Search results for " Tick-Borne"
showing 10 items of 11 documents
Immune response to tick-borne hemoparasites: Host adaptive immune response mechanisms as potential targets for therapies and vaccines
2020
This article belongs to the Section Molecular Immunology.
A large-scale screening for the taiga tick, Ixodes persulcatus, and the meadow tick, Dermacentor reticulatus, in southern Scandinavia, 2016
2019
Abstract The taiga tick, Ixodes persulcatus, has previously been limited to eastern Europe and northern Asia, but recently its range has expanded to Finland and northern Sweden. The species is of medical importance, as it, along with a string of other pathogens, may carry the Siberian and Far Eastern subtypes of tick-borne encephalitis virus. These subtypes appear to cause more severe disease, with higher fatality rates than the central European subtype. Until recently, the meadow tick, Dermacentor reticulatus, has been absent from Scandinavia, but has now been detected in Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Dermacentor reticulatus carries, along with other pathogens, Babesia canis and Rickettsia r…
Monitoring of ticks and tick-borne pathogens through a nationwide research station network in Finland.
2020
In 2015 a long-term, nationwide tick and tick-borne pathogen (TBP) monitoring project was started by the Finnish Tick Project and the Finnish Research Station network (RESTAT), with the goal of producing temporally and geographically extensive data regarding exophilic ticks in Finland. In the current study, we present results from the first four years of this collaboration. Ticks were collected by cloth dragging from 11 research stations across Finland in May September 2015-2018 (2012-2018 in Seili). Collected ticks were screened for twelve different pathogens by qPCR: Borrelia afzelii, Borrelia garinii, Borrelia valaisiana, Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto, Borrelia miyamotoi, Babesia sp…
Predicting habitat suitability for Ixodes ricinus and Ixodes persulcatus ticks in Finland
2022
AbstractBackgroundTicks are responsible for transmitting several notable pathogens worldwide. Finland lies in a zone where two human-biting tick species co-occur:IxodesricinusandIxodespersulcatus. Tick densities have increased in boreal regions worldwide during past decades, and tick-borne pathogens have been identified as one of the major threats to public health in the face of climate change.MethodsWe used species distribution modelling techniques to predict the distributions ofI.ricinusandI.persulcatus,using aggregated historical data from 2014 to 2020 and new tick occurrence data from 2021. By aiming to fill the gaps in tick occurrence data, we created a new sampling strategy across Fin…
Detection of tick-borne encephalitis virus in I. ricinus ticks collected from autumn migratory birds in Latvia.
2014
Birds have a potential of spreading ticks via bird migration routes. In this study, we screened 170 ticks removed during autumn 2010 from 55 birds belonging to 10 species for the presence of tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV). In total, TBEV RNA was detected in 14% of I. ricinus tick samples obtained from different birds species. The results of this study indicate the possible role of migrating birds in the dispersal of TBEV-infected ticks along the southward migration route.
Ticks infesting humans in Italy and associated pathogens
2014
Background: Ticks may transmit a large variety of pathogens, which cause illnesses in animals and humans, commonly referred to as to tick-borne diseases (TBDs). The incidence of human TBDs in Italy is underestimated because of poor surveillance and the scant amount of studies available. Methods. Samples (n = 561) were collected from humans in four main geographical areas of Italy (i.e., northwestern, northeastern, southern Italy, and Sicily), which represent a variety of environments. After being morphologically identified, ticks were molecularly tested with selected protocols for the presence of pathogens of the genera Rickettsia, Babesia, Theileria, Candidatus Neoehrlichia mikurensis, Bor…
Vectors of tick-borne diseases and epidemiological situation in Latvia in 1993-2002.
2004
During the period of 1993-2002 an increase and the remarkable changes in the incidence of tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) and Lyme borreliosis (LB) as well as annual activities of vector species were noticed. The highest increase of TBE morbidity in Latvia has been observed in 1994 and 1995, and less expressed also in 1998 which was followed by a significant decrease during subsequent years. Whereas the highest peak of LB morbidity has been noticed in 1998 with only a minor decrease during subsequent years. Two epidemiologically significant Ixodes tick species are common in Latvia. Ixodes ricinus L. spread in the western and central part of Latvia; but rarely and in small numbers also in the …
Tick-borne encephalitis virus, Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato, Borrelia miyamotoi, Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Candidatus Neoehrlichia mikurensis …
2018
The aim of this study was to determine the occurrence of tick-borne pathogens of medical importance in questing ticks collected from five recreationally used islands along the Norwegian coastline. Furthermore, since coinfection may affect the disease severity, this study aimed to determine the extent of coinfection in individual ticks or co-localization of tick-borne pathogens. In all, 4158 questing Ixodes ricinus ticks were analyzed. For detection of tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV), nymphs (3690) were analyzed in pools of ten. To detect Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato, B. miyamotoi, Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Candidatus Neoehrlichia mikurensis, 468 nymphs were analyzed individually…
Predicting and mapping human risk of exposure to
2019
Background Tick-borne diseases have become increasingly common in recent decades and present a health problem in many parts of Europe. Control and prevention of these diseases require a better understanding of vector distribution. Aim Our aim was to create a model able to predict the distribution of Ixodes ricinus nymphs in southern Scandinavia and to assess how this relates to risk of human exposure. Methods We measured the presence of I. ricinus tick nymphs at 159 stratified random lowland forest and meadow sites in Denmark, Norway and Sweden by dragging 400 m transects from August to September 2016, representing a total distance of 63.6 km. Using climate and remote sensing environmental …
A lethal Tick-Borne Encephalitis (TBE) due to TBE virus in Sicily (Italy): A case of IgG+/IgM-response?
2018
Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is an important viral infection of the central nervous system with high morbidity and mortality. With the increase of tourism TBE is becoming a problem also outside endemic regions. Italy is considered a country with low incidence of TBE and geographically restricted to the central and north eastern part of the country. In the south of Italy there is no evidence of disease presence, but neither is there much evidence of its absence. We report our experience about a lethal case of meningoencephalitis with a single-phase clinical course of the disease likely due to TBEV infection in a 13-year-old man. This is the first report of an autochthonous case of TBE in Si…