Leishmania infantum, the causative agent of human visceral leishmaniasis, which is endemic in the Mediterranean basin and also widespread in Central and South America, the Middle East, and Central Asia. Dogs are the main domestic reservoir of zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis, and the role of secondary vectors such as ticks and fleas and particularly Rhipicephalus sanguineus (the brown dog tick) in transmitting L. infantum has been investigated. In the present paper, the presence of Leishmania DNA was investigated in questing Ixodes ricinus ticks collected from 4 rural areas included in three parks of the Emilia-Romagna Region (north-eastern Italy), where active foci of human visceral leishmaniasis have been identified. The analyses were performed on 236 DNA extracts from 7 females, 6 males, 72 nymph pools, and 151 larvae pools. Four samples (1.7%) (i.e., one larva pool, 2 nymph pools, and one adult male) tested positive for Leishmania kDNA. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of the presence of Leishmania kDNA in questing I. ricinus ticks collected from a rural environment. This finding in unfed larvae, nymphs, and adult male ticks supports the hypothesis that L. infantum can have both transstadial and transovarial passage in I. ricinus ticks. The potential role of I. ricinus ticks in the sylvatic cycle of leishmaniasis should be further investigated.

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