High Diversity, Prevalence, and Co-infection Rates of Tick-Borne Pathogens in Ticks and Wildlife Hosts in an Urban Area in Romania

We report for the first time in Romania the presence of Rickettsia aeschlimannii and Rickettsia felis. Overall, from the infected engorged ticks, 69.2% showcased co-infections. In Ixodes spp., dual co-infections, namely Borrelia spp. and Anaplasma phagocytophilum, and Rickettsia helvetica and A. phagocytophilum were the most prevalent. Given the outcome, we underline the need to establish proper tick-surveillance programs in cities and include co-infections in the management plan of tick-borne diseases in Romania.
Source: Frontiers in Microbiology - Category: Microbiology Source Type: research