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Koual R, Buysse M, Grillet J, Binetruy F, Ouass S, Sprong H, Duhayon M, Boulanger N, Jourdain F, Alafaci A, Verdon J, Verheyden H, Rispe C, Plantard O, Duron O. Phylogenetic evidence for a clade of tick-associated trypanosomes. Parasit Vectors 2023; 16:3. [PMID: 36604731 PMCID: PMC9817367 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-022-05622-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2022] [Accepted: 12/17/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Trypanosomes are protozoan parasites of vertebrates that are of medical and veterinary concern. A variety of blood-feeding invertebrates have been identified as vectors, but the role of ticks in trypanosome transmission remains unclear. METHODS In this study, we undertook extensive molecular screening for the presence and genetic diversity of trypanosomes in field ticks. RESULTS Examination of 1089 specimens belonging to 28 tick species from Europe and South America led to the identification of two new trypanosome strains. The prevalence may be as high as 4% in tick species such as the castor bean tick Ixodes ricinus, but we found no evidence of transovarial transmission. Further phylogenetic analyses based on 18S rRNA, EF1-α, hsp60 and hsp85 gene sequences revealed that different tick species, originating from different continents, often harbour phylogenetically related trypanosome strains and species. Most tick-associated trypanosomes cluster in a monophyletic clade, the Trypanosoma pestanai clade, distinct from clades of trypanosomes associated with transmission by other blood-feeding invertebrates. CONCLUSIONS These observations suggest that ticks may be specific arthropod hosts for trypanosomes of the T. pestanai clade. Phylogenetic analyses provide further evidence that ticks may transmit these trypanosomes to a diversity of mammal species (including placental and marsupial species) on most continents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachid Koual
- grid.121334.60000 0001 2097 0141MIVEGEC, CNRS, IRD, University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Marie Buysse
- grid.121334.60000 0001 2097 0141MIVEGEC, CNRS, IRD, University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Justine Grillet
- grid.121334.60000 0001 2097 0141MIVEGEC, CNRS, IRD, University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Florian Binetruy
- grid.121334.60000 0001 2097 0141MIVEGEC, CNRS, IRD, University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Sofian Ouass
- grid.121334.60000 0001 2097 0141MIVEGEC, CNRS, IRD, University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Hein Sprong
- grid.31147.300000 0001 2208 0118Laboratory for Zoonoses and Environmental Microbiology (Z&O), Centre for Infectious Disease Control (CIb), National Institute of Public Health and Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, The Netherlands
| | - Maxime Duhayon
- grid.121334.60000 0001 2097 0141ASTRE, CIRAD, INRAE, University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Nathalie Boulanger
- grid.11843.3f0000 0001 2157 9291UR7290: VBP: Borrelia Group, Hôpitaux Universitaires de Strasbourg, University of Strasbourg and French National Reference Center for Borrelia, Strasbourg, France
| | - Frédéric Jourdain
- grid.121334.60000 0001 2097 0141MIVEGEC, CNRS, IRD, University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France
| | - Aurélien Alafaci
- grid.11166.310000 0001 2160 6368UMR CNRS 7267, EBI, University of Poitiers, Poitiers, France
| | - Julien Verdon
- grid.11166.310000 0001 2160 6368UMR CNRS 7267, EBI, University of Poitiers, Poitiers, France
| | - Hélène Verheyden
- grid.508721.9INRAE, CEFS, Université de Toulouse, Castanet Tolosan Cedex, France ,LTSER ZA PYRénées GARonne, Auzeville-Tolosane, France
| | - Claude Rispe
- grid.418682.10000 0001 2175 3974Oniris, INRAE, BIOEPAR, Nantes, France
| | - Olivier Plantard
- grid.418682.10000 0001 2175 3974Oniris, INRAE, BIOEPAR, Nantes, France
| | - Olivier Duron
- grid.121334.60000 0001 2097 0141MIVEGEC, CNRS, IRD, University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France
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Gofton AW, Blasdell KR, Taylor C, Banks PB, Michie M, Roy‐Dufresne E, Poldy J, Wang J, Dunn M, Tachedjian M, Smith I. Metatranscriptomic profiling reveals diverse tick-borne bacteria, protozoans and viruses in ticks and wildlife from Australia. Transbound Emerg Dis 2022; 69:e2389-e2407. [PMID: 35502617 PMCID: PMC9790515 DOI: 10.1111/tbed.14581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2021] [Revised: 04/21/2022] [Accepted: 04/25/2022] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Tick-borne zoonoses are emerging globally due to changes in climate and land use. While the zoonotic threats associated with ticks are well studied elsewhere, in Australia, the diversity of potentially zoonotic agents carried by ticks and their significance to human and animal health is not sufficiently understood. To this end, we used untargeted metatranscriptomics to audit the prokaryotic, eukaryotic and viral biomes of questing ticks and wildlife blood samples