Prevalence of pathogens in ticks collected from humans through citizen science in Belgium.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:In order to evaluate the risk of human exposure to tick-borne pathogens in Belgium, a study on the prevalence of several pathogens was conducted on feeding ticks removed from humans in 2017. METHODS:Using a citizen science approach based on an existing notification tool for tick bites, a sample of ticks was collected across the country. Collected ticks were screened by PCR for the presence of the following pathogens: Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Babesia spp., Borrelia burgdorferi (sensu lato), Borrelia miyamotoi, Neoehrlichia mikurensis, Rickettsia helvetica and tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV). RESULTS:In total, 1599 ticks were included in the sample. The great majority of ticks belonged to Ixodes ricinus (99%); other tick species were identified as Ixodes hexagonus (0.7%) an

SUBMITTER: Lernout T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6873681 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature