Geographical Distribution of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato in Ticks Collected from Wild Rodents in the Republic of Korea

Pathogens

Tae-Kyu Kim¹  Tae Yun Kim¹  Seong Yoon Kim¹  Hee Il Lee¹ 

[1] Division of Vectors and Parasitic Diseases, Bureau of Infectious Disease Diagnosis Control, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, 187 Osongsaengmyeong 2-ro, Cheongwon-gun, Cheongju-si 363-951, Chungcheongbuk-do 28159, Korea;

关键词: lyme disease;    Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato;    tick;    wild rodent;   

DOI  :  10.3390/pathogens9110866

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

: Lyme disease is a tick-borne zoonotic disease caused by Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato (s. l.) via transmission cycles involving competent tick vectors and vertebrate reservoirs. Here, we determined the prevalence and distribution of Borrelia genospecies in 738 ticks of at least three species from wild rodents in nine regions of the Republic of Korea (ROK). Ticks were analyzed using nested PCR targeting partial flagellin B gene sequences, followed by sequence analysis. The prevalence of Borrelia infection was 33.6%, and the most common genospecies were B. afzelii (62.5%), B. valaisiana (31.9%), B. yangtzensis (2.4%), B. garinii (1.6%), and B. tanukii (1.6%). Borrelia afzelii was found in all regions except Jeju Island; this predominant genospecies was found in the northern and central sampling regions. Borrelia valaisiana, B. yangtzensis, and B. tanukii were found only in the southern regions with B. valaisiana being the most common, whereas B. yangtzensis and B. tanukii were only found on Jeju Island. Our study is the first to describe the nationwide prevalence of B. burgdorferi s. l. in ticks from wild rodents in the ROK. Continuous surveillance in ticks, animals, humans, and different regions is required to avoid disease distribution and possible transmission to humans in the ROK.

【 授权许可】

Unknown