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Ticks and tick-borne diseases, investigations about biology of ticks and tick-borne diseases using the epidemiological example of Tick-borne-encephalitis-virus-(TBEV) infection
Project
Project code: FLI-IBIZ-08-DA_0005
Contract period: 01.01.2001
- 31.12.2020
Purpose of research: Applied research
Determination of ticks and tick-developmental stages by whole animal matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionisa-tion mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS), investigations about Tick-borne encephalitis-virus (TBEV)prevalence in ticks and serological investigations of animal sera in Germany for characterizing TBEV natural foci. Epidemiological observations about tick-borne diseases in animals.
Classically, ticks and their developmental stages are differentiated by morphological criteria. However, molecular biological methods, such as PCR using mitochondrial 12S and 16S rDNA sequences, have been applied increasingly in tick identification. A very cost-efficient and rapid, yet highly informative tool for tick species determination could be whole animal matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionisation mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS) based on protein spectra which over the past few years has been introduced successfully for the identification and classification of bacteria and also for tissue cultures. Cluster analysis on the basis of MALDI mass spectra indicated that the primary determinant for the mass spectra was the species, followed by the developmental stages, which formed distinct clusters within the given species. Clusters illustrated phylogenetic correlations between species. With certain limitations, species identification was also possible using “problematic samples” such as body parts (not possible with only legs) and engorged animals. Upgrading of reference spectra by additional tick species is in progress. Investigations of infected ticks and on supporting and limiting factors for tick development should be done in the future. Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is the most important viral tick-borne zoonosis in Europe. In Germany, approximately 250 autochthonous human clinical cases are registered per year with strong annual fluctuations (e.g. 2006: 546 cases, 2007: 238 cases). In veterinary medicine, clinical cases of TBE are seldom, but have been described for example in dogs, horses and monkeys, in some cases with a severe clinical course. However, TBE-virus (TBEV) is excreted in milk of goats, sheep and cattle and can be ingested orally by consumption of non-pasteurized milk or by cheese produced from raw milk and can cause the so-called alimentary TBE. Compared with a TBE infection via tick bite this way of infection is very seldom. Nevertheless, it should be borne in mind because in the last years alimentary TBE infections have occurred in Estonia, Austria and Hungary. In addition, data of TBEV diagnostics in animals could be a helpful tool to investigate TBEV epidemiologically. In contrast to Borrelia burgdorferi s.l., that is ubiquitously endemic in all areas in Germany where Ixodes ricinus occurs, TBEV circulates in geographically strictly limited natural foci that can range in size from large to very small and are distributed in a patchy pattern with the main focus in Southern Germany. These foci can newly arise, exist in some regions over a long period of time or expire in other regions. So far, the reasons are unclear and the investigation of animals (pathogen detection via quantitative real-time RT-PCR (RT-qPCR) as well as serological investigations of TBEV-antibody titres) can increase the understanding of the epidemiology of TBE as the most important viral tick-borne disease in Central Europe. Further activities are focused at Lyme-Borreliosis as an important tick-borne disease for humans and partially also for veterinary medicine. For the tasks mentioned above suitable methods were developed and optimized respectively, practical problems were analyzed and the results were published in peer reviewed journals.
Klaus, C., 2014. Die Zecke als Vektor – Untersuchungen am Beispiel der Frühsommer-Meningoenzephalitis (FSME)-Virus-Infektion. Habilitationsschrift, Universität Leipzig, Veterinärmedizinische Fakultät, Institut für Parasitologie. Böhm, B., Schade, B., Bauer, B., Hoffmann, B., Hoffmann, D., Ziegler, U., Beer, M., Klaus, C., Weissenböck, H., Böttcher, J., 2017. Tick-borne encephalitis in a naturally infected sheep. BMC Vet. Res., 13:267, DOI: 10.1186/s12917-017-1192-3. Klaus, C., Diller, R., Hasse, E.E., Hoffmann, D., 2017. Beitrag zur serologischen Diagnostik der Lyme-Borreliose beim Hund. Berl. Münch. Tierärztl. Wochenschr., 131, 483-489, DOI 10.2376/0005-9366-17029. Rieille, N., Klaus, C., Hoffmann, D., Péter, O., Voordouw, M.J., 2017. Goats as sentinel hosts for the detection of tick-borne encephalitis risk areas in the Canton of Valais, Switzerland. BMC Vet. Res., 13:217, DOI: 10.1186/s12917-017-1136-y. Klaus, C., Hoffmann, D., Hoffmann, B., Beer, M., 2016. Frühsommer-Meningoenzephalitis-Virus-Infektionen bei Tieren - Klinik, Diagnostik und epidemiologische Bedeutung. Berl. Münch. Tierärztl. Wochenschr. 130, 102-112, DOI 10.2376/0005-9366-16062. Klaus, C., Gethmann, J., Hoffmann, B., Ziegler, U., Heller, M., Beer, M., 2016. Tick infestation in birds and prevalence of pathogens in ticks collected from different places in Germany. Parasitology Research 115, 2729-2740. DOI 10.1007/s00436-016-5022-5.
Section overview
Subjects
- Animal health
- Biotechnology
Framework programme
Funding programme
Excutive institution
FLI - Institute for Bacterial Infections and Zoonoses (FLI-IBIZ)
