THE VIROME OF RHIPICEPHALUS, DERMACENTOR AND HAEMAPHYSALIS TICKS FROM
EASTERN ROMANIA INCLUDES NOVEL VIRUSES WITH POTENTIAL RELEVANCE FOR
PUBLIC HEALTH
Abstract
Ticks are involved in the transmission of various pathogens and some
tick-borne diseases cause significant problems for the health of humans
and livestock. Despite their obvious importance, the composition of
viral communities in ticks, and their interactions with pathogens, is
poorly understood, particularly in Eastern Europe that constitutes (via
bird migrations for example) a major hub for animal-arthropod vectors
exchanges. The aim of this study was first to describe the virome of
Dermacentor sp., Rhipicephalus sp. and Haemaphysalis sp. ticks collected
from poorly investigated regions of Romania (Iasi and Tulcea counties)
located at the intersection of various biotopes, countries and routes of
migrations. We then focused the study on viruses that could have
potential relevance for human and animal health. More than 500 ticks
were collected in 2019 from the environment and from small ruminants and
analyzed by high-throughput transcriptome sequencing. Among the viral
communities infecting Romanian ticks, viruses belonging to the
Flaviviridae, Phenuiviridae and Nairoviridae families were identified
and full genomes were derivedPhylogenetic analyses placed them in clades
where mammalian isolates are found, suggesting that these viruses could
constitute novel arboviruses. We also assessed the bacterial microbiome
of the collected ticks. The characterization of these microbial
communities increases the knowledge of the diversity of viruses in
Eastern Europe and provide a basis for further studies on the
relationship between ticks and tick-borne viruses.