A three-years assessment of Ixodes ricinus-borne pathogens in a French peri-urban forest

Abstract

BackgroundIxodes ricinus is the predominant tick species in Europe and the primary pathogen vector for both humans and animals. These ticks are frequently involved in the transmission of Borrelia burgdorferi (sensu lato), the causative agents of Lyme borreliosis. While much more is known about I. ricinus tick-borne pathogen composition, information about temporal tick-borne pathogen patterns remain scarce. These data are crucial for predicting seasonal/annual patterns which could improve understanding and prevent tick-borne diseases.MethodsWe examined tick-borne pathogen (TBP) dynamics in I. ricinus collected monthly in a peri-urban forest over three consecutive years. In total, 998 nymphs were screened for 31 pathogenic species using high-throughput microfluidic real-time PCR.ResultsWe detected DNA from Anaplasma phagocytophilum (5.3%), Rickettsia helvetica (4.5%), Borrelia burgdorferi (s.l.) (3.7%), Borrelia miyamotoi (1.2%), Babesia venatorum (1.5%) and Rickettsia felis (0.1%). Among all analysed ticks, 15.9% were infected by at least one of these microorganisms, and 1.3% were co-infected. Co-infections with B. afzeli/B. garinii and B. garinii/B. spielmanii were significantly over-represented. Moreover, significant variations in seasonal and/or inter-annual prevalence were observed for several pathogens (R. helvetica, B. burgdorferi (s.l.), B. miyamotoi and A. phagocytophilum).ConclusionsAnalysing TBP prevalence in monthly sampled tick over three years allowed us to assess seasonal and inter-annual fluctuations of the prevalence of TBPs known to circulate in the sampled area, but also to detect less common species. All these data emphasize that sporadic tick samplings are not sufficient to determine TBP prevalence and that regular monitoring is necessary.

Long-Term Study of Borrelia and Babesia Species Distribution in Ixodes Ricinus and Dermacentor Recticulatus Ticks Removed From Humans in Poland, 2016-2019

“…In the current study, we have con rmed the occurrence of three Babesia species, out two of them (B. microti and B. venatorum), are considered to be pathogenic for humans. Nonetheless, the Babesia prevalence in I. ricinus removed from humans is rather low (1.3%) and similar to other European studies on engorged as well as questing I. ricinus ticks [9,35,65,78].…”

“…in ticks show signi cant temporal and spatial variations. Surprisingly, in our study, the annual prevalence of B. miyamotoi was relatively high (up to 15.8% in 2016) compared to other European studies in questing as well as feeding ticks where the prevalence usually did not exceeded 5% [19,22,23,35,[61][62][63][64][65]. In contrast, Springer et al [37] have con rmed B. miyamotoi infection in 7.4% of I.ricinus ticks removed from humans.…”

Update on the intricate tango between tick microbiomes and tick‐borne pathogens

“…Similarly, several Ornithodoros , Rhipicephalus and Amblyomma species are known to host Coxiella‐ like endosymbionts, 49,77,80,84‐93 in contrast to FLEs endosymbionts which are frequently identified in Hyalomma and Amblyomma tick species 45,47‐49,94,95 . Furthermore, as already observed for pathogens, 96‐99 other members of the tick microbial community are dynamic and likely to vary with time. However, only a few long‐term studies have investigated potential seasonal or annual patterns in tick microbiomes.…”

Borrelia miyamotoi—An Emerging Human Tick-Borne Pathogen in Europe

“…I. pacificus is known as a B. miyamotoi vector in the western USA and I. scapularis in the north-central USA and Canada [ 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 ]. In Europe, vector competence for B. miyamotoi has been demonstrated for I. ricinus and I. persulcatus [ 12 , 36 , 45 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 , 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 , 80 , 81 ] ( Table 1 ). Worldwide, B. miyamotoi prevalence in questing Ixodes ticks ranges from 0.2 to 10% [ 42 , 43 , 44 ...…”