Borellia burgdorferi infection in removed ticks and anti-borrelia antibodies in infested patients admitted to the Pasteur institute, Novi Sad

Simin, Verica; Lalošević, Dušan; Mijatović, Davor; Tomanović, Snežana; Miljević, Milan; Čabrilo, Borislav; Bogdan, Ivana; Banović, Pavle

doi:10.2298/vetgl200527008s

Cited by 3 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…complex ( Sykes and Makiello, 2017 ). When the overall Borrelia prevalence found in the present study is compared to results of other similar studies in Serbia, we see wide variations between localities, ranging from 10 to 40.7% ( Simin et al, 2020 ; Banovic et al, 2021b ; Stosic et al, 2021 ). Compared to neighboring countries of Serbia, the Borrelia prevalence in ticks found in our study is higher compared to that of Croatia ( Tadin et al, 2016 ), Bulgaria ( Nader et al, 2018 ), and Romania ( Kalmar et al, 2020 ).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 68%

Clinical Aspects and Detection of Emerging Rickettsial Pathogens: A “One Health” Approach Study in Serbia, 2020

Banović

Díaz-Sánchez

Simin³

et al. 2022

Front. Microbiol.

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Ticks carry numerous pathogens that, if transmitted, can cause disease in susceptible humans and animals. The present study describes our approach on how to investigate clinical presentations following tick bites in humans. To this aim, the occurrence of major tick-borne pathogens (TBPs) in human blood samples (n = 85) and the ticks collected (n = 93) from the same individuals were tested using an unbiased high-throughput pathogen detection microfluidic system. The clinical symptoms were characterized in enrolled patients. In patients with suspected TBP infection, serological assays were conducted to test for the presence of antibodies against specific TBPs. A field study based on One Health tenets was further designed to identify components of a potential chain of infection resulting in Rickettsia felis infection in one of the patients. Ticks species infesting humans were identified as Ixodes ricinus, Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato (s.l.), Dermacentor reticulatus, and Haemaphysalis punctata. Five patients developed local skin lesions at the site of the tick bite including erythema migrans, local non-specific reactions, and cutaneous hypersensitivity reaction. Although Borrelia burgdorferi s.l., Babesia microti, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, and Candidatus Cryptoplasma sp. DNAs were detected in tick samples, different Rickettsia species were the most common TBPs identified in the ticks. The presence of TBPs such as Rickettsia helvetica, Rickettsia monacensis, Borrelia lusitaniae, Borrelia burgdorferi, Borrelia afzelii, A. phagocytophilum, and B. microti in ticks was further confirmed by DNA sequencing. Two of the patients with local skin lesions had IgG reactive against spotted fever group rickettsiae, while IgM specific to B. afzelii, Borrelia garinii, and Borrelia spielmanii were detected in the patient with erythema migrans. Although R. felis infection was detected in one human blood sample, none of the components of the potential chain of infection considered in this study tested positive to this pathogen either using direct pathogen detection in domestic dogs or xenodiagnosis in ticks collected from domestic cats. The combination of high-throughput screening of TBPs and One Health approaches might help characterize chains of infection leading to human infection by TBPs, as well as prevalence of emerging rickettsial pathogens in the Balkan region.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 68%

Clinical Aspects and Detection of Emerging Rickettsial Pathogens: A “One Health” Approach Study in Serbia, 2020

Banović

Díaz-Sánchez

Simin³

et al. 2022

Front. Microbiol.

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“…I. ricinus was the predominant tick species found in the study, accounting for 117 out of 121 (96.69%) specimens. This finding was expected since I. ricinus is the main tick vector for the TBE virus in Western Europe [ 35 ], and the most widespread tick species in Serbia [ 36 , 37 , 38 ]. All active developmental stages of I. ricinus , including larvae, nymphs, and adults, can be infected with TBEV and transmit the virus, throughout the whole life cycle to animal reservoirs and humans [ 39 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 79%

Tick-Borne Encephalitis Virus Seropositivity among Tick Infested Individuals in Serbia

