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Microorganisms
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One Health Research on Zoonotic Tick-Borne Pathogens
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One Health Research on Zoonotic Tick-Borne Pathogens

A special issue of Microorganisms (ISSN 2076-2607). This special issue belongs to the section "Public Health Microbiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2025 | Viewed by 6522

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Chien-Ming Shih

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Graduate Institute of Medicine, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 80708, Taiwan
Interests: tick-borne infections; molecular diagnosis; genetic phylogeny; tropical medicine

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Tick-borne zoonotic infections have a major impact on human and animal health worldwide. Vector tick is a hematophagous arthropod infested on various vertebrate hosts and it can transmit various zoonotic pathogens including bacteria, viruses, rickettsia and protozoa. In considering globalization and climate change, tick-borne pathogens and zoonotic infections gain an increasing attention on public health importance in relation to the human and animal infections. Due to international tourism, commercial trade of animals and pets as well as the bird migration, all these activities will contribute to the spread of ticks and tick-borne zoonotic pathogens. Many tick-borne infections can lead to severe illness in humans and economic loss of animal husbandry. Thus, investigations regarding the diagnosis, control and prevention of tick-borne zoonotic pathogens become highly interesting for various aspects of research.

The aim of this Special Issue is to provide cutting-edge research that will improve awareness of tick-borne pathogens and zoonotic infections. For this purpose, we invite authors to submit original research articles, review articles, and short communications related to various aspects of tick-borne pathogens including diagnostics, epidemiology, surveillance and prevention.

Prof. Dr. Chien-Ming Shih
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Microorganisms is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • tick-borne pathogens
  • zoonotic infections
  • epidemiology
  • diagnostics
  • surveillance
  • prevention

