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Molecular Identification and Prevalence of Ehrlichia canis and Rhipicephalus sanguineus (Acari: Ixodidae) Infecting Pet Dogs in Wenzhou, China

Molecular Identification and Prevalence of Ehrlichia canis and Rhipicephalus sanguineus (Acari: Ixodidae) Infecting Pet Dogs in Wenzhou, China

Houqiang Luo1*, Yanfang Lan2, Ping Gan3, Wenjun Zhou4, Meng Wang1
Bing Hu5, Zhuning Zhang5, Yu Bai1* and Kun Li6*

1College of Animal Science, Wenzhou Vocational College of Science and Technology, Wenzhou 325006, People’s Republic of China
2Wuhan Business University, Wuhan 430056, People’s Republic of China 
3Jiangxi Animal Disease Prevention and Control Center, Nanchang 330096, People’s Republic of China
4Qilu Animal Health Products Co., LTD., Jinan 250100, People’s Republic of China
5Agriculturral Service Center of Street Office of Datang affiliated to The People’s Government of Zhuji Municipality, Zhuji 311801, People’s Republic of China
6College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, People’s Republic of China.
 
Houqiang Luo, Yanfang Lan and Ping Gancontributed equally to this work.

*      Corresponding author: chviolet1984@sina.com; baiyu106@163.com; lik2014@sina.com

ABSTRACT

Ehrlichia canis is an important zoonotic tick-borne pathogen transmitted by the tick Rhipicephalus sanguineus (Latrielle) that causes canine monocytic ehrlichiosis (CME) in dogs. We have investigated the prevalence of R. sanguineus and E. canis infection in pet dogs in Wenzhou, China. Serum samples were obtained from animal hospitals were examined for antibodies by commercial rapid in-clinic ELISA kits. Ticks were collected from dogs and molecular detection methods were used to identify the tick species and CME by amplification of the cytochrome oxidase subunit I and disulfide oxidoreductase gene, respectively. The results indicated that 1.29% of the serum samples were positive for E. canis, and 5.50% of dogs were infested with ticks. The Wenzhou samples of R. sanguineus exhibited a high homology (99.7%–99.8%) and these parasites showed a 99.1%–100% homology to previously reported isolates. The E. canis derived from R. sanguineus in the current study showed a similarity of 98.7%–99.7% to previously published isolates. Our results indicate that precaution should be employed for the potential threat posed by these ticks, especially to pet owners.

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Pakistan Journal of Zoology

October

Pakistan J. Zool., Vol. 56, Iss. 5, pp. 2001-2500

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