Broad Range Screening of Vector-Borne Pathogens in Arctic Foxes () in Iceland.

The arctic fox () is the only native terrestrial mammal in Iceland. While red foxes () are known to be epidemiologically important carriers of several vector-borne pathogens in Europe, arctic foxes have never been evaluated in a similar context on this continent. This has become especially relevant in the last decade, considering the establishing populations of the tick species in Iceland. In this study, liver DNA extracts of 60 arctic foxes, hunted between 2011-2012, were molecularly screened for vector-borne protozoan parasites (, , , ) and bacteria (, , , , hemotropic ). One sample was real-time qPCR positive for , though this positivity could not be confirmed with sequencing. Samples were negative for all other tested vector-borne pathogens. Results of this study indicate that, except for , Icelandic arctic foxes were apparently "not yet infected" with vector-borne pathogens in 2011-2012, or their infections were "below the detection limit" of applied methods. Taking into account the broad range of target microorganisms analyzed here, as well as the warming climate and increasing presence of the vector in Iceland, our results will be very useful as baseline data for comparison in future monitoring of the emergence of ticks and tick-borne diseases in this country.