Prevalence of and in Ixodid Ticks from Southeastern Ukraine.

Tick-borne diseases have emerged as an increasing medical problem in the world. Being the most prevalent ixodid ticks in Europe, and are responsible for transmission of numerous zoonotic pathogens (., human granulocytic anaplasmosis and Lyme borreliosis). Despite their public health significance, studies on the prevalence of tick-borne agents are scare for Eastern Europe. The objective of this study was to examine the prevalence of , , and sensu lato ( s. l.) in ixodid ticks from Southeastern Ukraine. Over a 5-year period (2014-2018), 358 questing and 389 engorged ixodid ticks were collected from Southeastern Ukraine (Zaporizhzhya region). The ticks were identified as , , , and . Nucleic acid samples extracted from tick pools were subjected to RT-PCR analyses for , , and s. l. The examined ixodid ticks tested negative for the aforementioned pathogens with the exception of ticks. For questing ticks, minimum infection rates of and s. l. were, respectively, 4.2-7.7% and 8.6-12.7%. These findings will be valuable for medical and veterinary practitioners when risks associated with tick-borne diseases are assessed for southeastern regions of Ukraine.