Molecular evidence confirms occurrence of Rhipicephalus microplus Clade A in Kenya and sub-Saharan Africa.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The tick vector Rhipicephalus microplus which transmits Babesia spp. and rickettsial pathogens has not been reported in Kenya since 1998. More recently, the pathogenic Babesia bovis has been detected in cattle blood DNA. The status of R. microplus in Kenya remains unknown. This study employed morphological and molecular tools to characterize R. microplus originating from Kenya and assess the genetic relationships between Kenyan and other African R. microplus genotypes.

Methods

Ticks were collected in south-eastern Kenya (Kwale County) from cattle and characterized to investigate the existence of R. microplus. Genetic and phylogenetic relationships between the Kenyan and other annotated R. microplus reference sequences was investigated by analysis of the cytochrome

SUBMITTER: Kanduma EG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7453536 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature