Molecular Survey on Vector-Borne Pathogens in Alpine Wild Carnivorans
In Europe, free-ranging wildlife has been linked to the emergence of several vector-borne diseases such as rodents for Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. In particular, wild carnivorans are one of the most important sources of emerging zoonotic pathogens worldwide, although little information is available re...
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doaj-adc0fe006bd4451da988ecadd7139a352020-11-25T02:36:53ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Veterinary Science2297-17692020-01-01710.3389/fvets.2020.00001513255Molecular Survey on Vector-Borne Pathogens in Alpine Wild CarnivoransElena Battisti0Stefania Zanet1Sara Khalili2Anna Trisciuoglio3Beatrice Hertel4Ezio Ferroglio5Department of Veterinary Science, University of Turin, Turin, ItalyDepartment of Veterinary Science, University of Turin, Turin, ItalyDepartment of Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tehran, Tehran, IranDepartment of Agricultural, Forest and Food Science, University of Turin, Turin, ItalyDepartment of Veterinary Science, University of Turin, Turin, ItalyDepartment of Veterinary Science, University of Turin, Turin, ItalyIn Europe, free-ranging wildlife has been linked to the emergence of several vector-borne diseases such as rodents for Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. In particular, wild carnivorans are one of the most important sources of emerging zoonotic pathogens worldwide, although little information is available regarding the epidemiology of vector-borne parasites in these animals. Thus, the aim of this paper was to investigate the prevalence of Babesia spp., Anaplasma spp., Ehrlichia spp., Hepatozoon spp. and Leishmania infantum in alpine wild canids and mustelids from Italy. For this study, spleen samples of 157 foxes (Vulpes vulpes), 45 badgers (Meles meles), and 33 wolves (Canis lupus) collected between 2009 and 2017 in Northwest Italy were examined by using conventional PCR. Logistic regression was used to identify possible risk factors for pathogen infections. DNA of any of the tested pathogens was found in more than 90% of the analyzed animals. In particular, Babesia spp. showed significantly higher prevalence in foxes (89.7%) and badgers (89.6%) than in wolves, while the latter were considerably more infected with Hepatozoon canis (75.8%) than foxes (5.1%). None of the badger tested positive for Hepatozoon spp., although they showed high prevalence of Leishmania infantum (53.3%). Sequencing results revealed the presence, among others, of Babesia vulpes, Babesia sp. isolate badger type A and B, and Anaplasma phagocytophilum. Moreover, previously unreported pathogen/host associations were observed, such as Babesia capreoli in wolves and badgers. The prevalence of vector-borne pathogens observed in the present study is one of the highest reported so far, suggesting the importance of free-ranging carnivorans in the epidemiology and maintenance of the sylvatic cycle of the pathogens. Moreover, several of these pathogens are of particular importance regarding human (A. phagocytophilum, L. infantum) and pet health (L. infantum, B. vulpes).https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fvets.2020.00001/fullBabesiaHepatozooncarnivoresLeishmaniazoonoseswildlife |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Elena Battisti Stefania Zanet Sara Khalili Anna Trisciuoglio Beatrice Hertel Ezio Ferroglio |
spellingShingle |
Elena Battisti Stefania Zanet Sara Khalili Anna Trisciuoglio Beatrice Hertel Ezio Ferroglio Molecular Survey on Vector-Borne Pathogens in Alpine Wild Carnivorans Frontiers in Veterinary Science Babesia Hepatozoon carnivores Leishmania zoonoses wildlife |
author_facet |
Elena Battisti Stefania Zanet Sara Khalili Anna Trisciuoglio Beatrice Hertel Ezio Ferroglio |
author_sort |
Elena Battisti |
title |
Molecular Survey on Vector-Borne Pathogens in Alpine Wild Carnivorans |
title_short |
Molecular Survey on Vector-Borne Pathogens in Alpine Wild Carnivorans |
title_full |
Molecular Survey on Vector-Borne Pathogens in Alpine Wild Carnivorans |
title_fullStr |
Molecular Survey on Vector-Borne Pathogens in Alpine Wild Carnivorans |
title_full_unstemmed |
Molecular Survey on Vector-Borne Pathogens in Alpine Wild Carnivorans |
title_sort |
molecular survey on vector-borne pathogens in alpine wild carnivorans |
publisher |
Frontiers Media S.A. |
series |
Frontiers in Veterinary Science |
issn |
2297-1769 |
publishDate |
2020-01-01 |
description |
In Europe, free-ranging wildlife has been linked to the emergence of several vector-borne diseases such as rodents for Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. In particular, wild carnivorans are one of the most important sources of emerging zoonotic pathogens worldwide, although little information is available regarding the epidemiology of vector-borne parasites in these animals. Thus, the aim of this paper was to investigate the prevalence of Babesia spp., Anaplasma spp., Ehrlichia spp., Hepatozoon spp. and Leishmania infantum in alpine wild canids and mustelids from Italy. For this study, spleen samples of 157 foxes (Vulpes vulpes), 45 badgers (Meles meles), and 33 wolves (Canis lupus) collected between 2009 and 2017 in Northwest Italy were examined by using conventional PCR. Logistic regression was used to identify possible risk factors for pathogen infections. DNA of any of the tested pathogens was found in more than 90% of the analyzed animals. In particular, Babesia spp. showed significantly higher prevalence in foxes (89.7%) and badgers (89.6%) than in wolves, while the latter were considerably more infected with Hepatozoon canis (75.8%) than foxes (5.1%). None of the badger tested positive for Hepatozoon spp., although they showed high prevalence of Leishmania infantum (53.3%). Sequencing results revealed the presence, among others, of Babesia vulpes, Babesia sp. isolate badger type A and B, and Anaplasma phagocytophilum. Moreover, previously unreported pathogen/host associations were observed, such as Babesia capreoli in wolves and badgers. The prevalence of vector-borne pathogens observed in the present study is one of the highest reported so far, suggesting the importance of free-ranging carnivorans in the epidemiology and maintenance of the sylvatic cycle of the pathogens. Moreover, several of these pathogens are of particular importance regarding human (A. phagocytophilum, L. infantum) and pet health (L. infantum, B. vulpes). |
topic |
Babesia Hepatozoon carnivores Leishmania zoonoses wildlife |
url |
https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fvets.2020.00001/full |
work_keys_str_mv |
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