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BMC Infect Dis 2022 Apr 1;22(1):320. Epub 2022 Apr 1.

Department of Epidemiology and Biostatics, Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran.

Background: Mediterranean spotted fever (MSF) is a zoonotic and vector-borne disease caused by Rickettsia conorii. We report a case (36 year-old-woman) of MSF caused by Rickettsia conorii from Iran.

Case Presentation: In September 2019, the patient was admitted to the hospital in Kerman province with flu-like symptoms and maculopapular lesions. Read More

Comp Immunol Microbiol Infect Dis 2022 Apr 24;83:101779. Epub 2022 Feb 24.

National Reference Laboratory for Plague, Tularemia and Q fever, Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Akanlu, Kabudar Ahang, Hamadan, Iran; Department of Epidemiology and Biostatics, Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran. Electronic address:

Francisella tularensis is the causative agent of tularemia an infectious zoonotic disease. We attempted the molecular detecting of F. tularensis in small ruminants and ticks attached to these animals in Kurdistan province (the west of Iran). Read More

Ticks Tick Borne Dis 2022 05 16;13(3):101926. Epub 2022 Feb 16.

University of Abomey-Calavi (UAC), Communicable Diseases Research Unit (URMAT), 01 PO Box: 2009, Cotonou, Benin.

Q fever is a global zoonotic infection caused by the intracellular Gram-negative bacterium Coxiella burnetii. Historically, it is considered a vector-borne disease, but the role of ticks in transmission has not fully been elucidated yet. Excretion of C. Read More

Comp Immunol Microbiol Infect Dis 2022 Feb 6;81:101744. Epub 2022 Jan 6.

Department of Microbiology, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran. Electronic address:

Background: Francisella tularensis could be disseminated through arthropod bites and exposure to infected animals, water, and aerosols. Water sources that are contaminated with rodent excrement could be a source of contamination; therefore, an analysis of water samples is an appropriate method to investigate the routes of dissemination. Since an outbreak occurred in one of the villages in East Azerbaijan. Read More

Am J Trop Med Hyg 2021 12 20;106(2):494-503. Epub 2021 Dec 20.

Division of Infectious Diseases and International Health, Department of Medicine, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina.

Q fever and spotted fever group rickettsioses (SFGR) are common causes of severe febrile illness in northern Tanzania. Incidence estimates are needed to characterize the disease burden. Using hybrid surveillance-coupling case-finding at two referral hospitals and healthcare utilization data-we estimated the incidences of acute Q fever and SFGR in Moshi, Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, from 2007 to 2008 and from 2012 to 2014. Read More

Sci Rep 2021 10 19;11(1):20678. Epub 2021 Oct 19.

Department of Energy & Technology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, 750 07, Uppsala, Sweden.

Recognition of climate-sensitive infectious diseases is crucial for mitigating health threats from climate change. Recent studies have reasoned about potential climate sensitivity of diseases in the Northern/Arctic Region, where climate change is particularly pronounced. By linking disease and climate data for this region, we here comprehensively quantify empirical climate-disease relationships. Read More

Pathogens 2021 Sep 14;10(9). Epub 2021 Sep 14.

Department of Livestock Services, Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Maseru 100, Lesotho.

Tick-borne diseases (TBDs) hamper the growth of the livestock sector and impose major constraints for the health and management of domestic animals in the tropic and subtropical regions globally. Currently, there is no scientific report on the presence of zoonotic pathogens transmitted by tick species in Lesotho. This study aimed to identify zoonotic tick-borne pathogens of economic importance from ticks infesting domestic animals in Lesotho using molecular techniques. Read More

Biologia (Bratisl) 2022 17;77(6):1575-1610. Epub 2021 Sep 17.

Institute of Zoology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 9, 845 06 Bratislava, Slovakia.

