TY  - JOUR
JF  - Acarologia
T1  - The occurrence of three tick-borne pathogens in Ixodes ricinus ticks collected from the area of the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland (Southern Poland)
VL  - 58
IS  - 4
SP  - 969
EP  - 975
PY  - 2018
SN  - 0044-586X
SN  - 2107-7207
PB  - Les Amis d'Acarologia
AU  - Asman, Marek
AU  - Solarz, Krzysztof
AU  - Szilman, Ewa
AU  - Szilman, Piotr
AU  - Sikora, Bartosz
AU  - Jakubas-Zawalska, Justyna
UR  - https://doi.org/10.24349/acarologia/20184301
DO  - 10.24349/acarologia/20184301
DA  - 2018-11-22
ET  - 2018-11-22
KW  - Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato
KW  - Babesia microti
KW  - Anaplasma phagocytophilum
KW  - tourism
KW  - exposure risk
AB  - The common tick Ixodes ricinus is the main vector of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato, Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Babesia microti in Europe. The aim of this study was to estimate the potential risk of exposure to common tick-borne diseases in the recreational areas of the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland, Poland with particular emphasis on the city of Częstochowa. The DNA from 459 I. ricinus ticks was used to detect B. burgdorferi s. l., A. phagocytophilum and B. microti by PCR and nested PCR methods. Generally, infectious agents were found in 26.3% of all the examined ticks: B. microti was found in 23.3%, and A. phagocytophilum in 2.4% of the ticks. The protozoan was found mainly in females and nymphs, while A. phagocytophilum was detected mainly in adults. The co-existence of B. microti and A. phagocytophilum was found in 2.1% of the examined ticks. The presence of B. burgdorferi s. l. was not revealed in the examined material. The conducted studies demonstrate the high potential risk of exposure of tourists and pilgrims to B. microti, and a low risk of exposure to A. phagocytophilum and B. burgdorferi s.l. in the examined areas of the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland. Furthermore, the possible co-existence of A. phagocytophilum and B. microti in 3 individual ticks means that infection by multiple infectious agents is possible. The obtained results highlight the need to conduct further research on tick-borne pathogens in this region of Poland.
ER -