Rhipicephalus sanguineus s.l. ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) harbor non-divergent bacterial microbiomes in Arizona.

ABSTRACT: Rhipicephalus sanguineus (Latreille) is a species complex of ticks that are important vectors of many diseases to humans and other animals. In Arizona, the ranges of the 2 primary genetic variants-the temperate and the tropical lineages-overlap. The temperate and tropical lineages of R. sanguineus s.l. have divergent strains of the obligate Coxiella-like endosymbiont; however, it is unknown whether the microbiomes of the temperate and tropical lineages are otherwise different. There is growing evidence that non-pathogenic bacteria may be important components of vector-borne disease dynamics, even at low abundance. This research utilized a blocking primer to prevent sequencing of Coxiella to enable a closer examination of bacterial community structure of R. sanguineus s.l. ticks in Arizona.

SUBMITTER: Brophy M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12828283 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature