AUTHOR=Jamil Anjum , Yu Ze , Wang Yuxin , Xin Qing , Gao Shan , Abdul Wahab Muhammad , Han Xiaohu , Chen Zeliang 

TITLE=Tick-borne Rickettsia, Anaplasma, Theileria, and enzootic nasal tumor virus in ruminant, PET, and poultry animals in Pakistan

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=15

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2024.1359492

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2024.1359492

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Introduction</title><p>Pakistan is an agricultural country; most of its income is based on livestock rearing. The increasing prevalence of tick-borne pathogens among animals may affect the animal production and livelihood of owners, which eventually derange the economy of a country.</p></sec><sec><title>Methodology</title><p>To further comprehend TBPs, 213 ticks were collected from different animals, including ruminants, pets, and poultry. After molecular and phylogenetic analysis identification, ticks were managed into different pools based on their species level (<italic>Hyalomma anatolicum</italic> = 80, <italic>Rhipicephalus microplus</italic> = 35, <italic>Hyalomma scupense</italic> = 23, <italic>Rhipicephalus turanicus</italic> = 70, and <italic>Rhipicephalus sanguineus</italic> = 5).</p></sec><sec><title>Results and discussion</title><p>After tick species identification, further molecular PCR amplification was carried out to screen out the pathogens for the presence of <italic>Theileria, Rickettsia, Anaplasma</italic>, and enzootic nasal tumor virus (ENTV). The following pathogens were detected: 11 (5.16%) for <italic>Anaplasma</italic>, 1 (0.47%) for <italic>Rickettsia</italic>, and 9 (4.23%) for <italic>Theileria</italic>. Nevertheless, other TBPs that had not been reported so far in Pakistan 3 (1.41%), were positive for enzootic nasal tumor virus (ENTV). Besides, phylogenetic analysis of the enzootic nasal tumor virus (ENTV) strain confirmed its resemblance to the Chinese strain, while Anaplasma has comparability with Pakistan and China, <italic>Rickettsia</italic> with Pakistan, China, and Iran, and <italic>Theileria</italic> with India, South Africa, United States, Japan, and Spain.</p></sec><sec><title>Conclusion</title><p>This study reveals that there is a considerably wider range of TBPs held in Pakistan that take in various contagious zoonotic pathogens than was previously thought. This information advances TBP epidemiology and will contribute to upgrade future control measure.</p></sec>