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 2106 KiB  
Article
New Epitopes for the Serodiagnosis of Human Borreliosis
by Mônica E. T. Alcón-Chino, Virgínia L. N. Bonoldi, Rosa M. R. Pereira, Gilberto S. Gazeta, João P. R. S. Carvalho, Paloma Napoleão-Pêgo, Andressa M. Durans, André L. A. Souza and Salvatore G. De-Simone
Microorganisms 2024, 12(11), 2212; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms12112212 - 31 Oct 2024
Viewed by 1156
Abstract
Lyme disease, a zoonotic infection caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, is transmitted to humans through the bites of infected ticks. Its diagnosis primarily relies on serological methods; however, the existing borreliosis techniques have shown a variable sensitivity and specificity. Our study [...] Read more.
Lyme disease, a zoonotic infection caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, is transmitted to humans through the bites of infected ticks. Its diagnosis primarily relies on serological methods; however, the existing borreliosis techniques have shown a variable sensitivity and specificity. Our study aimed to map IgG epitopes from five outer membrane proteins (Omp) from B. burgdorferi [Filament flagellar 41kD (PI1089), flagellar hook-associated protein (Q44767), Flagellar hook k2 protein (O51173), Putative Omp BURGA03 (Q44849), and 31 kDa OspA (P0CL66)] lipoprotein to find specific epitopes for the development of accurate diagnosis methods. Using the spot synthesis technique, a library of 380 peptides was constructed to identify linear B cell epitopes recognized by human IgG in response to specific B. burgdorferi-associated proteins. The reactivity of this epitope when chemically synthesized was then evaluated using ELISA with a panel of the patient’s sera. Cross-reactivity was assessed through data bank access and in vitro analysis. Among the 19 epitopes identified, four were selected for further investigation based on their signal intensity, secondary structure, and peptide matching. Validation was performed using ELISA, and ROC curve analysis demonstrated a sensitivity of ≥85.71%, specificity of ≥92.31, accuracy of ≥90.7, and AUC value of ≥0.91 for all peptides. Our cross-reactivity analysis demonstrated that the Burg/02/huG, Burg/03/huG, and Burg/12/huG peptides were not reactive to antibodies from patients with Leptospirosis and syphilis compared to those from the B. burgdorferi group. These peptides indicated an excellent performance in distinguishing between B. burgdorferi-infected and non-infected individuals and exhibited a neglected reactivity to antibodies in sera from patients with Leptospirosis and syphilis. These peptides are promising targets for recombinant development, potentially leading to more accurate serological tests and vaccines. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue One Health Research on Zoonotic Tick-Borne Pathogens)
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11 pages, 1447 KiB  
Article
Molecular Screening and Genetic Identification of Anaplasma platys in Brown Dog Tick (Rhipicephalus sanguineus s. l.) Infested on Stray Dogs in Taiwan
by Li-Lian Chao, Pei-Yin Ko and Chien-Ming Shih
Microorganisms 2024, 12(9), 1779; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms12091779 - 28 Aug 2024
Viewed by 1359
Abstract
Anaplasma platys is a tick-borne zoonotic pathogen of canines. In this study, the presence of A. platys was screened for in brown dog ticks (Rhipicephalus sanguineus s. l.) infesting stray dogs in Taiwan to determine overall prevalence. This study represents the first [...] Read more.
Anaplasma platys is a tick-borne zoonotic pathogen of canines. In this study, the presence of A. platys was screened for in brown dog ticks (Rhipicephalus sanguineus s. l.) infesting stray dogs in Taiwan to determine overall prevalence. This study represents the first instance of genetic identification of A. platys in brown dog ticks in Taiwan. In total, we examined 324 brown dog ticks for A. platys infection by nested polymerase chain reaction assay targeting the 16S ribosomal RNA gene. The general prevalence of A. platys infection was 3.1%, with 3.6%, 4.0%, and 2.1% in nymph, female, and male ticks, respectively. Monthly prevalence of infection was observed from May to September. Genetic relatedness was determined by comparing the sequences of the 16S rRNA gene obtained from six Taiwan strains and seventeen other strains, representing six genospecies of Anaplasma spp. and three outgroups (Ehrlichia canis, Rickettsia rickettsia, and Escherichia coli). All Taiwan specimens were shown to genetically belong to the A. platys group, and could be clearly discriminated from other Anaplasma spp. Genetic similarities revealed a 100% identity match with various A. platys documented in GenBank. This study highlights the epidemiological importance of geographical transmission of A. platys among dogs and the possible risk for human infections in Taiwan. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue One Health Research on Zoonotic Tick-Borne Pathogens)
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15 pages, 1829 KiB  
Article
Infection Rates and Characterisation of Rickettsia africae (Rickettsiaceae) Detected in Amblyomma Species from Southern Africa
by Andeliza Smit, Fernando C. Mulandane, Stephané H. Wójcik, Choolwe Malabwa, Gourgelia Sili, Stephen Mandara, Hannah Rose Vineer, Zinathi Dlamkile, Wilhelm H. Stoltsz, Darshana Morar-Leather, Benjamin L. Makepeace and Luis Neves
Microorganisms 2024, 12(8), 1663; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms12081663 - 13 Aug 2024
Viewed by 1721
Abstract
Tick-borne rickettsioses are considered among the oldest known vector-borne zoonotic diseases. Among the rickettsiae, Rickettsia africae is the most reported and important in Africa, as it is the aetiological agent of African tick bite fever (ATBF). Studies describing the prevalence of R. africae [...] Read more.
Tick-borne rickettsioses are considered among the oldest known vector-borne zoonotic diseases. Among the rickettsiae, Rickettsia africae is the most reported and important in Africa, as it is the aetiological agent of African tick bite fever (ATBF). Studies describing the prevalence of R. africae in southern Africa are fragmented, as they are limited to small geographical areas and focused on Amblyomma hebraeum and Amblyomma variegatum as vectors. Amblyomma spp. ticks were collected in Angola, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe during the sampling period from March 2020 to September 2022. Rickettsia africae was detected using the ompA gene, while characterisation was conducted using omp, ompA, ompB and gltA genes. In total, 7734 Amblyomma spp. ticks were collected and were morphologically and molecularly identified as Amblyomma eburneum, A. hebraeum, Amblyomma pomposum and A. variegatum. Low levels of variability were observed in the phylogenetic analysis of the R. africae concatenated genes. The prevalence of R. africae ranged from 11.7% in South Africa to 35.7% in Zambia. This is one of the largest studies on R. africae prevalence in southern Africa and highlights the need for the inclusion of ATBF as a differential diagnosis when inhabitants and travellers present with flu-like symptoms in the documented countries. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue One Health Research on Zoonotic Tick-Borne Pathogens)
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11 pages, 1112 KiB  
Article
The Diversity of Spotted Fever Group Rickettsia Found in Ixodidae Hard Ticks Removed from Humans in Karachay-Cherkessia, North Caucasus, Russia
by Alexey V. Rakov, Tatiana A. Chekanova, Ketevan Petremgvdlishvili, Svetlana B. Linnik, Khusey Kh. Batchaev and Vasiliy G. Akimkin
Microorganisms 2024, 12(7), 1293; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms12071293 - 25 Jun 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1742
Abstract
Karachay-Cherkessia is the region in the Russian Federation that has been overlooked in terms of research on the human bacterial pathogens transmitted by ticks. In this study, we investigated the infection status of ticks with Rickettsia, Borrelia, Coxiella burmetii, Anaplasma [...] Read more.
Karachay-Cherkessia is the region in the Russian Federation that has been overlooked in terms of research on the human bacterial pathogens transmitted by ticks. In this study, we investigated the infection status of ticks with Rickettsia, Borrelia, Coxiella burmetii, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, and Ehrlichia chaffeensis/Ehrlichia muris associated with natural focal infections in Karachay-Cherkessia. A total amount of 159 ticks from three species across three genera (Ixodes ricinus, Dermacentor marginatus, Hyalomma scupense) removed from humans were collected for analysis. Additionally, we used 53 individual ticks and 40 tick pools from the vegetation of three species (I. ricinus, D. marginatus, and Rhipicephalus bursa). Screening of the studied pathogens was performed by using commercial qPCR kits. Sanger sequencing utilizing partial sequences of gltA and ompA genes was employed to identify the Rickettsia species. Our findings revealed the presence of DNA from five species within the spotted fever group Rickettsia, namely Rickettsia raoultii, R. slovaca, R. helvetica, R. monacensis, and R. aeschlimannii. Moreover, two distinct genotypes were identified within R. aeschlimannii, R. helvetica, and R. monacensis. Additionally, DNA from Borrelia burgdoferi s.l., B. miyamotoi, and A. phagocytophilum was detected in the tested ticks. This study provides valuable insights into the prevalence and the diversity of bacterial pathogens transmitted by ticks in the Karachay-Cherkessia region. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue One Health Research on Zoonotic Tick-Borne Pathogens)
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