Ticks and tick-borne pathogens of domestic animals in Somalia and neighbouring regions of Ethiopia and Kenya

Kassim Jimale; Richard Wall; Domenico Otranto

doi:10.1016/j.actatropica.2023.106944

Ticks and tick-borne pathogens of domestic animals in Somalia and neighbouring regions of Ethiopia and Kenya

Kassim Jimale, Richard Wall, Domenico Otranto^*

^*Corresponding author for this work

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Abstract

Ticks and tick-borne pathogens (TBPs) of domestic animals in Somalia and neighbouring regions of Ethiopia and Kenya are reviewed to identify knowledge gaps in these regions, where unrestricted livestock movements across borders are common. Major scientific databases, such as PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, CABI, and Google Scholar were searched, to retrieve articles based on papers published between 1960 and March 2023. Thirty-one tick species representing six genera (Rhipicephalus, Hyalomma, Amblyomma, Haemaphysalis, Ornithodoros and Argas) were reported to infest domestic animals, mainly livestock. Overall, the most represented species were Rhipicephalus pulchellus (up to 60% of specimens identified), followed by Hyalomma dromedarii (up to 57%), Hyalomma truncatum (up to 57%), Amblyomma lepidum (up to 21%), Amblyomma variegatum (up to 21%) and Amblyomma gemma (up to 19%), with morphological characterization being the principal method of tick identification. In addition, 18 TBPs, including zoonotic pathogens (e.g., Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus), were detected, with Babesia spp., Theileria spp., and Rickettsia spp. being the most commonly reported. Half of the pathogens documented were detected using molecular techniques, while the other half were detected by serology and microscopic techniques. Generally, ticks and TBPs in the region are under-studied, particularly, data relating to pet animals and equines is lacking. Further, the infection intensity and herd prevalence of ticks and TBPs is unclear because of insufficient data and poor approaches to quantitative analysis, making it difficult to propose management policies in the region. There is an urgent need, therefore, for more and better studies, particularly those that take a ‘One Health’ perspective, focusing on the prevalence and socio-economic impact of ticks and TBPs in animals as well as in humans, so that sustainable control strategies against them can be planned.

Original language	English
Article number	106944
Journal	Acta Tropica
Volume	243
Early online date	12 May 2023
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actatropica.2023.106944
Publication status	Published - 18 May 2023

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This research was supported by EU funding within the Next Generation EU-MUR PNRR Extended Partnership initiative on Emerging Infectious Diseases (Project no. PE00000007, INF-ACT) and a University of Bari visiting professorship to RW.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 Elsevier B.V.

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title = "Ticks and tick-borne pathogens of domestic animals in Somalia and neighbouring regions of Ethiopia and Kenya",

abstract = "Ticks and tick-borne pathogens (TBPs) of domestic animals in Somalia and neighbouring regions of Ethiopia and Kenya are reviewed to identify knowledge gaps in these regions, where unrestricted livestock movements across borders are common. Major scientific databases, such as PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, CABI, and Google Scholar were searched, to retrieve articles based on papers published between 1960 and March 2023. Thirty-one tick species representing six genera (Rhipicephalus, Hyalomma, Amblyomma, Haemaphysalis, Ornithodoros and Argas) were reported to infest domestic animals, mainly livestock. Overall, the most represented species were Rhipicephalus pulchellus (up to 60% of specimens identified), followed by Hyalomma dromedarii (up to 57%), Hyalomma truncatum (up to 57%), Amblyomma lepidum (up to 21%), Amblyomma variegatum (up to 21%) and Amblyomma gemma (up to 19%), with morphological characterization being the principal method of tick identification. In addition, 18 TBPs, including zoonotic pathogens (e.g., Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus), were detected, with Babesia spp., Theileria spp., and Rickettsia spp. being the most commonly reported. Half of the pathogens documented were detected using molecular techniques, while the other half were detected by serology and microscopic techniques. Generally, ticks and TBPs in the region are under-studied, particularly, data relating to pet animals and equines is lacking. Further, the infection intensity and herd prevalence of ticks and TBPs is unclear because of insufficient data and poor approaches to quantitative analysis, making it difficult to propose management policies in the region. There is an urgent need, therefore, for more and better studies, particularly those that take a {\textquoteleft}One Health{\textquoteright} perspective, focusing on the prevalence and socio-economic impact of ticks and TBPs in animals as well as in humans, so that sustainable control strategies against them can be planned.",

author = "Kassim Jimale and Richard Wall and Domenico Otranto",

note = "Funding Information: This research was supported by EU funding within the Next Generation EU-MUR PNRR Extended Partnership initiative on Emerging Infectious Diseases (Project no. PE00000007, INF-ACT) and a University of Bari visiting professorship to RW. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2023 Elsevier B.V.",

