Institute of Evolutionary Biology and Institute of Immunology and Infection Research, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom.
Department of Biological Sciences, Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio, USA.
Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis. 2020 Aug;20(8):633-635. doi: 10.1089/vbz.2020.2619. Epub 2020 Apr 13.
In North America, the blacklegged tick () is a vector of several human pathogens, and tick-borne disease incidence is increasing. We estimated the prevalence of questing blacklegged ticks vectoring three zoonotic pathogens in Vilas County, Wisconsin. We collected 461 adult blacklegged ticks and used PCR to screen for the presence of pathogens that cause Lyme disease (), human granulocytic anaplasmosis (HGA, ), and babesiosis (). We found that 52.5% of ticks carried at least one pathogen. The estimated infection prevalence in the tick population was 17.4% (Lyme disease), 14.3% (HGA), and 6.5% (babesiosis). Multiple pathogens were present in 14.3% of ticks surveyed. About half of questing ticks tested in this study carried at least one zoonotic pathogen. Coinfection was common in our study area and, if not properly recognized, leads to greater risk of underdiagnosis.
在北美洲，黑腿蜱（）是几种人类病原体的传播媒介，蜱传疾病的发病率正在上升。我们估计了威斯康星州维拉县（）游离黑腿蜱传播三种人畜共患病原体的流行率。我们收集了 461 只成年黑腿蜱，并使用 PCR 筛查引起莱姆病（）、人粒细胞无形体病（HGA，）和巴贝斯虫病（）的病原体。我们发现，52.5%的蜱至少携带一种病原体。在蜱种群中的估计感染率为 17.4%（莱姆病）、14.3%（HGA）和 6.5%（巴贝斯虫病）。在调查的蜱中，有 14.3%的蜱同时存在多种病原体。在这项研究中，大约一半的游离蜱至少携带一种人畜共患病原体。在我们的研究区域中，共感染很常见，如果不能正确识别，会导致漏诊的风险增加。