Banović

Obregón

Mijatović³

et al. 2021

Pathogens

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Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE), caused by the TBE virus (TBEV), is a life-threatening disease with clinical symptoms ranging from non-specific to severe inflammation of the central nervous system. Despite TBE is a notifiable disease in Serbia since 2004, there is no active TBE surveillance program for the serologic or molecular screening of TBEV infection in humans in the country. This prospective cohort study aimed to assess the TBEV exposure among tick-infested individuals in Serbia during the year 2020. A total of 113 individuals exposed to tick bites were recruited for the study and screened for anti-TBEV antibodies using a commercial indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFA) test. Blood samples from 50 healthy donors not exposed to tick bites were included as a control group. Most of the enrolled patients reported infestations with one tick, being I. ricinus the most frequent tick found in the participants. The TBEV seroprevalence was higher (13.27%, 15 total 113) in tick-infested individuals than in healthy donors (4%, 2 total 50), although the difference was not significant. Notably, male individuals exposed to tick bites showed five times higher relative risk (RR) of being TBEV-seropositive than healthy donors of the same gender (RR= 5.1, CI = 1.6–19; p = 0.007). None of the seropositive individuals developed clinical manifestations of TBE, but the first clinical-stage of Lyme borreliosis (i.e., erythema migrans) was detected in seven of them. Potential TBEV foci were identified in rural areas, mostly in proximity or within the Fruška Gora mountain. We conclude that the Serbian population is at high risk of TBEV exposure. Further epidemiological studies should focus on potential TBEV foci identified in this study. The implementation of active surveillance for TBEV might contribute to evaluating the potential negative impact of TBE in Serbia.

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“…Tick species identified on dogs in this study had previously been identified on domestic dogs in the Vojvodina region, in which I. ricinus and R. sanguineus were the most prevalent tick species [ 19 ]. I. ricinus and R. sanguineus are among the most common ectoparasites found infesting dogs and goats in Serbia, as well as in other countries in the Balkans such as North Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania and, Bosnia and Hercegovina [ [20] , [21] , [22] , [23] ]. Infestations with R. sanguineus in houses is frequently reported in the literature [ [24] , [25] , [26] , [27] ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In Serbia, B. burgdorferi s.l. have been identified in competent vectors of the genus Ixodes , mainly I. ricinus , as well as in human serum samples [ 23 , 39 ]. The risk factors associated with human infection by Borrelia includes the presence and abundance of competent tick vectors in different types of habitats, a high prevalence of B. burgdorferi s.l.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A One Health approach to study the circulation of tick-borne pathogens: A preliminary study

et al. 2021

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Tick-borne pathogens (TBPs) have complex life cycles involving tick vectors and vertebrate hosts. However, there is limited empirical evidence on the zoonotic circulation of TBPs. In this study, we used a One Health approach to study the possible circulation of TBPs in ticks, animals and humans within a rural household in the foothills of the Fruška Gora mountain, northern Serbia. The presence of TBP DNA was assessed using microfluidic PCR (25 bacterial species, 7 parasite species, 5 bacterial genera, 3 parasite genera) in animal, human and tick samples and the presence of tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) RNA was screened for using RT-qPCR on tick samples. In addition, Lyme borreliosis serology was assessed in patients sera. Rhipicephalus sanguineus and Ixodes ricinus ticks were identified on dogs and Haemaphysalis punctata was identified on house walls. Rickettsia helvetica was the most common pathogen detected in pooled R. sanguineus and I. ricinus tick samples, followed by Hepatozoon canis . None of the H. punctata tick samples tested positive for the presence of TBPs. Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Rickettsia monacensis were the most frequent pathogens detected in dogs, followed by Rickettsia felis , whereas Anaplasma bovis was the only pathogen found in one of the goats tested. None of the human blood samples collected from family members tested positive for the presence of TBPs. Although microfluidic PCR did not detect Borrelia sp. in any of the tested tick or blood samples, a family member with a history of Lyme disease was seropositive for Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato (s.l.). We conclude that, despite the presence of TBPs in tick and vertebrate reservoirs, there is no evidence of infection with TBPs across various components of the epidemiological chain in a rural Fruška Gora household.

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Borellia burgdorferi infection in removed ticks and anti-borrelia antibodies in infested patients admitted to the Pasteur institute, Novi Sad

Cited by 3 publications

References 17 publications

Clinical Aspects and Detection of Emerging Rickettsial Pathogens: A “One Health” Approach Study in Serbia, 2020

Clinical Aspects and Detection of Emerging Rickettsial Pathogens: A “One Health” Approach Study in Serbia, 2020

Tick-Borne Encephalitis Virus Seropositivity among Tick Infested Individuals in Serbia

A One Health approach to study the circulation of tick-borne pathogens: A preliminary study

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