Characterization Through Multilocus Sequence Analysis of Borrelia turdi Isolates from Portugal

Abstract

Borrelia turdi is a spirochete from the Borrelia burgdorferi complex, first reported in Japan, that has been increasingly detected in Europe. This genospecies is mostly associated with avian hosts and their ornithophilic ticks such as Ixodes frontalis. In this study, we isolated B. turdi from five I. frontalis feeding on Turdus merula, Turdus philomelos, Parus major and Troglodytes troglodytes, and one Ixodes ricinus feeding on a T. merula in Portugal. These isolates were genetically characterised according to their 5S-23S rRNA intergenic spacer, 16S rRNA and through typing of seven housekeeping genes (multilocus sequence typing). Multilocus sequence analyses revealed that the strains isolated in our study, although belonging to B. turdi genospecies, are not identical to the B. turdi reference strain Ya501. Instead, our strains are separated into a clear defined group, suggesting that the European samples diverged genetically from the strain originally detected in Japan. Population analysis of 5S-23S rRNA sequences can further resolve subpopulations within B. turdi, but more samples from a large geographical scale and host range would be needed to assess potential phylogeographical patterns within this genospecies.

Tick-borne pathogens in ticks collected from birds in Taiwan

“…This spirochete has also been detected in ticks collected primarily from Turdus spp. birds in Europe, including Belgium [ 83 ], Norway [ 84 ], Poland [ 85 ], Portugal [ 86 ] and Spain [ 76 , 87 ]. Birds have been demonstrated to be the reservoirs of Bo.…”

Migratory Birds as Disseminators of Ticks and the Tick-Borne Pathogens Borrelia Bacteria and Tick-Borne Encephalitis (TBE) Virus – A Seasonal Study at Ottenby Bird Observatory in South-Eastern Sweden

“…However, B. turdi was in Europe rst recorded by Hasle et al (2011) in Norway [3], where they detected B. turdi in 0.4 % of I. ricinus larvae and 0.4 % of I. ricinus nymphs collected from northward-migrating passerine birds. B. turdi has then been detected in I. frontalis, I. ricinus and H. punctata removed from birds in northern Spain [57], from I. ricinus removed from T. merula in Poland [5], from I. frontalis removed from T. merula captured in the Archipelago of the Azores [35], from I. frontalis feeding on birds in Belgium [58], and from I. frontalis feeding on T. merula, T. philomelos, P. major and T. troglodytes in Portugal [59]. Prevalences of 7 % to 56 % of B. turdi in I. frontalis have been recorded [59].…”

“…B. turdi has then been detected in I. frontalis, I. ricinus and H. punctata removed from birds in northern Spain [57], from I. ricinus removed from T. merula in Poland [5], from I. frontalis removed from T. merula captured in the Archipelago of the Azores [35], from I. frontalis feeding on birds in Belgium [58], and from I. frontalis feeding on T. merula, T. philomelos, P. major and T. troglodytes in Portugal [59]. Prevalences of 7 % to 56 % of B. turdi in I. frontalis have been recorded [59]. B. turdi has also been detected in skin biopsies from T. merula, which is a competent transmission host for this bacterium [11,59]…”

“…Prevalences of 7 % to 56 % of B. turdi in I. frontalis have been recorded [59]. B. turdi has also been detected in skin biopsies from T. merula, which is a competent transmission host for this bacterium [11,59]…”

Maintenance of Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. diversity in enzootic cycles

“…However, many of the genospecies that were once thought to have a relatively limited distribution area (e.g. B. turdi or B. bavariensis), have later been proven to be widespread (Margos et al 2013,Norte et al 2015. In some cases it could be a matter of recent introduction of the genospecies by means of migratory birds (Hasle et al 2011).…”