"Karshi" virus, a new flavivirus (Togaviridae) isolated from Ornithodoros papillipes (Birula, 1895) ticks in Uzbek S.S.R.

Three identical strains of an arbovirus were isolated from 475 Ornithodoros papillipes ticks collected in June, 1972, in burrows of the great gerbil (Rhombomys opimus Licht., 1882) in the environs of Beshkent, Karshinsk steppe, Uzbek S.S.R. The isolate was found to range among flaviviruses. Complement-fixation, agar diffusion precipitation and neutralization tests is tissue culture and mice indicated a one-way antigenic relationship between the isolate and West Nile virus. However, the pattern of differences between them made it possible to consider the isolated agent as a new virus, "Karshi" virus. The results of electron microscopic studies of this virus are presented.

[Data on the distribution of Ixodes pavlovskyi Pom. in the Altai (Acarina, Ixodidae)]. / Materialy po rasprostraneniiu Ixodes pavlovskyi Pom. na Altae (Acarina, Ixodidae)

In the Mountain-Altai Autonomous district Ixodes pavlovskyi is mostly often encountered in forests of the lower parts of the low mountains. In the other parts of the low mountains and in the neighbouring belt of the middle mountains the species is rare. Only single individuals of this tick penetrate into the central regions of the Altai along the valleys of large rivers.