Morphological and genotypical identification of Hyalomma anatolicum isolated from cattle in Al-Daghara city, Al-Qadisiyah province, Iraq

Abstract

The present study looks at the morphological and molecular distinct features of the tick Hyalomma anatolicum, a livestock-important tick that transmits production-decreasing pathogens. A total of 17 ticks were collected from infested skin of cattle in Al-Daghara city, Al-Qadisiyah province, Iraq, from Oct 15, 2022, to Nov 15, 2022. All ticks were investigated microscopically to identify tick-external features and genotypical, using partial sequencing of the 16S rDNA gene. The microscopic results showed that the tick had mouthparts and genital pores, which were specific and identical to species H. anatolicum. The sequencing results confirmed the finding of the microscopic data. In conclusion, the ticks H. anatolicum identified in the present study could be similar to ticks previously identified in neighboring countries, such as Pakistan and Egypt, which encourages an explanation of why these similarities happened. Iraq had cattle imported from countries close to the Pakistan region, such as India, this could bring new H. anatolicum to Iraq.

Keywords

• hyalomma anatolicum
• ticks
• tick-borne pathogens