Genetic characteristic of Dermacentor reticulatus in the Baltic countries

Abstract

Ornate meadow tick, Dermacentor reticulatus (Fabricius, 1794) is an important tick-borne disease vector in Europe. It transmits bacterial and viral diseases dangerous to humans, livestock and wild animals. The expansion of D. reticulatus tick to the new areas has been observed in the Central and Northern Europe explained by climate change. Distribution range of these ticks are discontinuous with existing gap in the Central Poland. For this study we used various genetic markers to investigate D. reticulatus genetic diversity in the Baltic states. Ticks were collected using flagging method in a timeline of 2012 and 2017 from Lithuania, Latvia and several sites in surrounding countries. 12S, 16S rRNA and ITS2 gene fragments were successfully amplified and sequenced using specific PCR and Sanger sequencing. Acquired data showed that D. reticulatus in the Baltic states lack haplotype polymorphism but presents a separate group if compared to individuals collected in Poland and other regions of Europe.