Ticks and tick-borne microbes identified through passive and active surveillance in Alaska
Abstract Rapid environmental change in Alaska and other regions of the Arctic and sub-Arctic has raised concerns about increasing human exposure to ticks and the pathogens they carry. We tested a sample of ticks collected through a combination of passive and active surveillance from humans, domestic...
Published in: | Journal of Medical Entomology |
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2023
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jme/tjad078 https://academic.oup.com/jme/article-pdf/60/5/1099/51471447/tjad078.pdf |
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croxfordunivpr:10.1093/jme/tjad078 2024-09-09T19:23:56+00:00 Ticks and tick-borne microbes identified through passive and active surveillance in Alaska Hahn, Micah B Hojgaard, Andrias Disler, Gale George, William Droghini, Amanda Schlaht, Renate Durden, Lance A Coburn, Sarah Gerlach, Robert Eisen, Rebecca J Taylor, David Institutional Development Award National Institute of General Medical Sciences National Institutes of Health 2023 http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jme/tjad078 https://academic.oup.com/jme/article-pdf/60/5/1099/51471447/tjad078.pdf en eng Oxford University Press (OUP) https://academic.oup.com/pages/standard-publication-reuse-rights Journal of Medical Entomology volume 60, issue 5, page 1099-1107 ISSN 0022-2585 1938-2928 journal-article 2023 croxfordunivpr https://doi.org/10.1093/jme/tjad078 2024-06-17T04:17:47Z Abstract Rapid environmental change in Alaska and other regions of the Arctic and sub-Arctic has raised concerns about increasing human exposure to ticks and the pathogens they carry. We tested a sample of ticks collected through a combination of passive and active surveillance from humans, domestic animals, and wildlife hosts in Alaska for a panel of the most common tick-borne pathogens in the contiguous United States to characterize the diversity of microbes present in this region. We tested 189 pooled tick samples collected in 2019-2020 for Borrelia spp., Anaplasma spp., Ehrlichia spp., and Babesia spp. using a multiplex PCR amplicon sequencing assay. We found established populations of Ixodes angustus Neumann (Acari: Ixodidae), Ixodes uriae White (Acari: Ixodidae), and Haemaphysalis leporispalustris Packard (Acari: Ixodidae) in Alaska, with I. angustus found on a variety of hosts including domestic companion animals (dogs and cats), small wild mammals, and humans. Ixodes angustus were active from April through October with peaks in adult and nymphal activity observed in summer months (mainly July). Although no known human pathogens were detected, Babesia microti-like parasites and candidatus Ehrlichia khabarensis were identified in ticks and small mammals. The only human pathogen detected (B. burgdorferi s.s.) was found in a tick associated with a dog that had recently traveled to New York, where Lyme disease is endemic. This study highlights the value of a combined passive and active tick surveillance system to detect introduced tick species and pathogens and to assess which tick species and microbes are locally established. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Alaska Oxford University Press Arctic Journal of Medical Entomology |
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Open Polar |
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Oxford University Press |
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croxfordunivpr |
language |
English |
description |
Abstract Rapid environmental change in Alaska and other regions of the Arctic and sub-Arctic has raised concerns about increasing human exposure to ticks and the pathogens they carry. We tested a sample of ticks collected through a combination of passive and active surveillance from humans, domestic animals, and wildlife hosts in Alaska for a panel of the most common tick-borne pathogens in the contiguous United States to characterize the diversity of microbes present in this region. We tested 189 pooled tick samples collected in 2019-2020 for Borrelia spp., Anaplasma spp., Ehrlichia spp., and Babesia spp. using a multiplex PCR amplicon sequencing assay. We found established populations of Ixodes angustus Neumann (Acari: Ixodidae), Ixodes uriae White (Acari: Ixodidae), and Haemaphysalis leporispalustris Packard (Acari: Ixodidae) in Alaska, with I. angustus found on a variety of hosts including domestic companion animals (dogs and cats), small wild mammals, and humans. Ixodes angustus were active from April through October with peaks in adult and nymphal activity observed in summer months (mainly July). Although no known human pathogens were detected, Babesia microti-like parasites and candidatus Ehrlichia khabarensis were identified in ticks and small mammals. The only human pathogen detected (B. burgdorferi s.s.) was found in a tick associated with a dog that had recently traveled to New York, where Lyme disease is endemic. This study highlights the value of a combined passive and active tick surveillance system to detect introduced tick species and pathogens and to assess which tick species and microbes are locally established. |
author2 |
Taylor, David Institutional Development Award National Institute of General Medical Sciences National Institutes of Health |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Hahn, Micah B Hojgaard, Andrias Disler, Gale George, William Droghini, Amanda Schlaht, Renate Durden, Lance A Coburn, Sarah Gerlach, Robert Eisen, Rebecca J |
spellingShingle |
Hahn, Micah B Hojgaard, Andrias Disler, Gale George, William Droghini, Amanda Schlaht, Renate Durden, Lance A Coburn, Sarah Gerlach, Robert Eisen, Rebecca J Ticks and tick-borne microbes identified through passive and active surveillance in Alaska |
author_facet |
Hahn, Micah B Hojgaard, Andrias Disler, Gale George, William Droghini, Amanda Schlaht, Renate Durden, Lance A Coburn, Sarah Gerlach, Robert Eisen, Rebecca J |
author_sort |
Hahn, Micah B |
title |
Ticks and tick-borne microbes identified through passive and active surveillance in Alaska |
title_short |
Ticks and tick-borne microbes identified through passive and active surveillance in Alaska |
title_full |
Ticks and tick-borne microbes identified through passive and active surveillance in Alaska |
title_fullStr |
Ticks and tick-borne microbes identified through passive and active surveillance in Alaska |
title_full_unstemmed |
Ticks and tick-borne microbes identified through passive and active surveillance in Alaska |
title_sort |
ticks and tick-borne microbes identified through passive and active surveillance in alaska |
publisher |
Oxford University Press (OUP) |
publishDate |
2023 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jme/tjad078 https://academic.oup.com/jme/article-pdf/60/5/1099/51471447/tjad078.pdf |
geographic |
Arctic |
geographic_facet |
Arctic |
genre |
Arctic Alaska |
genre_facet |
Arctic Alaska |
op_source |
Journal of Medical Entomology volume 60, issue 5, page 1099-1107 ISSN 0022-2585 1938-2928 |
op_rights |
https://academic.oup.com/pages/standard-publication-reuse-rights |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1093/jme/tjad078 |
container_title |
Journal of Medical Entomology |
_version_ |
1809893888418119680 |