tickpapers

Feed of scientific papers on #tick (#Ixodes) & tick-borne disease research. Established by @IsobelRonai.

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Follow me to keep up to date with the #tick (#Ixodes) scientific literature!

[Dr Jo Middleton FRGS, FHEA, MRSB, MFPH @DrJMiddleton]

New paper on Tick hazard in the South Downs National Park (UK) + how to control without reducing ecosystem health. By me @BSMSMedSchool, Rott @BrightonEcology & Cooper @uniofbrighton: https://t.co/b95ARgoiAe.
Funders: @BritishDeerSoc @RoyalSocBio Nineveh Charitable Trust @BritishEcolSoc

ABSTRACT:
Background. #SouthDowns National Park (SDNP) is UK’s most visited #NationalPark, and a focus of tick-borne #Lymedisease. UK's first presumed locally acquired cases of #TBE and #babesiosis were recorded in 2019–20. The #SouthDownsNationalPark aims to conserve wildlife and encourage recreation, so interventions are needed that reduce hazard without negatively affecting ecosystem health. To be successful these require knowledge of site hazards.

Methods. British Deer Society members submitted ticks removed from deer. Key potential intervention sites were selected and six 50 m2 transects drag-sampled per site (mostly twice yearly for 2 years). #Ticks were identified in-lab (sex, life stage, species), hazard measured as tick presence, density of ticks (all life stages, DOT), and density of nymphs (DON). Sites and habitat types were analysed for association with hazard. Distribution was mapped by combining our results with records from five other sources.

Results. A total of 87 Ixodes ricinus (all but one adults, 82% F) were removed from 14 deer (10 Dama dama; three Capreolus capreolus; one not recorded; tick burden, 1–35) at 12 locations (commonly woodland). Five key potential intervention sites were identified and drag-sampled 2015–16, collecting 623 ticks (238 on-transects): 53.8% nymphs, 42.5% larvae, 3.7% adults (13 M, 10 F). Ticks were present on-transects at all sites: I. ricinus at three (The Mens (TM); Queen Elizabeth Country Park (QECP); Cowdray Estate (CE)), Haemaphysalis punctata at two (Seven Sisters Country Park (SSCP); Ditchling Beacon Nature Reserve (DBNR)). TM had the highest DOT at 30/300 m2 (DON = 30/300 m2), followed by QECP 22/300 m2 (12/300 m2), CE 8/300 m2 (6/300 m2), and SSCP 1/300 m2 (1/300 m2). For I. ricinus, nymphs predominated in spring, larvae in the second half of summer and early autumn. The overall ranking of site hazard held for DON and DOT from both seasonal sampling periods. DBNR was sampled 2016 only (one adult H. punctata collected). Woodland had significantly greater hazard than downland, but ticks were present at all downland sites. I. ricinus has been identified in 33/37 of SDNPs 10 km2 grid squares, Ixodes hexagonus 10/37, H. punctata 7/37, Dermacentor reticulatus 1/37.

Conclusions. Mapping shows tick hazard broadly distributed across SDNP. I. ricinus was most common, but H. punctata’s seeming range expansion is concerning. Recommendations: management of small heavily visited high hazard plots (QECP); post-visit precaution signage (all sites); repellent impregnated clothing for deerstalkers; flock trials to control H. punctata (SSCP, DBNR). Further research at TM may contribute to knowledge on ecological dynamics underlying infection density and predator re-introduction/protection as public health interventions. #EcologicalResearch on H. punctata would aid control. SDNP Authority is ideally placed to link and champion policies to reduce hazard, whilst avoiding or reducing conflict between public health and ecosystem health.

#OneHealth #PlanetaryHealth #TickAware #DiseaseEcology #ConservationBiology #Acarology #MedicalEntomology #parasites #parasitology

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Assessing biological control method on the progression of anaplasmosis disease in dominant cattle species in the Matabeleland north province Zimbabwe https://t.co/bnToKApCg9

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Clinical Algorithm and Diagnostic Tools for Lyme Disease https://t.co/SJOTgTXaYF

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Developing a Prospective Gestational Lyme Disease Study https://t.co/YGyEzM05vT

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Superior efficacy of combination antibiotic therapy versus monotherapy in a mouse model of Lyme disease https://t.co/Xxu9IDb5IO

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Validation of a heat-inducible Ixodes scapularis HSP70 promoter and developing a tick-specific 3xP3 promoter sequence in ISE6 cells https://t.co/QxgrPGF5lq

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Mathematical model of Ehrlichia chaffeensis transmission dynamics in dogs https://t.co/of3a0afJ0L

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

A systemic approach to identify non-abundant immunogenic proteins in Lyme disease pathogens https://t.co/N14ijbQwRp

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Covid-19 co-infection with Crimean Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) in a CCHF endemic country: a case report https://t.co/spQauw9mOv

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

The European Union One Health 2022 Zoonoses Report https://t.co/ufRje3erAz

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

The Biosafety Research Road Map: The Search for Evidence to Support Practices in the Laboratory-Crimean Congo Haemorrhagic Fever Virus and Lassa Virus https://t.co/wUOEjc3bZA

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Quality over quantity in active tick surveillance: Sentinel surveillance outperforms risk-based surveillance for tracking tick-borne disease emergence in southern Canada https://t.co/YsKlOxdXvg

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Facial Paralysis Due to Brazilian Lyme Disease: A Case Report and Literature Review https://t.co/vu8SeNvVaz

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Coxiella burnetii-Associated Endocarditis in a Saudi Adolescent: A Rare Encounter https://t.co/kZmknh1quf

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Novel renal injury markers in dogs with ehrlichiosis https://t.co/kHV64ekRaR

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Pathological and virological findings of type I interferon receptor knockout mice upon experimental infection with Heartland virus https://t.co/f3uudlYiCh

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Diversity and host specificity of Borrelia burgdorferi's outer surface protein C (ospC) alleles in synanthropic mammals, with a notable ospC allele U absence from mixed infections https://t.co/HTt0df3dvF

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Molecular prevalence of Coxiella burnetii in cheese samples: Systematic review and meta-analysis https://t.co/jGE1YY1lVE

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Kansas beef bulls with chronic anaplasmosis demonstrate satisfactory breeding soundness outcomes at breeding soundness examination https://t.co/L1PI4f22aj

[tickpapers @tick_papers]

Molecular detection of Babesia ovis and blood parameters' investigation reveal hematological and biochemical alterations in babesiosis-infected Lohi sheep in Multan, Pakistan https://t.co/xaPvshDyGR