Anaplasma phagocytophilum ecotype analysis in cattle from Great Britain

Apaa, T. T. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7315-1262, McFadzean, H., Gandy, S., Hansford, K., Medlock, J. and Johnson, N. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6106-9373 (2023) Anaplasma phagocytophilum ecotype analysis in cattle from Great Britain. Pathogens, 12 (8). 1029. ISSN 2076-0817 doi: 10.3390/pathogens12081029

Abstract/Summary

Anaplasma phagocytophilum (A. phagocytophilum) is the aetiological agent of tick-borne fever in cattle and sheep, and granulocytic anaplasmosis in human and dogs. Livestock, companion animal and human infections with A. phagocytophilum have been reported globally. Across England and Wales, two isolates (called ecotypes) have been reported in ticks. This study examined A. phagocytophilum isolates present in livestock and wildlife in Great Britain (GB), with a particular focus on cattle. Clinical submissions (EDTA blood) from cattle (n = 21) and sheep (n = 3) were received by APHA for tick-borne disease testing and the animals were confirmed to be infected with A. phagocytophilum using a PCR targeting the Msp2 gene. Further submissions from roe deer (n = 2), red deer (n = 2) and Ixodes ricinus ticks (n = 22) were also shown to be infected with A. phagocytophilum. Subsequent analysis using a nested PCR targeting the groEL gene and sequencing confirmed the presence of ecotype I in cattle, sheep, red deer and Ixodes ricinus, and ecotype II in roe deer and I. ricinus removed from deer carcasses. Despite the presence of two ecotypes, widely distributed in ticks from England and Wales, only ecotype I was detected in cattle in this study.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://centaur.reading.ac.uk/id/eprint/127613
Identification Number/DOI	10.3390/pathogens12081029
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	Life Sciences > School of Agriculture, Policy and Development > Department of Animal Sciences
Uncontrolled Keywords	livestock; tick-borne fever; Ixodes ricinus; ecotypes
Publisher	MDPI
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