Department of Parasitology and Zoology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Budapest, Hungary.
Department of Parasitology and Zoology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Budapest, Hungary.
Ticks Tick Borne Dis. 2022 May;13(3):101936. doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2022.101936. Epub 2022 Mar 6.
Wild boars show increasing numbers and population densities throughout Europe, including Hungary. While their presence is appreciated as game animals, they are also responsible for significant agricultural damage, habitat degradation and water quality issues. In addition, wild boars may harbor ticks and can act as reservoirs of tick-borne pathogens, thus posing a risk of transmission towards humans and domestic animals. This latter aspect of their veterinary-medical and epidemiological significance has become especially important in recent years, because increasing numbers of wild boars are reported to enter urban areas. Despite of this, reports on tick infestations of wild boars are scarce in Europe. For this study, 333 ixodid ticks were collected from 51 wild boars at 32 peri-urban locations in 14 counties of Hungary, during 2005-2008 (older samples) and 2019-2020 (new samples). Five species of ticks were identified: Dermacentor reticulatus (n = 165), Ixodes ricinus (n = 90) and Haemaphysalis concinna (n = 29) in both sample groups, while H. inermis (n = 29) and D. marginatus (n = 20) were only found among the old samples. The seasonality of collected ticks corresponded to their known activities. After DNA extraction, ticks were screened for three groups of tick-borne pathogens. All samples were negative for brucellae, recently reported to be carried and transmitted transovarially by D. marginatus. Four D. reticulatus contained Babesia canis DNA, while in one H. concinna nymph the recently discovered zoonotic B. cf. crassa (reported in Slovenia within 80 km of our sampling site) was detected. In addition, Anaplasma phagocytophilum was identified in D. reticulatus (n = 1), H. concinna (n = 3) and in its known vector, I. ricinus (n = 15). Phylogenetically, three out of four A. phagocytophilum genotypes clustered with zoonotic ones. In conclusion, despite of the high prevalence of Brucella suis in wild boars in Hungary, no evidence was found in support of the epidemiological role of ticks in transmitting brucellae. On the other hand, wild boars might introduce B. canis-carrier D. reticulatus into urban areas, unlike birds (which are not known to carry this tick species in the country). Most importantly, tick-infested wild boars can contribute to the spread of a novel zoonotic Babesia sp. and of the zoonotic variants of A. phagocytophilum.
野猪在整个欧洲的数量和种群密度都在增加，包括匈牙利。虽然它们作为猎物动物受到赞赏，但它们也对农业造成重大损害，导致栖息地退化和水质问题。此外，野猪可能携带蜱虫，并可能成为蜱传病原体的宿主，从而对人类和家畜构成传播风险。近年来，它们在兽医医学和流行病学方面的重要性变得尤为重要，因为据报道越来越多的野猪进入城市地区。尽管如此，欧洲关于野猪蜱虫感染的报告仍然很少。在这项研究中，2005-2008 年（旧样本）和 2019-2020 年（新样本）期间，在匈牙利 14 个县的 32 个城郊地区，从 51 头野猪中收集了 333 只硬蜱。在两组样本中均鉴定出了 5 种蜱虫：Dermacentor reticulatus（n=165）、Ixodes ricinus（n=90）和 Haemaphysalis concinna（n=29），而 H. inermis（n=29）和 D. marginatus（n=20）仅在旧样本中发现。收集的蜱虫的季节性与它们已知的活动相对应。在提取 DNA 后，对蜱虫进行了三组蜱传病原体的筛查。所有样本均未检出 Brucella，最近有报道称 D. marginatus 携带并经卵传递。在 4 只 D. reticulatus 中发现了犬巴贝斯虫 DNA，而在一只 H. concinna 若虫中检测到最近发现的人畜共患的 B. cf. crassa（在我们采样地点 80 公里范围内的斯洛文尼亚有报道）。此外，在 D. reticulatus（n=1）、H. concinna（n=3）及其已知载体 I. ricinus（n=15）中均检测到嗜吞噬细胞无形体。从系统发育上看，四种 A. phagocytophilum 基因型中的三种与人畜共患病原体聚类。总之，尽管匈牙利野猪中布鲁氏菌病的流行率很高，但没有证据支持蜱虫在传播布鲁氏菌方面的流行病学作用。另一方面，野猪可能会将携带犬巴贝斯虫的 D. reticulatus 引入城市地区，而鸟类则不会（该国已知鸟类不携带这种蜱种）。最重要的是，受感染的野猪可能会导致一种新型的人畜共患巴贝斯虫属和嗜吞噬细胞无形体的人畜共患病变体的传播。
