Molecular Detection of Tick-Borne Bacterial and Protozoan Pathogens in <i>Haemaphysalis longicornis</i> (Acari: Ixodidae) Ticks from Free-Ranging Domestic Sheep in Hebei Province, China
Zhongqiu Teng,
Yan Shi,
Na Zhao,
Xue Zhang,
Xiaojing Jin,
Jia He,
Baohong Xu,
Tian Qin
Affiliations
Zhongqiu Teng
National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing 102206, China
Yan Shi
Shijiazhuang Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Shijiazhuang 050021, China
Na Zhao
National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing 102206, China
Xue Zhang
National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing 102206, China
Xiaojing Jin
National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing 102206, China
Jia He
National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing 102206, China
Baohong Xu
Shijiazhuang Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Shijiazhuang 050021, China
Tian Qin
National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing 102206, China
Ticks and tick-borne pathogens significantly threaten human and animal health worldwide. Haemaphysalis longicornis is one of the dominant tick species in East Asia, including China. In the present study, 646 Ha. longicornis ticks were collected from free-ranging domestic sheep in the southern region of Hebei Province, China. Tick-borne pathogens of zoonotic and veterinary importance (i.e., Rickettsia, Anaplasma, Ehrlichia, Borrelia, Theileria, and Hepatozoon spp.) were detected in the ticks using PCR assays and sequence analysis. The prevalence rates of these pathogens were 5.1% (33/646), 15.9% (103/646), 1.2% (8/646), 17.0% (110/646), 0.15% (1/646), and 0.15% (1/646), respectively. For Rickettsia spp., R. japonica (n = 13), R. raoultii (n = 6), and Candidatus R. jingxinensis (n = 14) were detected for the first time in the province, while several Anaplasma spp. were also detected in the ticks, including A. bovis (n = 52), A. ovis (n = 31), A. phagocytophilum (n = 10), and A. capra (n = 10). A putative novel Ehrlichia spp. was also found with a prevalence of 1.2% in the area. The present study provides important data for effectively controlling ticks and tick-borne diseases in the Hebei Province region of China.