In Slovakia, 22 tick species have been found to occur to date. Among them, and marginally and have been identified as the species of public health relevance. Ticks in Slovakia were found to harbour and transmit zoonotic and/or potentially zoonotic agents such as tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV), spirochaetes of the sensu lato (s. Read More

Iran J Microbiol 2021 Jun;13(3):325-336

Department of Quality Control, Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute, Agricultural Research Education And Extention Organization, Mashhad Branch, Mashhad, Iran.

Background And Objectives: Brucellosis and Q fever are considered as occupational hazards to people in contact with domestic animals or their carcasses. The present cross-sectional study was carried out to determine the seroprevalence of brucellosis and Q fever among professions at risk in the North Khorasan Province, northeastern Iran during 2020.

Materials And Methods: In this study, 185 sera samples were collected from butchers, slaughterhouse workers, farmers, and veterinarians in different counties of the province. Read More

Ticks Tick Borne Dis 2021 11 4;12(6):101825. Epub 2021 Sep 4.

Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran; National Reference Laboratory for Plague, Tularemia and Q Fever, Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Akanlu, Kabudar Ahang, Hamadan, Iran.

In Iran, Borrelia persica and Borrelia microti/microti-like borreliae have been established as causative agents of tickborne relapsing fever (TBRF). However, the epidemiology of two previously described species, Borrelia balthazardi and Borrelia latyschewii (latychevi), has remained elusive for many years. We investigated Borrelia infection in various rodents and small mammals in the TBRF endemic East Azerbaijan Province, northwestern Iran, where B. Read More

Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis 2021 09;21(9):659-666

Unité Mixe de Recherche Vecteurs-Infections Tropicales et Méditerranéennes (VITROME), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD), Campus International de Recherche IRD-UCAD Hann, Dakar, Senegal.

Q fever and tick-borne borreliosis are two zoonotic diseases rarely diagnosed in Senegalese health facilities, particularly in rural areas. Our study aims to better understand the circulation of and spp. DNA on human skin and the domestic environment in rural areas. Read More

Parasit Vectors 2021 May 6;14(1):239. Epub 2021 May 6.

Parasitic and Honeybee Disease Laboratory, Bacterial and Parasitic Disease Division, Department of Animal & Plant Health Research, Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency, Gimcheon, 39660, Republic of Korea.

Background: Q fever, a zoonosis caused by Coxiella burnetii, has adverse effects on public health. Ticks are vectors of C. burnetii and they contribute to the transmission of the pathogen. Read More

Klin Lab Diagn 2021 Apr;66(4):229-236

Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine SB RAS.

Coxiella burnetii is the causative agent of Q fever (coxiellosis), which, in addition to acute manifestations, often occurs in a latent form, is prone to chronic course and, in the absence of antibiotic therapy, has a high risk of disability or death. As a result of the presence of a wide range of clinical manifestations specific to other infectious diseases, the use of laboratory test methods (LTM) is required to make a diagnosis. The presence of Q fever anthropurgic foci in the Novosibirsk region was described in the 90s of the last century, but due attention to its laboratory diagnostics is not paid in this region. Read More

Parasitol Res 2021 May 2;120(5):1523-1539. Epub 2021 Apr 2.

School of Environment and Natural Resources, Doon University, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, 248 012, India.

In the present scenario, tick-borne diseases (TBDs) are well known for their negative impacts on humans as well as animal health in India. The reason lies in their increased incidences due to global warming, environmental and ecological changes, and availability of suitable habitats. On a global basis, they are now considered a serious threat to human as well as livestock health. Read More

PLoS One 2021 1;16(4):e0249354. Epub 2021 Apr 1.

Department of Biology, Biodiversity Research Cluster, Faculty of Science, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand.

Q fever is one of the most important zoonotic diseases caused by the obligate intracellular bacteria, Coxiella burnetii. This bacterial infection has been frequently reported in both humans and animals, especially ruminants. Ticks are important ectoparasite and serve as reservoir hosts of Coxiella-like endosymbionts (CLEs). Read More

BMC Infect Dis 2021 Mar 31;21(1):310. Epub 2021 Mar 31.

