First Report of Rickettsia conorii in Hyalomma kumari Ticks

Abstract

As a vector of wide range of pathogenic agents, ticks pose health threats to wild and domestic animals, and humans. Information is unavailable about the prevalence and spatial survey of Hyalomma kumari ticks and associated Rickettsia spp. in Pakistan. Concerning this knowledge gap, the present study aimed to molecularly detect Rickettsia species associated with H. kumari infesting small ruminants in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Pakistan. A total of 409 H. kumari ticks were collected from 163/295 infested hosts with an infestation rate of 55.25%. A total of 204 females, 158 males, and 47 nymphs were collected. Goats were heavily infested by 224 ticks having an infestation rate of 58.33% (98/168), whereas sheep were infested by 185 ticks having a lesser infestation rate of 51.18% (65/127). Genomic DNA extracted from ticks was used for the amplification of tick (cox I, 16S rRNA, ITS-2) species and Rickettsia (gltA, ompA, and ompB) partial genes. Eighty-three ticks were subjected to PCR, and 8/83 (9.6%) were found positive for rickettsial agents. The cox I and 16S rRNA sequences of H. kumari showed 98.90–99.74% identity with H. kumari sequences reported from Pakistan, and phylogenetically clustered to the corresponding species reported from Pakistan and India. The obtained rickettsial gltA, ompA, and ompB sequences showed 100% identity with Rickettsia sp. of the Rickettsia conorii reported from Pakistan. In the phylogenetic trees, rickettsial sequences clustered with uncharacterized Rickettsia sp. from Pakistan and R. conorii from Israel, Russia, South Africa, and India. The present molecular based detection of H. kumari-associated R. conorii will facilitate effective surveillance in the region.

Association of SFG Rickettsia massiliae and Candidatus Rickettsia shennongii with Different Hard Ticks Infesting Livestock Hosts

“…Pakistan has a great variety of landscapes and habitats, maintaining a broad range of vertebrate species which serve as hosts for diverse tick species and reservoirs for different types of pathogens, particularly Rickettsia spp. [ 3 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 ]. Earlier, serological methods were used to detect the exposure of humans to rickettsial infection in Pakistan [ 29 ], but antigen conservation among different species makes it difficult to accurately identify and explore the existing and novel diversity of Rickettsia spp.…”

First report of spotted fever group Rickettsia aeschlimannii in Hyalomma turanicum, Haemaphysalis bispinosa, and Haemaphysalis montgomeryi infesting domestic animals: updates on the epidemiology of tick-borne Rickettsia aeschlimannii

“…Ticks of different genera have been reported as carriers for various Rickettsia spp. in Pakistan (Ali et al, 2021(Ali et al, , 2022Numan et al, 2022;Ullah et al, 2023). Herein, Rickettsia aeschlimannii was detected in H. bispinosa, H. montgomeryi, and Hy.…”

“…Earlier, we characterized pathogenic and undetermined Rickettsia spp. associated with different ticks parasitizing a wide range of vertebrate hosts in Pakistan (Karim et al, 2017;Ali et al, 2021Ali et al, , 2022Ali et al, , 2023Numan et al, 2022;Aneela et al, 2023;Shehla et al, 2023;Ullah et al, 2023). However, there is a paucity of information regarding the presence of R. aeschlimannii in different ticks in the country, and its potential risks to the public and animal's health.…”

First report on detection of Hepatozoon ayorgbor in Rhipicephalus haemaphysaloides and Hepatozoon colubri in Haemaphysalis sulcata and Hyalomma anatolicum: risks of spillover of Hepatozoon spp. from wildlife to domestic animals

“…Having a large number of small ruminants, the northern part of Pakistan is considered endemic to Haemaphysalis ticks compared to Hyalomma and Rhipicephalus ticks (39)(40)(41)(42)(43)(44)(45)(46)(47)(48). Haemaphysalis ticks being the most abundant in this study could be attributed to two main factors.…”