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AU - Wall, Richard

AU - Otranto, Domenico

N1 - Funding Information: This research was supported by EU funding within the Next Generation EU-MUR PNRR Extended Partnership initiative on Emerging Infectious Diseases (Project no. PE00000007, INF-ACT) and a University of Bari visiting professorship to RW. Publisher Copyright: © 2023 Elsevier B.V.

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N2 - Ticks and tick-borne pathogens (TBPs) of domestic animals in Somalia and neighbouring regions of Ethiopia and Kenya are reviewed to identify knowledge gaps in these regions, where unrestricted livestock movements across borders are common. Major scientific databases, such as PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, CABI, and Google Scholar were searched, to retrieve articles based on papers published between 1960 and March 2023. Thirty-one tick species representing six genera (Rhipicephalus, Hyalomma, Amblyomma, Haemaphysalis, Ornithodoros and Argas) were reported to infest domestic animals, mainly livestock. Overall, the most represented species were Rhipicephalus pulchellus (up to 60% of specimens identified), followed by Hyalomma dromedarii (up to 57%), Hyalomma truncatum (up to 57%), Amblyomma lepidum (up to 21%), Amblyomma variegatum (up to 21%) and Amblyomma gemma (up to 19%), with morphological characterization being the principal method of tick identification. In addition, 18 TBPs, including zoonotic pathogens (e.g., Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus), were detected, with Babesia spp., Theileria spp., and Rickettsia spp. being the most commonly reported. Half of the pathogens documented were detected using molecular techniques, while the other half were detected by serology and microscopic techniques. Generally, ticks and TBPs in the region are under-studied, particularly, data relating to pet animals and equines is lacking. Further, the infection intensity and herd prevalence of ticks and TBPs is unclear because of insufficient data and poor approaches to quantitative analysis, making it difficult to propose management policies in the region. There is an urgent need, therefore, for more and better studies, particularly those that take a ‘One Health’ perspective, focusing on the prevalence and socio-economic impact of ticks and TBPs in animals as well as in humans, so that sustainable control strategies against them can be planned.

AB - Ticks and tick-borne pathogens (TBPs) of domestic animals in Somalia and neighbouring regions of Ethiopia and Kenya are reviewed to identify knowledge gaps in these regions, where unrestricted livestock movements across borders are common. Major scientific databases, such as PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, CABI, and Google Scholar were searched, to retrieve articles based on papers published between 1960 and March 2023. Thirty-one tick species representing six genera (Rhipicephalus, Hyalomma, Amblyomma, Haemaphysalis, Ornithodoros and Argas) were reported to infest domestic animals, mainly livestock. Overall, the most represented species were Rhipicephalus pulchellus (up to 60% of specimens identified), followed by Hyalomma dromedarii (up to 57%), Hyalomma truncatum (up to 57%), Amblyomma lepidum (up to 21%), Amblyomma variegatum (up to 21%) and Amblyomma gemma (up to 19%), with morphological characterization being the principal method of tick identification. In addition, 18 TBPs, including zoonotic pathogens (e.g., Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus), were detected, with Babesia spp., Theileria spp., and Rickettsia spp. being the most commonly reported. Half of the pathogens documented were detected using molecular techniques, while the other half were detected by serology and microscopic techniques. Generally, ticks and TBPs in the region are under-studied, particularly, data relating to pet animals and equines is lacking. Further, the infection intensity and herd prevalence of ticks and TBPs is unclear because of insufficient data and poor approaches to quantitative analysis, making it difficult to propose management policies in the region. There is an urgent need, therefore, for more and better studies, particularly those that take a ‘One Health’ perspective, focusing on the prevalence and socio-economic impact of ticks and TBPs in animals as well as in humans, so that sustainable control strategies against them can be planned.

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DO - 10.1016/j.actatropica.2023.106944

M3 - Article (Academic Journal)

C2 - 37178993

SN - 0001-706X

VL - 243

JO - Acta Tropica

JF - Acta Tropica

M1 - 106944

ER -

Ticks and tick-borne pathogens of domestic animals in Somalia and neighbouring regions of Ethiopia and Kenya

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