Institute of Parasitology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Veterinärplatz 1, 1210 Vienna, Austria.
Institute of Pathology and Forensic Veterinary Medicine, University of Veterinary Medicine, Veterinärplatz 1, 1210 Vienna, Austria.
Ticks Tick Borne Dis. 2021 Jul;12(4):101719. doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2021.101719. Epub 2021 Mar 23.
Free-ranging wild ungulates are widespread in Austria, and act as hosts (i.e. feeding hosts) for ticks, including Ixodes ricinus, and as reservoir hosts for pathogens transmitted by I. ricinus. Due to climate change, the abundance of I. ricinus might be increasing, which could potentially lead to higher prevalences of tick-borne pathogens, such as Babesia spp. and Anaplasma phagocytophilum, some known for their zoonotic potential. Human babesiosis is classified as an emerging zoonosis, but sufficient data of these parasites in central Austria is lacking. In order to assess the abundance of vector-borne pathogens, blood of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus; n = 137), red deer (Cervus elaphus; n = 37), mouflons (Ovis gmelini; n = 2) and chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra; n = 1), was collected and tested for pathogen DNA in two different sampling sites in central Austria. DNA of tick-borne pathogens was detected in 15.5 % (n = 27) of these animals. Babesia capreoli (n = 22 in roe deer; n = 1 in mouflon), Babesia divergens (n = 1, in red deer), and Anaplasma phagocytophilum (n = 4, in roe deer) were detected. DNA sequencing of the 18S rRNA gene of two C. capreolus samples from Upper Austria featured another new genotype of Babesia, which differs in one nucleotide position to B. divergens and B. capreoli, and is intermediate between the main genotypes of B. capreoli and B. divergens within the partial gene sequence analyzed. This study thus confirms that B. capreoli, B. divergens, and A. phagocytophilum are present in free-ranging ungulates in central Austria. Further testing over a longer period is recommended in order to assess the impact of climate change on the prevalence of blood parasites in central Austria.
在奥地利，自由放养的野生有蹄类动物广泛存在，它们是蜱虫（如蓖子硬蜱）的宿主（即取食宿主），也是蓖子硬蜱传播病原体的储存宿主。由于气候变化，蓖子硬蜱的数量可能会增加，这可能导致蜱传病原体（如巴贝斯虫和嗜吞噬细胞无形体）的流行率上升，其中一些病原体具有动物源性。人类巴贝斯虫病被归类为一种新兴的动物源性传染病，但在奥地利中部缺乏这些寄生虫的充分数据。为了评估媒介传播病原体的丰度，采集了 137 只马鹿（Capreolus capreolus）、37 只红鹿（Cervus elaphus）、2 只摩弗伦羊（Ovis gmelini）和 1 只岩羚羊（Rupicapra rupicapra）的血液，并在奥地利中部的两个不同采样点检测了这些血液中病原体的 DNA。在这些动物中，15.5%（n=27）检测到了蜱传病原体的 DNA。在马鹿中检测到了巴贝斯虫 capreoli（n=22）、巴贝斯虫 divergens（n=1）和嗜吞噬细胞无形体（n=4），在红鹿中检测到了巴贝斯虫 divergens，在摩弗伦羊中检测到了嗜吞噬细胞无形体。对来自上奥地利州的 2 份马鹿 C. capreolus 样本的 18S rRNA 基因进行 DNA 测序，结果显示出另一种新的巴贝斯虫基因型，该基因型与巴贝斯虫 divergens 和巴贝斯虫 capreoli 在一个核苷酸位置上存在差异，并且在分析的部分基因序列中处于巴贝斯虫 capreoli 和巴贝斯虫 divergens 主要基因型之间。因此，本研究证实巴贝斯虫 capreoli、巴贝斯虫 divergens 和嗜吞噬细胞无形体存在于奥地利中部的自由放养有蹄类动物中。建议进行更长时间的进一步检测，以评估气候变化对奥地利中部血液寄生虫流行率的影响。
