Investigation of Babesia spp. infecting Dermacentor reticulatus and Ixodes ricinus ticks in Lithuania

Abstract

Babesia species, the causative agents of babesiosis, are protozoan blood parasites that are transmitted by ticks to their vertebrate hosts. Ixodes ricinus ticks are considered the main vectors of Babesia species causing diseases in human, domestic and wild animals, while other tick of Ixodidae family Dermacentor reticulatus is recognized as the most important vector of canine babesiosis. In Lithuania up to date, no human cases due to Babesia spp. have been reported, however in the beginning of 21th century were registered many cases of canine babesiosis in dogs. The aim of this study was investigate the presence of Babesia spp. in D. reticulatus and I. ricinus ticks in various regions in Lithuania, and to assess the risk of Babesia infection in the human population and to better understand epidemiology of canine babesiosis. A total of 2259 D. reticulatus and 370 I. ricinus were collected from 40 locations in Lithuania.This study represents the first investigation and characterization of Babesia spp. infecting D. reticulatus and I. ricinus in Lithuania. Different regions of the 18S rRNA gene of the genus Babesia were amplified by using nested PCR. The prevalence of pathogens in D. reticulatus (1,2%) and I. ricinus (9.5%) ranged in different locations from 0% to 6.7% and 0% to 18.5%, respectively. Sequence analyses of DNA from these positive samples indicate the presence of B. canis and B. venatorum in D. reticulatus ticks, B. microti and B. venatorum in I. ricinus ticks. This study represents the first investigation of zoonotic Babesia parasites in Lithuania.