from two urban and rural sites in New South Wales, Australia. Ixodes holocyclus and Haemaphysalis bancrofti were the main tick species collected, and blood samples from Rattus rattus, Rattus fuscipes, Perameles nasuta and Trichosurus vulpecula were also collected and screened for tick-borne microorganisms using metatranscriptomics followed by conventional targeted PCR to identify important microbial taxa to the species level. Our analyses identified 32 unique tick-borne taxa, including 10 novel putative species. Overall, a wide range of tick-borne microorganisms were found in questing ticks including haemoprotozoa such as Babesia, Theileria, Hepatozoon and Trypanosoma spp., bacteria such as Borrelia, Rickettsia, Ehrlichia, Neoehrlichia and Anaplasma spp., and numerous viral taxa including Reoviridiae (including two coltiviruses) and a novel Flaviviridae-like jingmenvirus. Of note, a novel hard tick-borne relapsing fever Borrelia sp. was identified in questing H. bancrofti ticks which is closely related to, but distinct from, cervid-associated Borrelia spp. found throughout Asia. Notably, all tick-borne microorganisms were phylogenetically unique compared to their relatives found outside Australia, and no foreign tick-borne human pathogens such as Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. or Babesia microti were found. This work adds to the growing literature demonstrating that Australian ticks harbour a unique and endemic microbial fauna, including potentially zoonotic agents which should be further studied to determine their relative risk to human and animal health.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kim R. Blasdell
- CSIROHealth and BiosecurityAustralian Centre for Disease PreparednessGeelongVICAustralia
| | - Casey Taylor
- School of Life and Environmental SciencesUniversity of SydneySydneyNSWAustralia
| | - Peter B. Banks
- School of Life and Environmental SciencesUniversity of SydneySydneyNSWAustralia
| | | | | | | | - Jian Wang
- CSIROHealth and BiosecurityCanberra, ConnecticutAustralia
| | - Michael Dunn
- CSIROHealth and BiosecurityAustralian Centre for Disease PreparednessGeelongVICAustralia
| | - Mary Tachedjian
- CSIROHealth and BiosecurityAustralian Centre for Disease PreparednessGeelongVICAustralia
| | - Ina Smith
- CSIROHealth and BiosecurityCanberra, ConnecticutAustralia
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Krige AS, Thompson RCA, Wills A, Burston G, Thorn S, Clode PL. 'A flying start': Wildlife trypanosomes in tissues of Australian tabanids (Diptera: Tabanidae). INFECTION, GENETICS AND EVOLUTION : JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR EPIDEMIOLOGY AND EVOLUTIONARY GENETICS IN INFECTIOUS DISEASES 2021; 96:105152. [PMID: 34823027 DOI: 10.1016/j.meegid.2021.105152] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2021] [Revised: 10/11/2021] [Accepted: 11/16/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Tabanids (syn. horse flies) are biting-flies of medical and veterinary significance because of their ability to transmit a range of pathogens including trypanosomes - some species of which carry a combined health and biosecurity risk. Invertebrate vectors responsible for transmitting species of Trypanosoma between Australian wildlife remains unknown, thus establishing the role of potential vector candidates such as tabanids is of utmost importance. The current study aimed to investigate the presence of indigenous trypanosomes in tabanids from an endemic area of south-west Australia. A total of 148 tabanids were collected, with morphological analysis revealing two subgenera: Scaptia (Pseudoscione) and S. (Scaptia) among collected flies. A parasitological survey using an HRM-qPCR and sequencing approach revealed a high (105/148; 71%) prevalence of trypanosomatid DNA within collected tabanids. Individual tissues - proboscis (labrum, labium and mandibles, hypopharynx), salivary glands, proventriculus, midgut, and hindgut and rectum - were also tested from a subset of 20 tabanids (n = 140 tissues), confirming the presence of Trypanosoma noyesi in 31% of screened tissues, accompanied by T. copemani (3%) and T. vegrandis/T.gilletti (5%). An unconfirmed trypanosomatid sp. was also detected (9%) within tissues. The difference between tissues infected with T. noyesi compared with tissues infected with other trypanosome species was statistically significant (p < 0.05), revealing T. noyesi as the more frequent species detected in the tabanids examined. Fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) confirmed intact parasites within salivary glands and the proboscis respectively, suggesting that both biological and mechanical modes of transmission could occur. This study reveals the presence of Australian Trypanosoma across tabanid tissues and confirms intact parasites within tabanid salivary glands and the proboscis for the first time. Further investigations are required to determine whether tabanids have the vectorial competence to transmit Australian trypanosomes between wildlife.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna-Sheree Krige
- UWA School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia.
