Molecular Detection of Crimean‐Congo Haemorrhagic Fever Virus (CCHFV) but not West Nile Virus (WNV) in Hard Ticks from Provinces in Northern Turkey

Abstract

In this study, the hard ticks collected from a variety of mammalian species (cattle, sheep, goat, buffalo) and a turtle in either coastal or inland Black Sea region of Turkey were surveyed for the presence of RNA from Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) and West Nile virus (WNV). No WNV genomic RNA was detected in any tick sample. However, CCHFV RNA was found in 29 of 421 tick pools (6.88%). Positivity rates for the provinces varied and were as follows: Samsun 4.38%; Ordu 4.34%; Giresun 6.32%; Sinop 14.63%; Amasya 5.55%; Tokat 3.38% and Sivas 4.83%. Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus genomic RNA was detected in seven of eleven tick species tested. These results suggest that these hard ticks may act as a reservoir for CCHFV in northern Turkey, but probably have no role in WNV transmission.

A review of the ticks (Acari: Ixodida) of Turkey: species diversity, hosts and geographical distribution

“…Even though Hyalomma species generally infest on various domestic and wild animals, parasitism of various Hyalomma species, especially feeding of larval and adult forms of H. aegyptium on humans were surprising (Bursali et al 2010(Bursali et al , 2011. Therefore, we proposed that Hyalomma species such as H. anatolicum, H. excavatum, H. marginatum, and H. scupense play major role for transferring tick-borne pathogens such as CCHF virus to humans in Turkey (Albayrak et al 2010;Bursali et al 2011).…”

Role of Migratory Birds in Spreading Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever, Turkey

“…picked up from humans and animals ( 10 ). Also, Albayrak et al ( 11 ) detected CCHFV in I. ricinus ticks. Because the 2 sequences detected showed similarity with CCHFV genotype 4, which was widespread in Turkey ( 1 ), whether the ticks were infected in Turkey or infected earlier during bird migration is impossible to say.…”

Species distribution and detection of Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever Virus (CCHFV) in field-collected ticks in Ankara Province, Central Anatolia, Turkey

“…For the evaluation of CCHFV RNA in ticks, we have included samples originating from the county K2, in the northern part of Ankara province, due to previous epidemiological data on tick bites as well as suspected CCHFV cases and ecologic features of this region, as described above. The presence of CCHFV RNA was investigated via two independent RT-PCR assays targeting the S region of the viral genome, which had been documented to be effective in amplifying CCHFV strains from patient samples in addition to ticks (Yapar et al 2005, Albayrak et al 2010b). Both assays have been observed to be reactive in 22.7% of the tick pools (5 out of 22) ( Table 2), revealing CCHFV infection in potential vector species identified in the study region.…”

“…This assay has also been evaluated previously and shown to efficient in amplifying CCHFV RNA in tick specimens in northern Anatolia (Albayrak et al 2010b). Briefly, Revertaid First Strand cDNA Synthesis Kit (Fermentas, Vilnius, Lithuania) was employed for cDNA synthesis according to the manufacturer's instructions using random hexamers.…”