Identification of Parasitic Communities within European Ticks Using Next-Generation Sequencing |
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| Authors: | Sarah Bonnet Lorraine Michelet Sara Moutailler Justine Cheval Charles Hébert Muriel Vayssier-Taussat Marc Eloit |
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| Affiliation: | 1. USC INRA Bartonella-tiques, UMR BIPAR ENVA-ANSES, Maisons-Alfort, France.; 2. PathoQuest SAS, Paris, France.; 3. Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire d''Alfort, UMR 1161 Virologie ENVA, INRA, ANSES, Maisons-Alfort, France.; 4. Institut Pasteur, Laboratory of Pathogen Discovery, Paris, France.; University of Texas Medical Branch, United States of America, |
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| Abstract: | BackgroundRisk assessment of tick-borne and zoonotic disease emergence necessitates sound knowledge of the particular microorganisms circulating within the communities of these major vectors. Assessment of pathogens carried by wild ticks must be performed without a priori, to allow for the detection of new or unexpected agents.Methodology/Principal FindingsWe evaluated the potential of Next-Generation Sequencing techniques (NGS) to produce an inventory of parasites carried by questing ticks. Sequences corresponding to parasites from two distinct genera were recovered in Ixodes ricinus ticks collected in Eastern France: Babesia spp. and Theileria spp. Four Babesia species were identified, three of which were zoonotic: B. divergens, Babesia sp. EU1 and B. microti; and one which infects cattle, B. major. This is the first time that these last two species have been identified in France. This approach also identified new sequences corresponding to as-yet unknown organisms similar to tropical Theileria species.Conclusions/SignificanceOur findings demonstrate the capability of NGS to produce an inventory of live tick-borne parasites, which could potentially be transmitted by the ticks, and uncovers unexpected parasites in Western Europe. |
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