First detection of Borrelia miyamotoi in Ixodes ricinus ticks from northern Italy

Abstract

BackgroundBorrelia miyamotoi is a spirochete transmitted by several ixodid tick species. It causes a relapsing fever in humans and is currently considered as an emerging pathogen. In Europe, B. miyamotoi seems to occur at low prevalence in Ixodes ricinus ticks but has a wide distribution. Here we report the first detection of B. miyamotoi in Ixodes ricinus ticks collected in two independent studies conducted in 2016 in the north-eastern and north-western Alps, Italy.ResultsThree out of 405 nymphs (0.74%) tested positive for Borrelia miyamotoi. In particular, B. miyamotoi was found in 2/365 nymphs in the western and in 1/40 nymphs in the eastern alpine area. These are the first findings of B. miyamotoi in Italy.ConclusionsExposure to B. miyamotoi and risk of human infection may occur through tick bites in northern Italy. Relapsing fever caused by Borrelia miyamotoi has not yet been reported in Italy, but misdiagnoses with tick-borne encephalitis, human granulocytic anaplasmosis or other relapsing fever can occur. Our findings suggest that B. miyamotoi should be considered in the differential diagnosis of febrile patients originating from Lyme borreliosis endemic regions. The distribution of this pathogen and its relevance to public health need further investigation.

Tick‐borne pathogens in ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) collected from various domestic and wild hosts in Corsica (France), a Mediterranean island environment

“…Relapsing fever borreliosis is characterised by influenza‐like illness and one or more relapse episodes of bacteraemia and fever (Platonov et al, ). Borrelia miyamotoi was reported in 3% of ticks from mainland France (Cosson et al, ) and 0.7% of ticks from northern Italy (Ravagean et al, ). Although no human case of B. miyamotoi has been identified in Corsica and in the Mediterranean area, the bacterium has been found in humans throughout Europe (Siński, Welc‐Falęciak, & Zajkowska, ).…”

Targeting Multicopy Prophage Genes for the Increased Detection of Borrelia burgdorferi Sensu Lato (s.l.), the Causative Agents of Lyme Disease, in Blood

“…This variable phylogenetic position of B. miyamotoi indicates that it is distantly related to both LD and RF, but is more closely related to RF than to LD Borrelia . This detailed resolution offered by the terL gene is useful on two fronts: (1) it reflects the fact that the pathogenesis of B. miyamotoi is distinct to RF ( Telford et al, 2015 ); and (2) as B. miyamotoi is the only RF Borrelia that can be co-transmitted with LD Borrelia species by hard-bodied ticks ( Ravagnan et al, 2018 ), it is really useful to have a molecular marker that can distinguish between LD and RF-causing Borrelia spp., and B. miyamotoi .…”

Targeting multicopy prophage genes for the differential diagnosis of Lyme disease

“…This variable phylogenetic position of B. miyamotoi indicates that it is distantly related to both LD and RF, but is more closely related to RF than to LD Borrelia . This detailed resolution offered by the terL gene is useful on two fronts: 1) it reflects the fact that the pathogenesis of B. miyamotoi is distinct to RF 46,47 ; and 2) as B. miyamotoi is the only RF Borrelia that can be co-transmitted with LD Borrelia species by hard-bodied ticks 47,49,50 , it is really useful to have a molecular marker that can distinguish between LD and RF-causing Borrelia spp., and B. miyamotoi .…”