On the possible role of ticks in the eco-epidemiology of Coxiella burnetii in a Mediterranean ecosystem

Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases
Lucía Varela-CastroG Mentaberre

Abstract

Ruminant livestock is the main reservoir of Coxiella burnetii (Cb), but little is known about the role of wildlife and ticks in its epidemiology. The Iberian ibex (Capra pyrenaica, Schinz 1838) population of "Ports de Tortosa i Beseit" (NE Spain) suffers intense tick infestations and low reproduction rates. This study aims to (1) assess the relationship between infection in ibexes (detection of serum antibodies and/or of Cb DNA in tissues) and Cb DNA presence in ticks hosted by the same ibexes; and (2) identify Cb associated risk factors. Between 2011 and 2015, serum (n = 130), spleen (n = 72), lymph node (n = 89) and tick (n = 669) samples from 134 hunter-harvested ibexes were collected. Antibody detection was performed by ELISA and Cb DNA presence was assessed by PCR. Potential risk factors were assessed with regression tree models. Although 30% of the ibexes (39/130; 95%CI, [10%-29.8%]) had antibodies, Cb DNA was detected in only 9.8% of the ibexes (11/112; 95%CI [7.6%-27.25%]). The prevalence of Cb-carrier ticks averaged 10% and exceeded 20% for the genus Haemaphysalis. However, lacking correlation between infection in ibexes and their ticks does not support tick-to-ibex transmission or vice versa. Tree modelling points to ...Continue Reading

Citations

Aug 17, 2019·Parasites & Vectors·Marta ValldeperesGregorio Mentaberre
Apr 25, 2020·FEMS Microbiology Ecology·Maria João Coimbra-DoresDeodália Dias
Jun 20, 2019·Revista brasileira de parasitologia veterinária = Brazilian journal of veterinary parasitology : Órgão Oficial do Colégio Brasileiro de Parasitologia Veterinária·Diego Carlos Souza ZanattoMarcos Rogério André
Aug 30, 2020·BMC Veterinary Research·Jun NiGuangyuan Liu
Aug 1, 2021·Transboundary and Emerging Diseases·Raquel Castillo-ContrerasJorge R López-Olvera

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