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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Cell. Infect. Microbiol.
Sec. Parasite and Host
Volume 14 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2024.1428719

Role of Rhipicephalus bursa larvae in transstadial transmission and endemicity of Babesia ovis in chronically infected sheep

Provisionally accepted
  • 1 Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine,, Firat University, Elazig, Türkiye
  • 2 Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Selçuk University, Konya, Türkiye
  • 3 Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, United States
  • 4 Animal Disease Research Unit, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Washington, District of Columbia, United States

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Babesia ovis, transmitted by Rhipicephalus bursa ticks, is the causative agent of ovine babesiosis, a disease characterized by fever, anemia, hemoglobinuria, and high mortality in sheep. This study investigates whether sheep that survived babesiosis without treatment can serve as a source of infection for B. ovis-free host-seeking R. bursa larvae in a later season. Three donor sheep were experimentally infected with B. ovis, and after six months, persistence of B. ovis was assessed through blood and tick transmission experiments. Blood from donor sheep was intravenously injected into three recipient sheep, while donor sheep were also infested with B. ovis-free R. bursa larvae. Engorged nymphs molted to adults, and new recipient sheep were infested with these ticks. All recipient sheep were monitored for B. ovis for 100 days using microscopic, serological, and molecular approaches. The presence of B. ovis was confirmed in the recipient sheep that received blood, leading to clinical infection in two. However, no B. ovis was detected in recipient sheep infested with ticks. These results suggest that sheep recovering from B. ovis infection do not serve as a source of infection for R. bursa larvae in subsequent seasons.

    Keywords: Babesia ovis, ELISA, experimental infection, PCR, Rhipicephalus bursa, Sheep

    Received: 06 May 2024; Accepted: 12 Jul 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Firat, Ulucesme, Aktaş, Ceylan, Sevinc, Bastos, Suarez and Ozubek. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Sezayi Ozubek, Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine,, Firat University, Elazig, Türkiye

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.