Prevalence of Coxiella Burnetii in Ticks After a Large Outbreak of Q Fever

Abstract

Q fever has emerged as an important human and veterinary public health problem in the Netherlands with major outbreaks in three consecutive years. Goat farms are probably the prime source from which Coxiella burnetii have spread throughout the environment, infecting people living in the vicinity. Coxiella burnetii infection not only spilled over from animal husbandry to humans but could also have spread to neighbouring wildlife and pets forming novel reservoirs and consequently posing another and lingering threat to humans, companion animals and livestock. In these cases, transmission routes other than airborne spread of contaminated aerosols may become significant. Therefore, the role of ticks in the transmission of Coxiella burnetii in the current situation was investigated. A total of 1891 questing Ixodes ricinus ticks and 1086 ticks feeding on pets, wildlife and livestock were tested by a recently developed multiplex Q-PCR. All ticks were negative, except for a few ticks feeding on a herd of recently vaccinated sheep. Coxiella-positive ticks were not detected after resampling this particular herd three months later. Based on these data we conclude that the current risk of acquiring Q fever from questing ticks in the Netherlands is negligible. However, for future risk assessments, it might be relevant to sample more ticks in the vicinity of previously C. burnetii infected goat farms and to assess whether C. burnetii can be transmitted transovarially and transstadially in I. ricinus ticks.

Review of common causes of abortion in dairy cattle in Ethiopia

“…On the other hand, a recent study developed in the Netherlands, after three years of an outbreak of Q fever, researchers investigated the role ticks play in the transmission C. burnetii, showing that actual risk of this infection by ticks is negligible. Moreover, for future risk assessments, it might be relevant to sample more ticks in the vicinity of previously C. burnetii infected goat farms and to assess whether C. burnetii can be transmitted transovarially and transstadially in Ixodus ricinus ticks (Sprong et al, 2011).…”

Survey of <i>Coxiella burnetii</i> in Ticks Collected from Dogs in Japan

“…There are no reports about I. ovatus and H. flava ticks with regard to carriage of C. burnetii. Interestingly, even in the epidemic area of Q fever, ticks did not carry C. burnetii (none of 1891 I. ricinus) [20].…”

Serological evidence of exposure to zoonotic tick-borne bacteria in pheasants (Phasianus colchicus)

“…Infected animals shed coxiellae mainly in birth products, but also in faeces and urine [14]. More than 40 species of ticks can be naturally infected with C. bunetii during a blood meal on infected animals, and transmit the bacterium to other mammals during the next blood meal, or by the aerogenic spread of dried tick faecal excretions, maintaining C. burnetii in wildlife [15].…”