Effects of Neighborhood-Scale Acaricidal Treatments on Infection Prevalence of Blacklegged Ticks (Ixodes scapularis) with Three Zoonotic Pathogens.

ABSTRACT: Acaricides are hypothesized to reduce human risk of exposure to tick-borne pathogens by decreasing the abundance and/or infection prevalence of the ticks that serve as vectors for the pathogens. Acaricides targeted at reservoir hosts such as small mammals are expected to reduce infection prevalence in ticks by preventing their acquisition of zoonotic pathogens. By reducing tick abundance, reservoir-targeted or broadcast acaricides could reduce tick infection prevalence by interrupting transmission cycles between ticks and their hosts. Using an acaricide targeted at small-mammal hosts (TCS bait boxes) and one sprayed on low vegetation (Met52 fungal biocide), we tested the hypotheses that infection prevalence of blacklegged ticks with zoonotic pathogens would be more strongly diminished by T

SUBMITTER: Ostfeld RS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9960617 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature