title: Detection of microbial agents in ticks collected from migratory birds in central Italy.
abstract: Tick species characterization and molecular studies were performed within ornithological surveys conducted during 2010 and 2011 in the Lazio Region of central Italy. A total of 137 ticks were collected from 41 migratory birds belonging to 17 species (four partial migrants and 13 long-distance migrants). Most ticks were nymphs, with a predominance of Hyalomma marginatum marginatum and H. m. rufipes, and a small portion of Ixodes and Amblyomma species. All tick species analyzed were infected, and the molecular pathogen recognition revealed the presence of Rickettsia aeschlimannii, Rickettsia africae, Erlichia spp., Coxiella burnetii, Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato group, and Babesia microti, whereas no genomic DNA of Bartonella spp. or Francisella tularensis was detected. The results of the survey show that H. marginatum ticks appear to be a vector of microbial agents that may affect human and animal health and that migratory birds may be an important carrier of these ticks. Additional studies are needed to better investigate the role of migratory birds in the epidemiology of these pathogens.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immuno-mediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità , Rome, Italy .
authors.forename: Luciano
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Toma
authors.forename: Fabiola
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Mancini
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Di Luca
authors.forename: Jacopo G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Cecere
authors.forename: Riccardo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bianchi
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Khoury
authors.forename: Elisa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Quarchioni
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Manzia
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rezza
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ciervo
mesh_terms: D025041:Animal Migration; D000818:Animals; D001403:Babesia / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D001483:Base Sequence; D001715:Bird Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000469:parasitology; D001717:Birds; D015748:Borrelia burgdorferi Group / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D060085:Coinfection / Q000662:veterinary; D003381:Coxiella / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D004536:Ehrlichia / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D026863:Ixodidae / Q000382:microbiology / Q000469:parasitology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009758:Nymph; D012281:Rickettsia / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012621:Seasons; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA / Q000662:veterinary; D013984:Tick Infestations / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*