Presence of Roe Deer Affects the Occurrence of Anaplasma phagocytophilum Ecotypes in Questing Ixodes ricinus in Different Habitat Types of Central Europe

Hamšíková, Zuzana; Silaghi, Cornelia; Takumi, Katsuhisa; Rudolf, Ivo; Gunár, Kristýna; Sprong, Hein; Kazimírová, Mária

doi:10.3390/ijerph16234725

Cited by 16 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…Instead, our results support the idea that parasitization takes place when a larva feeds on a vertebrate. We observed a positive association between infestation with I. hookeri and infection with A. phagocytophilum, which is a pathogen that a I. ricinus larva acquires while feeding on a deer, an A. phagocytophilum-competent host ( Table 2; [47][48][49]). Thus, both acquisition of a bacterium and parasitization by I. hookeri occurs simultaneously.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

Tripartite Interactions among Ixodiphagus hookeri, Ixodes ricinus and Deer: Differential Interference with Transmission Cycles of Tick-Borne Pathogens

et al. 2020

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For the development of sustainable control of tick-borne diseases, insight is needed in biological factors that affect tick populations. Here, the ecological interactions among Ixodiphagus hookeri, Ixodes ricinus, and two vertebrate species groups were investigated in relation to their effects on tick-borne disease risk. In 1129 questing ticks, I. hookeri DNA was detected more often in I. ricinus nymphs (4.4%) than in larvae (0.5%) and not in adults. Therefore, we determined the infestation rate of I. hookeri in nymphs from 19 forest sites, where vertebrate, tick, and tick-borne pathogen communities had been previously quantified. We found higher than expected co-occurrence rates of I. hookeri with deer-associated Anaplasma phagocytophilum, and lower than expected rates with rodent-associated Borrelia afzelii and Neoehrlichia mikurensis. The prevalence of I. hookeri in nymphs varied between 0% and 16% and was positively correlated with the encounter probability of ungulates and the densities of all life stages of I. ricinus. Lastly, we investigated the emergence of I. hookeri from artificially fed, field-collected nymphs. Adult wasps emerged from seven of the 172 fed nymphs. From these observations, we inferred that I. hookeri is parasitizing I. ricinus larvae that are feeding on deer, rather than on rodents or in the vegetation. Since I. hookeri populations depend on deer abundance, the main propagation host of I. ricinus, these wasps have no apparent effect on tick populations. The presence of I. hookeri may directly interfere with the transmission cycle of A. phagocytophilum, but not with that of B. afzelii or N. mikurensis.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

Tripartite Interactions among Ixodiphagus hookeri, Ixodes ricinus and Deer: Differential Interference with Transmission Cycles of Tick-Borne Pathogens

et al. 2020

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“…In Slovakia it varied from 0.6% up to 30%, with higher prevalence in urban areas than in natural habitats (Pangrácová et al 2013;Derdáková et al 2014;Blaňarová et al 2014;Svitálková et al 2015;Chvostáč et al 2018;Vaculová et al 2019]. It has also been confirmed that the proportion of I. ricinus infected with variants of A. phagocytophilum that are not pathogenic to humans was higher in sites where roe deer were present than in sites with absence of these animals (Hamšíková et al 2019). HGA is not among the communicable diseases in Slovakia.…”