National Reference laboratory for Plague, Tularemia and Q fever, Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging infectious diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Akanlu, Kabudar Ahang, Hamadan, Iran.

Background: Recent seroepidemiological studies have suggested that tularemia could be an endemic bacterial zoonosis in Iran.

Methods: From January 2016 to June 2018, disease cases characterized by fever, cervical lymphadenopathy and ocular involvement were reported in Youzband Village of Kaleybar County, in the East Azerbaijan Province, northwestern Iran. Diagnostic tests included Francisella tularensis serology (including tube agglutination test and ELISA), PCR, and culture. Read More

Ticks Tick Borne Dis 2021 07 15;12(4):101711. Epub 2021 Mar 15.

Daejeon Metropolitan City Institute of Health and Environment, 407 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 34142, Republic of Korea.

Ticks (Ixodidae, also known as hard ticks) as principal vectors of zoonotic diseases such as severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS), Lyme borreliosis, relapsing fever, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, babesiosis, coxiellosis (Q fever), and tularemia pose a major public health threat. This study was conducted to identify the distribution profile of ticks and tick-borne pathogens in Daejeon and the adjacent areas in South Korea, where no such epidemiological study has been conducted. From April to October 2019, 16,765 ticks were collected from three genera and four species: Haemaphysalis longicornis (n = 14,949; 89. Read More

Acta Trop 2021 Jun 11;218:105887. Epub 2021 Mar 11.

Tropical Infectious Diseases Research and Education Centre, Level 2, High Impact Research Building, Universiti Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Electronic address:

Spotted fever group (SFG) rickettsiae causes a number of diseases in humans worldwide, which can range from mild to highly lethal. Since the clinical presentations of rickettsioses caused by SFG rickettsiae are variable and may be similar to the diseases caused by other rickettsiae, such as Orientia tsutsugamushi (agent for scrub typhus), Coxiella burnetii (agent for Q fever) and the typhus group rickettsiae (agents for epidemic and murine typhus), the accurate diagnosis of infections caused by SFG Rickettsia remains challenging especially in resource-poor settings in developing countries. This review summarizes the various diagnostic and detection tools that are currently available for the confirmation of infections by SFG rickettsiae. Read More

Pathogens 2021 Jan 31;10(2). Epub 2021 Jan 31.

School of Life Sciences, College of Agriculture, Engineering & Science, University of KwaZulu Natal, Durban 40000, South Africa.

Rodents carry many ectoparasites, such as ticks, lice, fleas, and mites, which have potential public health importance. Middle Eastern countries are hotspots for many emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases, such as plague, leishmaniasis, Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever, and Q fever, due to their ecological, socioeconomic, and political diversity. Rodent ectoparasites can act as vectors for many of these pathogens. Read More

Acta Parasitol 2021 Jun 25;66(2):654-663. Epub 2021 Jan 25.

Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sardegna, Via Duca degli Abruzzi, 8, 07100, Sassari, Italy.

Purpose: Coxiella burnetii is known for its potential as veterinary and human bacterial pathogen. The bacteria have been described in ticks, but their role in transmission of Q fever in humans is considered low. Coxiella endosymbionts closely related to C. Read More

Adv Med Sci 2021 Mar 16;66(1):113-118. Epub 2021 Jan 16.

Department of Infectious Diseases and Neuroinfections, Medical University of Bialystok, Bialystok, Poland.

Purpose: Dermacentor reticulatus is the second most common tick species in Poland after Ixodes ricinus. The aim of the study was to analyze the presence of pathogen DNA in D. reticulatus. Read More

Future Microbiol 2021 01;16(1):51-69

Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Research Centre for Emerging & Reemerging infectious diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran.

Vector-borne diseases have become a global health concern in recent decades as a result of global warming, globalization, growth in international trade and travel, use of insecticide and drug resistance. This review study addressed the key vector-borne diseases and their current status in Iran to emphasize the requirements for further research on vector-borne diseases. The dispersion patterns of these diseases differ in various regions. Read More

Comp Immunol Microbiol Infect Dis 2021 Feb 25;74:101598. Epub 2020 Nov 25.

