Ticks and tick-borne diseases in the northern hemisphere affecting humans.

Temperate zones of the northern hemisphere are increasingly impacted by human biting ticks and the human pathogens they transmit. The relationships among ticks, hosts, and pathogens are undergoing significant changes with consequences for human health. This northern hemisphere focused review examines human biting ticks and the disease causing agents they transmit as increasing public health threats due to geographic range expansion, increasing size of tick populations, emergence of newly recognized pathogens, introduction of invasive tick species that are resulting in part from changing weather patterns, land use modifications, biodiversity loss, and human activities/behaviors; all of which result in significant challenges for tick control and disease prevention.

Mammal community composition and season determine the abundance of questing ticks in mountainous forests of central Japan.

Understanding the ecological drivers of tick abundance is crucial to mitigate the growing risk of tick-borne diseases such as severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) in Japan. This study investigates how mammal community composition and seasonality affect the abundance of questing ticks in mountainous forests of Gifu Prefecture, a border region of the SFTS endemic zone. Camera traps were used to monitor mammal species, and questing ticks were collected monthly via flagging along transects in 10 forest plots during 2021-2022.

Wild Japanese Marten, (Carnivora: Mustelidae), Is a New Host for Zoonotic Eyeworm.

is a spirurid nematode that parasitizes the eyes of mammals, including carnivores, lagomorphs, and humans. Although this parasite has been reported in domestic and wild animals in Japan, its presence in the Japanese marten, (Carnivora: Mustelidae), has not been documented. In this study, we examined the ocular parasites of a wild Japanese marten collected in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan, and identified based on morphological and molecular analyses.

Discovery of the potentially invasive Asian longhorned tick, Haemaphysalis longicornis Neumann (Acari: Ixodidae) in Türkiye: an unexpected finding through citizen science.

The Asian longhorned tick, Haemaphysalis longicornis Neumann, is a species commonly found in Central Asia, East Asia, and Australia, but it has recently emerged in the USA as a significant disease threat. The tick exhibits a fascinating biological trait, as certain populations are capable of reproducing both sexually and asexually via parthenogenesis. As a result, a single asexual female has the potential to initiate the establishment of a new population when introduced into a novel geographical region.

Oz Virus Infection in 6 Animal Species, Including Macaques, Bears, and Companion Animals, Japan.

Oz virus (OZV) was isolated from an Amblyomma tick in Japan and shown to cause lethal viral myocarditis in humans. However, the natural reservoirs and the distribution of OZV remain unknown. We describe epidemiologic studies conducted by using serum samples collected from mammals throughout Japan.

Forest Fragmentation and Warmer Climate Increase Tick-Borne Disease Infection.

Anthropogenic disturbances degrade ecosystems, elevating the risk of emerging infectious diseases from wildlife. However, the key environmental factors for preventing tick-borne disease infection in relation to host species, landscape components, and climate conditions remain unknown. This study focuses on identifying crucial environmental factors contributing to the outbreak of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS), a tick-borne disease, in Miyazaki Prefecture, southern Japan.

Genetic population structure of the Asian longhorned tick, Haemaphysalis longicornis, in Japan.

The Asian longhorned tick, Haemaphysalis longicornis Neumann (Ixodida: Ixodidae), is widely distributed across temperate East Asia, including Japan, and carries a variety of zoonotic diseases. The species includes bisexual and parthenogenetic lineages. Various aspects of these two lineages, such as their abundance ratio, genetic relationship, and population structure, remain unknown in island environments such as Japan that are isolated from the mainland.

Mite composition in nests of the Japanese wood mouse, Apodemus speciosus (Rodentia: Muridae).

Acari is a diverse group of arthropods that include well-known parasites of animals. Rodents, particularly, serve as common hosts of mites and ticks, transmitting pathogens to domestic animals and humans. Understanding the ecological dynamics between parasites and rodent hosts is crucial for ecosystem management.

Morphometric, histopathological and molecular findings of Macracanthorhynchus hirudinaceus infection in wild boar (Sus scrofa) from continental Italy.

Although Macracanthorhynchus hirudinaceus is a neglected acanthocephalan of suids occasionally responsible for severe infections in humans, the spread of wild boar (Sus scrofa) populations in Europe could promote the circulation. Herein, we report the first morphometric, histological and molecular characterization of a severe M. hirudinaceus infection in a boar from continental Italy.

Quantifying the direct and indirect effects of sika deer (Cervus nippon) on the prevalence of infection with Rickettsia in questing Haemaphysalis megaspinosa: A field experimental study.

Sika deer (Cervus nippon) are important hosts for all life stages of Haemaphysalis megaspinosa, a suspected Rickettsia vector. Because some Rickettsia are unlikely to be amplified by deer in Japan, the presence of deer may decrease the prevalence of Rickettsia infection in questing H. megaspinosa.

Molecular characterization of oriental eyeworm (Thelazia callipaeda) detected from raccoon (Procyon lotor) and Japanese raccoon dog (Nyctereutes viverrinus) in Kanto region, Japan.

