Prevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi Sensu Lato Genospecies in Ixodes ricinus Ticks in Europe: a Metaanalysis

ABSTRACT In Europe, Borrelia burgdorferi genospecies causing Lyme borreliosis are mainly transmitted by the tick Ixodes ricinus. Since its discovery, B. burgdorferi has been the subject of many epidemiological studies to determine its prevalence and the distribution of the different genospecies in ticks. In the current study we systematically reviewed the literature on epidemiological studies of I. ricinus ticks infected with B. burgdorferi sensu lato. A total of 1,186 abstracts in English published from 1984 to 2003 were identified by a PubMed keyword search and from the compiled article references. A multistep filter process was used to select relevant articles; 110 articles from 24 countries contained data on the rates of infection of I. ricinus with Borrelia in Europe (112,579 ticks), and 44 articles from 21 countries included species-specific analyses (3,273 positive ticks). These data were used to evaluate the overall rate of infection of I. ricinus with Borrelia genospecies, regional distributions within Europe, and changes over time, as well as the influence of different detection methods on the infection rate. While the infection rate was significantly higher in adults (18.6%) than in nymphs (10.1%), no effect of detection method, tick gender, or collection period (1986 to 1993 versus 1994 to 2002) was found. The highest rates of infection of I. ricinus were found in countries in central Europe. B. afzelii and B. garinii are the most common Borrelia species, but the distribution of genospecies seems to vary in different regions in Europe. The most frequent coinfection by Borrelia species was found for B. garinii and B. valaisiana.

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Genetic Heterogeneity of Borrelia burgdorferi Sensu Lato in Ixodes ricinus Ticks Collected in Belgium

Journal of Clinical Microbiology ◽

10.1128/jcm.36.11.3352-3354.1998 ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 36 (11) ◽

pp. 3352-3354 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

Marie-Christine Misonne ◽

Georges Van Impe ◽

Philippe P. Hoet

Keyword(s):

Lyme Disease ◽

Borrelia Burgdorferi ◽

Ixodes Ricinus ◽

Single Species ◽

Sensu Stricto ◽

Borrelia Burgdorferi Sensu Lato ◽

Ixodes Ricinus Ticks ◽

Biogeographic Regions ◽

Species Specific ◽

Comparison Of The Results

Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato (s.l.), the etiological agent of Lyme disease, is transmitted by the bite of Ixodes ricinus. Four hundred eighty-nine ticks, collected in four locations of a region of southern Belgium where Lyme disease is endemic, were examined for the presence of the spirochete. In a PCR test with primers that recognize a chromosomal gene of all strains, 23% of the ticks were found to be infected. The species B. burgdorferi s.l. comprises at least three pathogenic genomospecies, B. burgdorferi sensu stricto (s.s.),Borrelia garinii, and Borrelia afzelii, which could be distinguished in PCR tests with species-specific primers that correspond to distinct plasmid sequences. B. garinii was most prevalent (53% of infected ticks), followed by B. burgdorferi s.s. (38%) and B. afzelii (9%). Of the infected ticks, 40% were infected with a single species, 40% were infected with two species, and 5% were infected with all three species. For 15% of the ticks, the infecting species could not be identified. No difference in rates of prevalence was observed among the four locations, which had similar ground covers, even though they belonged to distinct biogeographic regions. A greater heterogeneity of spirochetal DNA in ticks than in cultured reference DNA was suggested by a comparison of the results of PCRs with two different sets of species-specific primer sequences.

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Seasonal distribution of Borreliae in Ixodes ricinus ticks in the Belgrade region

Archives of Biological Sciences ◽

10.2298/abs0603183m ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 58 (3) ◽

pp. 183-186 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Marija Milutinovic ◽

Z. Radulovic ◽

Snezana Tomanovic ◽

Z. Tomanovic

Keyword(s):

Population Dynamics ◽

Borrelia Burgdorferi ◽

Infection Rate ◽

Ixodes Ricinus ◽

Relative Abundance ◽

Seasonal Distribution ◽

Borrelia Burgdorferi Sensu Lato ◽

Green Areas ◽

Ixodes Ricinus Ticks ◽

Faunistic Composition

Green areas at four localities in the Belgrade region (Ada Ciganlija, Kosutnjak, Miljakovac forest, and Mt. Avala) were investigated in 2004. The aim of the research was to clarify the faunistic composition, relative abundance, and population dynamics of ticks, as well as the seasonal distribution of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato (sl) in Ixodes ricinus. Two species of ticks were detected: Ixodes ricinus and Dermacentor reticulates. Relative abundance analysis revealed that the species Ixodes ricinus was predominant (97.41 %). Out of 942 Ixodes ricinus ticks, 188 (19.96 %) were infected with Borrelia burgdorferi sl. The infection rate of adults by localities ranged from 19.16% to 30.99% (Mt. Avala and Ada Ciganlija, respectively).

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