Prevalence and molecular detection of tick borne pathogens in goats and ticks from different parts of North Eastern regions of India

Abstract

Despite the fact that the climate of North-East (NE) India is suitable for tick diversity, no systematic study has been done regarding the prevalence of ticks and tick-borne pathogens affecting small ruminants. A total of 1053 goats belonging to different age groups, breeds, and sex were examined from April 2019 to March 2020. Blood smear examination and PCR assays were conducted to detect tick-borne pathogens in the collected samples. The tick species recorded were Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus, Hyalomma anatolicum anatolicum, and Haemaphysalis bispinosa. The overall prevalence of tick-borne pathogens was 32.28%. Mixed infection with Theileria sp. and Anaplasma sp. was most common followed by single infections of Anaplasma sp. and Theileria sp. A significantly higher rate of infection was observed in female animals. Species-specific PCR revealed different tickborne pathogens like Anaplasma marginale, Anaplasma centrale, and Theileria luwenshuni in goats. Isolated DNA samples of ticks were found to be positive for A. marginale, A. centrale, and T. luwenshuni and Coxiella burnetii in three genera of ticks with PCR assay. The results showed that vector-borne intracellular haemoprotozoa and Anaplasma are prevalent in the study area in apparently healthy small ruminants and the identified ticks have an endosymbiotic relationship with C. burnetii.