Background: The oriental eyeworm Thelazia callipaeda (Spirurida: Thelaziidae) is an emerging parasitic ocular nematode of carnivores and humans. In domestic animals and humans, the infection causes varying degrees of inflammation and lacrimation, and wild carnivores represent an important reservoir. In this study we examined the infection status and molecular characterization of T.

Body Length and Craniometrics of Non-Native Raccoons in Two Regions in Middle Japan during Early Invasion Stages.

Although the genetic distribution of introduced raccoons () in recent years is well known, few studies have examined their morphometrics, especially the relationships between sex and age in the introduced populations. The aim of this study was to describe the morphological characteristics of raccoons from parts of eastern and western Japan during their early invasion stages, focusing on the relationships between body length and the principal component of craniometrics, with region, sex, age class, body length, and body mass index using a regression model. The body length increased more in males than females and in the older age class, supporting the association with intrasexual selection and competition for food resources.

Mapping the Potential Distribution of Ticks in the Western Kanto Region, Japan: Predictions Based on Land-Use, Climate, and Wildlife.

Background: Tick distributions have changed rapidly with changes in human activity, land-use patterns, climate, and wildlife distributions over the last few decades.

Methods: To estimate potential distributions of ticks, we conducted a tick survey at 134 locations in western Kanto, Japan. We estimated the potential distributions of six tick species ( Koch, 1844; Neumann, 1897; Hoogstraal, 1969; Neumann, 1901; Saito, 1969; and Neumann, 1899) using MaxEnt modeling based on climate patterns, land-use patterns, and the distributions of five common wildlife species: sika deer ( Temminck, 1838), wild boar ( Linnaeus, 1758), raccoon ( Linnaeus, 1758), Japanese raccoon dog ( Gray, 1834), and masked palm civet ( C.

Ecological traps and boosters of ixodid ticks: The differing ecological roles of two sympatric introduced mammals.

The raccoon (Procyon lotor) and masked palm civet (Paguma larvata) are introduced species in Japan and have become abundant in human-inhabited environments. We surveyed tick infestations and tick ingestion by introduced raccoons and masked palm civets captured in Hayama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan between November 2018 and January 2020. We collected ticks from the body surface of animals and tick capitula from the gastrointestinal contents.

First glimpse into the origin and spread of the Asian longhorned tick, Haemaphysalis longicornis, in the United States.

Established populations of Asian longhorned ticks (ALT), Haemaphysalis longicornis, were first identified in the United States (US) in 2017 by sequencing the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (cox1) 'barcoding' locus followed by morphological confirmation. Subsequent investigations detected ALT infestations in 12, mostly eastern, US states. To gain information on the origin and spread of US ALT, we (1) sequenced cox1 from ALT populations across 9 US states and (2) obtained cox1 sequences from potential source populations [China, Japan and Republic of Korea (ROK) as well as Australia, New Zealand and the Kingdom of Tonga (KOT)] both by sequencing and by downloading publicly available sequences in NCBI GenBank.

First record of infestation of a pet sloth in Japan with the exotic tick Amblyomma geayi (Acari: Ixodidae).

On December 11, 2018, a single unengorged adult tick was found on the body surface of the trunk of an imported wild-caught Linnaeus's two-toed sloth (Choloepus didactylus) during a routine health check in an animal clinic in Tokyo, Japan. The tick was identified as Amblyomma geayi based on the morphological and molecular characteristics. This is the first case of the introduction of an Amblyomma species to Japan via an imported pet sloth.

Effects of introduced sika deer (Cervus nippon) and population control activity on the distribution of Haemaphysalis ticks in an island environment.

The effects of introduced mammal species on the ecology of parasites are often under investigated. The sika deeer, , is host species of many hard ticks. We collected 8348 ticks on an island where sika deer were introduced.

Molecular Characterization of Species and a Molecular Genetic Key for the Identification of of North America.

(Acari: Ixodidae), the Asian longhorned tick, is native to East Asia, but has become established in Australia and New Zealand, and more recently in the United States. In North America, there are other native species that share similar morphological characteristics and can be difficult to identify if the specimen is damaged. The goal of this study was to develop a cost-effective and rapid molecular diagnostic assay to differentiate between exotic and native species to aid in ongoing surveillance of within the United States and help prevent misidentification.

Infestation of introduced raccoons () with indigenous ixodid ticks on the Miura Peninsula, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.

Since the raccoon () was introduced to Japan, studies have established that they are infested with native Japanese tick species. However, the quantity of ticks infesting raccoons is unknown. We conducted a survey of ticks on invasive raccoons captured on the Miura Peninsula, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, from April 2015 through June 2016 to determine the species of ticks and to quantify the intensity of tick infestation in order to obtain basal information related to the ecology of host-parasite relationships among indigenous tick species and an alien mammalian species.

Epizootic of sarcoptic mange in raccoon dogs (Nyctereutes procyonoides) in relation to population density.

To examine outbreaks of mange in raccoon dogs (Nyctereutes procyonoides) with respect to population density, we analyzed camera trap videos, and isolated mites from raccoon dog carcasses. In a camera trapping survey, we categorized the skin condition of raccoon dogs, and used a number of independent videos to calculate the relative abundance index (RAI). The RAI of raccoon dogs with alopecia increased following an increase in the RAI of those without alopecia.