The zoonosis Q fever is caused by the obligate intracellular bacterium Coxiella burnetii.
Besides the main transmission route via inhalation of contaminated aerosols, ticks are
discussed as vectors since the first isolation of the pathogen from a Dermacentor
andersonii tick. The rare detection of C. burnetii in ticks and the difficult differentiation
of C. burnetii from Coxiella-like endosymbionts (CLEs) are questioning the relevance of
ticks in the epidemiology of Q fever. In this review, literature databases were systematically
searched for recent prevalence studies concerning C. burnetii in ticks in Europe and
experimental studies evaluating the vector competence of tick species. A total of 72
prevalence studies were included and evaluated regarding DNA detection methods and
collectionmethods, country, and tested tick species. Specimens ofmore than 25 different
tick species were collected in 23 European countries. Overall, an average prevalence of
4.8% was determined. However, in half of the studies, no Coxiella-DNA was detected. In
Southern European countries, a significantly higher prevalence was observed, possibly
related to the abundance of different tick species here, namely Hyalomma spp. and
Rhipicephalus spp. In comparison, a similar proportion of studies used ticks sampled by
flagging and dragging or tick collection from animals, under 30% of the total tick samples
derived from the latter. There was no significant difference in the various target genes
used for the molecular test. In most of the studies, no distinction was made between
C. burnetii and CLEs. The application of specific detection methods and the confirmation
of positive results are crucial to determine the role of ticks in Q fever transmission. Only
two studies were available, which assessed the vector competence of ticks for C. burnetii
in the last 20 years, demonstrating the need for further research.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:DRESDEN/oai:qucosa:de:qucosa:84429 |
| Date | 30 March 2023 |
| Creators | Körner, Sophia, Makert, Gustavo R., Ulbert, Sebastian, Pfeffer, Martin, Mertens-Scholz, Katja |
| Publisher | Frontiers Research Foundation |
| Source Sets | Hochschulschriftenserver (HSSS) der SLUB Dresden |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion, doc-type:article, info:eu-repo/semantics/article, doc-type:Text |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
| Relation | 2297-1769, 655715 |
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