Ticks on dogs and its role as vectors: intermediate hosts in the Center-West of...

• Author(s): Rosa, Fernanda ; Crespo, Maria Virgínia ; Ferreirinha, Dario ; Morgado, Marina ; Madeira, Marta ; Santos-Silva, M. ; Sousa, R.
• Date: 2006
• Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.15/95
• Origin: Repositório Científico do Instituto Politécnico de Santarém
• Subject(s): Dog; Host; Ixodidae; Parasitism; Vectorborne diseases; Portugal
• Document Type: Part of book or chapter of book
• Language: English

Description

Dogs are one of the most important hosts in the maintenance of tick population. In order to identify the species and their role on the transmission of hemoparasites and rickettsiae, ticks were collected on 466 dogs of Center- West region of Portugal. Taxonomical studies were done and appositional hemolymph smears were also performed in order to search for rickettsia infections. Some ticks were processed for DNA extraction and screened by PCR for detection of rickettsiae DNA. Specimens of Rhipicephalus sanguineus, R. pusillus, Ixodes spp. and Hyalomma marginatum were identified. Only the first two species were found infected with a rickettsial strain Bar29 and with R. massiliae. These results reinforce the important role of dogs and its ticks on epidemiology of tick-borne rickettsiae agents in Portugal.