Section: Anaplasma Phagocytophilummentioning

confidence: 94%

Ticks and their epidemiological role in Slovakia: from the past till present

et al. 2021

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In Slovakia, 22 tick species have been found to occur to date. Among them, Ixodes ricinus, Dermacentor reticulatus, D. marginatus and marginally Haemaphysalis concinna, H. inermis and H. punctata have been identified as the species of public health relevance. Ticks in Slovakia were found to harbour and transmit zoonotic and/or potentially zoonotic agents such as tickborne encephalitis virus (TBEV), spirochaetes of the Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato (s.l.) complex, the relapsing fever sprirochaete Borrelia miyamotoi, bacteria belonging to the orders Rickettsiales (Rickettsia spp., Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Neoehrlichia mikurensis), Legionellales (Coxiella burnetii), and Thiotrichales (Francisella tularensis), and Babesia spp. parasites (order Piroplasmida). Ixodes ricinus is the principal vector of the largest variety of microorganisms including viruses, bacteria and piroplasms. TBEV, B. burgdorferi s.l., rickettsiae of the spotted fever group, C. burnetii and F. tularensis have been found to cause serious diseases in humans, whereas B. miyamotoi, A. phagocytophilum, N. mikurensis, Babesia microti, and B. venatorum pose lower or potential risk to humans. Distribution of TBEV has a focal character. During the last few decades, new tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) foci and their spread to new areas have been registered and TBE incidence rates have increased. Moreover, Slovakia reports the highest rates of alimentary TBE infections among the European countries. Lyme borreliosis (LB) spirochaetes are spread throughout the distribution range of I. ricinus. Incidence rates of LB have shown a slightly increasing trend since 2010. Only a few sporadic cases of human rickettsiosis, anaplasmosis and babesiosis have been confirmed thus far in Slovakia. The latest large outbreaks of Q fever and tularaemia were recorded in 1993 and 1967, respectively. Since then, a few human cases of Q fever have been reported almost each year. Changes in the epidemiological characteristics and clinical forms of tularaemia have been observed during the last few decades. Global changes and development of modern molecular tools led to the discovery and identification of emerging or new tick-borne microorganisms and symbionts with unknown zoonotic potential. In this review, we provide a historical overview of research on ticks and tick-borne pathogens in Slovakia with the most important milestones and recent findings, and outline future directions in the investigation of ticks as ectoparasites and vectors of zoonotic agents and in the study of tick-borne diseases.Keywords Tick-borne pathogens . Tick-borne encephalitis virus . Borrelia . Anaplasma . Rickettsia . Coxiella burnetii . Francisella tularensis . Babesia

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“…The latter will be substantially more than the few larvae feeding at the same time with an infected nymph. With regard to differential persistence, a study of A. phagocytophilum Ecotypes in Central Europe did not find less Ecotype II than Ecotype I in questing I. ricinus nymphs originating from a site in the presence of roe deer [ 13 ]. For these reasons, co-feeding and differential persistence were omitted from the analyses.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Variations in the density of questing I. ricinus infected with A. phagocytophilum (DIN) have partly been attributed to environmental factors such as differences in weather conditions [ 11 , 12 ], habitat characteristics [ 13 ], as well as vertebrate communities [ 14 ]. Whereas small mammals and birds are considered to feed the majority of immature I. ricinus, ungulates act as their main propagation host [ 15 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Red and fallow deer determine the density of Ixodes ricinus nymphs containing Anaplasma phagocytophilum

2021

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Background The density of Ixodes ricinus nymphs infected with Anaplasma phagocytophilum is one of the parameters that determines the risk for humans and domesticated animals to contract anaplasmosis. For this, I. ricinus larvae need to take a bloodmeal from free-ranging ungulates, which are competent hosts for A. phagocytophilum. Methods Here, we compared the contribution of four free-ranging ungulate species, red deer (Cervus elaphus), fallow deer (Dama dama), roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), and wild boar (Sus scrofa), to A. phagocytophilum infections in nymphs. We used a combination of camera and live trapping to quantify the relative availability of vertebrate hosts to questing ticks in 19 Dutch forest sites. Additionally, we collected questing I. ricinus nymphs and tested these for the presence of A. phagocytophilum. Furthermore, we explored two potential mechanisms that could explain differences between species: (i) differences in larval burden, which we based on data from published studies, and (ii) differences in associations with other, non-competent hosts. Results Principal component analysis indicated that the density of A. phagocytophilum-infected nymphs (DIN) was higher in forest sites with high availability of red and fallow deer, and to a lesser degree roe deer. Initial results suggest that these differences are not a result of differences in larval burden, but rather differences in associations with other species or other ecological factors. Conclusions These results indicate that the risk for contracting anaplasmosis in The Netherlands is likely highest in the few areas where red and fallow deer are present. Future studies are needed to explore the mechanisms behind this association.

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Presence of Roe Deer Affects the Occurrence of Anaplasma phagocytophilum Ecotypes in Questing Ixodes ricinus in Different Habitat Types of Central Europe

Cited by 16 publications

References 46 publications

Tripartite Interactions among Ixodiphagus hookeri, Ixodes ricinus and Deer: Differential Interference with Transmission Cycles of Tick-Borne Pathogens

Tripartite Interactions among Ixodiphagus hookeri, Ixodes ricinus and Deer: Differential Interference with Transmission Cycles of Tick-Borne Pathogens

Ticks and their epidemiological role in Slovakia: from the past till present

Red and fallow deer determine the density of Ixodes ricinus nymphs containing Anaplasma phagocytophilum

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