| | - R C Andrew Thompson
- School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, Murdoch University, 90 South Street, Murdoch, Western Australia 6150, Australia
| | - Allan Wills
- Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA), Locked Bag 2, Manjimup, Western Australia 6258, Australia
| | - Glen Burston
- Maroo Wildlife Refuge Inc., Southern Forests, 161 Perup Rd, Manjimup, Western Australia 6258, Australia
| | - Sian Thorn
- UWA School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia
| | - Peta L Clode
- UWA School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia; Centre for Microscopy, Characterisation and Analysis, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia
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Krige AS, Thompson RCA, Seidlitz A, Keatley S, Wayne J, Clode PL. Molecular Detection of Trypanosoma spp. in Questing and Feeding Ticks (Ixodidae) Collected from an Endemic Region of South-West Australia. Pathogens 2021; 10:pathogens10081037. [PMID: 34451502 PMCID: PMC8398035 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens10081037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2021] [Revised: 08/11/2021] [Accepted: 08/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
A growing number of indigenous trypanosomes have been reported to naturally infect a variety of Australian wildlife with some species of Trypanosoma implicated in the population decline of critically endangered marsupials. However, the mode of transmission of Australian trypanosomes is unknown since their vectors remain unidentified. Here we aimed to fill this current knowledge gap about the occurrence and identity of indigenous trypanosomes in Australian invertebrates by conducting molecular screening for the presence of Trypanosoma spp. in native ticks collected from south-west Australia. A total of 231 ticks (148 collected from vegetation and 83 retrieved directly from 76 marsupial hosts) were screened for Trypanosoma using a High-Resolution Melt (HRM) qPCR assay. An overall Trypanosoma qPCR positivity of 37% (46/125) and 34% (26/76) was detected in questing ticks and host-collected (i.e., feeding) ticks, respectively. Of these, sequencing revealed 28% (35/125) of questing and 28% (21/76) of feeding ticks were infected with one or more of the five species of trypanosome previously reported in this region (T. copemani, T. noyesi, T. vegrandis, T. gilletti, Trypanosoma sp. ANU2). This work has confirmed that Australian ticks are capable of harbouring several species of indigenous trypanosome and likely serve as their vectors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna-Sheree Krige
- UWA School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia;
- Correspondence:
| | - R. C. Andrew Thompson
- School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, Murdoch University, 90 South Street, Murdoch, WA 6150, Australia; (R.C.A.T.); (S.K.)
| | - Anke Seidlitz
- School of Environmental and Conservation Sciences, Murdoch University, 90 South Street, Murdoch, WA 6150, Australia;
| | - Sarah Keatley
- School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, Murdoch University, 90 South Street, Murdoch, WA 6150, Australia; (R.C.A.T.); (S.K.)
| | - Julia Wayne
- Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA), Locked Bag 2, Manjimup, WA 6258, Australia;
| | - Peta L. Clode
- UWA School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia;
- Centre for Microscopy, Characterisation and Analysis, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia
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Egan SL, Taylor CL, Austen JM, Banks PB, Northover AS, Ahlstrom LA, Ryan UM, Irwin PJ, Oskam CL. Haemoprotozoan surveillance in peri-urban native and introduced wildlife from Australia. CURRENT RESEARCH IN PARASITOLOGY & VECTOR-BORNE DISEASES 2021; 1:100052. [PMID: 35284862 PMCID: PMC8906138 DOI: 10.1016/j.crpvbd.2021.100052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2021] [Revised: 08/30/2021] [Accepted: 09/22/2021] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Siobhon L. Egan
- Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, 6150, Australia
- Corresponding author.
| | - Casey L. Taylor
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Camperdown, The University of Sydney, New South Wales, 2006, Australia
| | - Jill M. Austen
- Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, 6150, Australia
| | - Peter B. Banks
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Camperdown, The University of Sydney, New South Wales, 2006, Australia
| | - Amy S. Northover
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, 6150, Australia
| | - Liisa A. Ahlstrom
- Elanco Animal Health, Macquarie Park, New South Wales, 2113, Australia
| | - Una M. Ryan
- Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, 6150, Australia
| | - Peter J. Irwin
- Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, 6150, Australia
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, 6150, Australia
| | - Charlotte L. Oskam
- Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, 6150, Australia
- Corresponding author.
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