Mites and ticks of reptiles and amphibians in Brazil

Otranto, Domenico; Ribeiro, Stephany Rocha; Onofrio, Valéria Castilho; Grazziotin, Felipe G.; Rocha, Bruno; Ferreto-Fiorillo, Bruno; Pereira, Josivania Soares; Benelli, Giovanni; Otranto, Domenico; Barros-Battesti, Darci Moraes

doi:10.1016/j.actatropica.2020.105515

Cited by 31 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 54 publications

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“…(Dantas-Torres et al 2012a;Otranto 2018). These blood-sucking arthropods feed on a great variety of vertebrate hosts, being recorded in humans, domestic animals, and wildlife, including opossums (Soares et al 2015;Saracho-Bottero et al 2018;Mendoza-Roldan et al 2020a). It is known that the exchange of ectoparasites among these hosts has a central importance in the epidemiology of tick-borne diseases.…”

Section: Ticks and Tick-borne Pathogensmentioning

confidence: 99%

Didelphis spp. opossums and their parasites in the Americas: A One Health perspective

et al. 2021

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Medium sized opossums (Didelphis spp.) are among the most fascinating mammals of the Americas, playing important ecological roles (e.g., dispersal of seeds and control of insect populations) in the environment they inhabit. Nevertheless, as synanthropic animals, they are well adapted to human dwellings, occupying shelters within the cities, peripheral areas, and rural settings. These marsupials can harbor numerous pathogens, which may affect people, pets, and livestock. Among those, some protozoa (e.g., Leishmania infantum, Trypanosoma cruzi, Toxoplasma gondii), helminths (e.g., Ancylostoma caninum, Trichinella spiralis, Alaria marcianae, Paragonimus spp.) and arthropods (e.g., ticks, fleas) present substantial public health and veterinary importance, due to their capacity to cause disease in humans, domestic animals, and wildlife. Here, we reviewed the role played by opossums on the spreading of zoonotic parasites, vectors, and vector-borne pathogens, highlighting the risks of pathogens transmission due to the direct and indirect interaction of humans and domestic animals with Didelphis spp. in the Americas.

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Section: Ticks and Tick-borne Pathogensmentioning

confidence: 99%

Didelphis spp. opossums and their parasites in the Americas: A One Health perspective

et al. 2021

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“…On the whole, more than 500 species of mites and ticks (subclass Acarina) parasitize ectothermic tetrapods (amphibians and reptiles) worldwide ( Mendoza-Roldan et al, 2020a ). They belong to the orders Trombidiformes (superorder Acariformes), Mesostigmata and Ixodida (superorder Parasitiformes).…”

Section: Arthropods Feeding On Reptilesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is also the case of the evolution of VBDs, where many pathogens have a clade or cluster of species associated to reptiles or ectothermic tetrapods, like the reptile-associated Borrelia group ( Morales-Diaz et al, 2020 ), or the reptile clade of Leishmania (subgenus Sauroleishmania ) ( Tuon et al, 2008 ). Also, some parasitic arthropods became well adapted to their reptilian host producing minimum deleterious effects on them ( Bertrand et al, 2002 ; Bower et al, 2019 ), such as in the case of Amblyomma rotundatum ticks infesting reptiles in South America ( Polo et al, 2021 ; Mendoza-Roldan et al, 2020a ), or Ixodes ricinus parasitizing wild lizards ( Lacerta agilis ) in Europe ( Wieczorek et al, 2020 ). Conversely, other parasitic arthropods (e.g., Ophionyssus natricis mites in snakes) may have a pronounced deleterious effect on their hosts, when there is a high parasitic load ( Fuantos-Gámez et al, 2020 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition, reptiles may be infected by various zoonotic VBDs (i.e., bacterial, protozoal, viral) being the primary source of bloodmeal for arthropod vectors (i.e., ticks, mites, sand flies and mosquitoes) ( Fig. 1 ) that equally may feed on humans ( Mendoza-Roldan et al, 2020a , Mendoza-Roldan et al, 2020b , Mendoza-Roldan et al, 2021a ). In this review, we discuss vector-borne pathogens associated to reptiles, as well as the interactions between reptiles, arthropod vectors and the pathogens they may transmit with a focus on those of zoonotic concern.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Reptile vector-borne diseases of zoonotic concern

Mendoza‐Roldan

Mendoza-Roldan²,

Otranto

2021

International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife

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Reptile vector-borne diseases (RVBDs) of zoonotic concern are caused by bacteria, protozoa and viruses transmitted by arthropod vectors, which belong to the subclass Acarina (mites and ticks) and the order Diptera (mosquitoes, sand flies and tsetse flies). The phyletic age of reptiles since their origin in the late Carboniferous, has favored vectors and pathogens to co-evolve through millions of years, bridging to the present host-vector-pathogen interactions. The origin of vector-borne diseases is dated to the early cretaceous with Trypanosomatidae species in extinct sand flies, ancestral of modern protozoan hemoparasites of zoonotic concern (e.g., Leishmania and Trypanosoma ) associated to reptiles. Bacterial RVBDs are represented by microorganisms also affecting mammals of the genera Aeromonas, Anaplasma, Borrelia , Coxiella , Ehrlichia and Rickettsia , most of them having reptilian clades. Finally, reptiles may play an important role as reservoirs of arborivuses, given the low host specificity of anthropophilic mosquitoes and sand flies. In this review, vector-borne pathogens of zoonotic concern from reptiles are discussed, as well as the interactions between reptiles, arthropod vectors and the zoonotic pathogens they may transmit.

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“…or Dispas spp. in Brazil [38]) and birds (for example migratory species like Anthus trivialis in Europe [39] or Melospiza melodia in the USA [40]). Such hosts are also suitable for nymphs.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Role of Zoo-Housed Animals in the Ecology of Ticks and Tick-Borne Pathogens—A Review

et al. 2021

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Ticks are ubiquitous ectoparasites, feeding on representatives of all classes of terrestrial vertebrates and transmitting numerous pathogens of high human and veterinary medical importance. Exotic animals kept in zoological gardens, ranches, wildlife parks or farms may play an important role in the ecology of ticks and tick-borne pathogens (TBPs), as they may serve as hosts for local tick species. Moreover, they can develop diseases of varying severity after being infected by TBPs, and theoretically, can thus serve as reservoirs, thereby further propagating TBPs in local ecosystems. The definite role of these animals in the tick–host-pathogen network remains poorly investigated. This review provides a summary of the information currently available regarding ticks and TBPs in connection to captive local and exotic wildlife, with an emphasis on zoo-housed species.

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Mites and ticks of reptiles and amphibians in Brazil

Cited by 31 publications

References 54 publications

Didelphis spp. opossums and their parasites in the Americas: A One Health perspective

Didelphis spp. opossums and their parasites in the Americas: A One Health perspective

Reptile vector-borne diseases of zoonotic concern

Role of Zoo-Housed Animals in the Ecology of Ticks and Tick-Borne Pathogens—A Review

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