Hard ticks (Ixodidae) and Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus in south west of Iran.

Ticks are vectors of some important arthropod-borne diseases in both fields of veterinary and medicine, such as Lyme, tularemia, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and some types of encephalitis as well as Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF). Iran is known as one of the main foci of CCHF in west of Asia. This study was conducted in DarrehShahr County because of the development of animal husbandry in this area to detect the fauna and viral infection of the hard ticks of livestock. A cross-sectional survey was conducted during 2011-2012 with random sampling in four villages. A sample of ticks was subjected to RT-PCR method for detection of viral infection. During the study period, 592 Ixodidae ticks were collected and identified as seven species of Hyalomma asiaticum, Hy. marginatum, Hy. anatolicum, Hy. dromedarii, Hy. detritum, Rhipicephalus bursa and Rh. sanguineus. More than 20% of these ticks were examined to detect the genome of CCHF virus while 6.6% were positive. All species of Hyalomma were found to be positive. A high rate of livestock was found to be infected with hard ticks, which can act as the vectors of the CCHF disease. Regarding infection of all five Hyalomma species captured in this area, this genus should be considered as the main vector of CCHF. Planning control program can be performed based on the obtained data on seasonal activity of Ixodidae to prevent animal infestation as well as to reduce the risk of CCHF transmission.

Species diversity and geographic distribution of hard ticks (Acari: Ixodoidea: Ixodidae) infesting domestic ruminants, in Qazvin Province, Iran.

This report presents the results of the first faunistic study of hard ticks in Qazvin province of Iran. The primary objective was to determine the species diversity and geographic distribution of hard ticks that parasitize domestic ruminants. Information about the abiotic preferences of these species has been provided. A total of 286 cattle, 1,053 goats, and 2,050 sheep were examined in 13 villages in 28 flocks distributed throughout the studied areas. Total direct body collections of ticks were made from each domestic ruminant. A total of 228 Ixodid specimens belonging to nine species in three different genera were recorded in the areas, including Boophilus annulatus (Say, 1821), Hyalomma anatolicum Koch, 1844, Hyalomma asiaticum (Schulze and Schlettke, 1929), Hyalomma detritum Schulze, 1919, Hyalomma dromedarii Koch, 1844, Hyalomma marginatum Koch 1844, Hyalomma schulzei Olenev, 1931, Rhipicephalus bursa Canestrini and Fanz, 1878 and Rhipicephalus sanguineus (Latreille, 1806). The most abundant species on sheep was R. sanguineus (46.92%), while B. annulatus (6.6%) found only on cattle. A finding of great significance was that R. sanguineus, the main vector of babesiosis, is firmly established throughout the counties. A further objective of the study was to compare the abundance of the major tick species on domestic ruminants. This was carried out at 19 sampling sites. The highest number of ticks was collected in July-August during the hot season.

Discrimination of relapsing fever Borrelia persica and Borrelia microtti by diagnostic species-specific primers and polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism.

Tick-borne relapsing fever (TBRF) is endemic in Africa and Eurasia and attributed to different Borrelia species. In the Central Asia and Middle Eastern countries, TBRF is caused mainly by Borrelia persica; however, other Borrelia species such B. microtti, B. latyschewii, B. baltazardi, and B. caucasica have also been described. The classic taxonomy of Borrelia spp. is based on the cospeciation concept that is very complex and rather confusing. In this study, we report two DNA-based methods to discriminate B. persica and B. microtti, the two main prevalent species in the region. Molecular typing of the species was performed using (i) restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-amplified fragments of either 16S-rRNA or glpQ genes, and (ii) species-specific PCR of glpQ gene. Sequence analyses of the data obtained in this study indicate that the glpQ gene is more variable than 16S-rRNA (6.9% vs. 1.2%); thus glpQ is a more useful marker for discrimination of B. persica from B. microtti. The 16S-rRNA fragment comprises only one useful species-specific restriction site (TaqI), whereas the glpQ fragment includes several species-specific restriction sites and its digestion by DraI, TaqI, EcoRV, HinfI, or SspI results in distinctively different PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism patterns for the two species. Further, the species-specific primers amplified a 253-bp fragment for B. persica and a 451-bp one for B. microtti. Phylogenetic analysis of the data revealed that B. microtti and B. persica are associated to the African and new world RF agents, respectively. This study demonstrates that both typing methods are simple, sensitive, and fast, and that they allow one to differentiate between B. persica and B. microtti. This could prove that both methods are important and useful in monitoring of TBRF disease in endemic areas.