National Reference Laboratory for Plague, Tularemia and Q fever, Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging infectious diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Akanlu, Kabudar-Ahang, Hamadan, Iran; Department of Epidemiology and Biostatics, Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging infectious diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran. Electronic address:

Tularemia is a zoonotic disease that transmitted to humans and domestic animals by wildlife, especially rodents. There are some evidences of the circulation of F. tularensis in rodents, livestock, human populations, and surface waters in western parts of Iran. Read More

Pathogens 2020 Nov 11;9(11). Epub 2020 Nov 11.

Department of Veterinary Biosciences, Melbourne Veterinary School, Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Werribee 3030, VIC, Australia.

Ticks and tick-borne diseases (TTBDis) are a major constraint to the health and production of small ruminants in Pakistan. Despite being the subject of intermittent studies over the past few decades, comprehensive information on the epidemiology and control of TTBDis is lacking. Herein, we have systematically reviewed the current knowledge on TTBDis of small ruminants in Pakistan. Read More

Pediatr Infect Dis J 2021 01;40(1):e31-e34

From the Department of Pediatrics, Hanyang University Guri Hospital, Guri, Republic of Korea.

We report a case of an 8-year-old Korean girl diagnosed with severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome with Q fever coinfection after playing with a dog and being bitten by a tick in a suburb in South Korea. The clinical findings and treatment were summarized. To the best of our knowledge, this case is the youngest patient reported to have been diagnosed with severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome and Q fever from South Korea. Read More

Ticks Tick Borne Dis 2020 11 1;11(6):101500. Epub 2020 Jul 1.

Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran; National Reference Laboratory for Plague, Tularemia and Q Fever, Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Akanlu, Kabudar Ahang, Hamadan, Iran.

The Caspian Sea littoral of Iran is home to various hard tick species, including Ixodes ricinus, the notorious vector of Lyme borreliosis (LB) in Eurasia. Here, in this area, we examined I. ricinus and other hard ticks, along with common rodents and small mammals for LB and relapsing fever (RF) borreliae infection. Read More

Vnitr Lek 2020 ;66(4):232-235

While investigating patients with gastrointestinal (GI) and/or hepatic symptoms, tickborne diseases are only rarely considered to be the cause. However, the Czech Republic is an endemic region for several of tickborne diseases and, therefore, they should be a part of differential diagnosis of GI symptoms of unknown origin. This article describes GI and hepatic symptoms of several tickborne diseases - Lyme disease, ehrlichiosis, Rocky mountain spotted fever, tularemia, Colorado tick fever, tickborne relapsing fever, Q fever and babesiosis. Read More

Iran J Microbiol 2020 Jun;12(3):256-260

Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Research Centre for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases, Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran.

In this study the clinical manifestations, laboratory findings, and management of five patients diagnosed with Mediterranean spotted fever (MSF) from southeast of Iran are presented. All patients but one had recent tick-bite histories which were noticeable as black eschars (tache noire). Patients' samples were tested by real-time PCR and serology (IFA). Read More

Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis 2020 10 25;20(10):745-754. Epub 2020 Jun 25.

Department of Animal Science and Biotechnology, College of Ecology and Environmental Science, Kyungpook National University, Sangju, Republic of Korea.

Korean water deer () are widespread in the Republic of Korea (ROK). Mostly, Korean water deer are essential hosts for maintaining ticks and tick-borne diseases (TBDs). Here, we investigated the prevalence of tick-borne pathogens (TBPs) among rescued Korean water deer. Read More

J Obstet Gynaecol Can 2020 05;42(5):644-653

Halifax, NS.

Objective: Lyme disease is an emerging infection in Canada caused by the bacterium belonging to the Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato species complex, which is transmitted via the bite of an infected blacklegged tick. Populations of blacklegged ticks continue to expand and are now established in different regions in Canada. It usually takes more than 24 hours of tick attachment to transfer B. Read More